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in QST Magazine
 QST is the official publication of
the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL), the world's oldest and largest organization
for Ham radio enthusiasts. Many amateur radio operators also have an interest in
astronomy and as such, occasionally articles appear covering topics on
amateur radio astronomy. There are also quite a few articles
dealing indirectly with aspects of astronomy such as Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) communications
where signals are bounced off the moon's surface in order to facilitate transmission
(although it is really more of a hobby achievement). The October 2012 edition of
QST had an article entitled, "Those Mysterious Signals*," which discusses galactic
noise in the 10-meter band. Arch Doty (W7ACD) writes about the low-level background
noise that is persistent in the high frequency (HF) bands. At HF, Cygnus A
and Cassiopeia A are major sources of cosmic noise, for example. Low level
signals come from pulsars...
Articles Update
 The November edition of HFE is now online
for the non-tree-killers and/or the technophile-cum-e-reader types amongst us.
•
Wireless Sensors without Batteries, byAli Abedi •
Benefits of Mixed Dielectrics When Used for High-Frequency PCB Applications,
by John Coonrod
High Power Attenuators
 Pasternack Enterprises introduces their new
line of 100 Watt
high power attenuators. This new line of attenuators is perfect
for applications requiring reliable and consistent frequency levels up to 6 GHz. Pasternack
Enterprises' line of
high power RF attenuators operate from DC to 6 GHz and
have an average power rating of 100 Watts, with peak power handling capabilities
of 2,000 Watts from -55 to +125° C. High power fixed attenuators from Pasternack
are constructed with lightweight, but strong anodized aluminum heatsink bodies and
can be ordered with passivated stainless steel SMA, TNC and N connectors, and silver
plated brass 7/16 DIN connectors. Pasternack's high power coax attenuators are manufactured
with large cooling fins.
Case of the High VSWRs
 Sherlock Ohms is a regular feature of Design
News that presents submissions from readers about troubleshooting challenges and
how they were solved. This one is titled "Strange Case of the High VSWRs" The author discovers test equipment
setup issues.
Meets LTE Requirements
 Triad RF Systems introduced the
Model TA1011,
a compact GaAs RF power amplifier module that delivers over 20 W peak power
from 1700 to 2000 MHz (other bands available) and is well suited for both wireless
communications and CW applications including radar, electronic warfare, medical,
and measurement systems. The
TA10111
incorporates linear circuits that raise the OIP3 to +60 dBm which allows this
small amplifier to produce over 4 Watts of linear, 10 MHz LTE. It has
gain of 50 dB, return loss of -14 dB (1.5:1 VSWR), rise and fall
times of less than 1 µs, accepts a maximum RF input of +10 dBm and has
a 30 dB RF Sample Port.
Ultrabroadband Amplifier
 PMI Model No.
PEC-14-127-8-12-SFF-1 is an ultra-broadband amplifier that operates
over the frequency range of 1.0 to 26.5 GHz. This model provides gain of 13
to 17 dB and has a maximum gain flatness of ±1.5 dB. The maximum noise
figure is 5.5 dB from 1.0 to 20.0 GHZ and 6.0dB from 20.0 to 26.5GHz.
This amplifier can handle input power levels up to +10 dBm with no damage and
the Input IP3 is +3 dBm minimum.
the June 1944 QST
 Here is an advertisement for
Hytron Corporation that I scanned from page 83 of my copy of the June 1944
QST magazine. Hytron was a manufacturer of electron tubes. "So Many Owe
So Much To So Few," reds the title line. That is a paraphrase of Winston Churchill's
famous statement during World War II, "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many
to so few." That was in August 21, 1940, more than a year before the U.S. entered
the war. Perhaps of greater interest to RF Cafe visitors are the next lines: "In
peace, the Nation's debt to the radio amateur was great. During hurricanes, floods,
and other disasters, he sprang forward with emergency communications. His endless
hours of patient experimentations - particularly on the high and ultrahigh
frequencies - helped open up, as if by magic, whole new segments of the radio spectrum.
