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Tuesday 10
 "DARPA's
Video Synthetic Aperture Radar (ViSAR) program recently completed flight tests, successfully demonstrating
a new sensor that can capture real-time video through clouds. The ViSAR program, which began
in 2013, has been developing an Extremely High Frequency (EHF) targeting sensor to operate
through clouds as effectively as current electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) sensors operate
in clear weather. The program's goal is to develop a cloud-penetrating EHF sensor ..."
 "I would like
to die on Mars... just not on impact." -
Elon Musk, SpaceX
CEO, during 2013 South by Southwest (SXSW) interview. Begins at 44:15 in video ...
 It's an exciting time for
RF/Microwave design
and test hardware to meet customer's requirements for 5G, IoT, Satellite Communications,
etc. Mini-Circuits is pushing beyond 40 GHz and also focusing on 5G Applications at sub-6 GHz,
28 GHz and 39 GHz. Also working on custom designs. We recently announced in Mini-Circuits
Components Now Available in Modular Drop-In Format from X-Microwave, that over 400 Mini-Circuits
are available using X-Microwave blocks ...
 Evidently in 1973 there were only about 400 different
battery types to choose from when deciding what to buy for your automobile, electronic
device, uninterruptible power supply, flashlight, etc. I don't know what the number of types
is today, but the number must be in the thousands. Nominal voltage, case size and shape, energy
capacity (amp-hour rating), current delivery capacity ("C" rating), environmental accommodation,
connection type (contact, solder, screw-on, or push-on terminals), chemistry, number of recharge
cycles (for secondary batteries), and a host of other choices are available nowadays ...
 Skyworks Solutions,
an innovator of high performance analog semiconductors connecting people, places and things,
today announced that ZTE is incorporating various products from its portfolio to power several
of their all-in-one platforms for the connected car. Skyworks' innovative
LTE and connectivity solutions help transform cars into rolling Wi-Fi hotspots, enabling
vehicle tracking, diagnostics, safety and security features. To support the numerous wireless
protocols and frequency bands required by advanced wireless networks ...
 "As microchips become ever smaller and therefore faster,
the shrinking size of their
copper interconnects leads to increased electrical resistivity at the
nanoscale. Finding a solution to this impending technical bottleneck is a major problem for
the semiconductor industry. One promising possibility involves reducing the resistivity size
effect by altering the crystalline orientation of interconnect materials. A pair of researchers
from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute conducted electron transport ..."
Monday 9
 Axiom Test Equipment, a provider of efficient and
cost effective solutions customers' test equipment needs, offer the following special deals
on their inventory. Axiom offers our customers several practical, efficient and cost effective
solutions for their business or projects' test equipment needs. Whether you need to
rent & buy test
equipment, repair test equipment,
sell or trade equipment, we are committed to providing superior customer service and high
quality electronic test equipment ...
 Adolph Mangieri, who authored articles in electronic
magazines in the 1970s and 1980s, provided a good introduction to junction field effect transistors
(JFETs) in this 1973 piece in Popular Electronics. As mentioned, JFETs were a relative
newcomer at the time to the commercial electronics world because of high fabrication costs.
Obtaining consistent pinchoff voltages and gains was largely responsible for the costs. Semiconductor
processing and some circuit application examples are included. One of the first big commercial
applications of the JFET was probably transistorized multimeters in order to obtain ...
 Empower's Model
SKU 2126 was mounted in the test fixture undergoing 40g shock testing
while operating uninterrupted at full rated output power. The amplifier system was tested
for
MIL-STD-810E Method 514.4 vibration 40 g Peak while operational for 270 minutes in
each axis. The unit also passed Shock – MIL-STD 810F Method 516.5 3 Axes, Quantity 18 pulses
per direction 11 mSec Sawtooth Pulse / 40g Peak. Keep in mind this is not a custom design.
This is our COTS model with a dust filter added ...
 From May 9th through the 11th in the year of our Lord
1958, the very first "Jamboree on the Air" (JOTA) was held by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA).
The American Radio Relay League (ARRL), in conjunction with the BSA, is promoting this year's
60th anniversary event occurring from October 20-22. As you might imagine, quite a lot has
changed over 59 years in terms of equipment, but the basics in terms of encouraging and assisting
the next generation of licensed Hams remains as always the primary goal of organizers. The
Boy Scouts, of course, join in for the fun and learning experience. Jamboree on the Air events,
held in October ...
