The 3 dB rule provides a means to estimate relative power values. A 3 dB gain indicates that power increases to twice the power (a multiple of 2). A 3 dB loss indicates that power decreases to half the power (a multiple of 1/2). A system with 40 watts of input power and a 6 dB insertion loss will have only 10†watts of output power (a multiple of 1/2 for each 3 dB loss, or 1/4 of 40 watts).

A fitting that supplies a passage between two sets of equipment when they cannot be directly interconnected.

Adaptive array antenna is a type of advanced ’smart’ antenna technology that continually monitors a received signal and dynamically adapts signal patterns to optimize wireless system performance. The arrays use signal processing algorithms to adapt to user movement, to changes in the radio-frequency environment, and to multi-path and co-channel interference.

Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC, A/D or A to D) is an electronic device that converts continuous signals to discrete digital numbers. The reverse operation is performed by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). ADC can uniquely represent all analog input values within a specified total input range by a limited number of digital output codes. Refer also to DAC.

An Analog system uses an analog transmission method to send voice, video and data-using analog signals, such as electricity or sound waves, that are continuously variable rather than discreet units as in digital transmissions. Mobile analog systems include AMPS, NMT and ETACS.

Analog Transmission refers to signals propagated through the medium as continuously varying electromagnetic waves.

Antenna is a device which radiates and/or receives radio signals, including RF, microwave, and RADAR.

Antenna beamwidth, also known as the half-power beamwidth, is the angle of an antenna pattern or beam over which the relative power is at or above 50% of the peak power.

Antenna directivity, also known as antenna gain, is the relative gain of the main beam of an antenna pattern to a reference antenna, usually an isotropic or standard dipole. Antenna Directivity is the percentage of radiated signal transmitted or received in a given direction related to beamwidth.

Antenna Efficiency is the percentage of theoretical gain actually realized from an antenna.

Antenna gain, also known as antenna directivity, is the relative gain of the main beam of an antenna pattern to a reference antenna, usually an isotropic or standard dipole. Antenna Gain is the effectiveness of a directional antenna expressed as the ratio of input power of the directional antenna to input power of an isotropic radiator to provide the same field strength in the desired direction. Sometimes related to a dipole antenna.

An isotropic antenna is a theoretical point source radiating a spherical power envelope.

A parabolic antenna is an antenna utilizing a reflector that is shaped as a paraboloid in order to both concentrate the radiated signal into a beam and to provide considerable gain. Beamwidth varies inversely and gain varies directly with the size of the antenna and with frequency.

Attenuation refers to decreasing in signal magnitude between two points. These points may be along a radio path, transmission line or other devices.

Attenuator is a device specifically designed to decrease the magnitude of a signal transmitted through it.

Average power is the peak power averaged over time and is usually applied to pulsed systems where the carrier power is switched on and off.

In wireless technology, backhaul refers to transporting voice and data traffic from a cell site to the switch.

A Band Pass Filter is a radio wave filter with a specific range of frequencies in which it is designed to pass. It rejects frequencies outside the pass-band range. A resistor-inductor-capacitor circuit is an example of a Band Pass Filter.

Bandwidth usually identifies the capacity of a circuit or amount of data that can be sent through a given circuit. It may be user-specified in a PVC. It is an indication of the amount of data that is passing over a medium. Also, bandwidth is the portion of the frequency spectrum required to transmit desired information. Each radio channel has a center frequency and additional frequencies above and below this carrier frequency which is used to carry the transmitted information. The range of frequencies from the lowest to the highest used is called the bandwidth.

Bit Error Rate or Bit Error Ratio (link quality specification/testing) (BER) is a measure of transmission quality. The ratio of error bits to the total number of bits transmitted. A bit error rate of 10-6 refers to an average of one error per million bits. It is generally shown as a negative exponent, (for example, 10-7 which means 1 out of 107 bits are in error or 1 out of 10,000,000 bits are in error). Bit Error Rate is the fraction of a sequence of message bits that are in error.

Bit Error Rate Test/Tester (BERT) is a test that gauges the quality of the T1 or digital line. By sending a known pattern to another device across the span, the far end device can compare incoming pattern to its own, thereby indicating bit errors on the line.