Traffic enthusiasts surprised the people with unselfish service; DX hounds fostered
international goodwill."
with COMSOL Multiphysics
 Introduction to Antenna Simulation with COMSOL
Multiphysics, Thursday, November 29, 2 PM ET. The COMSOL Multiphysics RF Module
is well-suited for the modeling of antennas. In this webinar, a classical dipole
antenna model will be built and solved from scratch. All of the key steps in the
software will be addressed. More complex models will be introduced, and applicability
in Multiphysics areas such as RF and tissue heating, as well as thermal drift and
deformation modeling will be discussed.
Thermoforming Whitepaper
 Mayfield Plastics has announced the release
the “Introduction
to Thermoforming and Vacuum Forming Whitepaper”. Mayfield constructed the guide
because they realize that many people, including designers and engineers, do not
completely understand the plastic forming process. Often confused with injection
molding and rotational-molding, thermoforming processes are unique and have distinct
differences for a variety of applications. Thermoforming produces
custom
plastic enclosures that are durable, cost-effective, high quality and aesthetically
appealing while offering close tolerances, tight specifications and sharp detail.
at MWE 2012
 AWR is offering an array of software demonstrations,
lectures, and partner presentations at the
Microwave Workshops and Exhibition
2012 (MWE2012) in Yokohama, Japan from November 28 through November 30.
AWR's
booth #A305 featured demonstrations of the AWR Design Environment include: Analyst
for 3D EM analysis, Power amplifier design using digital predistortion for linearity
improvement, High performance circuit envelope simulation ,Radar system simulation
using Visual System Simulator™ (VSS) and comprehensive radar libraries, Antenna
design using AXIEM®, Microwave Office™/AXIEM for PCB verification via ODB++, Matching
circuit synthesis using iMatch and filer synthesis using iFilter.a Scientist Shortage?
 Not according to
Derek Lowe
(aka 'The Contrarian'). In his October 2012 article
that appeared in
Discover magazine, Mr. Lowe cites the following statistics to support his assertion:
Of 633e3 graduate-level students in science, engineering, and health fields in 2012,
less than ¼ secure a tenure track academic job within 5 years of earning
a Ph.D. Of 63e3 postdoc appointees in the same group, up 45% from 2000, many cannot
find permanent employment. A 3% (doesn't seem like that
much to me) decrease from 2006 to 2010 in federal non-defense R&D funding
harms science-related job
seekers. The overarching theme is that the problem is not a deficit of graduates,
but a glut of high quality candidates for employers. He also published an article
on the same topic earlier in the year titled, ".No, America Does NOT Need More Scientists and Engineers" It's
a thing with him.
Technologies for Support!
Copper Mountain Technologies is
changing the way Vector Network Analyzers are incorporated in lab and production
environments. The company's unique virtual VNAs deliver highly accurate measurements
at half the cost of traditional VNAs. Leveraging breakthrough advances in RF technology,
CMT's Planar VNAs provide high measurement accuracy, a wide dynamic range, a familiar
UI and a broad variety of standard features. By developing VNAs that utilize external
PCs, CMT offers users flexibility, portability, improved security and upgradeability.
Spacesuits Are Weapons
 Who would have guessed that you need the blessing
of the U.S. Department of State if you want to make and sell spacesuits? Yep, spacesuits
are classified as weapons since, by
bureaucratic
logic (yeah, a non sequitur), if you have
the capability to attain a presence at an altitude that requires a spacesuit, you
can be a strategic threat to the nation. Here is a story about a startup company
in Brooklyn, NY, that found out the hard way about the
spacesuit-weapon requirement. There is a rapidly growing demand
for functional-yet-stylish spacesuits for safeguarding wealthy space tourists who
will soon be blasting off to the top of Earth's atmosphere where space officially
begins (at about 50 miles / 80 km).
BTW, I tried finding the official policy on spacesuit production the
Department of State website,
but their search engine keeps failing - must be busy deleting files on the
Benghazi massacre.
