|
See Page 1 |
2 |
3 of the February
2018 homepage archives.
Tuesday 20
 Bliley Technologies has been manufacturing
oscillators and crystals in Erie, Pennsylvania, since 1930. That's pretty amazing.
Bliley's 64,000 square foot facility is only a few miles from my home. The
Erie Times-News published a feature article on them in today's
edition that has some photos from inside the plant. Note the stack of vintage-looking
test equipment on the benches in the background (high-res). Despite its rather run-down appearance, Erie
and the surrounding area is home a lot of high-tech industries including plastics,
electronics, metal plating, industrial electrical equipment, and medical paraphernalia.
The crime and cost of living are low here...
 ConductRF provides 3 styles of solution for
DAS applications
in Stadiums, Malls, Campuses, Hotels and more. Straight & R/A Low PIM Connectors
are available for 7/16, N, SMA, QMA, 4.1/9.5 and 4.3/10 interfaces. We also offer
Low PIM Adapters and PIM Test Cables for all these series. Utilizing ConductRF's
new Low PIM Direct Solder Attachment Connectors, we provide high performance solutions
for Low PIM interconnect including Straight, Right Angle, Bulkhead and Panel attachment.
Performance better than -155dBc is validated through 100% testing...
 The
Josephson effect was predicted in 1962 by British physicist Brian
David Josephson. It postulated the possibility of a resistance-less path for electrical
current across an extremely thin insulator sandwiched between two superconductors.
Dr. Juri Matisoo, of IBM, is credited with building the first Josephson junction
switch in 1967, demonstrating sub-nanosecond switching times. Back in the day, superconducting
materials, like graphene, were resources available only to well-funded research
establishments like major corporations, universities, and government facilities.
Now, anyone with an interest can order both...
 Anatech Electronics,
a manufacturer of RF and microwave filters, has published its February newsletter.
In it, Sam Benzacar writes in "The Magic in Sprint's Magic Box" about how Sprint,
which "has always been the Number Four wireless carrier," is surreptitiously catching
up because of the widespread distribution of its personal cell extenders. Sam has
a lot of insight into the wireless business through decades of keeping his finger
on the pulse of the industry, and has written much about it. These monthly newsletters
always provide good tidbits you likely won't find elsewhere...
 Rohde & Schwarz has published this application
note on eCall. "Emergency Call (eCall) is a service provided in Europe with the goal of reducing
response times for acci- dents or other emergencies on the roadways. This application
note briefly describes the technology behind eCall and presents conformance tests
for eCall using the R&S ® CMW500 RF tester and the R&S ® SMBV100A vector
signal generator. A Test software for eCall makes it quick and easy to perform these
tests with the GSM or WCDMA wireless communications standard. It also shows a test
solution for GNSS performance tests for eCall using..."
 "Back in 1998, who would've predicted the
wireless technology's current ubiquitousness? Can you believe it? Bluetooth is 20
years old. My, my, how time flies. Who would have thought back in 1998 that this
nascent technology would become an important part of our lives? Today BT is everywhere.
Go ahead and count up the number of BT radios you use every day. Be amazed. Taking
inventory, I determined today that I must own about a half-dozen BT radios. It appears
in our smartphones, our hands-free..."
Monday 19
 KR Electronics has released part number 3337+,
which is a 1208
MHz lowpass filter. The filter is a selective elliptic type filter. The stopband
starts at 1292 MHz and is maintained to >6 GHz. The filter is supplied
in a miniature surface mount package measuring 0.20" x 0.30" x 0.18". Other
frequencies and bandwidths are available. Data sheets are available...
RIGOL Technologies announces a significant addition to its portfolio of RF Test
Instrumentation with the introduction of the
New RSA5000
Real-Time Spectrum Analyzer. The RSA5000 combines the power of a high performance
swept spectrum analyzer with superior Real-time performance unmatched in this product
category. Available in 3.2 GHz and 6.5 GHz models all RSA5000 Series Analyzers
provide Resolution Bandwidth (RBW) down to 1 Hz, a noise floor as low as...
