Spring 2020 ELT 224-61 Lab – RF Measurements Part 1

Introduction to RF / Microwave Measurements and Applications

Lab Overview: In this lab we will begin to explore the world of RF / Microwave measurements and provide an
overview of some specialized test equipment through the use of simulation. Simulation tools will provide us with
the ability to make virtual specialized RF/microwave measurements that may not be feasible in the lab
requiring specialized RF/microwave test equipment. When operating at RF Microwave frequencies, traditional
circuit measurement techniques using multimeters and oscilloscopes cannot be effectively and reliably used to
make accurate measurements as done with typical DC and low frequency circuits. Technical literature
indicates that special consideration needs to be factored in when circuits or electrical structures approach the
operating electrical lengths near the operating wavelength or multiple wavelengths. A good rule of thumb to
estimate when RF/Microwave measurements techniques come into play is when circuits are approaching
electrical lengths of λ/8 or less.

For example,
• An audio amplifier operating at 3KHz has a wavelength of 100Km. The corresponding λ/8 length
is 12.5km which is much longer than the electrical circuitry that an amplifier will have.
• Circuits operating at 600KHz, AM VHF band, has a λ/8 wavelength of 62.5m
• Circuits operating at 30MHz, in the lower VHF range, the λ/8 length is 1.25m.
• Circuits operating at 3 GHz, in the S-band region, the λ/8 length is 0.0125m

As you can see, as the frequencies go higher, the electrical wavelength gets smaller approaching distances
that can be near or equal to circuit traces and component elements. At these higher frequencies, electrical
traces and interconnections connections, known as transmission lines, will affect the circuit design and
operation. Figure 1 shows multiple examples of RF/Microwave circuitry and how lumped element components
such as capacitors and inductors can be realized using PCB trace elements known as microstrip or stripline -
defined by traces’ widths and lengths. The figure below shows an example of an industry software application
used to design a bandpass filter along with actual examples of implemented PCB layout designs.

Figure 1 - Microwave Circuit Examples

 Spring 2020 ELT 224-61 Lab – RF Measurements Part I
Figure 2 is a graphical example of a few cross-section views of typical transmission lines found in industry. The
Stripline, Microstrip, and Co-planer Waveguide can easily be realized with printed circuit board manufacturing
processes. The coaxial representation is just like the cables used in home antenna and cable-TV systems.

Figure 2 - Examples of Transmission Lines

When making RF/ Microwave measurements, magnitude and phase become important. For a complete
analysis of the RF network under evaluation, the ability to stimulate a system and assess the RF properties as it
relates to phase and magnitude allows us to make Impedance, Gain and Loss measurements over a desired
operating frequency range. Figure 5 is a picture of a 2-Port Vector network analyzer that allows us to measure
the characteristics of RF components or systems. Examples of 2-Port networks includes amplifiers, attenuators,
and filters. The two-port network can be viewed as a device that has an input and an output. Figure 3 shows
the relationship of the various Port to Port relationships known as S-parameters. The ports shown are depicted as
the Source and Load sides of the device. Note the references to the input and output impedances (Zin & Zout).

Figure 3 - Two Port Network Scattering Parameters (S-Parameters)

We will discuss more about S-parameters if time permits. For simplicity note the following port to port
relationships:

• S11 – Provides Input Impedance Information over a frequency range.

• S22 – Provide output impedance information over a frequency range.
• S21 – Provides frequency response characteristics at the output port due to a stimulus on the input port
• S12 - Provides frequency response characteristics at the input port due to a stimulus on the output port

Figure 4 is a graphical example of how a two-port vector network analyzer is

connected to the device under test (DUT). Note that the analyzer provides
the stimulus required to excite the device. The Network analyzer uses the
signals it provides to calculate and display all the magnitude and phase
related measurements over the predetermined frequency range. DUT
systems can be as simple a one-port network (antennas, terminations) or
greater that two such as the three port mixer, 4-port couplers, IQ modulators
and higher port power combiners/dividers to name a few. Figure 5 is an
example of a commercially available vector network analyzer (VNA). In this
lab we will look to replicate the functionality of the VNA using advanced
tools found in MultiSim.

