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3 of the November 2017 homepage archives.
Thursday 30
 "Statistics released by UK telecommunications
regulator Ofcom indicate that the
Amateur Radio population in the UK has grown by approximately 10%
over the past 5 years. As of the end of August 2017, there were 52,195 Full licensees,
9,739 Intermediate licensees, and 22,649 Foundation licensees. Figures recently released
in response to a Freedom of Information request from Peter Bowyer, G4MJS, covered the
period from June 2010 and August 2017. The statistics also show 803 Reciprocal licensees
in June 2016. Overseas visitors do not need ..."
 "Sir John Ambrose Fleming is one of the world's most famous and beloved
electrical engineers of all time. Fleming made many great contributions to mankind and
some groundbreaking innovations in electrical engineering. His two-electrode vacuum-tube
rectifier, or diode, would be used for several decades before being replaced with modern
transistors. But you might still find one in your home today, perhaps in your microwave!
Heard of the "right-hand-rule"? Then this ..."
 Bandwidth compression is a major strategy in today's
seriously overcrowded communications spectrum. Compression has occurred both through
m-ary digital modulation and through downsampling of voice - the latter of which
is partially responsible for the crappy quality of cellphones versus old fashioned copper
landline telephones. The mathematics of sampling theory are complex to say the least,
and its ability to accommodate reliable communications in the midst of incredibly dense
interference is amazing. This article was written in 1969 near the beginning of digital
communications; however, the earliest form of bandwidth ...
 "MATLAB
allows you to handle linear algebra and run powerful analyses with relative ease. This
bundle helps you master these skills and more through engaging video lessons. Used by
engineers and students of science, MATLAB (Matrix Laboratory) is one powerful platform.
Once you master the language, you can analyze and visualize data in unique ways.
The Complete
MATLAB Mastery Bundle helps you write your own data apps from scratch through five
video courses. You can grab the lot now for $27 at Popular Science Shop ..."
 "Microwaves propagating back and forth through
a
metamaterial have been used to implement a quantum algorithm. The
efficiency of the technique was shown to match that of Grover's search algorithm, with
each round-trip of the wavefront corresponding to one iteration of the calculation. The
last place you look Grover's search algorithm is an approach to interrogating a database
for an output that matches a certain input value. Using classical computation, searching
a database of size N ..."
Wednesday 29
 With all the reports of powerful men being outed
for abuses against helpless women, this recently discovered article seems timely. Last
summer I spotted the Sunday, July 21, 1969 edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
newspaper at a yard sale. The front page gushed with coverage of the Apollo 11 moon
mission where on the previous day Armstrong and Aldrin landed at Tranquility Base. Page
2, however, is consumed with a report on Sen. Ted Kennedy's incident at
Chappaquiddick where he drove his car off that tragically famed bridge.
While our brave astronauts were flying to the moon, Kennedy was killing Mary Jo Kopechne ...
 December 11 to 13. The genesis of the
IMaRC series of conferences can
be traced back to the India Initiative adopted by the IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques
Society (MTT-S) in 2005, under the guidance of the President of the Society in 2005,
Late Professor K. C. Gupta. This led to several MTT-S delegations visiting India in 2006,
2008, and 2009, including discussion with MTT-S membership in India, and participation
in local conferences. These visits resulted in a number of accomplishments during 2008-2012,
including the establishment ...
 "Buy
the best and cry only once" (BTBCOO) means that a customer cries once at the high price, but doesn't
cry again (because the higher price meant greater quality). It is not clear what retailer
originated or popularized the saying. "Buy quality and cry once— buy cheap and cry forever"
has been cited in print since 1922. - Anon, from
The Big Apple.
 "5G mobile technology was again among the hottest topics at this year's
Mobile World Congress with much of the attention devoted to what the improved coverage
and capacity the technology offers will be used for. Significant attention at the event
was devoted to virtual and augmented reality (VR and AR) apps and services, most likely
because these show a clear need for the speed and low latency that 5G networks will provide
because of their need for uninterrupted ..."