 A decade after
tunnel diodes were first invented by Nobel Laureate Leo Esaki,
grand plans for the unique device never played out. Predictions included its use
for computer solid state memories to replace magnetic core arrays. Tunnel diodes
benefitted from the aura surrounding their exploitation of the quantum mechanical
tunnelling phenomenon, which had a futuristic ring to it. Conventional diodes, having
a relatively wide depletion region, require the current carriers (electrons and
holes) to overcome a potential hill in traveling from the valence band to the conduction
band of energies. Since high doping levels are used in the tunnel diode, a narrow
depletion region is formed at the junction. This allows electrons...
 On many occasions in both the lab and on installed
equipment I have run into "unexplainable" problems of signal leakage and/or crosstalk
that ended up being poor
ground issues. Ground loops can be particularly frustrating. This
new book written by the highly experienced and regarded H. Ward Silver, with
degrees from both universities and The School of Hard Knocks, will be a valuable
resource for your own situations. A mere $23 investment could be invaluable...
Triad RF Systems announces their new
TTA1007 is a 500 - 2800 MHz, 5 W Amplifier designed
for use in many general purpose applications where a small size and light weight
are preferable. This amplifier supports any signal type and modulation scheme, including
3G, 4G, WLAN, OFDM, DVB, and CW/AM/FM. This class A GaAs module is designed for
both military and commercial applications. It is capable of supporting any signal
type and modulation format, including but not limited to 3-4G telecom, WLAN, OFDM,
DVB, and...
 "A mobile hotspot network will deliver 1.25
Gbps WiFi to subway customers allowing them to stream HD videos without interruption
while underground, thanks to a newly-developed mm-wave wireless backhaul technology.
The first commercial service using this technology will debut on the Seoul subway
system later this year. The technology was developed by ETRI, Korea's Electronics
and Telecommunications Research Institute The network transmits..."
Sunday 18
 At least 10 clues with an asterisk (*)
in this technology-themed crossword puzzle are pulled from this past week's (2/12
- 2/16) "Tech Industry Headlines" column on the RF Cafe homepage (see the Headline
Archives page for help). For the sake of all the avid cruciverbalists amongst us,
each week I create a new technology-themed crossword puzzle using only words from
my custom-created related to engineering, science, mathematics, chemistry, physics,
astronomy, etc. Enjoy...
Friday 16
 "The
gallium-nitride HEMT-LED lets voltage control light, replacing
typical LED support circuitry A new device could make upcoming microLED displays
easier to engineer and visible light communications systems, like LiFi, faster.
As IEEE Fellow Kei May Lau sees it, the problem with conventional LEDs, which are
current controlled devices, is that turning them on and off rapidly to control brightness
or using them for Li-Fi takes careful engineering and a bunch of circuitry. 'Most
IC designers would rather work with voltage control device, but LEDs are..."
 "Operation of modern-day technology requires
an ever-increasing use of broadband frequency signals. This, in turn, has grown
the demand for reliable, efficient methods of signal transmission that prevent interference
and are more efficient in their use of the scarcely available frequency spectrum.
These requirements are constrained, however, by reciprocity - a law of physics that
forces the transmission of light to be identical in opposite directions. In past
decades, scientists and engineers have..."
 A series of three articles appeared in 1973
issues of Popular Electronics that conducted a high-level review - or introduction
if you've never seen it before - of DC circuit analysis. In this first installment,
Professor Arthur Seidman, of the Pratt Institute, covers a variety of subjects starting
with
direct current (DC) circuit theory. Ideal current and voltage
sources, units and notations, Ohm's law, Kirchhoff's law, resistors, capacitor and
inductor charge and discharge curves, series and parallel circuits, power calculations,
conductance, and other good stuff is covered. There is even (gasp) a bit of calculus
presented...
JFW Industries announces the availability of
Model 50MS-367 2.9MM is a 4 X 4 Blocking Matrix Switch operating
DC-40 GHz with 50 Ohm, 2.9mm female connectors. This unit is remotely controlled
via Ethernet or RS-232, and it utilizes our 3.X.X firmware command set. All unused
input and output ports are self-terminating at 50 Ohms, and the current IP settings
and serial baud rate are displayed on the front panel which can be updated using...
