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Homepage Archive - October 2018 (page 2)
See Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 of the October 2018 homepage archives.

Friday 12

Semiconductor Quiz

Semiconductor Quiz, February 1967 Popular Electronics - RF CafeOut of the nearly half a hundred quizzes I have posted from vintage Popular Electronics magazines, this Semiconductor Quiz that appeared in a 1967 issue is the first I can remember that was not created by Robert P. Balin. A fellow named Warren Todd made it. If you are younger than maybe 50 years old, symbols B and I might stump you, but the rest are still pretty common. Some of the labels (names) presented in the quiz are a little outdated so I have identified the abbreviations for you. That will make things much easier. For example, SBS is a silicon bidirectional switch. Bonne chance...

RF Stencils for Visio v3.1 Available!

RF Microwave Wireless Analog Block Diagrams Stencils Shapes for Visio - v3 - RF CafeWith more than 780 custom-built symbols, this has got to be the most comprehensive set of Visio Stencils available for RF, analog, and digital system and schematic drawings! Every object has been built from scratch to fit proportionally on the provided A- and B-size drawing page templates (you can use your own page if preferred). Components are provided for equipment racks (EIA and ETSI) and test equipment, system block diagrams and conceptual drawings, and for schematics...

ICANN: Global Internet Outage over Next 48 Hours

ICANN: Global Internet Outage over Next 48 Hours - RF Cafe"ICANN has scheduled the Root Zone Key Signing Key (KSK) Rollover for today, and it could affect some DNS users all over the world. By Rolling the KSK, ICANN implies that a new cryptographic public and private key pair will be generated and the private key will be distributed to internet service providers, enterprise network administrators, and Domain Name System (DNS) resolver operators. KSK Rollover operations began in October 2016 and were scheduled for October 2017. However, ICANN announced that the rollover has been postponed due to the fact that 'a significant number of resolvers used by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Network Operators are not yet ready for the Key Rollover..."

Copper Mountain Technologies USB VNA Software Now Supports Linux OS

Software for Copper Mountain Technologies USB VNAs Now Supports Linux Operating System - RF CafeCopper Mountain Technologies' VNA software is now available for Linux OS, specifically for Ubuntu and Mint distributions. The CMT VNA software for Linux includes all the same features as our VNA software for Windows. Any CMT VNA can now operate in a Linux environment, whether it is controlled manually or its operation is automated using SCPI commands via TCP/IP sockets. A first in the industry, Copper Mountain Technologies' USB VNAs operating in Linux OS extend the reach of engineers who can now incorporate precision VNAs into their Linux test environment. Test Drive Copper Mountain Technologies software without needing to have the physical hardware...

General Radio Company Advertisement

General Radio Company, October 4, 1965 Electronics Magazine - RF CafeThis advertisement for General Radio Company's Recording Wave Analyzer caught my eye due to the chain-driven interface between the upper Type 1900-A Wave Analyzer and lower Type 1521-B Graphic Level Recorder chassis. Maybe that can be considered an early form of the GPIB - General [Instruments] Physical Interface Bus. I wonder how many neckties, a rigidly-enforced item of professional dress code of the era, got caught in those exposed gears? ...or fingers for that matter? OSHA would condemn such a platform these days. It is not apparent from the photograph whether there is also an electrical interface. The quality of the printed chart output is phenomenally good for 1965 equipment - and in color, no less. I also found it interesting that a reference was made to "M. Fourier," as though maybe Fourier's first name began with an "M," but in fact his full name is Jean-Baptiste Joseph Fourier (French)...

Rohde & Schwarz USA: RF & Microwave, Analog, Digital, & Optical Test Equipment

Rohde & Schwarz USA Pocket Guides - RF CafeRohde & Schwarz develops, produces and markets test & measurement, information and communications technology. Focus is on test and measurement, broadcast and media, cybersecurity, secure communications, monitoring and network testing. Markets serviced are wireless, the automotive industry, aerospace and defense, industrial electronics, research and education, broadcast and media network operations, consumer electronics, cybersecurity for business and governments, communications and security solutions for critical infrastructures and the armed forces, reconnaissance equipment for homeland and external security, and much more...