Articles Available
Some of the RF & microwave magazines have
updated their online editions for November, so here are a few you might like to
check out. A lot of the articles end up being way over my head in theoretical applications,
so I tend to stick with practical stuff that most of us can use. You be your own
judge, though.
•
Emerging RF Technologies for Smartphones and Connected Devices,
by Ben Thomas, RFMD •
Why Test Instrument Frequency Range Matters When Conducting Signal
Integrity Measurements, by Bob Buxton •
Just Under the Radar: Where Does It Go From Here? Bob Pinato,
MPD Editorial Advisor •
Spectrum Analyzers Continue to Advance, by Frost & Sullivan
from the June 1944 QST
 Here is an advertisement for
Delco
Radio that I scanned from page 77 of my copy of the June 1944 QST magazine.
"What's Magic About Electrons?," is the question asked. Answer: "The magic about
electrons is man's ingenuity in putting them to work. The magic about electrons
is their promise of service in marvelous ways only hinted at in the last few years.
Now harnessed for war, the science of electrons will later work to enrich the peace.
Working in close cooperation with Army and Navy engineers, Delco Radio has applied
its knowledge and skill in putting electronics actively and effectively into the
fight for Victory. In Delco's laboratories, principles are explored and exploited;
in Delco's engineering departments, designs are evolved to apply these principles;
and on Delco's production line, complete equipment is manufactured with the speed
and skill that only a large manufacturer of precision radio instruments can bring
to such work."
and What You Want
 The December 2012 edition of
Scientific
American has a short article discussing how much information not just Big Bro
but also the Internet search engines has on you - both from a historical perspective
and in real time. In the former case the purpose is for
surveillance and exploitation
for a blackmail motive if the need arises, and in the later case for exploitation
with a profit motive since the need always arises. Your cellphone is a godsend to
such amassers of personal data. As reported, services like
PlaceIQ* and
Skyhook† know
that you are most likely to click on a smartphone advertisement if, based on your
phone's location data, they discover you are sitting in a movie theater before the
film starts rolling, if you are at home on a Sunday morning, or if you are in the
middle of a lake fishing. That is when the ad services charge companies the highest
fees for serving a clickable promo to your phone. With enough data, they can deduce
your personal identity. Maybe that can be used to set up an ambush by a hacker who
gets access to it. Nice, eh? You are soooo... predictable!
* Per their website, "PlaceIQ extracts context and
meaning from location data and organizes this into actionable intelligence about
a hyper local location."† - “There's no part of society that's not going
to use these data,” says Ted Morgan, CEO of Skyhook
Challenges in Court
 Expert
witnesses play a big role in most - if not all - of the court cases that get reported
here on RF Cafe.
IMS ExpertServices is a law firm specializing in expert witnesses.
Every month or so they send me an article about specific court cases that could
be of interest to my visitors. This particular installment is titled, "Experts Face Fewer Challenges in Court, Survey Says" and reports
that after a decade of increases, in the year 2011 a large drop in the numbers of
court challenges to expert witnesses' testimony has been observed. Surprisingly,
nearly half of the experts' opinions were successfully challenged. The leading reason
for dismissing expert testimony: lack of reliability. Who would've guessed that
a person getting paid to advocate a point of view might not be the most credible
client.
Quadrature Coupler
 PMI Model No.
QC-5D3G6G is a quadrature coupler that operates over the frequency range of
5.3 to 6.0 GHz. This model provides low loss of 1 dB and an isolation
of 18 dB minimum. The VSWR is 1.4:1 maximum into a 50 ohm impedance. The
amplitude balance is ±0.7 dB maximum and the phase balance is ±5 degrees
maximum.
Knocks Out Aircraft Compass
Sherlock Ohms is a regular feature of Design
News that presents submissions from readers about troubleshooting challenges and
how they were solved. This one is titled "Lightning Knocks out Aircraft Compass." Lots of people have
magnetization stories to tell, evidently.
Continued Support
Pulsar Microwave
is celebrating its 25th anniversary as a valued supplier of passive microwave components
covering the frequency range of 10 kHz to 40 GHz with both narrow band and ultra-broadband
products for the wireless communications markets. ISO and RoHS.
