William Herschel was a gifted musician and composer who by chance obtained a 10-foot long, 30-inch reflecting telescope from the estate of his deceased friend, a violinist. Due to damage in moving it, he had to rebuild the instrument. This drew him into telescope making and then astronomy. He also discovered infrared radiation by placing […]
Test and Measurement Tips
Test gear speeds EMC tests under real driving conditions
New test gear supports automated testing with simulation of real driving conditions while covering typical automotive standards. The AVL PUMA 2 automation controls the test cycle and stores the measured data, in synchronization with the R&S ELEKTRA EMC test software to exchange information between the testbed and the EMC measurement equipment. The ELEKTRA software has […]
Why you don’t need a variable-speed drive to change a fan’s speed
To engineers schooled in modern motor control methods, it may be hard to grasp why three-speed fans designed to move air around in a room can be inexpensive. After all, these fans are powered by as motors, and the go-to method for changing the speed of industrial ac motors is via variable-frequency drives. VFDs work […]
Step attenuators feature attenuation accuracy of ±5 dB
New step attenuators feature attenuation accuracy of ±5 dB, making them candidates for high-reliability applications demanding accurate adjustment of attenuation values. Additional superior performance characteristics for the step attenuators include 1 dB maximum insertion loss and a maximum VSWR of 1.4:1. These high-reliability step attenuators offer wide coverage and high power with an operating frequency […]
Temperature-compensated RF amps cover 0.5 GHz to 40 GHz
A series of temperature-compensated amplifiers address precision performance and test-and-measurement applications. Fairview’s new series of coaxial packaged, temperature-compensated amplifiers covers broadband and ultra-broadband frequencies ranging from 0.5 GHz to 40 GHz. Designs incorporate pin diode attenuation circuitry that senses and adjusts broadband gain levels and maintains a minimum gain level of 35 dB over the […]
What’s a ring tester and why do you need one?
If you one day find yourself with a transformer that might or might not have a shorted winding, your first inclination for verifying your suspicions might be to find an inductance meter. The problem with powering up an inductance meter for this situation is that the inductance of a transformer containing a shorted turn might […]
Programmable attenuators cover dc to 40 GHz
A new series of programmable attenuators covers broadband RF, microwave and mmWave frequencies ranging from dc to 40 GHz. They provide greater flexibility and programmability by allowing different values of RF signal attenuation on demand. These new high-performance attenuators are available in TTL, USB or relay-controlled options. They also feature switching speeds of 0.35 μsec […]
RF power sensors handle up to 90 GHz
New R&S NRP90S and R&S NRP90SN power sensors from Rohde & Schwarz combine an extraordinary frequency range of 50 MHz to 90 GHz with a dynamic range from -70 dBm to 20 dBm along with high measurement speeds of 50,000 measurements per second. Compared to current thermal power sensors for measurements over 67 GHz, the […]
RF power sensors cover –60 to +20 dBm, 50 MHz to 50 GHz range
The new R&S NRPxxP RF sensor family includes units with a measurement bandwidth up to 30 MHz, a new improved design and an extended frequency range. The three-model family covers frequency ranges from 50 MHz to 18 GHz, 50 MHz to 40 GHz, and a new top model for 50 MHz to 50 GHz. R&S […]
Making better oscilloscope measurements through horizontal and vertical scaling
Early oscilloscope models were primitive by modern standards. Among the first major innovations was triggered sweep, introduced by Tektronix just in time for the post-World War Two electronics boom. This improvement in waveform imaging synchronized successive periodic waveforms to create a coherent image, based on a uniform level along the rising edge or another user-defined […]
