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5 of the October 2018 homepage archives. Friday 19
 Electronica 2018 is just a month away, it being
held in Munich, Germany, on November 13th through 16th. It is held every two years at
the Messe München trade-fair center. You would be forgiven for believing that because
the show has always been based in Germany that it was a German nation brainchild. However,
based on the article in a 1964 issue of Electronics magazine - the first year
of Electronica - its progenitor was the American trade group International Electronics
Association (IEA - no longer in operation). Its founders wanted to usurp France's Salle
de Composants as Europe's largest components trade show. And now you know... the rest
of the story, as Paul Harvey would end his broadcast. Strong opposition was provided
by Germany's Central Association of the Electro-Technical Industry (ZVEI - still in operation today). In the pre-Internet world,
getting the word out - especially in other countries - about a company's new
product offerings...
 "Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will
not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of
educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press
On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. " -
Calvin Coolidge,
30th president o the United States of America. Thanks to Ted Beck for sending it to me.
 This headline about an
artificial moon
immediately smelled like fake news to me - which means a typical
science-challenged reporter would buy it without question hook, line, and
sinker. It doesn't occur to the writer that in order for the scheme to work, the
satellite would need to be in geostationary orbit, 33,200 miles above the Earth.
That's a long way with a lot of light level attenuation before even entering the
densest part of the atmosphere near the surface. Scattering and dispersion would
make focusing a light beam on a particular area with enough intensity to be
useful would be impossible - especially in China's smog-filled cities. I've got
a call in to the reporter with an offer to sell him / her the Brooklyn Bridge at
a good price...
 Triad RF Systems has shipped their latest
L-Band DUAL Bi-Directional Amplifier (BDA), the TTRM1081D. This unit is
compatible with all military and commercial radios and provides over 25 W of RF
power across 1.3 to 1.4 GHz. Made specifically for MIMO radios, providing 2
radio and 2 antenna ports, each providing 5 W of 64 QAM power or 20 W of BPSK
power. The BDA operates off a single +28 V supply and provides 25 dB of TX gain
and 11 dB of RX gain in both channels. It is available with automatic or manual
switching, depending on the radio system...
 In 1970, engineers at the Hamilton Watch Company
introduced the world's first solid state electronic digital watch called the
Pulsar Time Computer. It went on sale commercially two years later, just a few months
after this article appeared in the December 1971 issue of Popular Electronics
magazine. Motorola created this "$25,000 Sundial," which represents the research and
development cost of the LED clock display that the company predicted would one day lead
to an inexpensive wristwatch. Maybe they hadn't seen the The Tonight Show
show where it made its debut in 1970. The Pulsar Big Time watch retailed for
$295 in 1972, which in 2018 is the equivalent of $1,777 (per the BLS Inflation
Calculator). That's about three times the cost of the top end Series 4 Apple
Watch today, and all the Pulsar watch could do was tell time...
 Copper
Mountain Technologies develops innovative and robust RF test and measurement solutions
for engineers all over the world. Copper Mountain's extensive line of unique form factor
Vector Network Analyzers
include an RF measurement module and a software application which runs on any
Windows PC, laptop or tablet, connecting to the measurement hardware via USB
interface. The result is a lower cost, faster, more effective test process that
fits into the modern workspace in lab, production, field and secure testing
environments...
 "Researchers at the Ångström Laboratory, are working
on a way towards enhancing RF amplifiers to make them more affordable, efficient and
accessible for medical applications like cancer diagnosis. With the upgraded technology,
the cost of maintenance and operation of these amplifiers can be reduced significantly.
This research is being carried out under the EU project
ENEFRF. Dragos Dancila at the Division of Solid State Electronics
and FREIA is heading the Eurostars project ENEFRF. The plan is to develop
radio-frequency amplifiers for new cyclotrons in collaboration with GE
Healthcare..."
Thursday 18
 Mr. Glen Robb, owner of
Antenna Test Lab, has an article in the October 2018 issue of
Microwaves & RF magazine titled, "Assemble
Antennas with 3D Printing. Says Rob, "Three-dimensional printers working
with plastic materials can create the foundations that are then spray-painted
with metallic coatings to form high-frequency RF / microwave antennas. Antennas
are RF / microwave components that lend themselves to 3D printing, especially
with the large volumes, miniaturization, and repeatability required for antennas
in many mobile applications. Certainly, design engineers have considered the
possibility of printing different types of miniature RF/microwave antennas.