Figure 4 – Two-Port Network Analyzer

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 Spring 2020 ELT 224-61 Lab – RF Measurements Part I

Figure 5 - Two Port Vector Network Analyzer (VNA)

As discussed in earlier lectures, communication systems can operate at frequencies and power levels that
often span multiple orders of magnitude. For example, in analog communications, for voice applications, an
audible voice is used to modulate a carrier wave of a much higher frequency. If we assume the spectrum for
voice to be bounded by 4KHz and applied to an AM broadcast of operating at 1600KHz, we can easily see
that the carrier frequency is 425x the information bearing signal. RF transmitters can operate at extremely high-
power levels that can reach well into the megawatts range (+90dBm) for radar application while receivers are
expected to recover signals that can be as weak as -130dBm for GPS applications. To maximize the efficiency
of communications systems, impedance matching is critical to the interconnecting of communication system
components. The use of a VNA can help characterize component and system designs to capture the broad
performance ranges that a device will be required to operate in.

As demonstrated in previous lectures and labs, we saw how a spectrum analyzer was able to view signals of
varying strength (magnitude) through the use of logarithmic vertical scales. Spectrum analyzers typically only
provide a scaler measurement (magnitude), and do not provide insight in the phasing of the signals when
making measurements. Error! Reference source not found. is the icon representation of the 2-Port VNA to
obtain the measurements we will use for this lab.

Figure 7 - Mutlisim Icon for VNA - 2-Port Analyzer Figure 6 - MultiSim Network Analyzer Window

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 Spring 2020 ELT 224-61 Lab – RF Measurements Part I
Lab Part I: Attenuators

In this portion of the lab we will explore attenuators and how critical the design values are to realize the desired
attenuation while maintaining the input and output impendences. Figure 8 shows various examples of
attenuators commonly found in industry today.

Figure 8 - Examples of Commercially available RF Attenuators

Figure 9 shows how an attenuator, a two-port device, is used to attenuate the source signal that is delivered to the load.

Figure 9 - Attenuator Representation & Implementation.

Figure 10 shows the schematic representation of various resistive network topologies to realize an attenuator.
The “T” and “π” configurations are commonly used. The “L” configuration is less common.

Figure 10 - Various Attenuator Schematics

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 Spring 2020 ELT 224-61 Lab – RF Measurements Part I

1. Using Multisim implement the circuit shown in Figure 11 and verify the attenuation (S21), input impedance (S11) and
output impedance (S22) using the Network analyzer tool.

Figure 11 - Realization of a 10dB Attenuator and dissipated Power across the resistive elements

2. Using Multisim, enter the values for the R1 and R2 of Figure 10 using the “π” schematic. Using the Multisim
Network analyzer, determine the attenuation values corresponding to the attenuator for the given
values. For each set of resistor values, determine the ZIN and ZOUT values for each entry in the table.

Calculate the % difference for the Input and output impedances using 50 Ω as the reference
impedance

50 Ω Calculated Values 1% Resistors 5% Resistors

attenuator R1 R2 R1 R2 R1 R2
dB 869 Ω 5.8 Ω 337 Ω 5.6 Ω 910 Ω 5.6 Ω
dB 436 Ω 12 Ω 453 Ω 12.0 Ω 470 Ω 12 Ω
dB 294 Ω 18 Ω 284 Ω 18.0 Ω 300 Ω 18 Ω
dB 178 Ω 30 Ω 178 Ω 30.1 Ω 200 Ω 33 Ω
dB 96 Ω 37 Ω 154 Ω 37.4 Ω 150 Ω 39 Ω
dB 61 Ω 248 Ω 61.9 Ω 249 Ω 62 Ω 270 Ω

Part 2: Using the Multisim manual – Implement the amplifier circuit shown in section 14. Follow the instructions
outlined in the example provided.

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