 "Researchers have taken a first step toward controlling
electrons' behavior inside matter - and thus the first step down a long and complicated road
that could eventually lead to the ability to create new states of matter at will. This drawing
illustrates the path of packets of
light
waves (blue dashed line, moving right to left), as they hit an atom (white sphere with
green nucleus) and an electron is knocked free (purple dashed line ..."
Sunday 8
 For the sake of avid cruciverbalists amongst us, each
week I create a new
engineering and technology themed crossword puzzle, mathematics, chemistry, physics, and
other technical words. At least 10 clues in this puzzle with an asterisk (*)
are pulled from this past week's (10/2 - 10/6) "Tech Industry Headlines" column on the RF
Cafe homepage (see the Headline Archives page for help). Enjoy! ...
Friday 6
 KR Electronics part number
3012-455 is a
160 MHz bandpass filter designed for Positive Train Control (PTC) applications. Encapsulated
for enhanced shock and vibration resistance, 50 Ω source and load, N(F) to N(M) connectors.
The filters are encapsulated/ruggedized for enhanced shock and vibration resistance. Thousands
are currently installed and operating successfully in the field with major rail companies.
Other frequencies and bandwidths are available ...
 Whitepapers, pamphlets, books, magazines, and chapter
examples listed here are a small sample of a lot of new items that are offered for FREE through
TradePub.
The publishers make them available to qualifying people as a promotional campaign for their
full line of offerings. Whitepaper topics include careers, manufacturing, and engineering,
while magazine titles include Microwave Engineering Europe, Electronic Design, and Microwave
Product Digest ...
 Here is a good end of week task for you. In this challenge
by Popular Electronics'
quizmaster Robert Balin, you have to match each electronic circuit on the left with its
mechanical analog on the right. Mechanical equivalent "H" can be a bit tricky depending on
whether you consider the material that gets through the sieve or what gets trapped in it,
or for that matter whether you consider wavelength or frequency. Personally, I think he has
the analogy backwards ...
 "The University of Sherbrooke and École de Technologie
Supérieure in Canada have developed a gallium arsenide (GaAs)
Schottky diode fabrication technique aimed at low-cost sub-millimeter
wave performance. The researchers used photolithography rather than the more expensive electron-beam
patterning that is often used. Also, the number of metallization steps was reduced from five
to two, reducing lithography alignment complexities from eight steps to five ..."
 ConductRF is
continually innovating and developing new and improved solutions for RF Interconnect needs.
See the latest TESTeCON
RF Test Cables for labs. ConductRF makes production and test coax cable assemblies as
well as standard & precision RF connectors. Over 1,000 solutions for low PIM in-building
to choose from in the iBwave component library. They also provide custom coax solutions for
applications where some standard just won't do. Please visit
ConductRF today
to see how they can help your project!
 "The first
quantum-safe video conference was held between President Chunli Bai of
the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing and President Anton Zeilinger of the Austria Academy
of Sciences in Vienna, as the first real-world demonstration of intercontinental quantum communication
on September 29th. Private and secure communications are fundamental ..."
Thursday 5
 "Following an opaque and arcane ruling from a European
Parliament committee there is concern that the continent is losing its way on telecoms. The
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy voted on a broad range of issues
surrounding the involvement of the Eurocracy in the telecoms business. Among the conclusions
of the vote were a move to reduce the cost of long distance calls within Europe, which seems
to be an ideological
..."
 Nickel cadmium (NiCd or NiCad) and nickel metal hydride
(NiMH) batteries are classified as
secondary cells because they are rechargeable. Primary cells like carbon and standard
alkaline are not rechargeable. Those were the most common types of batteries- at least for
consumer products - up through the late 1980s. The now-common lithium ion (Li-Ion or LiIon)
and lithium polymer (Li-Po or LiPo) are also secondary types. Devices designed to use either
lithium chemistry are meant to work at integer multiples of the nominal 3.7 V cells potential.
In the mid 1980s, when NiMH was gaining popularity as a high energy density rechargeable battery,
a lot ...
 "First the good news. School students have a positive
view of science and engineering. About 70% say they learn interesting things in
school and that scientists make a difference in the world. 71% of the students about to take
part in our event 'I'm an Engineer, Get me out of here' think that Engineers have an interesting
job. Sorted. What's the problem? The problem is that according to ASPIRES project ..."
