COLUMBIA, Md., 14 June 2006. During IMS 2006 in San Francisco, Rohde & Schwarz (R&S) introduced the R&S FSUP, the company's first instrument designed exclusively for measuring phase noise and characterizing RF signal sources. It is the industry's only instrument that combines a spectrum analyzer and phase noise tester covering 8, 26.5, or 50 GHz.

When measuring phase noise, the instrument compares the signal from the device under test with a reference signal source using its internal reference or an external reference. The user can select the source for regulating the required 90-degree phase offset on the phase comparator. The optimum settings for the measurement can be selected automatically by the instrument.

Together with other measurement parameters, such as bandwidth, filter type, and number of averages, the offset frequency range is easy to configure. At an input frequency of 640MHz and a frequency offset of 10kHz, the phase noise of the R&S FSUP with an internal reference source is <-135 dBc/Hz and at <-165 dBc/Hz with a 10MHz offset.

The phase noise tester can record the level or the frequency of the signal source as a function of time and display settling and switching processes at high-frequency sources with high resolution. The instrument can analyze the behavior of signal sources in the time domain.