2016

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SPECIAL ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT VOLUME 11

Welcome!
In

The

Spotlight

AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation
160 School House Rd, Souderton, PA 18964
www.arworld.us

Crystek CorpORATION

6-7
Ph. (215) 723-8181
info@arworld.us

12730 Commonwealth Drive, Fort Myers, FL 33913

www.crystek.com

Ph. (800) 237-3061

Fax (239) 561-1025

dB Control
1120 Auburn Street, Fremont, CA 94538
www.dbcontrol.com

8-9
Ph. (510) 656-2325

Exodus Advanced Communications

marketing@dbcontrol.com

10-11

170 S. Green Valley Parkway, Suite 300, Henderson, NV 89012

www.exoduscomm.com

Ph. (702) 534-6564

Fax (702) 441-7016

Microwave Dynamics
16541 Scientific Way, Irvine, CA 92618
www.microwave-dynamics.com

12-13
Ph. (949) 679-7788
Fax (949) 679-7748

Mini-Circuits
P.O. Box 350166, Brooklyn, NY 11235
www.minicircuits.com

14-15
Ph. (718) 934-4500
sales@minicircuits.com

The Amplifier and Signal

Source Markets:
Good Things to Come
By Barry Manz

Moving Toward 5G
You dont need to pay thousands
While 5G gets the headlines, the carof dollars for a research study to see
rier wireless industry is hardly standing
where the market for RF and microwave
still and enhancements are continually
amplifiers and signal sources is headed
taking place, although drowned out by
which is up, probably way up.
5G. These fall into the category that
The answers are everywhere, from
might be called 4.5G (LTE-Advanced)
the massive media attention being paid
just as 3.5G bridged the third and fourth
to 5G, to the resurgence of some aspects
generations of wireless. Increases in data
of the DoD R&D budget (especially for
rates, spectral efficiency, network capacelectronic warfare), and the delayed but
ity, more advanced MIMO, carrier aginevitable juggernaut that is IoT. While
gregation, greater synergy between carthese may be the most tantalizing potenrier wireless and Wi-Fi, as well as Wi-Fi
tial revenue producers, its just the short
calling, all are being implemented today.
list, because other less obvious applicaThe first LTE-Advanced network,
tions are either emerging or expanding.
from SK Telecom in South Korea, went
There are the low-power wireless area
live nearly a year ago and LTE-Advanced
networks to support IoT communications that are already being
3.5G/DC-HSPA+ 42.2 Mbps
deployed throughout the U.S.,
land mobile radio and the com4G/LTE 100 Mbps
ing modernization of the nations public safety networks,
4G/LTE Cat. 4 150 Mbps
and replacement of vacuum
tubes with RF power transistors
1,000 Mbps
4G/LTE Advanced
in industry, medical, and even
10,000 Mbps
5G
cooking applications.
Added to these must enhancements to existing carrier Maximum theoretical downlink speed by
wireless networks, military radar technology generation (Mb/s). Source: GSMA
and communications, satellite Intelligence
is taking root in the U.S. as well. Its hidcommunications, broadcast, and other
ing in smartphones including Apples
markets. As all of these applications relatest iPhones, most Samsung smartquire RF and microwave devices, the test
phones, and phones from LG, Microequipment to support them, and the softsoft/Nokia, Motorola (now Lenovo),
ware to design them, it seems pretty obHuawei, and Blackberry. Many of these
vious that the coming years will be good
advances arguably require more software
ones for this sector.

than hardware, but small-signal and

RF power devices and amplifiers are required as well.

5G: The Elephant About

to Enter the Room
The more you delve into 5G, the more
it becomes obvious just how enormous the
changes are between todays cellular environment and what this next generation will provide. In fact, may just be time to start over in
the acronyms used to conveniently differentiate succeeding wireless generations. Why
not simply end this with 4G? 5G merits
starting over, becoming the first of an entirely new class of connectivity, Cellular 2.0 for
lack of something more inventive. Its that
big a deal. How big? Consider some of the
things 5G will presumably deliver:
Software-defined, cloud-based networks with dynamically-allocated resources, a complete departure from
the way networks are built and run
today.
The need for truly enormous numbers
of small cells, especially when higher
frequencies come into service.
Use of licensed and unlicensed spectrum at frequencies higher and ultimately much higher than today, ultimately ranging up to 60 GHz. This is
a monumental development from the
perspective of the semiconductor technologies required to get there, from
LDMOS to GaN, GaAs, RFCMOS,
and SiGe.
continued on next page