Tiny Satellites Track Global Storms

Tiny Satellites Track Global Storms - RF Cafe"A satellite no bigger than a shoebox may one day help. Small enough to fit inside a backpack, the aptly named RainCube (Radar in a CubeSat) uses experimental technology to see storms by detecting rain and snow with very small instruments. The people behind the miniature mission celebrated after RainCube sent back its first images of a storm over Mexico in a technology demonstration in August. Its second wave of images in September caught the first rainfall of Hurricane Florence. The small satellite is a prototype for a possible fleet of RainCubes that could one day help monitor severe storms, lead to improving the accuracy of weather forecasts and track climate change over time..."

Thursday 11

The Operational Amplifier - What It Is & How It Works

The Operational Amplifier, September 1971 Popular Electronics - RF Cafe, September 1971 Popular Electronics - RF CafeHere is the second of a two-part article on operational amplifiers (opamps). Part 1 appeared in the August 1971 issue of Popular Electronics, which I have and will post soon (it still needs to be OCR'ed). Fortunately, you don't need it to find Part 2 useful. Barely half a decade had passed since Bob Widlar introduced his μA709 integrated circuit operational amplifier. Clunky attempts at vacuum tube operational amplifiers were introduced in the 1950's, but they were not overly popular. Early bipolar junction transistor opamps offered a significant reduction in size, weight, and power consumption over tubes, but did not have as high of an input impedance, had a lower gain-bandwidth product, and handled much lower power levels, which relegated their use to IF and baseband circuits...

TotalTemp Technologies ATE Bus Interface App Note

TotalTemp Technologies ATE Bus Interface App Note - RF CafeTotalTemp Technologies, leaders in thermal testing solutions, offers an app note on reprogramming bus controller software for automated test equipment (ATE) when the time inevitably comes to replace older devices. It describes the methodology used to transition from communicating with a Sigma temperature controller to Tidal Engineering's Synergy line of temperature controllers of the type actually used by TotalTemp Technologies for their products. The methodology presented can be applied to other equipment. Check TotalTemp's blog for other articles...

Notable Quote by Albert Bandura on Self-Efficacy

Notable Quote by Albert Bandura on Self-Efficacy - RF Cafe"People with high assurance in their capabilities approach difficult tasks as challenges to be mastered rather than as threats to be avoided." - Albert Bandura, psychologist specializing in self-efficacy and observational learning. For the record, I rarely find anything quotable from psychologists, but I found this one recommended by "Aviation Through Aviation" editor Bill Pritchett, of the Academy of Model Aviation's Model Aviation magazine...

Italy Electronics Market

Italy Electronics Market, December 27, 1965 Electronics Magazine - RF CafeThis is the electronics market prediction for Italy, circa 1966. It was part of a comprehensive assessment by the editors of Electronics magazine of the state of commercial, military, and consumer electronics at the end of 1965. Computers, military communications, numerically controlled factory automation, and consumer electronics drove the Italian markets, as was the case for every first-world nation. A bigger concentration on exports was becoming an important part of the equation. Unless you can find a news story on the state of the industry, detailed reports must be purchased from research companies. Their websites have a lot of charts on Italy's current electronics market showing revenue...

RF Cascade Workbook 2018

RF Cascade Workbook 2018 is the next phase in the evolution of RF Cafe's long-running series, RF Cascade Workbook. It is a full-featured RF system cascade parameter and frequency planner that includes filters and mixers for a mere $45. Built in MS Excel, using RF Cascade Workbook 2018 is a cinch and the format is entirely customizable. It is significantly easier and faster than using a multi-thousand dollar simulator when a high level system analysis is all that is needed. An intro video takes you through the main features...

everythingRF: Their Name Says It All

everything RFeverythingRF products - RF CafePlease take a few moments to visit the everythingRF website to see how they can assist you with your project. everythingRF is a product discovery platform for RF and microwave products and services. They currently have 222,383 products from more than 1182 companies across 282 categories in their database and enable engineers to search for them using their customized parametric search tool. Please visit everythingRF today to see how they can help you...

Through-Silicon Transistors Could Make Stacking Chips Smarter

Through-Silicon Transistors Could Make Stacking Chips Smarter - RF Cafe"Through-silicon vias (TSVs) are the standard way to stack chips these days. They're basically micrometer-scale vertical wires embedded in a sliver of silicon that link one chip, such as a processor, to another, such as a memory chip, stacked atop the first. That way signals don't have to travel very far between the two chips. Done right, they should save time, energy, and space. But, at the moment, they don't add any intelligence. Engineers in Germany want to change that by making TSVs smart. Their answer is a 'through-silicon transistor,' and if they're right, it should let designers actively control which signals are allowed to go from one chip to another. The implications aren't just more intelligent control..." 

