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Separate individual vector signal analyzers and vector signal generators make up the usual test setup for cell phones and other wireless products. Aeroflex, though, has put both units into the 7000 series vector analyzer generator (VAG). This fully integrated RF parametric test system is designed for RF testing of wireless components and subsystems.

The 7000 series VAG combines both vector signal generation and vector signal analysis in a single box, providing an integrated approach to measurements for complex wireless standards. Also, its modular, software-defined functionality makes it a flexible, “future-proof” platform for advanced wireless technologies, such as Long-Term Evolution (LTE), GSM/GPRS/EDGE, 3G/HSPA, and wireless local-area networks (WLANs).

The Aeroflex 7000 series vector analyzer generator combines the two most common RF wireless test instruments into one. It covers from 1 to 6 GHz with a bandwidth of 90 MHz and offers an innovative touchscreen user interface.

If you have ever carried out rigorous testing of RF and baseband products for use in wireless broadband components and cellular handsets, you’ll appreciate the increased productivity and potential for reduced time-to-market offered by the 7000 series VAG. These benefits will provide a particular advantage to engineers working on components and modules for LTE, because of the impending deadlines for network rollouts during the next few months.

Since the signal generation and analysis features are integrated into the same instrument, the 7000 series VAG dispenses with the need to buy and operate a separate signal generator and analyzer independently, lowering capital expenditure and reducing test equipment inventory. The platform also supports two independent signal generators, allowing it to be used for receiver sensitivity and blocking measurements, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) simulation, and intermodulation testing of amplifiers, mixers, and other wireless components.

The touchscreen user interface provides quick and easy access to the full range of complex measurements, speeding up test times for experienced users while enabling novice users to quickly become proficient in performing measurements. Furthermore, the 7000 shares a common platform with the Aeroflex 7100 LTE tester for a seamless flow of user-generated routines from development through conformance and production testing.

The 7000 series has an operating frequency range of 1 to 6 GHz, with a 90-MHz bandwidth for both generation and analysis, which together allow it to support multiple cellular and wireless broadband standards. Both the built-in signal generator and the optional second generator have a typical phase noise level of –115 dBc/Hz at 20-kHz offset from a 2-GHz carrier. That’s equivalent to the performance of the best standalone vector signal generators.

The vector signal generator includes a library of standard waveforms emulating all the popular cellular wireless standards, as well as an internal 2-Gbyte arbitrary waveform generator (AWG) with a waveform generation package that enables user-specific waveforms to be developed and played back. In addition, user-generated waveforms from Matlab and similar packages may be entered and stored on the instrument for use in the AWG.