 Here are a couple more
tech-themed comics from vintage Popular Electronics magazines. Only one
comic appeared in each of the May 1972 and July 1972 issues, so I combined them onto
a single page. What's that guy in the May comic in the background doing? Anyone remember
those pieces of furniture that were once a staple of engineering offices? The July comic
reminds me of a scenario that might have appeared in one of the old
Calvin and
Hobbes comic strips that graced our newspapers up through the end of 1995. Calvin's
father, in case you didn't know, was a patent attorney ...
 "This illustration shows the steps to fabricate
a new
3D magnetic circuit. In steps 1 and 2, an electron microscope and
gas injector print a scaffold onto a silicon substrate. In step 3, the scaffold is covered
with a magnetic material. In step 4, a laser reads the magnetic information contained
within the structure. Researchers at the University of Cambridge in the UK have broken
the paradigm of two-dimensional circuits used to store and transmit data and created
a nanoscale magnetic circuit that can send along bits of information ..."
 Radiocrafts AS,
a leading provider of RF modules and wireless connectivity solutions, announced today
a new dual mode radio module platform for Smart Metering, Internet of Things (IoT) and
Wireless Sensor Networks applications. The module has a 2.4 GHz radio transceiver is
addition to the sub-Giga Hertz transceiver that is available on the RC18x0 module that
was announced by Radiocrafts in September. The
RC1885 radio module platform is a surface-mounted ultra-low power RF module based
on the CC1350 system ...
Tuesday 28
 "The Amateur Radio clubs at National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) centers around the US have invited the Amateur Radio
community to join the
NASA On The Air (NOTA) special event. NOTA gets under way in December
2017 and continues through December 2018. In addition to being the agency's 60th anniversary,
2018 will mark 50 years since NASA orbited the first human around the moon, and 20 years
since the first elements of the International Space Station (ISS) were launched into
low-Earth orbit. Starting on Monday, December 11, 2017 (UTC), Amateur Radio ..."
 Provided
byArie Voors, "4nec2 is a completely free Nec2, Nec4 and windows based tool for creating,
viewing, optimizing and checking 2D and 3D style antenna geometry structures and generate,
display and / or compare near / far-field radiation patterns for both the starting and experienced antenna
modeler. When running frequency sweeps, linear or logarithmic style SWR, Gain, F/B-ratio
and impedance line-charts are produced. With the included Optimizer and Sweeper one is
able to optimize antenna - and / or other environment-variables for Gain, resonance,
SWR, efficiency and / or F/B, F/R-ratio. ..."
 The 1970s was a time of major transition in the
electronics world. The transition from vacuum tubes to transistors, from point-to-point
wiring to printed circuit boards, and the beginnings of personal computing were topics
of all the technical publications. This 1973 issue of Popular Electronics included
in its news roundup a couple interesting items whose effects are still dominant today
- like the Supreme Court ruling that prevents
patents on computer programs and electro-optical devices reading price tags in stores.
Computer user interfaces have been patented, but the software itself is mostly ...
 Rhode & Schwarz announces an app note titled
"Group Delay and Phase Measurement on Frequency Converters" - available
as a free download. You don't need to register if you use the hyperlinks provided here.
"This application note provides basic information about the concept of a group delay
measurement with spectrum analyzers and signal generators, and how this method simplifies
the test setup and improve s the measurement speed. Measurement examples show the limiting
factors of this approach and help the user to understand ..."
 "What
if you could share a
computer-aided design (CAD) model and even allow a colleague to manipulate
it from afar? 'Click on this link, check out my design, and feel free to add more holes
or fill some in,' you might say. You wouldn't have to instruct your distant coworker
to install special software or worry about whether her operating system could run it.
Imagine that all your programs and data were stored in the cloud and that even computationally
intensive applications like multimedia ..."