Wednesday 10

All About IC's: Integrated Circuit Families

How IC's Work: Integrated Circuit Logic Families, September 1969 Radio-Electronics - RF CafeThis is part 4 of the "All About IC's" series that appeared in Radio-Electronics magazine in 1969, where author Bob Hibberd discusses the various types of integrate circuit (IC) families. He is not referring to TTL and CMOS with divisions into small scale integration (SSI), medium scale integration (MSI), large scale integration (LSI), and very large scale integration (VLSI) like we have today. Back in 1969 the IC world was still evolving through basic circuit structures like diode-diode logic (DDL), diode-transistor logic (DTL), resistor-transistor logic (RTL), direct-coupled transistor logic (DCTL), etc. What seems obvious now needed to be learned and dealt with then. It is like struggling with a homework problem and being able to look at the answer worked out in the back of the book where the solution then looks obvious...

KP Performance Antennas Intros 2.3-6.4 GHz ProLine Series

KP Performance Antennas Intros 2.3-6.4 GHz ProLine Series Antennas - RF CafeKP Performance Antennas, a manufacturer of wireless network antennas, has debuted its new ProLine antennas, a series of high-performance parabolic and sector antennas that are perfectly suited for high-density, point-to-point, point-to-multipoint and backhaul applications. KP's new ProLine parabolic antennas are engineered to deliver high, stable gain over wide bandwidths with side-lobe and back-lobe suppression for mitigating inter-sector interference. These 5 GHz antennas are available in 1-foot and 2-foot diameters with gain performance of 24 dBi and 29 dBi respectively. Single-band and dual-band options are available in 2.3-2.7 GHz, 3.5-4.2 GHz and 4.9-6.4 GHz...

Switzerland Electronics Market

Switzerland Electronics Market, December 27, 1965 Electronics Magazine - RF CafeThis is the electronics market prediction for Switzerland, circa 1966. It was part of a comprehensive assessment by the editors of Electronics magazine of the state of commercial, military, and consumer electronics at the end of 1965. This statement was a bit unexpected: "Although the Swiss are renowned for their precision work in watchmaking, machine tools and instruments, their country is regarded as 'a bit backward' in electronics." Not many major national production companies resided in Switzerland; IBM and RCA had a large presence, though. Unless you can find a news story on the state of the industry, detailed reports must be purchased from research companies...

QuinStar Technology: mm-Wave Active & Passive Components

QuinStar Technology mm-Wave Products - RF CafeQuinStar Technology designs and manufactures mm-wave products for communication, scientific, and test applications along with providing microelectronic assembly, rapid prototyping, and mass customization. Amplifiers, Oscillators, Switches, Attenuators, Circulators, Isolators, Filters, Waveguide, Antennas, Phase Shifters, Transceivers, Mixers, Detectors. QuinStar specializes in cryogenic amplifiers, circulators, and isolators. Please visit QuinStar today to see how they can help your project...

Satellite Operators Form C-Band Consortium to Protect Existing Use of Spectrum

Satellite Operators Form C-Band Consortium to Protect Existing Use of Spectrum - RF Cafe"A group of global satellite operators today announced the formation of an alliance to protect existing use of the 3.7-4.2 GHz band while also clearing a portion of the C-Band spectrum for 5G wireless services. The C-Band Alliance, or CBA, which is comprised of Intelsat, SES, Eutelsat and Telesat, wants to wrest some control over the process by which the C-Band will be freed up for terrestrial wireless use. In July, the FCC voted unanimously to study and seek comment on ways to free up some or all of the 500 MHz of mid-band spectrum for 5G. Options include an incentive auction-type approach or a market-based auction by which incumbents would voluntarily..."

Tuesday 9

The World Administrative Radio Conference (WARC)

A Report on the World Administrative Radio Conference, December 1971 Popular Electronics - RF CafeThe World Administrative Radio Conference (WARC) is associated with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). It is hard to pin down exactly when the organization's name official became the WARC since it is no longer a separate entity, and good luck locating a definitive history on the WARC proper. The closest I could come to determining a time when it was first referred to as the World Administrative Radio Conference was from this list of all radio conferences on the ITU website. The Geneva 1967 WARC is it. Previous events did not include the word "World" in them, from what I could find. Please let me know if you have another authoritative source...