However, they may have wondered about how the performance of these printed
antennas might compare to traditionally manufactured antennas..."
 If - and that's a big "if" - you can find a hobby
shop today, it is still a great source of tools and materials for building electronics
projects. Just as the convenience, vast selection of products, and competitive prices
of the Internet has been killing all sorts of brick and mortar stores since the early
21st century,
local hobby shops (LHS's) have all but disappeared from most towns. There are still
a handful of full-featured, well-stocked hobby shops to be found, but they are rare anymore.
A lot of the small hobby-type hand tools (X-acto knives and saws, Dremel tools &
bits) can be bought in home improvement stores, and the large craft stores often
carry balsa, aircraft plywood, poplar wood, small gauge brass and aluminum
tubing and sheets, plastic models and paint, and Estes rockets...
 Anatech Electronics 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 filter designs: a surface-mount 45 MHz IF SAW
filter with a 10 MHz bandwidth; a surface-mount 2050 ceramic bandpass filter
with a 900 MHz bandwidth; and a 2037.5 MHz cavity bandpass filter with a 12 MHz
bandwidth and SMA connectors. Custom RF filters designs are used when a standard
cannot be found, or the requirements are such that a custom approach is
necessary...
 Concentric Technology Solutions is your one stop
source for RF shield boxes,
RF enclosures, Bluetooth testers, WiMax testers, RFID testers and RF power amplifiers.
CTS can supply off-the-shelf or custom products for your testing needs requiring maximum
RF shielding in order to produce repeatable results in laboratory and production environments.
Manual and pneumatic operation is available. TEM cells, glove boxes, forensic enclosures,
and special purpose per your requirements.
 "Harris Corporation and L3 Technologies have agreed
to merge in an all-stock deal of equals to create a global defense technology leader,
focused on developing differentiated and mission-critical solutions for customers around
the world. Under the terms of the merger agreement, which was unanimously approved by
the boards of directors of both companies, L3 shareholders will receive a fixed exchange
ratio of 1.30 shares of Harris common stock for each share of L3 common stock, consistent
with the 60-trading day average exchange ratio of the two companies. The combined company,L3 Harris Technologies, Inc.,
will be the 6th largest defense company in the U.S. and a top 10 defense company
globally, with approximately 48,000 employees..."
Wednesday 17
 Most people have heard of the incredibly accurate
Norden bombsight that was credited for revolutionizing accuracy of heavy bombers like
B-17s, B-25s, and B-29s. It was an electromechanical device that took bombardier inputs
of altitude, airspeed, heading, and wind speed and direction, then calculated the impact
point of the bomb. An accuracy of 75 feet was claimed under ideal conditions - provided
by a mechanical computing device. By 1956 when this article was published, the Norden
had been replaced by radar-integrated bombing systems. Additionally,
ground-based radar measurement systems were...
 Here is why government control over the U.S. taxpayer-funded
development of the Internet should not be ceded - it makes us vulnerable to the whims
of a few megalomaniac chieftains. "Don't expect Amazon to follow Google's lead when it
comes to working with the
U.S. Department of Defense. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos made a surprise
appearance at the Wired 25 conference in San Francisco on Monday. In light of Google's
decision last week to pull out of a bid for the DoD's JEDI cloud computing
project, he was asked about his philosophy in regard to big tech companies
working with government. 'We are going to continue to support the DoD, and I
think we should,' Bezos said..."
5G Brings New RF Challenges for Handsets
 Open your smartphone and count the antennas within.
They take on many form factors and are often multi-band, making it difficult for the
untrained eye to discern the implementation. It is a true wonder of antenna engineering.
Factor in that they have to work regardless of whether being held in a hand, pressed
between a shoulder and ear, or sitting in a pocket or handbag. Genius is at work there.
I remember during my reverse engineering days when there were maybe three antennas in
a handset. Take a look at the block diagram in this "5G Brings New RF Challenges for Handsets" MWJ article by
Ben Thomas of Qorvo and note the 8 antennas depicted. How many people can pull
off such a challenge? Beyond that there is RF signal switching and isolation,
analog and digital processing, filtering, AGC, ALC, and other tasks. Amazing...
 Just to remind you that patent laws are continually
being monkeyed with by lawmakers and challenged in court by litigants, here is a news
item from a 1965 issue of Electronics magazine reporting on a Supreme Court
case brought by Hazeltine Research regarding their
patent application for a microwave switch. Evidently over time the Supreme
Court had been raising the bar on patent filings by requiring a higher degree of
uniqueness for new inventions. The 1952 U.S. Patent Act, enacted by the U.S.
