Wideband signal analyzer targets military applications

By Gina Roos, editor-in-chief

Designed for engineers who work on wideband designs in communications, radar, and electronic warfare, the RSA7100B  wideband RF signal analyzer and streaming recorder from Tektronix Inc. offers more than 2.5 hours of streaming RF storage at 800-MHz real-time bandwidth. The signal analyzer’s 16-kHz to 26.5-GHz frequency range meets a broad range of requirements.

Starting at 40-MHz acquisition bandwidth, all Tektronix real-time spectrum analyzers are capable of simultaneously displaying frequency-, time-, and modulation-domain measurements with SignalVu-PC RF and vector signal analysis software. A variety of analysis options are available, including modulation, pulse, WLAN, phase noise, and frequency/phase settling measurements.

The RSA7100B can trigger on and measure signals of just 229-ns duration in the frequency domain in real time while offering in-depth signal analysis with SignalVu-PC RF and vector analysis software.

“Unlike other wideband signal and spectrum analyzers, which are mode-driven, all Tektronix real-time spectrum analyzers are capable of simultaneously displaying real-time frequency-, time-, and modulation-domain measurements with SignalVu-PC vector signal analysis software,” said Blaine Barnard, business manager, signal sources and spectrum analyzers at Tektronix. “It can also capture data from time-consuming test scenarios at bandwidths greater than other wideband RF signal analyzers without the need for additional equipment.

“It also allows users to perform custom digital signal processing [DSP] algorithms on the instrument without the need for additional equipment,” Barnard said.

“Test engineers that need the above capabilities don’t have to develop a custom system to do all these things, buy multiple instruments to perform each individual operation, or develop external hardware to perform custom DSP operations,” he added.

The RSA7100 also comes with the IQFlow software, which provides real-time recording and signal processing that can stream to a variety of hardware interfaces. A software API provides the speed and flexibility to perform real-time digital signal processing, said the company.

Amy Taylor, general manager, performance products at Tektronix, said that engineers can perform DSP algorithms on and off the instrument and record and analyze long event sequences, which is “essential at range and field operations, where rigor and real-time response to RF events are critical to mission success.”

A complete RSA7100B system is priced from $205,000 MSRP. It runs on the Microsoft Windows 10 operating system.