5G capabilities to high-performance oscilloscopes

Tektronix, Inc. has released its SignalVu 5G NR analysis software for 6 Series B MSO oscilloscopes. Engineers are now able to perform critical 5G NR measurements per 3GPP specifications on the oscilloscopes relied on to bring up and characterise new electronic designs.

RF system designers favour 6 Series B MSO oscilloscopes for viewing power rails, digital control buses and I/O signals, and RF signals. Each channel is backed by a digital downconverter that allows spectrum analysis synchronised with time-domain waveforms. This gives engineers a time-coherent view of the choreography of signals that make up their designs. 5G system designers may now add 5G NR signal analysis to its oscilloscopes, enabling them to swiftly diagnose faulty signal interactions on a single oscilloscope that would otherwise need painstaking correlation between multiple instruments.

In addition to giving a synchronised view of a vast variety of signals, the 6 Series B MSO provides the wide capture bandwidth and low intrinsic noise required for 5G signal analysis. Providing this performance on oscilloscopes lessens the requirement for costly dedicated vector signal analysers.

“With the integration of 5G NR, users have complete system visibility in a single instrument enabling them to debug even the most complex of designs, aligning with future specifications,” said Chris Witt, VP and GM of Portfolio Solutions at Tektronix. “We’re excited to see the early response from customers using this technology to test new DUTs.”

The new analysis package allows pass/fail testing of the 5G NR physical layer to qualify transmitter designs per the 5G NR standard established under the 3GPP release of 15/16 test specifications. It incorporates essential signal quality measurements such as EVM, ACP, SEM, and PVT.

The company developed the new package utilising algorithms developed by NI (formerly National Instruments).

“NI was excited to work with Tektronix to provide multiple ways to trigger, capture, analyse, and diagnose complex 5G integration and design problems not normally available with a traditional VSA,” said Josh Mueller, SVP and GM of Portfolio Business. “Integrating NI’s 5G algorithms within SignalVu vector signal analysis (VSA) software to run on the Tektronix oscilloscopes and signal analysers will enable new value in customer workflows.”

The 5G NR PHY-layer solution based on the 6 Series B MSO provides notable advantages over traditional signal analysers with wide signal analysis up to 2GHz and low instrument noise for accurate EVM measurements.

For high-frequency systems, such as FR2, the 5GNR analysis option is also available on the DPO70000SX, which offers up to 70 GHz bandwidth. The 5GNR option is also available for the Tektronix RSA500 and RSA5000 Series for engineers utilising real-time signal analysers. The software operates identically on oscilloscopes and signal analysers, eliminating the need to learn a new toolset.