Summary

This course enables practicing engineers and CAD technicians to develop design rules for RF and high-speed designs, choose an optimal design tool, and organize the design process to most efficiently execute the design that will insure circuit performance, and minimize costs and production time.

Learning objectives

Upon completing the course you will be able to:

• Discuss fundamental RF and digital PCB design issues.
• Compare and contrast transmission lines types, characteristics, and situations in which they can be used.
• Describe, evaluate, and compare termination types, PCB materials and fabrication processes, and packaging types.
• Identify and compensate for sources of interference – EMI and EMC.
• Measure and fine-tune circuit performance.
• Identify and select tools for developing transmission line design rules.

Target Audience

Anyone working with RF circuits or high-speed digital logic, including RF engineers, digital logic engineers, technicians, and PCB layout professionals will benefit from this course. A practical engineering background and basic mathematics are required to follow the course.

Fundamentals of Digital and RF Circuits

 • RF vs. high speed digital • Signal integrity • Properties of high speed logic gates • Pulse rise/fall times • Propagation time • Spectra of digital signals

Simple but very important physics

 • Electric fields, dielectrics, and capacitance • Magnetic fields, mu-materials, and inductance • Electromagnetics and boundaries • Frequency, wavelength, and phase • Resistance and Ohm’s Law

Transmission Line Fundamentals

 • PCB traces • Velocity of propagation • Electrical length • Skin effect • Microstrip lines • Striplines • Coaxial • Coplaner • Line impedance • Transmission energy • Reflected waves • Terminations

Use of Transmission Lines

 • Transmission line or wire ? • Line impedance control • Transmission line systems • Line parasitics

PCB Layout Strategies

 • Grounding via placement • DC Power distribution • “Ground” return • Ground bounce • Plane layers

PCB Materials and Fabrication

 • Dielectric materials • The basic fab process • Layer Stack-ups • Multi-layer parasitics • Dispersion

Sources of Interference

 • Cross talk • PCB inductors • Mutual inductance • Shield traces • Ribbon cables

EMI Issues

 • Current loop size • Bypass capacitors • CMOS special considerations • Ground discontinuity • Slew rate control

EMC Issues

 • Managing fields • Differential signals

Delay Matching

 • Harder than it looks • Serpentine line coupling

Design Rules

 • For low noise • For Signal Integrity • For low EMI • Notching ground planes • Danger of autorouting

Summary

This  course provides comprehensive information on the 5G wireless network with a focus on physical layer and air interface technologies. The course starts with a review of cellular standards evolution and the shortcomings that 5G addresses. Next we move on to describe the modulation waveforms and also look at the issues that are introduced by working with higher GHz frequency bands. Further topics include Massive MIMO, network architecture, 5G system features, and evolutionary services.

Learning objectives

Upon completing the course you will be able to:

• Identify shortcomings in previous cellular generations that the 5G wireless network architecture addresses
• Explain key 5G wireless features and advantages
• Describe major 5G enabling technologies
• Understand 5G radio architecture and system considerations
• Assess the impact of key air interface changes required to support the evolution to 5G
• Predict physical layer design and implementation issues

Target Audience

Anyone working within the field of general RF, wireless, and cellular systems will benefit from this comprehensive coverage of 5G wireless networks. The course is well suited for design engineers and program managers who require an understanding of 5G principles and design concepts. An electrical engineering background or equivalent practical experience is recommended but not required.

Outline

Comparison of 3G/HSPA and LTE (4G) Systems

 • Overview of 3G/HSPA and LTE Standards • Physical & Logical Channels • Network Architecture, Protocol Architecture, Data Rates • UL and DL PHY signal processing discussion (HARQ, MMSE, Spectral Efficiency, etc.) • Shannon Capacity and Throughput Discussion • Shortcomings of existing cellular standards

5G Requirements & Direction

 • Role of ITU & 3GPP standards bodies – 3GPP Standard Release features – CoMP, MU-MIMO, Freq Bands, etc. – Carrier Aggregation CA versus Multiple Antennas – 5G Road map and Time line • Discussion of Data Rates, Low Latency, Throughput, Capacity, Massive MIMO, etc. • Their impact to existing LTE technology

Modulation & Multiple Access Waveforms

 • 16QAM, 64QAM, 256QAM • FFT/iFFT, FDMA, OFDMA, FBMC, SCM • BER Performance and Mathematical representation

Frequency Band Options

 • Below 6GHz and up to 60GHz considerations • Calculating Propagation Path Loss – Path Loss Mathematical Models – Examining Propagation Path Loss measurements • System Deployment • Addressing Macro Cells and Small Cells Use Case