 PMI Model No.
PE2-42-2G-2R0-15-SFF is a low-noise amplifier that operates
over the frequency range of 1.4 to 2.4 GHz. This model provides gain of 42 dB
minimum with a typical noise figure of 1.8 dB. The output power at 1 dB
gain compression is +22 dBm typical and the output IP3 is +30 dBm typical.
This amplifier is supplied in our standard PE2 housing that can be used with SMA
connectors or as surface mount.
Crossword for 11/25/2012
For the sake of avid cruciverbalists, each
week I create a new
crossword puzzle
that has a theme related to engineering, mathematics, chemistry, physics, and other
technical words. You will never be asked the name of a movie star unless he/she
was involved in a technical endeavor (e.g., Hedy Lamar).
Long-Time Support
Since our inception
in 1996 in Korea, ISOTEC has been a leading manufacturer of custom designed RF and
Microwave Filters and sub-system products for wireless service providers. We provide
recognized and trusted products and service to our customers in more than 30 countries
worldwide. ISOTEC offers an extensive product mix with filters and Multiplexers
that satisfy requirements from 100 kHz to 20 GHz. RF Connectors and cable
assemblies are also present in our product portfolio.
Semiconductor Mfg to Use
ESD Basics: From Semiconductor Manufacturing
to Use, Steven H. Voldman (he was my Semiconductors class
professor for two semesters at UVM) The text is unique in covering semiconductor
chip manufacturing issues, ESD semiconductor chip design, and system problems confronted
today as well as the future of ESD phenomena and nano-technology. Extensive coverage
on the fundamentals of electrostatics, triboelectric charging, and how they relate
to present day manufacturing environments of micro-electronics to nano-technology,
semiconductor manufacturing handling and auditing processing to avoid ESD failures
ESD, EOS, EMI, EMC, and latchup, component and system level testing to demonstrate
product resilience from human body model (HBM), transmission line pulse (TLP), charged
device model (CDM), human metal model (HMM), cable discharge events (CDE), to system
level IEC 61000-4-2 tests, and ESD on-chip design and process manufacturing practices.
Technology for Their Support
Dong Jin Technology Innovations
designs, manufactures, and assembles RF connectors, cable assemblies, arresters, attenuators,
adaptors,
bias Tees, filters, terminations, directional couplers, power combiners, power dividers.
Competitive price, on-time delivery and best quality. No minimum order size. One-day
delivery.
 IEEE's Job Site Alerts are mailed out periodically
with a handful or so of job hunting tips.
•
The 10 Non-California Tech Companies You Wish You Worked For
(note: 37 Signals' Jason Fried writes a great monthly
column in Inc magazine)
•
Are You Ready for the Phone Interview?
•
Burgeoning Microelectronics Sector Expects Jobs Growth
 Linking Science,
Technology & Engineering Professionals with Government Each year,
IEEE-USA sponsors government
fellowships for three qualified IEEE members. The fellows — chosen by the
IEEE-USA Government
Fellows Committee and confirmed by
the Board
— spend a year in Washington serving as advisers to the
U.S. Congress and to key
U.S. Department of State decision-makers.
Known as either a Congressional Fellowship or an Engineering & Diplomacy Fellowship,
this program links science, technology and engineering professionals with government,
and provides a mechanism for IEEE's U.S. members to learn firsthand about the public
policy process while imparting their knowledge and experience to policymakers.
Damage? Read Your Datasheet
 ESD is a big potential [pun intended] problem
for modern electronics. Ultra small gate thicknesses and overall geometry miniaturization
of ICs makes for vulnerability to shocks. All new IC designs incorporate some level
of ESD protection,
but discrete devices like transistors often do not. Low voltage electronics that
operate off of just a couple volts are using super small capacitors and resistors
that are only rated for 6.3 V. Improperly designed circuits can easily be taken
out when you grab your cellphone or iPod on a cold, arid day. Design News' Charles
Murray has sage advice for dodging such hazards:
Read your datasheet. I would also suggest also researching the plethora of papers
and books written on the subject.
or Analog?
