Anritsu develops single unit for 5G NR fading tests
Using a single device, the MT8000A is a radio communication test station from Anritsu. It has an upgraded 5G protocol test functions.
The upgrade uses New Radio (NR) fading software. When implementing built-in baseband fading tests, the MT8000A providea support for 3GPP TS 38.521-4 B.1/B.2 V15.0.0-compliant 5G NR channel (TDL) model tests using NR fading software implementing built-in baseband fading tests.
A fading test simulates the actual radio-wave propagation environment and is required for development of mobile devices. Conventional testing requires an external 5G RF fading simulator, which is now implemented as an internal fader in the MT8000A, supporting either 2CC 4×4 multiple input multiple output (MIMO) tests with one MT8000A unit, or 8CC 2×2 MIMO tests with two units.
According to Anritsu, protocol test set-up in a fading environment is simpler and external test equipment is eliminated. It also ensures compatibility with existing protocol functions to help cut development costs.
Mobile-terminal development requires 3GPP-compliant testing and evaluation to assure interoperability. These tests are not limited to static communications protocols and RF evaluations between mobiles and basestations, but also include radio resource management (RRM) tests simulating a moving mobile unit, as well as evaluations, in a fading environment.
The MT8000A is for mobile-terminal vendors requiring efficient tests with good cost-performance covering a range of conditions. It is an all-in-one test platform for RF, protocol and beam tests, as well as for beam-forming evaluations. In addition to supporting functions for simulating base-station NSA and SA modes required for development of 5G chipsets and terminals, it also supports the latest technologies, such as 4×4 MIMO for increasing data transmission speeds in the Sub-6GHz band as well as 8CC for implementing wideband mmWave.
The MT8000A covers the key frequency bands used by the first 5G services, such as the Sub-6GHz band (FR1) frequencies of 2.5, 3.5, 4.5GHz, and the mmWave band (FR2) frequencies of 28, 39GHz.
The interface is coupled with comprehensive RF measurement and NR fading software to configure a cost-effective test environment.