 Saelig Company has introduced four new members
of Pico Technology's
PicoScope 9300 family of sampling oscilloscopes. With up to 25 GHz
bandwidth, the PicoScope 9300 series addresses digital and telecommunications applications
of 10 Gb/s and higher, microwave applications up to 25 GHz, and timing applications
with a resolution down to 64 fs. The new 15 GHz models replace the preceding
9200 Series 12 GHz models, with significantly upgraded specifications at lower prices.
The 9301-15 gives the ...
Monday 27
 December 7, 11:00 am. "Interference in the radio
access network is ubiquitous and becoming more critical as the deployment of the latest
cellular standards increases sensitivity to interference and subsequent degradation of
network performance. This webinar will compare and contrast different techniques to geolocate
sources of
interference in mobile networks, with a focus on POA vs. AOA. A real
interference geolocation use case will be shared and a definitive procedure for the fastest
interference location will be ..."
 RoHS, Pb-Free, and other green programs were not
a significant concern in the electronics industry when this article was published in
the early 1970s. Instead, research and development efforts concentrated on understanding
and improving the chemical and mechanical aspects of
soldered electrical connections. Having "grown up" in the electronics industry during
that era, most of solder and soldering knowledge and practices still tend toward Sn-Pb
(tin-lead) alloys for most applications, whether for soldering electronic components
to a PCB or terminal post, soldering copper water pipes, or soldering music wire landing
gear assemblies for model ...
 KR Electronics designs and manufactures high quality
filters for both the commercial and military markets. KR Electronics
 manufactures all
filter types and individually synthesizes
filters for special applications. State of the art computer synthesis, analysis and test
methods are used to meet the most challenging specifications. Please visit their website
today to see how they might be of assistance ...
 "The FCC's plans regarding
net neutrality, set to be revealed in detail on Nov. 22, aren't going
to end net neutrality. What the FCC is planning to do is reverse the 2014 decision that
placed the internet under Title II of the Communications Act. Despite dire warnings from
some corners of the media, the FCC's planned action isn't the end of net neutrality,
and in fact it may foster growth on the internet. Before we get started, let's all take
a deep breath. That's it. Breathe all the way in then hold ..."
Sunday 26
 For the sake of avid
cruciverbalists amongst us, each week I create a new technology-themed crossword
puzzle using only words related to engineering, science, mathematics, chemistry, physics,
astronomy, etc. At least 10 clues in this puzzle with an asterisk (*)
are pulled from this past week's (11/20 - 11/24) "Tech Industry Headlines" column on
the RF Cafe homepage (see the Headline Archives page for help).
Enjoy! ...
Friday 24
 Long before any one was overly concerned with
relatively paltry electrostatic discharge (ESD) current causing damage to semiconductor
components, there was a need to model the human body's resistance to current flow due
to
electric shock concerns. Even with a huge number of people being severely shocked
and/or killed due to exposure to potentially lethal voltage levels, it was not until
the late 1960s that OSHA and the National Electric Code began requiring exposed metal
components (chassis, switches, etc.) to have a safety ground connection. Popular
Electronics ran an article titled "Shocking But True" in August ...
 The
ARRL Store is having
a Black Friday (and Saturday and Sunday) sale. Enter the
coupon code of SAVETEN at checkout to save $10 on orders over $70. There are
also buy-one-get-one-free deals and members-only pricing on some items. The 2018
ARRL Handbook for Radio Communications is supposed to be really nice with lots of
new material. I haven't bought a new edition since 2012 - sure would make a nice present
;-) ...
 "It's the time of year when kids are thinking
about their holiday wish lists. So what's a parent to do when a child, possibly a very
young child, asks for a
smartphone? We hear that smartphones can be addictive, that screen
time can hurt learning, but can't these minicomputers also teach kids about responsibility
and put educational apps at their tiny fingertips? To learn more, let's look at two families:
one where smartphones are allowed for elementary to middle school-aged ..."
