Your nonlinear problem is our business

NMDG NVC. van Kerckhovenstraat 110 Bldg 5 B-2880 Bornem, Belgium - Europe

Tel. +32 (0) 3 890 46 12Fax +32 (0) 3 890 46 29Email: info@nmdg.be

www.nmdg.be

Characterisation Services

Behavioural Modelling

System Integration

Consulting & Training

Do you want to...

experience the power of large-signal measurements with limited budget?

better understand your RF diodes, transistors under RF conditions?

see why your power amplifier is not performing as predicted?

know how reliable your devices are under realistic conditions?

determine “on the fly” the matching circuits for switching amplifiers?

create measurement-based models for your devices?

minimise effort and investment developing advanced systems?

learn about the newest characterisation and modelling techniques?

May 2009

IntroductionYour nonlinear problem is our business

The business of NMDG is to assist R&D, design, test engineers and instrumentation manufacturers who need to characterise, model and test HF active components and circuits under realistic conditions, especially in nonlinear mode of operation.

Besides the commercialisation of products, NMDG offers characterisation, behavioural modelling, consulting services based on Large-Signal Network Analyser (LSNA) tech-nology, resulting in faster realisation of better and more complex HF designs, better testing procedures and faster time to market.

Using its extensive expertise in RF instrumentation, NMDG develops characterisation systems on customer demand.

Finally, as each nonlinear problem is different, NMDG provides consulting services to help customer to understand and solve their problems, and gives training courses on nonlinear characterisation techniques, load-pull techniques and behavioural modelling theory.

Characterisation Service

While existing characterisation techniques give only partial information on nonlinear behaviour of components, large-signal network analysis (LSNA) techniques reveal the fundamental and complete information of the component nonlinear behaviour, i.e. voltage and current or travelling waves at fundamental and harmonics, including mod-ulation. Through its characterisation service, NMDG allows you to get insight into the nonlinear behaviour of your component under realistic conditions both in terms of stim-uli (continuous wave or modulation) and mismatch conditions (non-50 Ohm).

For your convenience the resulting measurement data can be exported in different formats, like CITIFile, CSV-format or table-format. On your request, other formats can be considered. The resulting data can be coupled in simulation tools for, among oth-ers, model verification and tuning.

The LSNA2ICCAP tool allows to process and visualise, in a simple and intuitive way, LSNA-measured data, incorporated into the Agilent™ IC-CAP™ environment. For cus-tomers who have simulation capabilities in Agilent™ IC-CAP™ through Agilent™ ADS™, the LSNA measurements can even be efficiently applied not only to character-ise an active device while operating under realistic signal conditions, but also to verify the accuracy of its model in the same model extraction environment.

Key Values

➢ Study the true and complete high-frequency behaviour of your components under realistic large-signal RF excitation and mismatch conditions

➢ Eliminate the uncertainty of the impact of the measurement environment➢ Investigate the reliability of your components under realistic HF conditions➢ Reduce the design time by using LSNA-certified models➢ Determine directly the matching circuits for proper classes of operation

NMDG offers:

➢ DC I-V characteristics➢ S-parameters at different bias points➢ Source and Load-Pull➢ Broadband voltage and current time-domain waveforms:

at the input and output of the test device including fundamental, harmonic and modulation behaviour up to 50GHz under continuous wave and modulation (two-tone, multi-tone) stimuli under different source and load impedances

➢ Hot S-parameter measurements➢ AM / AM - AM / PM➢ Static harmonic distortion analysis ➢ Dynamic harmonic distortion analysis ➢ Stability analysis under hot conditions ➢ Measurement of output impedance of sources, oscillators under hot conditions ➢ Conversion matrices➢ Characterisation of frequency-translating devices like mixers ➢ In-circuit measurements using high-impedance probes➢ ... many more on request

Modelling ServiceThanks to the complete insight of the nonlinear beha-viour, NMDG can provide you a measurement-based behavioural model for your component, valid for a giv-en fundamental frequency, input power range and source and load mismatches.

Such a model can then be integrated in your simulation tool to predict harmonic behaviour and potentially mod-ulation behaviour of your component.

Through customisation of the measurement setup and adaptation of the algorithms, it is possible to extend the behavioural model to include memory effects, even including the effects of the bias circuitry.

Key Values

➢ Simulate your active HF components under mismatched conditions,fast and accurately

➢ Measurement-based behavioural models with limited and verifiable assumptions ➢ Model is not constructed from specifications but from "complete" measurements➢ The modelling process is straightforward and the model is directly based on

measurements➢ Model accuracy at the fundamental in a non-50 Ohm environment, predicting

input and output behaviour

NMDG offers:

➢ Extraction of a measurement-based behavioural model at the specified fundamental frequency for a given input power range and a range of termination impedances: predicts the complete voltage - current or incident - reflected wave behaviour

at the input and output port of the component, taking into account the effect of source and load impedance for different bias points

predicts modulation behaviour➢ Connection into ADS™ from Agilent Technologies™➢ Components can be connectorised, in fixture (including deembedding) or on

wafer

System Integration ServiceTo meet the needs of the continuous evolution of HF and high-speed components, the frequency range of instrument-ation is extended in conjunction with the capability to cap-ture more and more complex signals. A very good example are the oscilloscopes, passing the 10 GHz barrier. Mean-while spectrum and signal analysers are extended with more features to capture also the time aspects of the sig-nals.

Unfortunately the distance between the component and the instrument is increasing. Interconnects introduce measure-ment errors which are difficult to quantify. Components are not always operating in 50 Ohm environments adding the difficulty to relate instrument results to component beha-viour. Meanwhile the increasing importance of nonlinear characteristics of the components requires synchronous

characterisation capabilities at DC, low frequencies and high frequencies.

NMDG's expertise takes away your burden to develop, adapt measurement systems to properly characterise devices. As such, you can stay focused on design and manufac-turing.

NMDG will develop and implement characterisation systems on your request.

Key Values

➢ Eliminate the guess work in your measurements by adding the proper calibration ➢ Extend your signal analysis capability to component analysis through software

and additional hardware

NMDG offers:

➢ Development, implementation and support of RF measurement systems➢ Instrument control, algorithm and GUI development➢ Integration of measured data in your simulation environment

Photo provided courtesy of ON Semiconductor

Consulting and Training Services

Being involved in this business for more than 15 years, NMDG knows that nonlinear characterisation is not obvious. As such, NMDG can help you to solve your specific nonlinear problem through its consulting services.

NMDG also offers general and advanced training on large-signal network analysis techniques to demystify “what goes beyond S-parameters”.

Key Values

➢ Bring Large-Signal Network Analysis expertise to your team➢ Face-to-face discussion with Large-Signal Network Analysis experts

NMDG offers:

➢ Consulting services to help you solve your nonlinear problems➢ General and advanced trainings, on site or via webinars

Contact Information

NMDG nvCesar Van Kerckhovenstraat 110Fountain Business Center – Bldg 52880 BornemBELGIUMTel.: +32 3 890 46 12Fax: +32 3 890 46 29info@nmdg.bewww.nmdg.be

Notes

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