Saelig has introduced the patented
Sol Chip Saturn802 Energy Harvester IC - a unique photovoltaic
(PV) cell which can produce output voltage levels of 0.75 V, 1.5 V, 2.25 V,
3.0 V, 4.5 V, and 9 V, which existing solar cells cannot do. The
maximum power which can be obtained in full daylight is around 10 mW, or 55 uW
in office lighting, so the Saturn802 IC is targeted at low-power applications. The
size of the die is approximately 1 cm by 1 cm, and the stable voltage
levels are available from separate pins of the device. The IC can be used with
or without a back-up...
 "Two Waterloo chemists have made it easier
for manufacturers to produce a new class of
faster and cheaper semiconductors. The chemists have found a way
to simultaneously control the orientation and select the size of single-walled carbon
nanotubes deposited on a surface. That means the developers of semiconductors can
use carbon as opposed to silicon, which will reduce the size and increase the speed
of the devices while improving their battery life. 'We're reaching the limits of
what's physically possible with..."
Thursday 15
 This is Part 3 of a series of articles on
atomic radiation that appeared in Electronic World magazine
in 1969. It deals with measurement techniques and equipment. Shippingport Atomic
Power Station, the first full scale nuclear power plant in the U.S., went operational
in 1957. It marked the dawn of a new era of electric power generation that was filled
with grandiose predictions of limitless, non-polluting, dirt cheap power. Everything
was going to be powered by electricity - air heating and cooling, lighting, automobiles,
water heating. Atomic power was going to be a figurative and almost literal beating
of swords into ploughshares as the destructive energy...
 "At DESY's X-ray source PETRA III, scientists
have followed the growth of tiny wires of gallium arsenide live. Their observations
reveal exact details of the growth process responsible for the evolving shape and
crystal structure of the crystalline nanowires. The findings also provide new approaches
to tailoring nanowires with desired properties for specific applications. The scientists,
headed by Philipp Schroth of the University of Siegen and the Karlsruhe Institute
of Technology (KIT), published..."
A growing order book and plans for future development of the business means leading
microwave engineering company Flann Microwave is to
increase its workforce in Bodmin, Cornwall, UK, by 10%. With a
current team of 60 based in Bodmin, Flann has grown over six decades to secure a
global reputation and market leading position in the design and manufacture of precision
microwave communications equipment, for example, in radar and to allow internet
and mobile data to be carried between mobile phone...
  Are you old enough to remember when
Reader Service Cards were inserted into the binding of magazines?
One of these circa 1969
tech-themed comics appearing in Electronics World magazine has the
husband anxiously telling his wife to hurry and send in a Reader Service Card for
his radio system that was spewing parts. The fact is that was not the purpose of
Reader Service Cards; they were for getting product information, not for requesting
repairs or replacement parts. Reader Service Cards were the old world version of
website URLs and QR (quick response) scan codes...
By Rogers Corporation, Microwave Journal magazine. "Millions of cell
phones trying to connect voices and download unimaginable numbers of files worldwide
point to the inevitability of Fifth Generation (5G) wireless communications networks.
5G is coming, and it will require the right
circuit materials for many different types of high-frequency circuits,
including power amplifiers (PAs). 5G may represent the latest and greatest in wireless
technology, but it will be challenging to design..."
 "Astronomers at the National Astronomical
Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) using the HINODE spacecraft observed the
strongest magnetic field ever directly measured on the surface
of the Sun. Analyzing data for 5 days around the appearance of this record breaking
magnetic field, the astronomers determined that it was generated as a result of
gas outflow from one sunspot pushing against another sunspot. Magnetism plays a
critical role in various solar phenomena such as flares, mass ejections, flux ropes,
and coronal heating. Sunspots are areas of concentrated magnetic..."
Wednesday 14
 Have you ever started a relatively simple
investigation into a trivial matter, only to find yourself going down the metaphorical
"rabbit hole" even after finding the original answer? Such was the case for me when
someone sent me an e-mail with a signature that included his
amateur radio call sign. The first three characters, KB3, matched
mine and that got me wondering on what date his call sign was granted compared to
mine. Let us say for example* the writer's call sign was KB3PGM and mine is (actually)
KB3UON. I looked them up in the FCC's ULS self-serve license...
 "University of New Mexico and University of
California Santa Barbara in the USA have been studying the effect of crystal orientation
on the
modulation bandwidth of indium gallium nitride (InGaN) light-emitting
diodes (LEDs). In particular, the researchers sought high bandwidth at lower current
injection where the efficiency of InGaN LEDs is higher, reducing 'droop' effects.