Thursday 23
 A Microwave Journal technical education webinar
will highlight the use of NI AWR software products specifically Microwave Office circuit
design and
AntSyn™ antenna synthesis and optimization software, for designing
a compact internet of things (IoT) dual-band Wi-Fi multiple-in-multiple-out (MIMO) array
antenna. Presented by Dr. Derek S. Linden, director of technology for AntSyn at AWR Group,
NI, the webinar will describe how to determine the initial specifications, explore the
design space, and obtain optimized antennas from the ...
 "Germanium, an elemental semiconductor, was the
material of choice in the early history of electronic devices, before it was largely
replaced by silicon. But due to its high charge carrier mobility - higher than silicon
by threefold - the semiconductor is making a comeback.
Germanium (Ge) is generally grown on expensive single-crystal substrates,
adding another challenge to making it sustainably viable for most applications. To address
this aspect, researchers at RPI demonstrate
..."
Happy Thanksgiving!!!
 Anyone who watched the
WKRP in Cincinnati
sitcom back in the 1970s has to remember what was one of the funniest episodes ever.
Here is the 5 minutes that made Prime Time history. In this Thanksgiving episode, station
owner Arthur Carlson decided he would do a surprise good deed - that doubled as a promotional
stunt - and drop live turkeys from a helicopter for lucky shoppers at the local shopping
mall. Watch the disaster unfold as Les Nessman reports live, and then hear Carlson's
final comment that is still used or alluded to in many
...
Wednesday 22
 Another era,
sadly, has come to an end. H. Ward Silver (aka Ward Silver,
NØAX) has announced the end of his monthly column, "Hands-On Radio," in QST
magazine. The title of each column was enumerated as "Experiment #nnn," followed by the
subject. To wit, "Experiment #179 Maxwell's Equations - The Wave Emerges" is Mr. Silver's
final column, appearing in the December 2017 QST. "Hands-On Radio" topics ranged
in intensity from relatively simple discussion on calculating power dissipation in resistors,
capacitors, and inductors to more heady treatises on subjects like electromagnetic fields
within coaxial cable and waveguide to Maxwell's equations. Mathematics, too ...
 Triad RF Systems designs and manufactures
RF power amplifiers and systems. Triad
RF Systems comprises three partners (hence 'Triad') with
over 40 years of  accumulated knowledge of what is required to design,
manufacture, market, sell and service RF/Microwave amplifiers and amplifier systems.
"We view Triad more as a technology partner than a vendor for our line-of-sight communications
product line." Please check to see how we can help your project
...
 Prior to the advent of high frequency solid state
devices like Gunn diodes, working at or above a couple GHz - even at low power -required
the use of cavity oscillators such as klystrons and magnetrons. They were bulky, espensize
and electrically very inefficient. This article outlines the theory of bulk oscillators
as developed by Dr. John A. Copeland, of Bell Labs, and points out the peculiarities
of the LSA (limited
space-charge accumulation) mode that makes it possible to obtain 20 milliwatts of
power at 88 GHz. Use of gallium arsenide (GaAs) enabled designers to construct receiver
circuits into the mm-wave region without the need for klystrons, thereby reducing cost ...
 ConductRF is offering standard
D38999 RF coaxial
cable assembly configurations with RF Contacts including; BMA to 20 GHz SMPM
to 60 GHz Size #8 to 18 GHz Size #12 Mil-Spec. Size #16 Mil-Spec. Cable choice
include Low Loss Flexible and standard RG styles. Custom marking and also ruggedization
coverings including Nomex weave available ...
 "Scientists have taken an important step towards
using
'twisted' light as a form of wireless, high-capacity data transmission
which could make fiber optics obsolete. Scientists can 'twist' photons - individual particles
of light - by passing them through a special type of hologram, similar to that on a credit
card, giving the photons a twist known as optical angular momentum. While conventional
digital communications use photons as ones and zeroes to carry information, the number
of intertwined twists in the photons ..."