5G System Features

 • Network Architecture Discussion – Packet based – Cloud RAN & SDN – Wireless Backhaul • Multi-Site operation – Interference Coordination – Advanced SON – Beamforming (SDMA) • Evolutionary Services: – IoT & D2D – HetNet – LTE-Assisted Access (LTE-AA)

Conclusions and Direction

Summary

This program has been designed for applications, production, manufacturing engineers and technicians as well as other professionals who need to have a solid background in the fundamentals of working with RF and wireless products. This four part program provides a thorough understanding of RF analytical tools, communications signals, RF devices and test instruments. Starting with basic analytical tools such as the decibel scale, S-parameters and the Smith Chart, this program covers test instrumentation, RF components, and modulation. A basic block diagram of a transmitter/receiver chain forms the backbone of the course outline. Each component is described, and the relative performance parameters defined. Key impairments are introduced as they become relevant to the operation of the system. Basic system calculations are covered, as well as modulation formats and multiple access techniques.

Learning objectives

Upon completing the course you will be able to:

• work natively with dB values (without using a calculator)
• understand basic wave parameters and propagation
• appreciate the effects of parasitics on component behavior
• understand the effects of mismatches at RF
• create basic matching networks using the Smith Chart
• describe basic transmission line structures and input impedance
• interpret S-parameters from measurements and datasheets
• describe the basic function of spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, and power meters
• know the limitations on accuracy/uncertainty that affect all RF and high frequency measurements
• describe the operation of the main components of an RF transceiver system
• interpret key performance parameters such as P1dB, IP3, noise figure, etc.
• describe the modulation formats used to impress information onto the RF carrier
• understand the basic principles of multiple access techniques such as TDMA, CDMA, OFDMA

Target Audience

This program is ideally suited for applications, manufacturing and production engineers or technicians who are new to the RF/wireless field. It is also suitable for those who have been working in the field but who have not had a formal introduction to the key concepts that form the basis of understanding and troubleshooting wireless systems. A knowledge of basic circuit theory/operation (resistors, inductors, capacitors) is assumed.

Analytical tools

 • wave parameters • dB & dBm • mismatches and reflection • impedance matching and the Smith Chart • transmission lines • device parasitics and their effects • S-parameters

Modulation

 • Analog – AM, FM • IQ Modulation – PSK – QAM

Multiple Access Techniques

 • FDMA • TDMA • CDMA • OFDMA

Performance of RF Components with Digital Signals

 • digital modulation fundamentals • adjacent channel power ACP • error vector magnitude EVM • EVM due to power amplifier compression and AM to PM • EVM due to group delay • EVM due to phase noise • IQ modulator troubleshooting with the VSA

Description of Bit Error Rate

Cables and Connectors

 • cable and connector care • connector types

Vector Network Analyzer

 • directional couplers • basic block diagram • calibration • basic measurement setup

Spectrum Analyzer

 • time domain vs. frequency domain • basic block diagram • typical measurements

Signal Generator

 • basic block diagram

Power Meters

 • power detection

Noise Figure Meter

Vector Signal Analyzer

 • basic introduction

Measurement Uncertainties

 • mismatch uncertainty • systematic errors in VNA measurements • VNA calibration • instrument-generated distortion products

Measurements of Non-connectorized devices

 • de-embedding • alternate calibration types: TRL • fixturing

Phase Locked Oscillator

 • principles of operation • phase noise – measurement techniques – impacts of phase noise on sytem performance

Upconverter

 • modulation basics • principles of operation • 1 dB compression point for active devices • output spectrum of upconverter

Power Amplifier

 • principles of operation • 1 dB compression point, saturation • AM to PM distortion • harmonics

Antennas

 • description of antenna types • dBi, dBd gain parameters

Filters

 • common filter types – Butterworth, Chebychev, Gaussian • transfer function • inband loss • match • bandwidth • group delay

Noise and Noise Figure

 • definition of thermal noise • definition of noise figure • techniques for measuring noise figure – Y-factor technique – cold-source

Low Noise Amplifiers

 • principles of operation • noise figure • intermodulation products • S-parameters – input vs. output match • 1 dB compression point

Mixer

 • principles of operation • image noise from LNA

Intermodulation products

 • how intermodulation products are produced • definition of IP3 • definition of IP2

Overall Receiver Performance

 • typical overall receiver performance • cascaded noise figure, IP3 • SFDR Spur Free Dynamic Range