 Microwave Filter Company (MFC) introduces their complete
line of broadcast filter products. Competitive pricing, exceptional quality, short lead times.
Contact our experienced staff to discuss your requirements. Download their full
MFC
catalog.
 "Laser weapons experts at Lockheed Martin Corp. are helping the U.S. Air
Force develop a compact, ruggedized, high-power laser to defend tactical aircraft flying at
or above the speed of sound from enemy aircraft and missiles. Officials of the Laser Division
of the Air Force Research Laboratory's Directed Energy Directorate at Kirtland Air Force Base,
N.M., announced a $26.3M contract Tuesday to Lockheed Martin Aculight ..."
Wednesday 4
 "As the industry struggles to get small cells and related
infrastructure deployed across the U.S., it was reminded that some barriers are about more
than aesthetics or registration fees. There's a pending action at the FCC to take another
look at
RF emissions, and that can be a great shield for local government officials,
said Steve Traylor, executive director, National Association of Telecommunications Officers
and Advisors, during a panel hosted by Telecommunications Industry Association ..."
 Southwest Antennas, an industry leader in innovative
MIMO antenna solutions, is pleased to introduce two new compact MIMO sector antennas to their
existing line-up of directional antenna solutions. Designed for 2 port (2X2) MIMO and MANET
radios, these
compact sector antennas feature 10 dBi of peak gain and 56 degrees of
horizontal and vertical beamwidth. Measuring only 4.3" in length and height and 2.9" wide,
these small antennas ...
 Electronic ignition, computer-controlled fuel injection
and air intake, alarm systems, radar, rear back-up cameras, GPS, stereo sound systems, Bluetooth
tire pressure monitor, hands-free telephone, automatic headlight directors, drowsy driver
detectors, collision avoidance, anti-lock brakes, fuel efficiency management, air bag deployment,
self-parking and even self-driving features are now or soon will be standard features in automobiles.
Mac McGregor and Barney hit upon a lot of these items - some explicitly, some implicitly
- in this 1973 installment ...
 Sixty
years ago today, on October 4, 1957, the Space Race began with Russia's launch of the Sputnik
satellite. Ham radio operators across the globe tracked its flight. Here are some articles
I have posted on Sputnik: -
Sputnik Watch in Erie, PA -
QSL from Sputnik -
Electronics News -
Satellite Electronics
Dennis Lazar has a nice article titled, "First CW from Space: Sputnik Turns 60," in the October 2017 QST.
 Planar Monolithic Industries (PMI) recently introduced
four new products in their extensive line of
RF and microwave
components. Included are a 1-18 GHz low noise amplifier; a 1 to 18 GHz, 10-bit digital
RF attenuator; a 1 to 12 GHz high speed threshold detector; and a 2 to 18 GHz SP6T PIN diode
RF switch. Contact PMI today for more information ...
 "The Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air
Force Base, N.M., is turning to radio frequency and microwave experts at companies such as
Raytheon and Booz Allen Hamilton to conduct experiments with high power electromagnetic (HPEM) technology for such applications as disrupting computers, aircraft,
or electric grids. HPEM EW has attracted the attention of the U.S. Air Force's Directed Energy
Directorate's ..."
Tuesday 3
 "5G
NR is ascending rapidly as the
5G technology of choice, but it turns out lots can be done to get ready
as it goes through the formal 3GPP channels. The Qualcomm-led 5G New Radio initiative is accelerating
through the 3GPP wormhole and should start emerging as a formal specification in two stages
in 2018. But how do we test to it in the meantime? Well, I asked the experts at Keysight.
This isn't a new problem, of course. Designers and developers have been ..."
 Here is a prime example of how a primitive and outmoded
form of communication like over-the-air
FM broadcast radio can make its value apparent. "FCC Chairman Ajit Pai
renewed his call for Apple to activate support for FM radio in its iPhones, citing safety
concerns in the wake of a rash of hurricanes. But Apple said some of its latest iPhone models
simply can't receive FM broadcasts. Like almost all smartphones, iPhone models include a chip
that could enable users to access broadcasts ..."
 The October 1969 issue of Electronics World
contained no fewer than nine separate articles on the relatively new technology of
printed circuit boards (PCBs). Through the mid 1960s, many, if not most, electronic assemblies
used all point-to-point wiring connections, or a majority of point-to-point with a minor circuit
or two on a PCB. Multilayer PCBs were being routinely manufactured for defense and aerospace
applications, but more than two or three layers was a rarity in an AM/FM radio, television,
or smart appliance (just kidding about the last one). This "dry process" for PCBs, costing
$6k ($41k in 2017 dollars), was pitched as a low cost method for manufacturing ...
