This application is related by subject matter to U.S. Utility Application patent Ser. No. 10/807,205, entitled PHASE NOISE COMPENSATION FOR SPECTRAL MEASUREMENTS, which was filed on Mar. 23, 2004. U.S. Utility Application for patent Ser. No. 10/807,205 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The performance of spectrum analyzers can be degraded by phase noise that is inherent within the spectrum analyzers. For example, phase noise can reduce measurement accuracy of a spectrum analyzer when the phase noise of the spectrum analyzer cannot be isolated from signal measurements that are performed by the spectrum analyzer. Phase noise can also limit measurement sensitivity of the spectrum analyzer. If the phase noise of the spectrum analyzer is sufficiently high relative to the signals being measured, the signals can be masked by the phase noise and go undetected by the spectrum analyzer. Unfortunately, decreasing the phase noise of the spectrum analyzer to improve the measurement accuracy and measurement sensitivity can be costly or difficult to achieve, due to inherent noise within local oscillators, frequency references and other components of the spectrum analyzers that contribute to phase noise. Accordingly, there is motivation to compensate for the effects of phase noise on the measurements acquired by spectrum analyzers.
One phase noise compensation technique is used in the Option 226 Phase Noise Measurement Personality for the AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC. model E4440A PSA series Spectrum Analyzer. This technique includes characterizing the phase noise of the spectrum analyzer by stimulating the spectrum analyzer with a signal having phase noise that is substantially lower than that of the spectrum analyzer, and then measuring the stimulus signal. The resultant phase noise from the measured stimulus signal is subtracted on a linear power scale from subsequent signal measurements that are performed by the spectrum analyzer. This phase noise characterization pertains only to the one particular operating state of the spectrum analyzer at which the stimulus signal is measured. Therefore, in order to compensate for phase noise using this technique, the characterization is typically performed upon each change of the operating state of the spectrum analyzer, which increases measurement set-up time for the spectrum analyzer.
Embodiments of the present invention provide a system and method for compensating for phase noise of a spectrum analyzer when measuring the phase noise of an applied signal based on an established model of the phase noise that accommodates a variety of operating states of the spectrum analyzer. Each operating state has a carrier frequency associated therewith. A frequency offset from the carrier frequency of a designated operating state identifies a frequency range for measuring the phase noise of the applied signal. The model, along with the frequency offset, is used to form an array that is applied to extract an output signal from a phase noise measurement signal that is acquired by the spectrum analyzer.
The disclosed invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show exemplary embodiments of the invention and which are incorporated in the specification hereof by reference, wherein:
When isolating the phase noise of a signal SIN applied to a typical spectrum analyzer, a phase noise measurement SMEAS acquired by the spectrum analyzer can be expressed as the phase noise of the applied signal SINp plus the amplitude of the carrier frequency AC of the applied signal SIN multiplied with the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer, as indicated in equation 1.
SMEAS=SINP+AC*φSA (1)
The user interface 16 provides an input 17 to the controller 14, which is used to adjust the operating state of the spectrum analyzer 10. The operating state includes the center frequency CF, the frequency span SPAN, and resolution bandwidth RBW settings for a measurement acquisition unit 18 of the spectrum analyzer 10. However, there may be additional operating states, or operating states that are different from these exemplary operating states, depending on the measurement acquisition unit 18 of the spectrum analyzer 10. The measurement acquisition unit 18 includes the components, elements or subsystems used to characterize the spectral content of signals SIN that are applied to the spectrum analyzer 10.
Referring again to
An exemplary LO configuration parameter set 41, tabulated in table 1, designates the operating states of a spectrum analyzer 10 that includes an offset synthesizer SYNTH in the measurement acquisition unit 18.
The settings of the LO configuration parameter set 41 that designates the operating state of the spectrum analyzer 10 also influence the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10. For the parameter set 41 of table 1, the sampler IF frequency (intermediate frequency) fSIF, sampler IF polarity P, sampler harmonic number N and PLL (phase lock loop) divide ratio R within the offset synthesizer of the measurement acquisition unit 18 impact the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10. Thus, when a phase noise measurement is taken of an applied signal SIN by the spectrum analyzer 10, the parameter settings that designate the operating state of the spectrum analyzer 10 for the measurement also establish the phase noise φSA that is contributed to the measurement by the spectrum analyzer 10.
The phase noise compensation system 12 shown in
Once the appropriate phase noise model 22 has been selected, the computational unit 20 selects specific samples from the selected phase noise model 22 based on the frequency span SPAN, a number of measurement points n in SMEAS and a frequency offset fCO from the carrier frequency, which indicates the frequency range between the carrier frequency and an edge frequency on the screen. The frequency offset fCO can be positive or negative, depending on the phase noise sideband signal being measured. The selected samples collectively form the array D 24.
The samples in the array D 24 correspond to the phase noise density in dBc/Hz (the ratio of decibels relative to the carrier power in each hertz of bandwidth). Thus, the samples represent the relative phase noise attributed to the spectrum analyzer 10. However, to remove the effects of the phase noise from the measured signal SMEAS, the absolute phase noise of the spectrum analyzer is needed. Therefore, the array D is applied to a noise bandwidth scaling 25 that converts the phase noise array proportional to the noise bandwidth NBW of the spectrum analyzer, established based on the setting of the resolution bandwidth RBW of the spectrum analyzer 10. The noise bandwidth NBW is typically a designated multiple of the resolution bandwidth RBW.
