Amplifier Considerations To Support The Mobile User Objective System
By Matthew Faletti, AR Modular RF
In recent years, the demands placed by new tactical radio systems on the physical layer performance of supporting hardware have increased by orders of magnitude. However, what can be done with relative ease in software and at very small signal levels (i.e., the digital domain) is not so easily accomplished at higher RF power levels (i.e., the analog domain). As the tactical radio market moves beyond the use of legacy proprietary waveforms (e.g., SINCGARS, DAMA) and embraces modern, often commercial technologies (e.g., LTE, CDMA, MANET, and mesh networks), booster amplifier designers face new challenges.
Boasting dramatically increased data rate and signal bandwidths, MUOS is a full-duplex waveform, meaning the receiver and transmitter are simultaneously active. By comparison, half-duplex systems are capable of communication in only one direction at a time. When designing amplifiers to support MUOS, the nature of this full-duplex waveform must be taken into consideration. By using WCDMA cellular phone technology, the goal of MUOS is to take advantage of the full data capacity offered by a full-duplex waveform.
The goal of a MUOS bidirectional amplifier is to increase the transmit and receive signals without adding significant noise or distortion. To accomplish this, the bidirectional amplifier typically is placed in-line as a “booster” or a “repeater” in a communication system. This can be done by installing a bidirectional amplifier on a tower with transmit/receive antennae, or in-line with a coaxial or transmission line, to add gain to signals traveling between two distant points.
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