 Each year the Foundational Questions Institute
(FQXi) holds
an essay contest inviting writers to submit missives addressing the question chosen
by the FQXi board as being particularly thought-provoking. In their words, "FQXi
catalyzes, supports, and disseminates research on questions at the foundations of
physics and cosmology, particularly new frontiers and innovative ideas integral
to a deep understanding of reality, but unlikely to be supported by conventional
funding sources." The 2011 question was "Is Reality Digital or Analog?" Scientific
American magazine, being one of three partners, published the runner-up entry
in the December 2012 issue: University of Cambridge professor of theoretical physics
professor David Tong's paper argues that the world is in fact fundamentally analog.
Professor Tong actually tied for second place, but for some reason SciAm does not
tell us whether the other second place paper supported an analog or digital viewpoint.
For that matter, it did not say which side the winning paper came down on. Strange.
I looked it up on the FQXi website. First place went to Jarmo Makela, who believes
reality is digital in nature based on a personal discussion with Isaac Newton in
his London home in the year 1700. When...
 Even though my fingers stop working when exposed
to temperatures below freezing, I love the northern climate - four full seasons,
snow, iced-over lakes, migrating birds, fiery autumns, cool summers, the whole experience.
Having the option of not participating in the cold outdoor environs is what makes
it good. However, the
U.S.
Army Signal Corps guys pulling duty in Alaska during World War II did not
have that luxury. As told by radio engineer Major Colvin in this story from a 1945
edition of ARRL's QST magazine, winter life in Alaska at -40° was a real challenge.
It was a world where Prestone antifreeze froze, the sun shone only a few hours a
day, vehicles had to be left running 24/7 or risk not being able to be re-started,
and mile-long treks between buildings was common. There were no snowmobiles. The
success of the communications station was attributed to "the high percentage of
amateur radio operators and technicians."
of HF PIN Diode RF Switches
 Pasternack Enterprises introduces their new
line of high frequency
RF switches. These high isolation RF switches have frequency
ranges from 500 MHz to 40 GHz and a power rating of 0.1 Watts
(+20 dBm).
Venture Technologies!
Venture Technologies designs and develops
innovative wireless products that measure, analyze and control. RFOS - a customizable,
modular wireless platform - results in better products that cost less to develop.
The cost and performance of full custom with the ease of a module. An in-house developed
customizable, modular wireless platform,
RFOS™,
allows better, faster development with lower NRE costs. Core embedded wireless capability
is wrapped in full service "spec to production" product development.
Skyscraper in 90 Days!
 China's about to do it again. The country
that two millennia ago built the Great Wall has awoken from a long slumber to, beginning two
decades ago, accomplish a long string of world-record-breaking projects. What used
to be the domain of
American and Western
ingenuity is now the realm of Chinese engineers and craftsmen. Of course much
of the capability originated in Western schools and corporations, but the Chinese
people have proven to be quick learners and motivated, highly capable creators.
While America is in the process of destroying personal freedoms and demonizing hard
work, academic excellence, and capitalism, China is doing just the opposite. Our
leaders are pathetic one-world weaklings while theirs are strong and nationalistic.
The result is obvious to all with eyes open. China's latest feat will be to build
the world's tallest skyscraper in just 90 days!. "Sky City One" (aka J220) as planned is 2,750 feet tall and will
beat Dubai's Burj Khalifa
by 33 feet at half the cost. Nearly 95% of the structure will use prefab sections
to create 10.8e6 square feet of office space on 220 floors, all connected by 104
elevators. It will be complete by the end of this coming winter - compliments of
WalMart shoppers.
Continued Support
Reactel designs and
manufactures RF and microwave filters, diplexers, and subassemblies, DC-50 GHz. Suspended
substrate, LC, ceramic, tubular, miniature cavity, waveguide, switched filter banks,
combline, interdigital. Contact them with your specifications.
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