The non-polar m-plane (10-10) orientation was found to have the largest 3 dB (half-power)
bandwidth, with a value of more..."
Mini-Circuits announces the availability of four new devices in its lineup of
RF and microwave components.
Included are a high pass filter with a passband of 8 to 24 GHz, an ultra-high
dynamic range MMIC amplifier matched to 50 Ω from 30 MHz to 2 GHz,
an absorptive solid state SP4T switch controlled by USB and I2C connection, and
an LTCC band pass filter having a pass band from 4620 to 6640 MHz...
 The transition from vacuum tubes to semiconductors,
and from black and white to color televisions was in full swing by 1973. Accompanying
the change in components was a re-thinking of the most effective and profitable
method of manufacturing and servicing the new equipment.
Modularization was thought to be key to future success even though
production costs were slightly higher. Reliability improvements were already reducing
the need for service calls and highly trained technicians who could troubleshoot
failures down to the component level. Swapping out suspect modules with known-good
modules, in Mac's words, results in "a quickly trained module swapper who knows
only 'how' and not..."
By Rob Rutkowski, Microwaves & RF magazine. As
small satellites become more prevalent, the GPSDO can function
as a timing solution to enable successful missions. This post explains the importance
of timing before diving into GPSDOs. "Small satellites have grown dramatically over
the past decade—and they are still growing fast and furiously. In this post, you'll
learn about how to achieve mission success for satellites and how GPS disciplined
oscillators (GPSDOs) can do the trick. A Growing Space The initial surge of small
satellites has been attributed to the curiosity of R&D. Much of this..."
Please welcome Joseph
"Pat" Dunagan to our exclusive list of former and current USAF radar techs.
Pat is the first officer amongst us, so that unofficially makes him the ranking
member on the page - not including 5CCG commander Col. John Kopsick, who did not
actually maintain equipment. Along with time in the regular Air Force, he also did
time as Chief of Maintenance in the Reserve 55th CBCS mobile combat outfit at Robins
AFB where I was stationed. He had responsibility for MPN-13/14 and TPN-19 radars...
 "Living life in the fast lane can be tremendously
exciting, giving us the 'time of our lives' but how long does it really last? Experiments
at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai have answered this
question for a bunch of electrons traveling
faster than light (fasten your seatbelts!) through a piece of
glass. This study, done in collaboration with the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory
in the UK and Centre for Intense Laser Studies and Applications (CELIA) in France
has appeared..."
Tuesday 13
Comparing Narrowband and Wideband
Channels
By Jack Browne, Microwaves & RF magazine.
Narrowband and wideband communications channels make use of available
bandwidth in different ways—so employ them according to the requirements of a particular
application. "Bandwidth is limited at all frequencies. This holds true whether we're
discussing those in the kilohertz range used for amplitude-modulated (AM) radio
broadcasting; microwaves and millimeter waves for commercial and military radar
systems; or those frequencies bands with the shortest-wavelength electromagnetic
(EM)..."
 Rigol's product line includes
spectrum analyzers and RF signal generators, digital and mixed
signal o-scopes, arbitrary waveform generators, sensitive measurement products,
and data acquisition systems. Their test solutions combine superior product performance,
quality, and advanced product features; all delivered at extremely attractive price
points. Applications include technical education, WiFi integration, EMC, and manufacturing.
Rigol delivers unprecedented value for your investment, reduced overall cost of
test, and help speed time to completion of designs or projects...
 When I first began designing circuits in
the 1990s using
active filters, the upper frequency was limited to a few tens
of kHz because of the gain-bandwidth product of the available amplifiers. That made
them useful in baseband circuits, but that was about it. There were also issues
with the noise figure and intercept points and intermodulation product levels. Today,
you can get fully integrated and programmable active filters which operate at tens
of MHz and beyond, and with much better RF-type specifications. That makes them
useful in low intermediate frequency (IF) circuits as well as at baseband. BTW,
this article is one of about ten dealing with filter types in...