Congress, simplified the terms of claims for new patents, thus making them
easier to obtain, but according to critics, making new patents less valuable in
the process. Now (in 1965), the Supreme court was moving itself back to ward the
pre-1952 criteria. Judicial activism, anyone...
 ERZIA
serves critical aerospace and defense missions by designing and manufacturing
RF, microwave, and mm-wave amplifiers,
integrated assemblies operating from low frequencies up to 100 GHz, and by
providing high reliable satellite communications. The company was founded in
2002 to become a worldwide reference of advanced engineering, performance,
reliability and ruggedness. Their catalogue of standard amplifier modules
comprises more than 100 different models, having also a high capacity of
customization for amplifiers and integrated assemblies. Some of products have
space heritage and are used in aerospace, commercial, military and scientific
systems, having a wide range of final applications...
 "Telrad
Networks has announced the release of its
MU-MIMO
technology after completing a successful trial. The new technology is set to
help operators increase capacity in a network by up to 70%, and thereby
increasing subscriber connectivity rates. The new feature was tested in the
trial by long-term customer Seaside Wireless Communications, a Canadian Wireless
Internet Service Provider located in Nova Scotia. The company in recent times
has been able to double its spectral efficiency during this trial, which meant
they could add subscribers to their network within the current spectrum they
already utilize. The new feature falls into an overall strategy by the company
to increase capacity..."
Tuesday 16
 The lesson learnt (or learned) by Barney in this
Mac's Radio Service Shop saga is one that he has learned (or learnt) before,
if you are an regular reader of the feature. As always, the story is a
combination docudrama and tutorial concerned with troubleshooting, handing
customers, giving air to some newfangled device, or instruction on circuit
theory. Proprietor Mac McGregor is usually the teacher and Barney the pupil, but
on rare occasions the roles are reversed. As you will see in this episode, radio
and television set designers ginned up all kinds of ways to accomplish the same
end objective - whether to avoid patent infringements or preferred exercising of
creativity - and the nuances between them could cause no end of frustration to
even highly trained and experienced troubleshooters. An additional inconvenience
set upon technicians...
 SAW and BAW devices have been around for
many decades. They have not always been inexpensive commodities during that
time, however. When I first entered the defense electronics realm as an engineer
in the late 1980's, a SAW filter in the 70 MHz band (common for IF's in the day)
could easily cost $20 in volume quantities. They had high insertion losses and
did not handle much power. Now, of course, SAW's are dirt cheap and have much
better performance. This article titled, "SAW/BAW New Market Entrants Offer New
Approaches," which appears in the October issue of Microwave Journal, reports on
some new techniques being utilized by vendors...
 PierCon Solutions, a solid, tenured, and proven
wireless consulting and engineering firm, is in need of an experienced
RF Engineer.
Based in Lincoln Park, NJ, PierCon is dedicated to providing world-class engineering
and consulting services to our customers. PierCon is a recognized leader in the wireless
designs of in-building coverage, Broadband, WiMAX/LTE, Microwave, Cellular, Public Safety,
Interoperability, PCS, iDEN (ESMR), In-Building First Responder and In-Building cellular
and WiFi, and interference mitigation. In this RF Engineer position you will routinely
assists in zoning and testimony preparation by creating maps, summary sheets and zoning
exhibits using information collected from the Client. Occasionally performs testing of
new and existing cell sites test equipment. Supports investigation...
 As someone who has been a Windows user since version
2.0, I have followed Microsoft co-founders
PPaul Allen and Bill Gates in the tech news for more than 3 decades.
Mr. Allen, a mere 5 years my senior, died on Monday, October 15, 2018, from complications
of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He generously end enthusiastically funded aerospace research,
including in conjunction with
Burt Rutan,
whom I greatly admire. Looking at the included photo, it is hard to imagine we
were all that young at one time. Time is a cruel master. Tempus fugit, and even
a billion dollar fortune and good works cannot buy immortality. RIP, Paul
Allen...
 Triad RF Systems designs and manufactures
RF power amplifiers and systems. Triad
RF Systems comprises three partners (hence 'Triad') with
over 40 years of accumulated knowledge of what is required to design, manufacture, market,
sell and service RF/Microwave amplifiers and amplifier systems. PA, LNA, bi-directional,
and frequency translating amplifiers are available, in formats including tower mount,
benchtop, rack mount, and chassis mount. "We view Triad more as a technology partner
than a vendor for our line-of-sight communications product line." Please check to see
how they can help your project...
