Boonton

In today’s wireless world, RF signals are transmitted and received to effectively send data and facilitate wireless communications. Among all the parameters to consider in RF design, power measurements remain one of the most critical metrics for designers and operators.

Design, Verification, Troubleshooting and Maintenance of secondary surveillance radar (e.g. IFF-based radar) has never been more demanding. Proper design and operation of SSR systems can mean the difference between life and death. To reduce the possibility of a catastrophic event, federal aviation safety standards require transponders to undergo periodic maintenance and calibration.

When testing radars, it is often necessary to use a signal generator to test up/downconverter chains. Frequency switching speed is important when evaluating an agile system, or simply to minimize test time. This whitepaper will describe the challenges and a solution that provides low phase noise and fast switching speed.