Passive Intermodulation Localization Technology for Microwave Components

Abstract

The passive intermodulation (PIM) products of microwave components and systems are generally caused by different kinds of nonlinear sources, as the physical mechanism of passive intermodulation is very complex. To achieve an accurate PIM suppression, how to locate the PIM problem of a specific microwave component or system becomes a very important requirement. Until now, there is still a lack of effective PIM localization method, and the simultaneous localization of multiple PIM sources in practical microwave devices is still a technical challenge. In this chapter, the status of PIM localization method is briefly introduced, a novel method of PIM localization is developed based on the concept of K-space multicarrier signal, a reference PIM source can be introduced into the standard PIM testing system, the amplitude and frequency-dependent phase difference between the reference and the real PIM products can be used to construct a k-space multicarrier signal, and PIM localization algorithms for both wideband and narrowband devices can be proposed based on the inverse k-space Fourier transform and inverse optimization of the partial multicarrier signal. Simulation and experimental results validate the effectiveness of the proposed approaches. These methods can solve the difficulty of multipoint PIM localization, and can be widely used in the design, production, testing and troubleshooting of high-power microwave systems.