continued from previous page

Theoretical data rates up to 10 Gb/s, an

orders-of-magnitude increase in what is
achievable today.
End-to-end latency of less than 1 ms in
order to enable real-time applications
such as next-generation robotics and
the factory of the future, autonomous
vehicle communications and ADAS,
telesurgery, IoT, high-end gaming,
and virtual and augmented reality. It
remains to be seen how this will be accomplished as it will need to somehow
circumlocute the laws of physics.
10 to 100 times the number of simultaneously connected devices, not just
phones and tablets but IoT devices in
everything from factory floors to robots, vehicles and the infrastructure
which theyll need to be connected, and
dozens more.
Extensive use of cloud-based computing, storage, and communication.
A 90% reduction in annual network
electricity use.
These are only a few of the promises
the industry hopes to achieve eventually,
but it will obviously take
time, which is actually great
news for manufacturers of
small-signal and RF power
discrete devices, RFICs,
and MMICs, as well as the
amplifiers they serve. It provides a revenue roadmap
that extends well into the
next decade.

EU spending less than ever on defense. It

was an eye-opener for the Pentagon and
especially the Army that had almost abandoned electronic warfare except for counter IED.
This generated a massive response
within DoD to upgrade EW systems, not
according to the usual plodding pace but
as fast as possible, even circumventing traditional procurement processes in order to
make it happen. It is reaching out to private industry in the hope of encouraging
its bright minds to work with government,
which has gotten a tepid response. Nevertheless, for manufacturers of amplifiers
and signal sources, there is little question
that a serendipitous event has occurred
that will produce unforeseen revenue.

Yes, There Really Is

an Internet of Things
No doubt most people reading this have
long since become tired of hearing those
three letters I, O and T. But the fact remains
that IoT is already here. Its just not all that
noticeable because except for a few consumer applications most of it is taking place
in the industrial world. One of the impedi-

A Big Hand for

Vladimir Putin
Since the breakup of the
Soviet Union, the militaries
of Western countries more
or less assumed the Cold A Vision of the Connected World
War would recede into the
past never to rear its ugly head again. And
ments to the massive deployment of tiny
then Russia snatched up Crimea and endevices that analysts have told us are coming
tered Ukraine and later Syria, displaying
is the usual war of standards competing for
formidable capabilities in many areas,
how they will be connected, which has yet
two of which being radar and electronic
to be resolved.
warfare. This occurred while the U.S. deThe most rational answer to that quesfense budget was in the process of being
tion is that there will be no winner-take-all
hacked to bits, and countries within the
scenario but rather multiple providers, the

largest of which will (not surprisingly) be the

cellular industry, which is already providing IoT connectivity using its 2G resources. The coming 2G Sunset will reduce or
eliminate this legacy standard, a process
that is already occurring.
Instead, the cellular industry will use
its massive resources to garner some of the
potentially enormous revenue likely from
connecting IoT devices. Support for this
application is already in the latest Third
Generation Partnership Project (3GPP)
standard called Release 13 and will become
more and more fleshed out as the industry
heads toward 5G. However, this industry
will not be the only player, as a group of
independent, incompatible networks are
being deployed to provide low-power
wide-area networks (LPWAN). Their goal
is to have as much coverage as possible in
place before competition from the aforementioned elephant enters the room.
Overall, IoT connectivity should be an
extraordinarily large market for some sectors of the microwave industry, especially
manufacturers of small signal and RF
power devices, amplifiers, antennas, and
associated hardware.

Summary
Looking into the future, there is good reason
to be enthusiastic about the
prospects for the RF and
microwave industry, as 5G
is at least 5 years away and
the full measure of IoT will
grow continuously over
time to blanket the earth
with tiny connected sensors. However, there are
many more applications
within the commercial,
consumer, and defense areas that will continue to
be significant contributors.
Together they represent a lucrative opportunity for manufacturers of the wide range
of products within the amplifier and signal source sectors.
Barry Manz is president of editorial-based
technical media relations company Manz
Communications, Inc., and can be reached at
manzcom@gmail.com or (551) 206-7177.

COMPANY DESCRIPTION

AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation

Whether you need RF or microwave

bench top power amplifiers, amplifier
modules, complete EMC test systems,
EMI receivers or a multitude of accessories; theres one source to turn to: AR. We
provide the products, service, support,
and solutions for your EMC, wireless,
military and ISM requirements. The
company consists of AR RF/Microwave
Instrumentation, AR Modular RF, AR
Receiver Systems and AR Europe.

160 School House Road

Souderton, PA 18964
Tel: 215-723-8181
info@arworld.us

Our "A" series Class A RF solid state

designs now offer output power levels
to 50,000 watts up to 225 MHz while
our new "W" series solid state Class A
designs feature over 10,000 watt from
80-1000 MHz.