EDI CON China 2018, a conference that brings together engineers working on high-frequency
analog and high-speed digital designs, taking place March 20-22, 2018 at the China
National Convention Center (Beijing, China), announces registration is now open
and the technical program is now live at www.ediconchina.com. In its sixth year, EDI CON China 2018 includes
technical conference sessions as well as workshops, panels, keynotes, poster sessions,
and demonstrations from industry leading exhibitors in the RF, microwave, and high-speed
digital industries...
"In an effort to further increase the capacity of wireless equipment, Tokyo Institute
of Technology (Tokyo Tech) and Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. have developed a CMOS wireless
transceiver chip that can process signals at high speeds across a broad range of
frequencies, from 70 to 105 GHz, using their own
bandwidth-increasing technology. With these developments, they
succeeded in achieving wireless transmission speeds of 120 gigabits per second (Gbps),
the fastest in the world. There has been an increase in research and development
activities with the aim of developing..."
 Why rent test equipment from Axiom? Get test equipment
without a capital budget. Tax benefits - the expense of a rental can be deducted
immediately. Protects you against product obsolescence. Save time and money with
quick delivery. Try equipment out before committing a lot of money to a purchase.
Save time and money on maintenance costs (which are the responsibility of the rental
company). Please contact Axiom today for your rental needs...
 "Using 3D printers, researchers have created
a
metamaterial from cubic building blocks that responds to compression
forces by a rotation. Usually, this can only be achieved by transmission using a
crankshaft, for example. If a force is exerted from above onto a material, the latter
deforms in various ways. It may be bulged, compressed, or bent; however, according
to the rules of mechanics, it will not rotate. The researchers designed a filigree
cubic structure that reacts to loading by a rotation around its axis. Using computer
simulation, a design..."
Monday 12
 Mobile World Congress is the world's largest
gathering for the mobile industry, organised by the GSMA and held in the Mobile
World Capital, Barcelona, February 26 - March 1 2018. Industry leaders will gather,
network, showcase, and exchange ideas - and you don't want to miss it. The mobile
world connects in Barcelona. Discover the future of mobile as top companies give
an exclusive first look at the latest innovations. Make plans now...
 Here is a unique type of article from a
1974 issue of Popular Electronics. Author Ralph Tenny presents a
poor-man's environmental test chamber constructed with a Styrofoam
picnic cooler, a dry ice sump, a heater, a thermocouple, and a bunch of input/output
ports for making electrical measurements. While working on my senior project at
college - an electronic remote weather station - I needed to verify functionality
up to 150°F and down to 0°F. Having the Torture Box would have been handy, but instead
I used the kitchen oven and freezer with the interconnect cable mashed between the
door gasket and frame. Unfortunately I don't have any...
 Microwaves & RF magazine published their
2017 Salary & Career Report last fall, but it didn't appear
in print until the January(?) issue. It is a very comprehensive collection of data
based on geographical location, years in the profession, time at present company,
job title, and much more. I count about 27 different statistics with charts, tables,
and maps. Oddly for an engineering magazine, there does not seem to be info on the
number of participants or what the error is for sample size. I downloaded the PDF
version and don't see it there, either...
 Anatech
Electronics, Inc. offers the industry's largest portfolio of high-performance
standard and customized
RF
and microwave filters and filter-related products for military, commercial,
aerospace and defense, and industrial applications up to 40 GHz. Anatech has
introduced three new filters for your convenience: a 3000 MHz stripline highpass
filter with SMA connectors, a surface mount low-loss 100 MHz IF SAW filter,
and a 4700 MHz cavity bandpass filter with N connectors...
 "As contemporary electronics embrace light
weight, increasing efficiency, and high speed, each link of the manufacturing process
also conforms to this philosophy, including printed circuit board (PCB) assembly.
Soldering has played an essential role in determining the success of electronic
products, since electrical connections derive from precise soldering. Compared with
hand soldering,
automatic soldering has been widely selected due to its merits
of high accuracy and speed, and the demands of large volume..."
Sunday 11
 At least 10 clues with an asterisk (*)
in this
technology-themed crossword puzzle are pulled from this past week's
(2/5 - 2/9) "Tech Industry Headlines" column on the RF Cafe homepage (see the Headline
Archives page for help). For the sake of all the avid cruciverbalists amongst us,
each week I create a new technology-themed crossword puzzle using only words from
my custom-created related to engineering, science, mathematics, chemistry, physics,
astronomy...
|
