Anritsu expands lineup of simulating MIMO connections

The MA8114A is a Butler Matrix transmission path with four input and four output ports and supports the 6GHz band (5.925GHz to 7.125GHz), which is not supported by the existing Azimuth STACSIM-WB-(Static Channel Simulator) (ACC-339) used for evaluating 4 x 4 MIMO throughput of LTE/5G base stations and Wi-Fi devices. The MA8114A helps users to build a stable 5G/W-Fi evaluation environment, and efficiently test throughput.

Development background

LTE/5G Base station and Wi-Fi device vendors use the Over The Air test environment to evaluate the maximum throughput with 4 x 4 MIMO for their products. This entails measuring the Tx/Rx radio performance of wireless devices using an anechoic or OTA chamber which is designed to block external radio waves. Because the transmission environment varies depending on the distance to the User Equipment (UE), a drawback of this approach is its low reproducibility of measurement results. While reproducibility can be improved by connecting the two devices using an RF cable, a simple coupler cannot simulate the MIMO transmission environment. The MA8114A solves this issue, ensuring highly reproducible measurements.

The upper-limit frequency for NR FR1 has been extended beginning with 3GPP Release 17, and the 6GHz band has been added to Wi-Fi 6E/7. The MA8114A supports a frequency range up to 7.125GHz in preparation for countries launching services on new frequency bands.

The product lineup of the Butler Matrix module also includes the Butler Matrix 8 x 8 (0.6GHz to 7.125GHz) MA8118A with eight input and eight output ports, which supports a frequency range up to 7.125GHz as well. The MA8118A can be used not only for 8 x 8 MIMO throughput evaluation but also to enable efficient testing of devices having multiple RF ports.