Modular
ARAR
Modular
RFRF
makes high quality
RF21222
amplifier
30thsystems
Dr. SE and modules for
wireless
and
communications,
Building
C, military
Suite 200
electronic
warfare,
and
Bothell, WA 98021 homeland
security.
Tel: 425-485-9000
modularrfsales@arworld.us
AR Modular RF is the leading supplier
of booster amplifiers and modules
that are compact, fl exible and tough
enough to withstand even the toughest
conditions, including desert battles.
Our capabilities also include producing
custom configurations of power,
frequency and special features in
almost any size.

All S series solid state microwave

amplifiers, (1 3,000 watts*, 0.8 18
GHz) produce low levels of spurious
signals and are extremely linear,
which makes them ideal for use as
driver amplifiers in testing wireless
and communications components,
subsystems, and TWTA replacements as
well as EMC testing to various standards.

AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation
The RF/Microwave Instrumentation
division located in Souderton, PA
manufacturers and distributes:
RF Power Amplifiers, 1 50,000
watts*, dc 1 GHz
Microwave CW & Pulse Power
Amplifiers, 1 50,000 watts*, 0.8 50
GHz
Hybrid Power Modules and
benchtops, .7 6 GHz
Radiated & Conducted Immunity
Systems
Electromagnetic Safety Products
Power Measuring Equipment
EMC Test Software
EMC and RF Test Accessories,
including antennas, field probes/
analyzers, directional couplers, and
much more
Electromagnetic Safety Products

Our line of wideband, hybrid power

modules and benchtop amplifiers cover
the .7 6 GHz instantaneous frequency
range, require a single DC voltage source
and are 50 ohm cascadable building
blocks with output powers up to 50
watts in Class A or AB configurations
up to 350 watts. They provide excellent
gain, flatness and low noise figure.
Custom designs for commercial and
military applications are also available.

AR Receiver Systems
AR Receiver Systems manufactures the
following products for a wide variety
of EMC testing needs:
EMI receiver
Leak detectors
Receiver products are sold through AR
RF/Microwave Instrumentation.

*Depending upon frequency

AR Competitive Edge products supply

a multitude of unique RF solutions
to companies around the world. The
companys limitless support network
reaches the far corners of the globe.
When companies purchase from any
AR company, they have the peace
of mind that comes from knowing
the global leader will be there to help
with any problems today, tomorrow
and always.

AR Modular RF
The Modular RF division located in
Bothell, WA manufactures:
RF amplifier modules (broadband,
narrowband and custom designs),
0.01 6,000 MHz, 5 500 watts
Broadband and solid state RF
amplifiers, 0.01 6,000 MHz, 5
5,000 watts
RF jammer amplifiers and booster
amplifiers for tactical military radios
from 30 512 MHz

Visit www.arworld.us to learn more

about these exciting products.

AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation

AR Modular RF

160 School House Road

Souderton, PA 18964
Tel: 215-723-8181
info@arworld.us

21222 30th Dr. SE

Building C, Suite 200
Bothell, WA 98021
Tel: 425-485-9000
modularrfsales@arworld.us

AR Covers All The Bases

Up To 350 Watts From 0.7 to 6 GHz

ARs CW Hybrid Power Modules (HPMs) & Benchtop Amps For EW, Communications & Wireless
cover the entire 0.7-6 GHz frequency range in ONE package and have the versatility to satisfy the
requirements for numerous applications.
The HPMs are 50 ohm high gain blocks that provide up to 30 watts of Class A linear output
power in a connectorized housing for applications where performance, size and weight are critical.
Units up to 50 watts are available in a Class AB configuration when increased efficiency and lower
cost is required while slightly sacrificing harmonic distortion. Our latest benchtop units are also
available in Class A and Class AB designs with power levels up to 350 watts. These designs
can meet the stringent requirements for todays electronic warfare military systems and IED
applications, as well as being price competitive for wireless and communication applications.
In addition, we have benchtop power amplifiers from 6 to 18 GHz.
To obtain more detailed information on these and other products call AR RF/Microwave Instrumentation
at 215 723 8181 or visit us at www.arworld.us/covered.

ISO 9001:2008
Certified

rf/microwave instrumentation

Other ar divisions: modular rf receiver systems ar europe

USA 215-723-8181. For an applications engineer, call 800-933-8181.
In Europe, call ar United Kingdom +44 1908 282766 ar France +33147917530 ar Deutschland +49 6101 80270 0 ar Benelux +31 172 423000

We dont just build great products.

We build great products that last.

www.arworld.us
Download the AR RF/Microwave Mobile App: www.arworld.us/arApp
Copyright 2016 AR.
The orange stripe on AR products is
Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM. Off.

