Anritsu Corporation has introduced a newly developed Butler Matrix 4x4 (0.6 GHz to 7.125 GHz) MA8114A to expand its Butler Matrix module lineup of simulating MIMO connections.
The MA8114A is a Butler Matrix transmission path with 4 input and 4 output ports and supports the 6 GHz band (5.925 GHz to 7.125 GHz), which is not supported by the existing Azimuth STACSIM-WB-(Static Channel Simulator) (ACC-339) used for evaluating 4x4 MIMO throughput of LTE/5G base stations and Wi-Fi devices. The MA8114A helps users to build a stable 5G/W-Fi evaluation environment, and efficiently test throughput.
Development Background
LTE/5G Base station and Wi-Fi device vendors use the Over The Air test environment to evaluate the maximum throughput with 4x4 MIMO for their products. This entails measuring the Tx/Rx radio performance of wireless devices using an anechoic or OTA chamber which is designed to block external radio waves. Because the transmission environment varies depending on the distance to the User Equipment (UE), a drawback of this approach is its low reproducibility of measurement results. While reproducibility can be improved by connecting the two devices using an RF cable, a simple coupler cannot simulate the MIMO transmission environment. The MA8114A solves this issue, ensuring highly reproducible measurements.
The upper-limit frequency for NR FR1 has been extended beginning with 3GPP Release 17, and the 6 GHz band has been added to Wi-Fi 6E/7. The MA8114A supports a frequency range up to 7.125 GHz in preparation for countries launching services on new frequency bands.
The product lineup of the Butler Matrix module also includes the Butler Matrix 8x8 (0.6 GHz to 7.125 GHz) MA8118A with 8 input and 8 output ports, which supports a frequency range up to 7.125 GHz as well. The MA8118A can be used not only for 8x8 MIMO throughput evaluation but also to enable efficient testing of devices having multiple RF ports.