 "5G networks will likely consume more energy than
4G, but one expert says the problem may not be as bad as it seems. A lurking threat behind
the promise of 5G delivering up to 1,000 times as much data as today's networks is that
5G could also consume up to 1,000 times as much energy. Concerns over
energy efficiency
are beginning to show up at conferences about 5G deployments, where methods for
reducing energy consumption have become a hot topic. The International
Telecommunication Union (ITU) has published challenging, measurable requirements
on the data rates, latency, and reliability that a network needs to satisfy to
be called 5G. While the ITU has also aimed for greater energy efficiency, it
hasn't established any measurable goals for it..."
Monday 15
 The extreme level of complexity and
consolidation of circuit functions in today's functional integrated circuit (IC)
blocks makes it so that people with almost no instruction or experience in
circuit and system design can assemble and make work some pretty impressive
creations. The days of vacuum tubes and early discrete semiconductors required a
designer to know how to properly bias and interface various sections of circuits
and systems. Nowadays, with the ready availability of impedance-matched
amplifiers, filters, mixers, couplers, detectors, and other pre-packaged
components, even RF and microwave frequency systems are within the reach of
relative amateurs. Likewise, people interested in digital and microprocessor
circuits...
 Electronic Design Innovation Conference and Exhibition
(EDI CON) USA, the industry event that brings together RF/microwave and high-speed digital
design engineers and system integrators, is pleased to introduce its
EDI CON University 2018
program at its event this October 17 and 18 at the Santa Clara Convention
Center. These 2-hour sessions offer in-depth training in a particular topic,
such as MIMO Test, Amplifier Design, and Measuring Impedance. All conference
pass holders are eligible to attend, but pre-registration happens during the
registration process. After attending an EDI CON University course, attendees
can earn IEEE Continuing Education Unit/Personal Development Hour...
 Rohde & Schwarz USA (R&S USA) has produced
an Educational Note titled, "Modulation
and Signal Generation with R&S® Signal Generators." Signal generators
play a vital role in electrical test and measurement; however, choosing the
right one often requires a look beyond the banner specs. This application note
does exactly that. How do analog-, vector- or arbitrary signal generators work?
What are the parameters to look at? What important information is not obvious
from the datasheet? And how do I generate a modulated signal? Download this
application note and find out more about: What a Signal Generator is and why you
need one What types of Signal Generators...
 This is the electronics market prediction for
Russia, 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. Then, as now, Russian electronics products are
not considered to be serious competition to U.S. markets. For that matter, when
is the last product of any type you bought with a "Made in Russia" stamp on it?
Even though the Soviet Iron Curtain fell in 1992, very little progress has been
made with mending fences with them. Unless you can find a news story on the
state of the industry, detailed reports must be purchased from research
companies...
 Providing full solution service is our
motto, not just selling goods. RF & Connector Technology has persistently
pursued a management policy stressing quality assurance system and technological
advancement. From your very first contact, you will be supported by competent RF
specialists; all of them have several years of field experience in this industry
allowing them to suggest a fundamental solution and troubleshooting approach.
Coaxial RF connectors, cable assemblies, antennas, terminations, attenuators,
couplers, dividers, and more. Practically, we put priority on process inspection
at each step of workflow as well as during final inspection in order to
actualize "Zero Defects..."
 RF Cafe's raison
d'être is and always has been to provide useful, quality content for engineers, technicians,
engineering managers, students, and hobbyists. Part of that mission is offering to post
applicable job openings. HR department employees
and/or managers of hiring companies are welcome to submit opportunities for posting at
no charge (of course a gratuity will be graciously accepted). 3rd party recruiters and
temp agencies are not included so as to assure a high quality of listings. Please read
through the easy procedure to benefit from RF Cafe's high quality visitors ...
 "One of the most enduring 'Holy Grail' experiments
in science has been attempts to directly observe
atomic motions
during structural changes. This prospect underpins the entire field of chemistry
because a chemical process occurs during a transition state - the point of no
return separating the reactant configuration from the product configuration.
What does that transition state look like and, given the enormous number of
different possible nuclear configurations, how does a system even find a way to
make it happen? Now in the journal Applied Physics Letters, researchers at the
Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter..."
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Microsoft Cofounder Paul Allen Dies at 65