 This combo version of
Smith
Chart for Excel™ includes both versions in a single workbook. The original version,
which I created in 2004, allows you to enter a set of s-parameters at each frequency, and
then a second version allows you to enter a set of real and imaginary impedances at each frequency
for plotting on the Smith Chart. While there is nothing new about Smith Chart plotting software,
what makes Smith chart for Excel unique is that rather than tying up processor resources plotting
the resistance circles and impedance arcs, I set a Smith Chart graphic as the background image
for the chart ...
Revised ARRL Frequency Chart Now Available
 An updated
ARRL frequency
chart is now available for printing and downloading. The chart has been updated to include
the new bands at 2,200 and 630 meters. The new chart is available for printing in the following
PDF formats: 8.5" x 11" gray scale, 8.5" x 11" B&W, 8.5 x 11 color, and 11" x 17" color ...
 "Researchers from Finland and Taiwan have discovered
how graphene, a single-atom-thin layer of carbon, can be forged into three-dimensional objects
by using laser light. A striking illustration was provided when the researchers fabricated
a pyramid with a height of 60 nm, which is about 200 times larger than the thickness
of a
graphene sheet. The pyramid was so small that it would easily fit on a
single strand of hair. The research was supported by the Academy of Finland and the Ministry
of Science and Technology of the Republic of China ..."
Monday 2
 "Applications now
include nanoscale spintronics sensors that further enhance the areal density of hard disk
drives, through MRAMs that are seriously being considered to replace embedded flash, static
random access memories (SRAM) and at a later stage dynamic random access memories (DRAM).
Spintronics is the concept of using the spin degree of freedom to control electrical current
to expand the capabilities of electronic devices ..."
 Pasternack, a leading provider of RF, microwave and
millimeter wave products, has unveiled a new series of low insertion loss repeatability
electromechanical switches. Test and measurement applications require
signal processing component performance to be highly accurate and repeatable over long periods
and under extreme conditions. In automated test systems where electromechanical switches are
used for signal monitoring and routing applications, every switch will add repeatability error ...
 Ever since the advent of Google Earth in 2001, high
resolution photos from orbiting satellites has become routine, expected technology rather
than awe-inspiring technology. In 1970 when this article appeared, however,
satellite imagery was still in its infancy. The TIROS 1 weather satellite, with a
mere 78-day lifespan, had been launched just a decade earlier. Nations' militaries had the
biggest and best platforms, and pictures like those now routinely seen on Google Earth were
highly classified. If you recall, governments had conniption fits over Google's photos taken
of secret installations. Civilians ...
 According to Google's "About" page, founders Larry
Page and Sergey Brin originally called their search engine "Backrub." Funny quote:
"Soon after, Backrub was renamed Google (phew)."
The name was a play on the mathematical expression for the number 1 followed by 100 zeros
and aptly reflected Larry and Sergey's mission "to organize the world's information and make
it universally accessible and useful ..."
 Empower's tested and field proven rugged design is
common across all our
Next Generation Family of amplifiers and is the result of our patented
architecture and design goal to minimize RF power losses along the internal signal path, simplify
manufacturing and provide for ease of servicing. The consequence of this elegant electro-mechanical
compact structural design is a COTS amplifier that is inherently durable. Empower's family
of solid state power amplifiers is thermally and structurally designed to meet today's stringent ...
Sibling Startup Movandi Offers RF for 5G
 Movandi
brings innovative RF front end technology to emerging high frequency, millimeter wave networks
for 5G and beyond. Internationally recognized siblings, leaders and innovators, Maryam and
Reza Rofougaran introduce innovative approach to RF and antenna design, announce new company,
Movandi, a venture-backed startup with
a mission to revolutionize millimeter wave networks, today announced BeamX technology, a scalable
RF front ..."
Sunday 1
 For the sake of avid cruciverbalists amongst us, each
week I create a new engineering and technology themed crossword puzzle, mathematics, chemistry,
physics, and other technical words. At least 10 clues in this puzzle with an asterisk (*)
are pulled from this past week's (9/25 - 9/29) "Tech Industry Headlines" column on the RF
Cafe homepage (see the Headline Archives page for help). Enjoy! ...
Friday 29
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