Basic tools such as DMMs and oscilloscopes may be the only test gear needed for small printed circuit board repairs, but it pays to know when automated systems would be a better choice. Alan Lowne | Saelig Co. Inc. PCBs are more complicated to repair today than even a few years ago. Manufacturing mistakes and […]
FAQ
What you should know about Wi-Fi 6 and the 6-GHz band
While there are still interference issues to be resolved, new specifications for Wi-Fi in the 6-GHz band will bring instantly better wireless performance. Eve Danel | LitePoint Wi-Fi technology turns 20 this year, and it has proven to be successful beyond the wildest expectations. The recent announcement by the FCC to consider allowing 1,200 MHz […]
How standards and conformance tests shape the future of 5G New Radio
Specs for 5G NR release-15 have been finalized and plans call for product introductions this year. Sheri DeTomasi | Keysight Technologies, Inc. The development of 5G standards and their commercial rollout appears to be on a fast track. Mobile operators and network equipment makers are conducting field trials and the first smartphones are expected out […]
Test instruments tackle 5G
The high frequencies involved in 5G will force a re-think of how to go about characterizing circuits and systems. Adnan Khan | Anritsu Co. Engineers responsible for designing and manufacturing 5G chipsets, devices, and systems have more than enough challenges. From a technical standpoint, they must deliver high bandwidth, low latency, and other performance benchmarks. […]
Fluke test tools and protecting against arc flash
Fluke Corp. has manufactured electrical test and measurement instruments for decades, and these instruments have been well-known for accuracy, durability and great user-friendly interfaces. Maintaining those qualities, Fluke is now emphasizing electrical safety. This emphasis is apparent in Fluke’s new line of electricians’ hand tools, which are designed and built with the idea that after […]
Basics of cavity resonators
Experimenters beware! If you think it might be instructive to dismantle a microwave oven and power up the magnetron to make a space gun, don’t do it. A microwave gun (called a magnetron) in a state other than as manufactured has numerous potential hazards. (Nevertheless, you can find a lot of YouTube videos describing exactly […]
The difference between scanning electron microscopes and tunneling scanning electron microscopes
Compared to an optical microscope, the electron microscope achieves far greater resolution and magnification by taking advantage of the wave aspect of electrons. An electron’s wavelength is typically 1/100,000 that of visible light. Resolutions of 50 pm and 10 million-X magnification have been achieved, far better than the 200-mm resolution and 2,000X magnification of a […]
The difference between CCD and CMOS image sensing
Charge-coupled devices (CCDs) and complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology have been in fierce yet friendly competition. Fierce because valuable market share is contested, friendly because the rival digital camera technologies have much in common. It is ironic that the more-costly CCD sensor is used in the most advanced astrophotography instruments and also in low-end point-and-shoot cameras, […]
Testing PV inverters
A photovoltaic, or PV, inverter converts the dc output of a solar cell or array into ac that can feed directly into the electrical grid (Grid Tie) or be used by a local electrical grid (Off-Grid). Solar PV inverters have special functions adapted for use with photovoltaic arrays, including maximum power point tracking (MPPT) and […]
Tools for optimizing circuit bias
If a semiconductor or vacuum tube is to accurately reproduce or amplify signals on its input, it must have on its input a non-time-varying dc voltage, i.e. dc bias, the purpose of which is to keep the device in its linear operating range. Otherwise, the input signal to be reproduced may drive the device beyond […]