TWT Amplifiers
Microwave Power Modules
Power Supplies
Repair Depot Services
Specialized Contract Manufacturing
TWT Amplifiers
Packaging Style

Frequency

Output Power

Applications

Pod Mount

Airborne Data Links

Sub-bands within
1-50 GHz

20W-500W CW
100W-10kW Pulsed

Airborne/Shipboard/
Ground-Based Radar
Antenna Pattern &
Radar Cross-Section
Measurements

Split Package
Sub-bands within
1-50 GHz

20W-500W CW
100W-10kW Pulsed

Sub-bands within
1-50 GHz

20W-500W CW
100W-70kW Pulsed
Power-combined units
to 1kW CW or 10kW
Pulsed

Airborne/Shipboard/
Ground-Based
Electronic
Countermeasures
(ECM)

Sub-bands within
1-50 GHz

20W-500W CW
100W-10kW Pulsed

EMI/EMC Tests

Sub-bands within
1-50 GHz

20W-500W CW
100W-10kW Pulsed
Power-combined units
to 1kW CW or 10kW
Pulsed

Custom Package

Airborne/Ground-Based
Communication
Systems

Hub Mount

Electronic Warfare
Threat Simulation
RF Components Test
RFI Susceptibility Test

Rack Mount

Test & Measurement

Microwave Power Modules

Packaging Style
Compact,
Conduction Cooled

Frequency

Output Power

Applications
Airborne Data Links

Radar Bands
X, Ku Bands
Wide Bands
2-40 GHz

Airborne/Ground-Based Radar
20W-400W CW,
100W-2kW Pulsed
Power

Airborne/Ground-Based
Communication Systems
Airborne/Ground-Based
Electronic Countermeasures
(ECM)

Power Supplies (Airborne and Ground Based)

Packaging Style

Input Voltage

High Voltage

115 VAC, Single Phase, 50/60Hz

220 VAC, Single Phase, 50/60Hz
115/200 VAC, 3 Phase, 400Hz
208 VAC, 3 Phase, 50/60Hz
220/380 VAC, 3 Phase, 50/60Hz
480 VAC, 3 Phase, 50/60Hz
270 VDC
28 VDC

Output Voltage

3-50kV

Power (Watts)

200W-7kW

Military and Commercial Markets

dB Control supplies mission-critical
(often sole source) products worldwide
to military organizations, as well as
to major defense contractors and
commercial manufacturers. Our
products are being used in a wide
variety of applications, including radar
(multimode, pulse Doppler and SAR),
electronic countermeasures (ECM), EW
threat simulation, airborne data links,
high data-rate digital communications,
test and measurement (RFI and EMC),
commercial X-ray, antenna pattern and
radar cross-section measurement.

Custom-Built Products
dB Controls products can be quickly
and easily configured to meet custom
specifications and platform requirements
for ground-based, shipboard, and highaltitude military manned and unmanned
aircraft. By using a modular construction
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standard modules and manufacturing
processes, we produce products that
cost less, are easy to maintain, and are
available in production quantities.

When your expectations are as

high as your power requirements,
dB Control delivers.
High-Voltage Specialists
Many dB Control products contain
tightly packaged high-voltage circuitry.
Critical to the success of these
designs is the encapsulation process,
which has been perfected in our
advanced encapsulation laboratory. All
encapsulated modules are manufactured
in house. Assembly of these tightly
packaged products is performed by
experienced specialists trained in the
safe assembly of products containing
high-voltage circuitry. Our excellent
reputation for encapsulation and
high-voltage winding, and our ability to
assemble high-voltage circuitry, is known
throughout the industry.

Specialized Contract
Manufacturing
For companies looking to outsource,
dB Control offers specialized contract
manufacturing services for high-voltage
transformers, power supplies, and
high-voltage assemblies. Full vacuum
encapsulation, pressure cure, and
conformal coating laboratory services
are available, as is transformer winding
and testing.

Repair Depot
dB Controls repair depot complements
its contract manufacturing services with
the ability to repair, refurbish, or replace
microwave amplifier components.
Our outstanding record of successfully
repairing tightly packaged high-voltage
power supplies, and our expertise with
high-voltage and high-power microwaves, enables us to offer specialized
testing services as well.

+1 (510) 656-2325
marketing@dbcontrol.com
www.dBControl.com

10

11

12

13

14

50 MHz to26.5 GHz

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478 rev Q

15

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97 ( 5V )
60
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36
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22
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60
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P.O. Box 350166, Brooklyn, NY 11235-0003 (718) 934-4500 sales@minicircuits.com

506 rev F

385 Sylvan Avenue, Suite 16

Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632
Phone (201) 569-5870 Fax (201) 569-6684

www.mpdigest.com