Empower RF Systems Intros a 600-6000 MHz, 150 W GaN System Amplifier

Empower RF Systems Intros a 600-6000 MHz, 150 W GaN System Amplifier - RF CafeEmpower RF is pleased to announce the release of Model 2223, a single band solid state GaN system amplifier, capable of delivering a minimum 150 W across its entire 0.6 to 6 GHz band. Equally suited for the production floor, engineering lab, or anechoic chamber, the 2223 comes complete with internal DDC, external forward and reverse sample ports, and an easy to use web served GUI with dedicated features for simplifying integration into your test application. For Machine to Machine (M2M) applications the 2223 utilizes TCP/IP or UDP protocol sockets. In depth health monitoring with alarms visible on the front panel are also pushed out the LAN port...

Vintage ARRA Attenuator Advertisement in Microwaves & RF Magazine

Vintage ARRA Attenuator Advertisement in Microwaves & RF MagazineTake a look at this ARRA (Antenna & Radome Research Associates) attenuator advertisement that appeared in the September 2018 issue of Microwaves & RF magazine a tell me if it reminds you of something you might have seen in the 1960's through 1980's. That might not have been the intention, but seeing it sure triggered my nostalgia mechanism. Even the tag line, "When it comes to attenuators, nobody - but nobody - can fill our shoes," idiom, being somewhat dated, conjures up memories of vintage company slogans. Of course the black and white motif feeds the perception. Maybe I'm wrong, but if it appeals to me for any reason, the ad designers have done their job...

West Germany Electronics Market

West Germany Electronics Market, December 27, 1965 Electronics Magazine - RF CafeThis is the electronics market prediction for West Germany, circa 1966. It was part of a comprehensive assessment by the editors of Electronics magazine of the state of commercial, military, and consumer electronics at the end of 1965. West Germany was intent on being a player in the Space Race with Siemens and Telefunken providing expertise. Bochumer Verein was pushing the electronic computer frontiers forward. The article states that only about 5% of West Germany's factories including heavy industry have anything approaching the automation of American industry. Factory automation was viewed as a threat to the German workers. Unless you can find a news story on the state of the industry, detailed reports must be purchased from research companies...

Transient Specialists Offers Medical EMC Test Equipment Solutions

Transient Specialists Offers Medical EMC Test Equipment Solutions - RF CafeTransient Specialists, a leader in EMC rentals for over 30 years, announces that they will be offering additional testing capabilities for IEC 60601-1-2. The Compliance West MegaPulse in addition to the already existing surge, EFT, ringwave, dips, automotive and conducted RF will continue to make Transient Specialists a resource for Medical EMC test equipment. Transient Specialists conveniently located in the mid-west offers a variety of EMC test equipment rentals to accommodate your testing needs. Our rentals include technical support on the equipment, weekly and monthly rentals, and 2 days...

Nobel Prize in Physics 2018 Awarded for Revolutionary Lasers Work

Nobel Prize in Physics 2018 Awarded for Revolutionary Lasers Work - RF Cafe"The prestigious award was given this year to three physicists 'for groundbreaking inventions in the field of laser physics.' The event also marks the third time a woman wins the prize. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced today the winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics 2018 'for groundbreaking inventions in the field of laser physics.' The prestigious award was given with one half to Arthur Ashkin and the other half jointly to Gérard Mourou and Donna Strickland. Arthur Ashkin was recognized for inventing "optical tweezers that grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells with their laser beam fingers." Most notably in 1987, Ashkin used the novel tweezers to capture living bacteria without causing harm to them..."

Monday 8

Job Announcement: RF Sales Account Executive Needed by Empower RF Systems

Empower RF Systems Sales Account Executive - RF CafeEmpower RF Systems, Inc., is an industry-leading provider of high power RF amplifiers. Founded in 1999 and located in Inglewood, CA, the company designs and manufactures solid-state, high power amplifier systems and modules for commercial and military customers worldwide. Our next generation technology is a game changer in the market and we are seeking a well-connected and dynamic sales professional to join our Sales Team to drive accelerated growth with these products. Position Summary: This sales and leadership position is focused on driving business growth and results from our key markets of EW, Communications, Radar, and Test & Measurement. The RF Sales Account Executive has a technical background, strong credentials and contacts in OEM's and Agencies, and a demonstrated track record of partnering, team building, and strategic selling.

