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Test vendors electrify EMC+SIPI Symposium

Oct. 27, 2017

The Electromagnetic Compatibility and Signal and Power Integrity Symposium was held in National Harbor, MD, August 7-11. Julius Knapp, chief of the FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology since 2006, kicked off the event with a keynote address titled “Achieving EMC in an Everything-Wireless World.”

On the exhibit floor, test companies were well represented, with AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation, ETS-Lindgren, Rohde & Schwarz, and AMETEK Compliance Test Solutions all offering large exhibits near the exhibit floor entry. They and other test companies on hand demonstrated that they were prepared for the “everything-wireless world” that Knapp described.

AR at its booth was highlighting products including the MT06002 multitone tester system, which provides extended frequency ranges and high testing efficiencies for automotive and other applications. The company also highlighted solid-state pulse amplifiers for automotive, MIL-STD-464, and DO-160 applications, and it also touted its new low-power, cost-reduced Universal Series (U) solid-state amplifiers. The company also highlighted its latest antenna offering—the AT700M12G wideband trapezoidal log-periodic antenna (Figure 1), which operates from 700 MHz to 11 GHz.

Figure 1. AT700M12G wideband trapezoidal log-periodic antenna
Courtesy of AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation

AMETEK CTS highlighted EMC/EMI products carrying its emtest, Teseq, Milmega, and IFI brands. Products on display included an IFI S21-4KWP-2KWP-Flex series solid-state amplifier, which operates over the frequency range from 1 to 2 GHz and can supply up to 4 kW of pulsed power at up to a 10% duty cycle with maximum pulse width of 100 μs. In addition, the company exhibited a Teseq NSG 3060 generator, which simulates electromagnetic interference for immunity testing in conformance with international, national, and manufacturers’ standards, including IEC/EN standards. Also on display were an emtest automotive immunity simulation system and a Milmega RF/microwave power amplifier.

ETS-Lindgren highlighted its line of antennas, chambers, and related products. The company organized a tour of a wireless test chamber it had built at the nearby PCTEST Lab. The demonstration addressed 5G and mmWave test. PCTEST also had an exhibit at the show, highlighting its test services, including OTA test and CTIA certification testing.

ETS-Lindgren’s engineers also presented papers on several topics, including an alternative method of computing the free-space antenna factor for site validation of fully anechoic rooms1 and a new homogenization method that can address situations in which the contrast of material properties is high.2

From chambers to visual inspection

Rohde & Schwarz exhibited a complete lineup of equipment, ranging from chambers and EMI receivers for full-compliance test to general-purpose instruments. Highlights included the ESW EMI test receiver (Figure 2), which offers a frequency range from 2 Hz to 44 GHz and meets the requirements for certification measurements in line with CISPR, EN, MIL‑STD-461, DO‑160, and FCC standards. Also on display were the R&S BBA150 and BBL200 broadband amplifier families. The compact BBA150 generates power in the 9-kHz to 6-GHz frequency range and is suitable for amplitude, frequency, phase, and pulse modulation. The R&S BBL200 serves applications requiring up to 10 kW of power in the 9-kHz to 225-MHz frequency range. The company was also highlighting its R&S AdVISE visual-inspection software for error detection in EMC test environments, which is designed to automate the process of visually detecting failures of a DUT during immunity testing, eliminating errors due to human inattention and saving test time.

Figure 2. ESW EMI test receiver
Courtesy of Rohde & Schwarz

Rohde & Schwarz engineers also presented several papers, including one on the impact of spectrum sharing on 4G and 5G standards3 and on the coexistence of LTE and radar systems.4

Keysight Technologies highlighted a variety of instruments—including the FieldFox portable analyzer for field test (Figure 3)—as well as software, including its Advanced Design System (ADS) electronic design automation software for RF, microwave, and high-speed digital applications. ADS 2017 includes Via Designer—a tool that can be used to quickly analyze via configurations and create parametrized EM models for use in schematic simulations. Keysight also highlighted its SIPro signal-integrity solution and PIPro, an EM solution for power-integrity analysis—providing simulation engines for DC IR drop, power-distribution-network (PDN) impedance, and power-plane resonance analysis.