Tuesday 21
 "Qualcomm, China Mobile and ZTE combined their
5G expertise and demonstrated what's being described as the world's first end-to-end
5G New Radio (NR) Interoperability Data Testing (IoD) system with
a data connection based on 3GPP Release 15. Conducted at China Mobile's 5G Joint Innovation
Center, the demo used ZTE's 5G NR) system with a data connection based on 3GPP Release
15. Conducted at China Mobile's 5G Joint Innovation Center, the demo used ZTE's 5G NR)
system with a data connection based on 3GPP Release 15. Conducted at China Mobile's 5G
Joint Innovation ..."
 Whitepapers, pamphlets, books, magazines, and
chapter examples listed here are a small sample of a lot of new items that are offered
for FREE to qualified users through
TradePub. Whitepaper topics include careers, manufacturing, and engineering,
while magazine titles include
Microwave Engineering Europe,
Electronic Design, and
Microwave Product Digest. Note: I earn a few pennies
(literally) when you download one of these or the many
other pubs available, so please help yourself ...
 Anatech Electronics offers the industry's largest portfolio of high-performance
standard and customized RF and microwave filters and filter-related products for military,
commercial, aerospace and defense, and industrial applications up to 40 GHz. Anatech
has introduced a two new filters and a gas tube surge arrestor for your convenience:
a surface mount 32.0 MHz SAW filter, a leaded 1.25 MHz crystal filter, and a cool-looking
DC-3 GHz
gas tube surge arrester with SMA connectors ...
 "So far, the FCC appears to have struck a balance
between the goals of terrestrial wireless and satellite interests, at least based on
early reads of the millimeter wave spectrum item it passed at its open meeting Thursday.
The
Satellite Industry Association (SIA) announced that it is initially
encouraged by the FCC order regarding the future deployment of wireless services in spectrum
bands above 24 GHz. In a news release, the FCC stated it will adopt rules regarding the
use of spectrum ..."
Monday 20
 "UK government launches
Year of Engineering campaign to inspire next generation of engineers.
The UK government has pledged to work with hundreds of industry partners throughout 2018
to encourage young people and their parents to take a closer look at engineering. Launched
in response to an estimated shortfall of 20,000 engineering graduates a year, and growing
reports from industry that the skills shortage is having a significant impact on productivity
and growth the so-called 'Year of Engineering' hopes to galvanis ..."
 Electro-Photonics LLC is a global supplier of
RF & Microwave components.
Our products include SMT hybrid and directional couplers, wire bondable passive components,
filters, and very useful test boards for evaluating components (spiral
 inductors,
single-layer capacitors). The Electro-Photonics team can support your small R&D design
requirements with RF & Microwave test fixtures and save you valuable design and characterization
time. Please take a moment to visit their website and see how your project might benefit ...
 Reading through the news items in the vintage
electronics magazines provides a mixture of important historical facts and figures along
with some predictions on the future of the industry. Some of the predictions turn out
to be amazingly accurate, even though in retrospect they might seem obvious. Take, for
example, Sylvania VP Dr. Robert Castor's foresight about how, "the future growth of the
semiconductor industry lies in a major switch from the production of individual components
to solid-state subsystems that can be used as building blocks in electronic designs."
"Well of course," you might be temped to say; however, at the time there were still significant
hurdles to overcome related to material purity, wafer size, photolithography ...
 Webinar Title:
Pulse Shaping in High Power Solid State Jamming Amplifiers When: Thursday, November
30, 12 pm to 1:30 pm Location: Marriott Marquis Hotel Marquis Ballroom. Pulse shaping,
as it is done today, is an effort to fix fidelity issues caused by the transmitting amplifier
and is accomplished by a combination of imperfect methods, most external to the amplifier.
In this technical session, Paulo Correa will describe a new high power amplifier architecture
with built in real time feedback that is capable of matching the input signal shape,
minimizing droop, overshoot, ringing, rise ...
 "IBM quantum computers with 20
superconducting qubits will soon be available for online use by the
firm's clients – according to the US-based company. The quantum systems will be running
by the end of 2017 and IBM also says that it has built and tested a prototype quantum
computer with 50 qubits. Part of the IBM Q family of quantum computers, the new systems
are based on transmon qubits. These store quantum information in terms ..."
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