Keithley expands MIMO RF ability with 8x8 MIMO test system

Details: Category: Wireless Networks; 02 September 2008; 7928 views

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Keithley Instruments, which specialises in solutions for emerging measurement needs, is introducing what it believes to be the industry’s first measurement-grade 8x8 MIMO system. The system is used for primary research of next-generation RF MIMO devices and technologies.

Testing and measurement specialist Keithley Instruments is developing its expertise in RF MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output) test with what it claims to be the industry’s first measurement-grade 8x8 MIMO system. The system will be used for primary research of next-generation RF MIMO devices and technologies.

Keithley introduced 4x4 MIMO test equipment for R&D product development in late 2007. The new 8x8 MIMO system is built on the same measurement platform, notably incorporating:

support for MIMO research applications ranging from two channels now up to eight;
flexible system configurations with individual system component instruments;
phase and amplitude control of the RF carrier;
less than ±1 nanosecond signal sampler synchronisation;
less then 1 nanosecond peak-to-peak signal sampler jitter; and
less than 1 degree of peak-to-peak RF-carrier phase jitter.

By allowing for precise and stable multi-unit synchronisation with these high performance measurement specifications, the new Keithley system extends support of 4x4 MIMO measurements currently used for commercial test applications on demanding signals (eg, 802.11n WiFi, 802.16e Mobile WiMAX Wave 2, and future standards such as 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution) and UMB (Ultra Mobile Broadband)) to the next generation of technologies and methodologies being researched. By providing MIMO test systems Keithley supports its customers as technology research migrates to new product development projects and then into production, thereby helping them speed time-to-market.

Keithley MIMO RF test systems are built on the company’s RF signal generator and analyser platforms that include the Model 2820 RF Vector Signal Analysers (VSA) with frequency range of 400MHz to 6GHz; the Model 2920 RF Vector Signal Generators (VSG) which can generate frequencies from 10MHz to 6GHz; the Model 280111 WLAN 802.11n Signal Analysis Software, which provides an extensive measurement suite for analysing up to single- or multiple-channel RF devices with up to 4x4 MIMO configurations; and highly precise and stable signal alignment via Keithley’s Model 2895 MIMO Synchronisation Unit.

Models 2820 and 2920 are MIMO-ready with all hardware connections and firmware built into every instrument. The instruments provide customers with the flexibility to be used as part of a MIMO test system or to be configured later for use as stand-alone SISO (single-input, single-output) instruments.

* MIMO is a growing technology that uses multiple radios for both transmitting and receiving data. In RF communication devices it increases data throughput rates without the need for additional frequency spectrum bandwidth. Keithley's 2x2 through 8x8 MIMO test systems provide the most advanced, high performance MIMO testing platform available for research and product development with the ability to test highly complex signals and communication architectures. The advanced 8x8 MIMO solution provides RF customers with a single measurement platform that supports primary technology research and its migration to product design and development.

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