Atec SMF100A User Manual

¸SMF100A Microwave Signal Generator

Signal generation redefined

Version

02.01

February

2009

Max. frequency range from ◆
100 kHz to 43.5 GHz
Excellent SSB phase noise ◆
of typ. –120 dBc (at 10 GHz;
10 kHz carrier offset)
Very high output power of ◆
typ. +25 dBm

Ideal in all areas ◆

R & D –
Production –
Service as well as maintenance –
and repair

Remote control via GPIB, Ethernet ◆
or USB
Innovative block diagram operation ◆

2 ¸SMF100A Microwave Signal Generator

At a glance

Signal quality, speed, and flexibility –
these are decisive properties for a signal
generator in the microwave range.

To meet even the highest of require­ments, the ¸SMF100A microwave
signal generator was completely rede­signed and newly developed. The result
is a first-rate, state-of-the-art microwave
signal generator that sets new standards.
It thus covers the numerous fields of ap­plication encountered in R & D, produc­tion, service, maintenance, and repair.

The ¸SMF100A operates in the
wide frequency range from 100 kHz to

43.5 GHz with specific configurations.
In addition to CW signals, all common
types of analog modulation (AM, FM,
jM, pulse modulation) or combinations
thereof can be generated.

For just one example among many, take
the following application: What can you
do when cable loss at high frequen­cies starts becoming a larger and larger
problem? Subsequent amplifiers repre­sent one solution – or you can simply
use the ¸SMF100A equipped with
the ¸SMF-B32 or ¸SMF-B34
option that supplies a high output power
of typ. +25 dBm at 20 GHz.

The ¸SMF100A signal generator
offers a modern graphical user inter­face for fast and intuitive operation. The
settings – which, for the first time in

a microwave signal generator, can be
controlled via a block diagram – and the
signal flow can be seen at a glance.

Special features

Excellent signal quality

Exceptionally low single sideband ◆
phase noise:

typ. –120 dBc

(at 10 GHz; 10 kHz carrier offset;
1 Hz measurement bandwidth)
Very low wideband noise: ◆

typ. <–148 dBc at 10 GHz

(>10 MHz carrier offset; 1 Hz mea­surement bandwidth; at +10 dBm)
Very low harmonics: ◆

typ. <–55 dBc at 10 GHz

(at +10 dBm)
High suppression of nonharmonics: ◆

typ. <–62 dBc at 10 GHz

(>3 kHz carrier offset; at +10 dBm)

Ideal for use in production

Very short level and frequency ◆
setting times across entire level and
frequency range:

<4 ms (frequency), <3 ms (level),
<700 µs (List mode; frequency
and level)

Very high output power of up to ◆
typ. +25 dBm
Outstanding absolute level accuracy ◆
and level repeatability
Selection of interfaces for remote ◆
control
Low space requirement in rack: ◆
only three height units

Aerospace & defense applications

Optional pulse modulator with ◆
excellent data:

>80 dB on/off ratio
<10 ns rise/fall time
<20 ns pulse width

Optional pulse generator ◆
Optional pulse train ◆
Optional removable compact ◆
flash disk to meet high security
requirements

All-purpose applications

Frequency range 100 kHz to 43.5 GHz ◆
Frequency, level, and LF sweeps ◆
AM, broadband FM, ◆ jM, pulse
modulation
Two multifunction generators ◆
up to 10 MHz
Usable for scalar network analysis ◆ with
¸-NRP-Zx power sensor connected

Intuitive operating concept

Intuitive operating interface with ◆
graphical representation of the signal
flow (block diagram)
Operation with rotary knob on ◆
instrument or with USB mouse
VGA color display with ◆
640 pixels × 480 pixels

Selection of interfaces

Remote control via GPIB, Ethernet ◆
or USB
USB ports for keyboard, mouse, and ◆
memory stick
Connector for ¸NRP-Zx power sen- ◆
sors for precise power measurement
Control via remote operation tool ◆
(e.g. VNC)

0 18 000 36 000 54 000 72 000

90

000

108

000 126 000 144 000

Level repeatability in dB

Switching cycles

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

0.05

0.04

0.03

0.02

0.01

0

–0.01

–0.02

–0.03

–0.04

–0.05

Measurement time in hours

Everything in one instrument

The ¸SMF100A base unit with
frequency option included already offers
the essential functions and interfaces.
This basic configuration can be adapted
to meet the requirements of further
applications by adding specific options.

