Super-Fast Antenna Test Receiver Acquires 400k Data Points Per Second

Oct 30, 2008 10:11 AM, MD&D News Staff

With a data-acquisition speed of 400,000 data points per second on each of five channels, the Agilent N5264A PNA-X Measurement Receiver is the fastest receiver for antenna test applications, according to the company. An optional Fast CW mode provides a 500 million-point data buffer, allowing users to stream infinite amounts of data to the network.

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Also, an optional built-in 26.5-GHz source offers a +10-dBm output. The signal source can serve as an LO source for remote mixers or frequency converters. In addition, the receiver is compatible with Agilent’s MXG and PSG signal sources as well as its existing 85309A distributed frequency converter and 85320A/B mixers.

The receiver with an MXG source can completely replace the 8530A and 8360 sources for existing antenna ranges and typically results in a tenfold system speed improvement. The PNA-X replaces the 8530A, which is discontinued and will reach the end of its support life on April 1, 2009.

Other features include a 20-dB better receiver dynamic range than the existing antenna receiver (134 dB at 10 Hz IFBW) and a point-averaging mode, which reduces trace noise with a minimal impact on speed. The receiver has a 10.4-in. touchscreen display with zoom and click-and-drag markers for detailed data monitoring. It includes the Open Windows XP operating system, eight USB connectors, one LAN and two GPIB ports, and a TTL I/O control port.

The PNA-X Measurement Receiver is available now and costs $50,323. The LO source (option 108) is $20,540 and the Fast CW Mode (option 118) is $10,290. A Time Domain option (010) displays reflection versus time or distance inside an anechoic chamber to help users locate and mitigate such reflections. It costs $9570.