Rohde & Schwarz's Pocket Guide: Key Characteristics of Signal Generators and Modulation Methods

Rohde & Schwarz's Pocket Guide: Key Characteristics of Signal Generators and Modulation Methods - RF CafeRohde & Schwarz has been publishing a series of good old-fashioned printed (aka hard copy) Pocket Guides on RF test and measurement topics. This latest one titled, "Key Characteristics of Signal Generators and Modulation Methods: Pocket Guide," arrived in my mailbox (the physical one at the curb, not Outlook). There are 116 pages chock full of an amazing amount of descriptions, equations, tables, and graphs. The main topic areas are analog, vector, and arbitrary (ARB) waveform generators, and analog and digital modulation methods. It also reviews associated topics like phase noise, VSWR, intercept points, etc. A sampling of them are reproduced below. You can get your own free copy by filling out the form on the R&S website...

Many Thanks to Anatech Electronics for Long-Time Support!

Anatech Electronics logo - RF CafeAnatech Electronics (AEI) manufactures and supplies RF and microwave filters for military and commercial communication systems, providing standard LP, HP, BP, BS, notch, diplexer, and custom RF filters, and RF products. Standard RF filter and cable assembly products are published in our website database for ease of procurement. Custom RF filters designs are used when a standard cannot be found, or the requirements dictate a custom approach. Please visit Anatech today to see how they can help your project succeed...

The Magnetic Reed Switch

The Magnetic Reed Switch, September 1967 Popular Electronics - RF CafeAccording to authors Neal Jensen and Alexander Burawa, magnetic reed switches were developed as recently as 1940 at the Bell Telephone Laboratories to replace the expensive and power-hungry traditional solenoid-based relays. Development cost was reportedly $100 million ($750M in 2018 dollars). I would have guessed reed switches were invented half a century earlier, given how fundamental their concept and construction is. Maybe there was no perceived urgency back when power efficiency was not such a big concern given the wattage used by vacuum tube circuits that often employed the relays. As in increasing number of homes and businesses had telephones installed and party lines (shared by two or more users) gave way to private lines, the physical...

United Kingdom Electronics Market

United Kingdom Electronics Market, December 27, 1965 Electronics Magazine - RF CafeThis is the electronics market prediction for United Kingdom, circa 1966. It was part of a comprehensive assessment by the editors of Electronics magazine of the state of commercial, military, and consumer electronics at the end of 1965. The British post office was investing in communications and automation, while Thorn Electric was cranking out TV's. Ecko Electronics Plessey, and Marconi were manufacturing defense electronics and dabbling in newfangled computers. Unless you can find a news story on the state of the industry, detailed reports must be purchased from research companies. Their websites have a lot of charts on the UK's current electronics market...

Lotus Communications Systems: Modularized RF System Components

Lotus Communication SystemsLotus Communication Systems is a supplier of high performance connectorized RF modular system components, shielded project cases, and special purpose solutions up through 40 GHz. Lotus is a privately owned company with mechanical and electronic design, manufacture, test controlled from its Middlesex, MA, facility. They have multiple 4 axis CNC machines and LPKF circuit plotters. Lotus can provide custom extension of our standard products, custom designs for specific applications and prototyping for your new products...

Can China's Laser Satellite Detect Deep-Diving Submerged Submarines?

Can China's Laser Satellite Detect Deep-Diving Submerged Submarines? - RF Cafe"Chinese scientists are working on a laser satellite device they hope will be able to detect the location of a submerged submarine target located as far as 1,600 feet below the ocean surface from space. The South China Morning Post reports. It is the latest addition to China's expanding deep-sea surveillance program, and aside from targeting submarines - most submerged submarines operate at a depth of less than 1,600 feet - it also could collect data on the world's oceans. Project Guanlan, meaning 'watching the big waves,' officially was launched in May at the Pilot National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology..."

Windfreak Technologies Frequency Synthesizers - RF Cafe

Exodus Advanced Communications Best in Class RF Amplifier SSPAs

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