Typical dynamic range of an R&S®ZC110 mmWave converter using the rear-panel direct IF inputs
The R&S®ZNA-B8 mmWave converter LO option (rear LO output) makes it possible to use an additional internal high-power source to feed the LO signal to the converters. With this option, a 2-port or 4‑port R&S®ZNA can be configured to interface directly with the mmWave converters. No additional external test sets are required. Fitting this option to a 4-port R&S®ZNA model, for example, frees up all four test ports on the analyzer front panel, allowing for a full 4-port mmWave configuration with four converters.
The LO output on the instrument rear can deliver up to +25 dBm signal power up to a frequency of 26.5 GHz. This perfectly satisfies the converters’ power requirements, even when long cables are used.
The R&S®ZNA vector network analyzer 4-port models offer two other unique features that make them the most flexible instruments on the market:
- R&S®ZNA-B5 2nd internal LO source for R&S®ZNA 4‑port models:Allows the analyzer’s internal receivers to be tuned to two different frequencies simultaneously. This makes it possible to characterize complex, frequency-converting devices quickly and easily in terms of both magnitude and phase, even with mmWave converter setups.
- R&S®ZNAxx-B3 3rd and 4th internal source for R&S®ZNA 4‑port models: Provides two additional internal sources so that each port has its own, independently controllable signal source.
The combination of the R&S®ZNA-B5 and R&S®ZNAxx-B3 options enables measurements on frequency-converting devices and allows users to mix and match different frequency converters (which have different frequency plans) to handle challenging measurement tasks.