Published on August 23rd, 2013 | by Roger Chu
High-Speed DACs Fuel Multiband Transmitters
Wireless communications networks are being pushed for faster speeds and more information. Consumers are expressing increasing demands for enhanced data services, requiring wider wireless coverage and even
greater use of bandwidth. Different radio technologies and increasing frequency allocations make it more complex to control networks and reduce costs. Wireless service providers are looking for solutions that not only protect their existing investments but also simplify systems for future network upgrades and capacity expansion.
One solution is the use of multiple-frequency-band, multiple-communications-standard wireless networks, including multiband, multistandard-radio (MB-MSR)
base stations. A challenge for radio designers is the cost-effective implementation of such radio base stations with current technology. Fortunately, supporting the evolution of radio base station design is the latest generation of radio-frequency digital-to-analog converters (DACs), such as the model AD9129 DAC from Analog Devices. Some of the considerations for designing an MB-MSR transmitter using RF DACs will be detailed here.
Full article by Yi Zhang and Assaf Toledano, Microwaves & RF