The ¸SMF100A has outstanding
specifications. Additional options for
improving performance are not needed.
This gives you a decisive advantage as
the user. You no longer need to carry out
tedious option configurations in order to
increase performance.

The base unit with frequency options
included consists of the following:

Precise output level

Precise and stable output levels
are essential in a microwave signal
generator. Furthermore, high resolution
is required when calibrating levels in
measuring receivers. Therefore, the
¸SMF100A offers high-precision,
frequency-response-corrected level
control across the entire level range.

Of course, the ¸SMF100A includes
outstanding absolute level accuracy.
But even more important is its level
repeatability, since absolute errors
can be compensated for by means of
the appropriate corrections. Particu­larly in the case of repeatability, the
¸SMF100A sets new standards as
shown in the figure below.

Digital frequency and level sweep

The digital frequency sweep makes
it possible to perform frequency
response measurements of microwave
applications. Start and stop frequencies
as well as step times are user-selectable.
A trigger input enables synchronized op­eration with external equipment.

The level sweep across any level range
makes it possible, for example, to
measure the compression characteristic
of amplifiers or mixers.

¸SMF100A base unit plus ◆
¸SMF-B122 frequency option
(1 GHz to 22 GHz)
¸SMF100A base unit plus ◆
¸SMF-B144 frequency option
(1 GHz to 43.5 GHz)

High frequency resolution

To meet the high requirements of many
applications in research and science,
the frequency options offer a frequency
resolution of one-thousandth of a hertz

(0.001 Hz) as standard.
With the optional ¸SMF-B2 fre- ◆
quency extension plus one of the fre­quency options, the frequency range
starts at 100 kHz

This package contains the following as
standard:

Excellent spectral purity

Absolutely no compromises have been
made here. Everything technically fea­sible has been implemented. Both the
SSB phase noise and the outstanding
suppression of harmonics and nonhar­monics earn top grades. This is a must
for anyone working in the area of scalar
network analysis, for example.

¸SMF100A Microwave Signal Generator 3

Level repeatability over time (with random frequency and level changes between measurements)

4 ¸SMF100A Microwave Signal Generator

Additional options

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Level in dBm

Frequency in GHz

With ¸SMF-B34 high output power option
Without ¸SMF-B34 high output power option
Output power of the ¸SMF-B2 frequency extension

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

0 5 10 15 20

Level in dBm

Frequency in GHz

With ¸SMF-B32 high output power option

Without ¸SMF-B32 high output power option

The ¸SMF100A can be expanded
with the following options in order to
further adapt it to a wide variety of
applications:

Expanded level range

For sensitivity measurements on receivers,
very low levels are needed. With the op­tional ¸SMF-B26 or ¸SMF-B27
step attenuator, the lower level limit is
shifted from –20 dBm without attenuator
down to –130 dBm with attenuator.

FM

FM

jM

AM

Log AM

PM

FSK – –

PSK – –

ASK

possible with no restrictions



possible with restrictions

•

not feasible

–



–

  

 

 

 

jM

–

   

AM Log AM PM FSK PSK ASK

  

– •

–

• • –

  

  

– – •



– –

– –

 

•

 

 

– –

– –

 

Modulation matrix





–

–

•





–

High output level

In many microwave test setups, various
equipment such as long cables, power
splitters, directional couplers, or RF
relays cause high loss. One possible
solution here is an expensive exter-

Maximum output power with and without the R&S®SMF-B34 high output power option in the
frequency range 100 kHz to 43.5 GHz (¸SMF-B144 and ¸SMF-B2; with the R&S®SMF-B27
step attenuator option); the lower curve in the frequency range 100 kHz to 1 GHz is with activated
pulse modulator of the R&S®SMF-B2 frequency extension

nal microwave amplifier. But you can

avoid this budget-consuming compo-

nent by using the ¸SMF-B32 or

¸SMF-B34 high output power option

with up to typ. +25 dBm at 20 GHz.

