National Instruments Ireland Resources Limited

National Instruments Corporation

Nmdg Nv

Marc Vanden Bossche

Dirk Plettemeier

Thomas Deckert

Frans Verbeyst

Martin Laabs

Johannes Dietmar Herbert Lange

Martin Obermaier

Vincent Kotzsch

Guillaume Pailloncy

A system and method for testing devices such as integrated circuits (IC) with integrated antenna arrays configured for wireless signal reception. The method performs a calibration operation on a reference device under test (DUT). During the calibration operation, the DUT receives a series of first signals from a first far-field (FF) location and a series of array transmissions from a second near-field (NF) location using different beamforming settings, and determines therefrom a set of calibration parameters. The calibration parameters may be used by a probe antenna system (PAS) to transmit an array transmission to the DUT from the second NF location to emulate a single probe or multi-probe transmission from the first FF location.

Over-the-air testing of millimeter wave antenna receiver arrays

In a measurement system, a signal probing circuit may provide probed signals by probing voltages and currents and/or incident and reflected waves at a port of a device under test (DUT). A multi-channel receiver structure may include receivers that receive two probed signals from the signal probing hardware circuit, each receiver having its own sample clock derived from a master clock and further having a respective digitizer for digitizing a corresponding one of the two probed signals. A synchronization block, external to the receivers and including a reference clock derived from the master clock, may enable the two probed signals to be phase coherently digitized across the receivers by synchronizing the respective sample clocks of the receivers while the reference clock is being shared with the receivers. A signal processing circuit may then process the phase coherently digitized probed signals.

Measurement system for characterizing a device under test

A system and method for testing (e.g., rapidly and inexpensively) devices such as integrated circuits (IC) with integrated antennas configured for millimeter wave transmission and/or reception. The method may first perform a calibration operation on a reference device under test (DUT). The calibration operation may determine a set of reference DUT FF base functions and may also generate a set of calibration coefficients. After the calibration step using the reference DUT, the resulting reference DUT FF base functions and the calibration coefficients (or reconstruction matrix) may be used in determining far-field patterns of DUTs based on other field measurements, e.g., measurements taken in the near field of the DUT.

Over-the-air testing of millimeter wave antenna arrays

The present invention relates to a system for impedance generation comprising

Impedance synthesizer

An impedance control device for tuning a device under test comprising: a first terminal port arranged for connecting a device under test, a second terminal port arranged for connecting a termination, a first signal path for a signal travelling between the first and the second terminal port, first coupling means arranged for picking up a part of the signal travelling in the first signal path, a second signal path arranged for receiving the part of the signal from the first coupling means, said second signal path comprising a correction circuit for adapting as a function of frequency the amplitude and phase of the received part of the signal, second coupling means arranged for coupling back into the first signal path an adapted signal outputted by the correction circuit, and an attenuator and phase shifter for applying attenuation and phase shifting on the signals travelling between the first and the second terminal port.

Device for actively improved impedance synthesis

The present invention relates to a method for calibrating a receiver device or a stimulus-response system comprising a receiver device. The method comprises the steps of

Measurement and system for performing a calibration

The present invention relates to a measurement system for characterizing a device under test (DUT) wherein impedance is controlled or varied over a set of measurement conditions and a parameter or a set of parameters measured for each measurement condition. The measurement system comprises

Measurement system for characterising a device under test

A method for calibrating a vector network analyzer may include performing a first set of measurements on a first port of a plurality of ports and determining error coefficients for the first port. The error coefficients may be used to obtain a first calibrated port. For an uncalibrated port of the plurality of ports, a connection via a known through between an already calibrated port and the uncalibrated port may be established and a first signal from a first signal source may be applied to the calibrated port and a second signal form a second signal source may be applied to the uncalibrated port. A further set of measurements with respect to the uncalibrated port may be performed and error coefficients may be determined for the uncalibrated port based on the further set of measurements and relation to error coefficients of the calibrated port.

Method for calibrating a vector network analyzer

The present invention relates to a system for calibrating and for synchronizing a receiver. The system is arranged for receiving a reference clock signal in a first and a second signal path and comprises

System and method for calibrating and synchronizing a receiver

The present invention relates to a method for characterizing at a given frequency reflected waves of a frequency translating device having at least two ports, whereby information is available on the phase of a local oscillator driving the frequency translating device. The method comprises the steps of&#x2014;applying at the at least two ports at least a tone at said given frequency and tones at said given frequency offset by the local oscillator signal frequency,&#x2014;rotating the phase of the applied tone at said given frequency or exploiting a phase rotation of the local oscillator signal,&#x2014;measuring at said given frequency amplitude and phase of reflected waves at the at least two ports and measuring at said given frequency and at said given frequency offset by the frequency of the local oscillator signal amplitude and phase of incident waves at the at least two ports,&#x2014;determining parameters for a model of the frequency translating device by relating the amplitude and phase of the reflected waves to the incident waves, taking into account at least the local oscillator signal phase.

Method and system for characterising a frequency translating device

The present invention is related to a system () for determining a representation of a multi-tone signal () comprising a plurality of phase coherent tones, at least two of said phase coherent tones being modulated by a modulating signal, said system comprising an input () for applying the multi-tone signal (), phase coherent mixing means () for demodulation in connection with data acquisition means () for digitization, said mixing means and data acquisition means arranged for being fed with the multi-tone signal and with a reference signal () comprising said phase coherent tones, each pair of phase coherent tones having a fixed phase difference, whereby the data acquisition means is arranged for being triggered by a trigger signal () for yielding a representation of said modulation signals with fixed delay, processing means () arranged for receiving digital signals output from the data acquisition means and for comparing phase information of a downconverted tone of the multi-tone signal after demodulation with phase information derived from the corresponding tone of the demodulated reference signal and further arranged for controlling the phase coherent mixing means for sequential downconversion, such that a representation of said multi-tone signal can be determined.

System and method for representing a multi-tone signal

A measurement system for determining at least one characteristic of a device under test (DUT) at at least one frequency is described. The measurement system includes a network analyzer being in connection at least with a first source via a first connector and a second source via a second connector. Each source generates a signal. The network analyzer further includes signal paths arranged for applying the generated signals to the DUT and arranged for receiving signals output by the DUT. The frequency content of the signal generated by the second source includes at least a frequency component offset from the at least one frequency at which the DUT is characterized, the at least one frequency being included in the frequency content of the signal generated by the first source.

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Bornem, Belgium

Marc Vanden Bossche