Figure 3. FieldFox portable analyzers
Courtesy of Keysight Technologies

Also highlighting software was ANSYS, which touted an “EMI aware” design flow for its HFSS. In a technical paper, company engineers describe what they call a multifidelity simulation-based workflow based on desensitization. Their three-step approach involves identification of high-risk sources of radiation from a PCB, the use of physical models of 3D structures, and RF system and circuit simulation to predict radio desensitization.5

Other test companies exhibiting included Teledyne LeCroy, which highlighted EMC-related options for its oscilloscopes and was active in the technical program, with the company’s Dr. Eric Bogatin and senior field applications engineer Mike Hertz participating in five presentations. For example, Hertz teamed up with coauthors from the EMC Laboratory at the Missouri University of Science and Technology to investigate secondary events that can occur when an electrostatic discharge event reaches a nongrounded metallic part within a product.6

In addition, Bogatin and coauthors Heidi Barnes of Keysight and Jose Moreira of Advantest presented a methodology to verify the accuracy of fixture S-parameter de-embedding algorithms. They described a kit composed of several small printed circuit boards with coaxial edge connectors developed for wideband digital applications.7

Oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers

Tektronix highlighted products ranging from its VectorVu software to the new 5 Series oscilloscope. RIGOL and Siglent exhibited oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers with EMC test applicability. Siglent, for example, presented its SSA3000X Series spectrum analyzers with optional EMI software tool kit, near-field probe kit, and the other EMC pre-compliance accessories.

Fisher Scientific highlighted its ECAT Lightning Test System (LTS), a modular platform that supports tests in accordance with avionics standards such as MIL-STD-461G/CS-117 and RTCA DO-160. Haefely Hipotronics exhibited its AXOS 5 immunity test system, a stand-alone 5-kV EFT/burst generator for EMC testing applications up to 16 A. Narda highlighted its 9010F EMI receiver, based on analog-digital conversion and advanced data processing using FFT analysis in compliance with all the tests required in CISPR 16-1-1; its frequency range can be expanded to 18 GHz.

HV Technologies highlighted EMC test systems for commercial, military, avionics, and automotive applications, which it builds with the help of partners including Prana, Gauss Instruments, Montena, Innco Systems, Pontis, and Schwarzbeck Mess-Elektronik.

CertifiGroup was one of several labs represented at the show and the only one that does not address EMC. Nevertheless, the company says its services (testing susceptibility to dust, water, salt spray, shock and vibration, and high and low temperatures) complement EMC test, and the company can coordinate with another test lab for EMC.

Other companies highlighted a variety of EMC-related products. Ophir EMC highlighted transient and pulse generators, LISNs, loops, probes, and power amplifiers. API Technologies Corp. exhibited an EMP/HEMP filter, coaxial EMI filters and interconnects, ceramic capacitors, power filters, custom magnetics, and RF/Microwave filters and amplifiers. Fair-Rite Products Corp. highlighted its materials capabilities, including its 75 material for low-frequency suppression, now available in “Snap-It” form and providing enhanced impedance between 150 kHz and 10 MHz. And Amphenol Canada exhibited its connectors, including its FCC Series filtered connectors that suppress unwanted EMI.

Life-cycle management

While Knapp of the FCC set the stage for the event with his opening keynote on the “everything-wireless world,” a Friday morning workshop on EMC management offered a fitting close, with Colin E. Brench of Amphenol advising attendees to take EMC considerations into account throughout a product’s lifecycle. See my Editor’s Note in our October issue for more on Knapp’s and Brench’s presentations.

References

  1. Adhyapak, Anoop; Chen, Zhong; and Shimada, Kazuo, “Free Space Antenna Factor Computation Using Time Domain Gating and Deconvolution Filter for Site Validation of Fully Anechoic Rooms,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  2. Xiong, Zubiao; and Chen, Zhong, “Homogenization Modeling of Periodic Magnetic Composite Structures,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  3. Roessler, Andreas, “Impact of spectrum sharing on 4G and 5G standards,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  4. McCarthy, Darren, and Heuel, Steffen, “Coexistence of LTE and Radar Systems,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  5. Bommer, Jason; Li, Baolong; and German, Fred, “Design-by-Desense: A Multi-Fidelity Approach To Interference-Free Design for Electronic Devices,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  6. Marathe, Shubhankar, et al., “Detection Methods for Secondary ESD Discharge During IEC 61000-4-2 Testing,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.
  7. Barnes, Heidi; Bogatin, Eric; and Moreira, Jose, “Development of a PCB Kit for S-Parameter De-Embedding Algorithms Verification,” Proceedings of the IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, August 2017.

About the Author

Rick Nelson | Contributing Editor

Rick is currently Contributing Technical Editor. He was Executive Editor for EE in 2011-2018. Previously he served on several publications, including EDN and Vision Systems Design, and has received awards for signed editorials from the American Society of Business Publication Editors. He began as a design engineer at General Electric and Litton Industries and earned a BSEE degree from Penn State.

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