AM, FM, jM, and Log AM including
LF generators and noise generator

The ¸SMF-B20 AM/FM/jM/LOG AM
option complements the ¸SMF100A
microwave signal generator. This expan­sion also includes two LF generators and
a noise generator, making any combina­tion of modulation modes possible. The
table above provides an overview.

Analog ramp sweep mode

The analog ramp sweep mode (provided
by the ¸SMF-K4 option) corresponds
to the analog sweep of classic sweep
generators except that the sweep is fully
synchronized over the complete range.
In this way, the excellent frequency ac­curacy of digital step sweeps is achieved
on the whole, and this at much higher
sweep rates of min. 700 MHz/ms at fre­quencies ≥3 GHz.

Maximum output power with and without the R&S®SMF-B32 high output power option in the
frequency range 1 GHz to 22 GHz (¸SMF-B122; in both cases with the R&S®SMF-B26 step
attenuator option)

High-end pulse modulation

The ¸SMF100A can additionally be
equipped with the ¸SMF-K3 pulse
modulation option. Even high require­ments are exceeded by an ON/OFF ratio
of >80 dB, a rise/fall time of <10 ns, and
a minimum pulse width of <20 ns.

High-quality pulse generator

In the case of pulsed signals, the
combination of the ¸SMF-K3 pulse
modulator option and the internal
¸SMF-K23 pulse generator option
offers the ideal solution – particularly

–160

–150

–140

–130

–120

–110

–100

–90

–80

–70

–60

–50

–40

–30

–20

1 10 100 1k 10k 100k 1M 10M

22 GHz

1 GHz

3 GHz

10 GHz

40 GHz

Offset frequency in Hz

SSB phase noise in dBc (1 Hz measurement bandwidth)

¸SMF100A Microwave Signal Generator 5

if you do not have a high-quality pulse

RF signal

Time

T

1

T

2

T

3

T

n

t

1

t

2

t

n-1

generator for testing. However, the
internal pulse generator can also be
used by itself in external applications via
designated outputs.

One new optional feature of the built­in pulse generator is the alternative to
generate "pulse trains" (¸SMF-K27
option), which are commonly used for ra­dar applications. An example of a pulse
train is shown in the figure on the right.
In contrast to single or double pulses,
"pulse trains" are a combination of dif­ferent pulses, which can be a periodical
or non-periodical set of pulses.

Highly stable output frequency

The integrated reference oscillator
included as standard keeps the output
frequency precise and low in drift. To
meet the highest of requirements in
precision and aging, you can add the
¸SMF-B1 OCXO reference oscillator
option to the ¸SMF100A.

Pulse train: combination of pulses with different pulse widths and pauses

Excellent signal quality

Due to an innovative synthesizer con-

cept, the ¸SMF100A offers excellent

values in terms of SSB phase noise,

wideband noise, and non harmonics sup-

pression. It is the ideal solution for all

measurement applications in which the

very high spectral purity of typ. –120 dBc

(10 GHz; 10 kHz carrier offset; 1 Hz mea-

surement bandwidth) is needed. For ex-

ample, it can be used in communications

systems as an IF or LO substitute for

adjacent channel or phase noise mea-

surements or in low-noise radar as an
ultra-pure signal source.

The ¸SMF100A offers this out­standing signal quality because it
includes an integrated reference
oscillator as standard. You can improve
this quality even further very near the
carrier by adding the ¸SMF-B22
enhanced phase noise option.

Single sideband phase noise for various frequencies with the R&S®SMF-B22 enhanced phase noise performance option