Gallium nitride (GaN) supplier Nitronex has partnered with Prescient Wireless to design a GaN-on-Si broadband Doherty power amplifier for WiMAX applications. Using the NPT25015 power transistor, the design provides 6 W of linear output power from 2.5 GHz to 2.7 GHz while achieving >35% efficiency, 10 dB gain, and <2.0% EVM with digital pre-distortion.

Typical performance numbers were taken using a mobile WiMAX waveform defined as a single-carrier OFDMA 64-QAM ¾ with a 10 MHz channel bandwidth. Six watts of output power is achieved with a 9.5 dB PAR at 0.01% probability on the complementary cumulative distribution function during the transmit portion of a 50% duty cycle TTD signal, according to Nitronex.

The reference design consists of the schematic, bill of materials, circuit board layout files, detailed performance data, and documentation describing the design. Built and tested Doherty application boards are available from the supplier.
www.nitronex.com

Finland's Elcoteq SE, an integrated electronics manufacturing services (IEMS) company with original design manufacturing (ODM) capabilities in the communications field, has become the global manufacturing partner for WiMAX-based broadband wireless access (BWA) and DCME voice compression solutions developer Telsima. Consequently, Elcoteq has started volume manufacturing of Telsima WiMAX CPEs StarMAX 2100 series at its facility in Bangalore, India. Elcoteq provides box build manufacturing for WiMAX CPEs including new product introduction (NPI), sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, and after-sales services.
www.elcoteq.com

Agilent Technologies has readied a set of WiMAX and mobile WiMAX test solutions for R&D, design verification, manufacturing, protocol conformance and interoperability test, as well as network deployment and maintenance. The Advanced Design System offers a set of front-to-back simulation and layout tools as well as instrument links for RF and microwave IC design in a single, integrated design flow. Included are a mobile WiMAX wireless library and MIMO support. A range of test capabilities have been added to support physical layer signal generation and analysis for Wave 2 system profiles — crucial to the successful deployment of mobile WiMAX products. Specific capabilities include matrix A and matrix B signals for downlink, uplink collaborative MIMO, and creation of HARQ bursts and uplink sounding zones. In addition, it offers MIMO-fading embedded in a waveform, enabling testing of MIMO receivers without the added expense of fading hardware or software.

It includes the E6651A mobile WiMAX test set with Wave 2 enhancements, including MIMO downlink STC, SM and uplink collaborative MIMO measurements, and the addition of an integrated RF source and/or analyzer. The E6651A is at the heart of the Agilent protocol conformance test solution, which adds a script-based mode for script development and running protocol conformance test cases to verify that a product developer's implementation conforms to the WiMAX standard.

It also offers N8300A wireless networking test set for mobile WiMAX applications. The N8300A is based on an architecture that integrates Agilent's state-of-the-art vector signal analysis and vector signal generator hardware, and features an easy-to-use front-panel graphical user interface and SCPI command set. While E6474A, wireless network optimization platform for IEEE 802.16e-2005, enables WiMAX network equipment manufacturers and service providers to authenticate the actual subscriber experience in real-world, WiMAX environments. This capability allows manufacturers to develop faster and more reliable WiMAX-enabled products.
www.agilent.com/find/wimax

As per the WiMAX Forum, Radiocommunication Sector of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-R) will include WiMAX technology in the IMT-2000 set of standards. The decision to approve the WiMAX Forum's version of IEEE standard 802.16 as an IMT-2000 technology escalates opportunities for global deployment, especially within the 2.5 GHz to 2.69 GHz band, to deliver mobile Internet to satisfy rural and urban market demand.

Created to harmonize 3G mobile systems and to increase opportunities for worldwide interoperability, the IMT-2000 family of standards will support access technologies, including OFDMA, FDMA, TDMA and CDMA.
www.wimaxforum.org

Anritsu Corporation has introduced a mobile WiMAX handheld test solution for deploying, installing and maintaining mobile WiMAX networks. Incorporated into its BTS Master and Spectrum Master platforms, the test capability provides an accurate method for conducting RF, demodulation, and over-the-air measurements on WiMAX signals.

The mobile WiMAX measurement capability has been designed into three options to provide users with flexibility when configuring their instrument. The measurement option can be used to measure the transmitted signal strength and signal shape of a transmitter. When configured with the RF measurement option, the handheld analyzers can conduct channel spectrum, power vs. time (with 5 ms and 10 ms frame lengths), and ACPR measurements. RF summary screens can be displayed with the option.

Engineers can use the mobile Wi-MAX demodulator to analyze OFDMA signals and display measurements for evaluating transmitter modulation performance.
www.anritsu.com