The signal processor 30 applies the array D 24, now in dBc, to a multiplier 32 that multiplies the array D 24 with the power of the carrier frequency AC to obtain the absolute phase noise of the spectrum analyzer 10. The output of the multiplier 32 is input to a summation unit 34 that applies the phase noise measurements SMEAS of the signal SIN acquired by the measurement acquisition system 18 to the output of multiplier 32 in order to extract an output signal SOUT. The output signal SOUT is a representation of the phase noise measurement of signal SIN that includes compensation to reduce the influence of the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10.
In step 42 of the flow diagram 40, the parameters in the parameter set 13 are adjusted to settings {fOFFSET, fSIF, P, N, R}CAL that designate corresponding operating states of the spectrum analyzer for the measurement of each of the calibration signals S1CAL . . . SNCAL. Step 44 includes measuring each of the calibration signals S1CAL . . . SNCAL at the center frequency CF, frequency span SPAN and resolution bandwidth RBW determined by the operating state designated by the settings {fOFFSET, fSIF, P, N, R}CAL of the parameters in the parameter set 13. The phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10 at predetermined frequency offsets fOFFSET from the measured calibration signals is isolated in step 46 to form a phase noise calibration set φCAL{fOFFSET, fSIF, P N, R}CAL, which is a function of the parameters in the parameter set 13 adjusted to the settings {fOFFSET, fSIF, P, N, R}CAL. The calibration signals S1CAL . . . SNCAL applied to the spectrum analyzer have substantially lower phase noise than the spectrum analyzer 10, so that the phase noise of each measured calibration signal is attributed to the spectrum analyzer 10. Alternatively, the phase noise of the calibration signals S1CAL . . . SNCAL has low uncertainty, so that the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10 can be isolated by subtracting, on a linear power scale, the phase noise of the calibration signals from the total phase noise that is measured by the spectrum analyzer, where the subtraction is performed at the frequency offsets fOFFSET.
Step 48 includes establishing the phase noise model (fOFFSET) as a set of functions F of the frequency offsets fOFFSET and the parameters in the parameter set 13. When the parameter set includes the exemplary parameters of table 1, the phase noise model is expressed as (fOFFSET)=F {fOFFSET, fSIF, P, N. R}. The functions F include a series of contours, typically represented by coefficients, polynomial terms, of elements in an array or look-up table, which result from curve fitting or other mappings of phase noise at frequency offsets fOFFSET to the phase noise calibration set φCAL{fOFFSET, fSIF, P, N, R}CAL established in step 46.
In one example, the set of functions F are linear, wherein each function Fx within the set of functions F has a slope m that is a function of the sampler IF polarity P, the sampler harmonic number N and the PLL divide ratio R. Each function Fx also has an offset b that is a function of the sampler IF polarity P, the sampler harmonic number N and PLL divide ratio R. The linear relationship for the modeled phase noise of the spectrum analyzer 10 and sampler IF frequency fSIF for each setting or adjustment of the sampler IF polarity P, the sampler harmonic number N and the PLL divide ratio R, at the offset frequency fOFFSET, is expressed as (fOFFSET)=m(fOFFSET, P, N, R}fSIF+b{fOFFSET, P, N, R}
The phase noise model (fOFFSET) provides a mapping or correspondence between phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10 at frequency offsets fOFFSET, and settings of the parameters in the parameter set 13. Thus, for a given operating state of the spectrum analyzer 10 that is designated by the parameters, the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10 can be determined from the phase noise model (fOFFSET). Typically, the phase noise model (fOFFSET) is stored in a memory or other storage medium (not shown) that is accessible to the controller 14.
Referring again to
The phase noise model (fOFFSET) 22 for the applied signal SIN is shown in
Di=NBW*100.1(fOFFSET(i)) (2)
In equation 2, the term NBW represents the noise bandwidth of the spectrum analyzer 10 (shown in
Referring again to
SOUT=SMEAS−AC*D (3)
Since the array D provides an estimate of the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10 at the designated operating state, the array D is approximately equal to the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10. Thus, the resulting output signal SOUT is a representation of the phase noise of the signal SIN that includes compensation to reduce the influence of the phase noise φSA of the spectrum analyzer 10.
In step 64, the frequency offset from the carrier frequency to the beginning of the frequency range of the phase noise for which phase noise measurements are to be taken is determined. The frequency offset can be positive or negative depending on the phase noise sideband of interest with positive offsets representing upper sidebands and negative offsets representing lower sidebands. For example, to measure the phase noise of an applied signal between 1 and 3 kilohertz offset from the carrier frequency, the frequency offset is set to 1 kilohertz.
In step 66, a trace SMEAS, including an array phase noise measurement points, is acquired by the measurement acquisition unit 18 of the spectrum analyzer in response to the signal SIN applied to the spectrum analyzer 10.
In step 68, the array D is formed from the phase noise model, based on the operating state of the spectrum analyzer 10 designated by the parameter set 13, including, for example, the frequency span SPAN, the number of measurement points n in SMEAS and the desired frequency offset from the carrier frequency fCO. While step 66 is shown proceeding step 68, the array D can be formed before or after the acquisition of SMEAS.
Step 69 includes applying the array D to the phase noise measurements SMEAS to extract the output signal SOUT. This typically includes a multiplication of the power of the carrier frequency AC with the array D and then a subtraction of the resulting product from the phase noise measurements SMEAS, where the phase noise measurements SMEAS and the array D are each expressed on a linear power scale.
As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, the innovative concepts described in the present application can be modified and varied over a wide rage of applications. Accordingly, the scope of patents subject matter should not be limited to any of the specific exemplary teachings discussed, but is instead defined by the following claims.
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