Agilent 5991-2963EN Efficient Cable and Antenna Testing - Article Reprint c20140919 [28] free download

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Efficient Cable and Antenna Testing Article Reprint This article first appeared in the December 2012 www.keysight.com/find/fieldfox www.keysight.com/find/contactus issue of Above Ground Level and is reprinted with their kind permission. Published in USA, August 3, 2014 5991-2963EN www.keysight.com rf and microwave systems Efficient Cable and Antenna Testing Ensure fast, accurate and efficient cable and antenna testing by using appropriate instrumentation and the right measurement techniques for verifying and troubleshooting cables, connectors and antennas in RF and microwave communications systems. By Rolland Zhang F Faulty cables, connectors and anten- nas cause roughly 50 to 60 percent of cellular base station problems. Com- ponents may become damaged during installation, operation and mainte- nance of a telecommunications system or may suffer reduced performance as they age. Extreme weather may damage outdoor installations. Even sheltered installations can be problem- atic, potentially exposing components to mishandling, stress, heat, vibration and containments that can leak into the system. Such failures cause poor coverage and unnecessary handovers in the cellular system, making ap- propriate testing all the more critical. Cable and antenna measurements are often used to verify and troubleshoot the electrical performance of RF and microwave transmission systems and antennas. Key to ensuring fast, ac- curate and efficient cable and antenna testing (CAT) is use of appropriate instrumentation and the right measure- ment techniques. CAT basics When verifying and maintaining the operation of RF and microwave Photo 1: Agilent's FieldFox combination microwave analyzer's base function is a cable transmission systems and antennas, and antenna analyzer, and it can be configured to include spectrum and network analy- measurements are often made along sis. Offering amplitude accuracy of