What is RF test

1、 What is RF testing

Radio Frequency, commonly abbreviated as RF. Radio frequency testing is radio frequency current, which is an abbreviation for high-frequency alternating current electromagnetic waves. It represents the electromagnetic frequency that can radiate into space, with a frequency range from 300KHz to 110GHz. Radio frequency, abbreviated as RF, is a shorthand for high-frequency alternating current electromagnetic waves. The frequency of change less than 1000 times per second is called low-frequency current, and the frequency of change more than 10000 times is called high-frequency current. Radio frequency is this type of high-frequency current.

Frequency transmission is ubiquitous, whether it is WI-FI, Bluetooth, GPS, NFC (close range wireless communication), etc., all require frequency transmission. Nowadays, radio frequency technology is widely used in the field of wireless communication, such as RFID, base station communication, satellite communication, etc.

In wireless communication systems, RF front-end power amplifiers are a crucial component. Its main function is to amplify low-power signals and obtain a certain RF output power. Wireless signals experience significant attenuation in the air. In order to maintain stable communication service quality, it is necessary to amplify the modulated signal to a sufficiently large size and transmit it from the antenna. It is the core of wireless communication systems and determines the quality of the communication system.

2、 RF testing methods

1. Connect the power divider using an RF cable according to the diagram above, and measure the losses of the 5515C to EUT and EUT to the spectrometer using a signal source and spectrograph, and then record the loss values.
2. After measuring the loss, connect the EUT, E5515C, and spectrograph to the power divider according to the diagram, and connect the end of the power divider with greater attenuation to the spectrograph.
3. Adjust the compensation for channel number and path loss on E5515C, and then set E5515C according to the parameters in the following table.
4. Establish a call connection between EUT and E5515C, and then adjust the E5515C parameters to the power control mode of all up bits to enable EUT to output at maximum power.
5. Set up the compensation for path loss on the spectrograph, and then test the conducted stray according to the frequency segmentation in the following table. The peak power of each segment of the measured spectrum must be lower than the limit specified in the following table standard, and the measured data should be recorded.
6. Then reset the parameters of E5515C according to the following table.
7. Establish a new call connection between EUT and E5515C, and set the E5515C parameters to alternate power control modes of 0 and 1.
8. According to the following table, reset the spectrograph and test the conducted stray according to frequency segmentation. The peak power of each spectrum segment measured must be lower than the limit specified in the following table standard, and the measured data should be recorded.

3、 Equipment required for RF testing

1. For unpackaged RF devices, a probe station is used for matching, and relevant instruments such as spectrographs, vector network analyzers, power meters, signal generators, oscilloscopes, etc. are used for corresponding parameter testing.
2. The packaged components can be directly tested with instruments, and industry friends are welcome to communicate.