New 100 MHz bandwidth vector signal analysis measurement technique for R&D in radar development, EW and surveillance

Abstract

Many new and next generation wide bandwidth microwave radar, EW and surveillance applications require measurement and analysis of RF and microwave signals with wide bandwidth analog and digital modulation. This paper describes a new measurement technique featuring 100 MHz of information bandwidth signal analysis capability, including spectrum analysis and modulation analysis of RF and microwave signals with wide bandwidth complex modulation. Hewlett-Packard developed the new measurement technique for wide bandwidth applications in radar, EW, surveillance, digital microwave radio, and broadband satellite communications systems. The technique involves three standard, commercially available instruments, a wideband microwave spectrum analyzer, a high-speed digital oscilloscope, and a high performance vector signal analyzer. The wideband microwave spectrum analyzer provides microwave spectrum analysis of the signal at the carrier frequency, including out-of-band performance and interference, as well as acting as a wideband downconverter providing a wideband IF output. The signal baseband information in the wideband IF output is captured by the high-speed digital oscilloscope. The digital scope acts as a very high sample per second digitizer. The signal is now captured as digital data. The digital data is scaled, formatted and transferred to the vector signal analyzer for complex modulation analysis.