Broadband refers to telecommunication that provides multiple channels of data over a single communications medium, typically using some form of frequency or wave division multiplexing. It is a service or system requiring transmission channels capable of supporting rates greater than the Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) primary rate.

When making measurements, the instrument must be calibrated in order to remove residual errors due to measurement setup conditions. Anritsu recommends performing the calibration under the same conditions as the measurement: temperature, frequency, number of points, source power, and IFBW. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. The calibration must be conducted using the appropriate standards at the open end of any test port cables and adapters that are connected to the instrument. This ensures that the match, phase length, and loss of these cables and adapters are all accounted for. For optimal performance, high quality phase-stable cables and precision adapters must be used.

Cell Site, also called Base Station, is the local cellular tower and radio antenna (including the radios, controller, switch interconnect, etc.) that handles communication with subscribers in a particular area or cell. A cellular network is made up of many cell sites, all connected back to the switch via landline or microwave.

Coaxial Cable (Coax) is a type of electrical communications medium used in the LAN environment. This cable consists of an outer conductor concentric to an inner conductor, separated from each other by insulating material, and covered by some protective outer material. This medium offers large bandwidth, supporting high data rates with high immunity to electrical interference and a low incidence of errors. Coax is subject to distance limitations and is relatively expensive and difficult to install.

The Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) is a protocol standard for wireless communications that defines the digital interface of radio base stations between remote radio heads, also referred to as Radio Equipment (RE), and the Radio Equipment Controller (REC).

Continuous Wave (CW)

Displayed Average Noise Level (DANL): Displayed average noise level is sometimes confused with the term Sensitivity. While related, these terms have different meanings. Sensitivity is a measure of the minimum signal level that yields a defined signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) or bit error rate (BER). It is a common metric of radio receiver performance. Spectrum analyzer specifications are always given in terms of the DANL. One of the primary uses of a spectrum analyzer is to search out and measure low-level signals. The limitation in these measurements is the noise generated within the spectrum analyzer itself. This noise, generated by the random electron motion in various circuit elements, is amplified by multiple gain stages in the analyzer and appears on the display as a noise signal. On a spectrum analyzer, this noise is commonly referred to as the Displayed Average Noise Level, or DANL 1. While there are techniques to measure signals slightly below the DANL, this noise power ultimately limits our ability to make measurements of low-level signals.

Decibel or deciBel (dB) is a logarithmic ratio of the difference between two values (a logarithm ratio is equal to 10 times). dB is a unit for measuring relative power ratios in terms of gain or loss. The units of dB are expressed in terms of the logarithm to base 10 of a ratio and typically are expressed in watts. For example, a -3 dB loss indicates a 50% loss in power; a +3 dB reading is a doubling of power; 10 dB indicates an increase (or a loss) by a factor of 10; 20 dB indicates an increase (or a loss) of a factor of 100; 30 dB indicates an increase (or a loss) by a factor of 1000. Common values of dB expressed in ratios: 0 dB = 1:1, 10 dB = 10:1, 20 dB = 100:1, 30 dB = 1000:1, -30 dB = 0.001:1 [or (1/1000):1].

Decibels referenced to the carrier (dBc) is a technique for expressing a power measurement in logarithmic form using the carrier power as a reference. The units are used to describe how far down signals and noise are relative to a known signal. Typical use of this term is to describe spurious signals and noise compared to a desired transmit signal.

dBm is an absolute measurement of power relative to 1 milliwatt. In other words, dBm is a decibel value referenced to a milliWatt (dBm). This is a technique for expressing a power measurement in logarithmic form using 1 mW as a reference. dBm is a decibel ratio (log 10) of Watts (W) to one milliwatt (1mW). dBm, therefore, represents absolute power. Examples are: 0 dBm = 1.0 milliwatt, 10 dBm = 10 milliwatt, 30 dBm = 1000 milliwatt = 1 watt.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)

Downlink is the transmission path from the base station down to the mobile station.

Digital Signal Processing (DSP)

Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is an efficient algorithm to compute the Discrete Fourier transform (DFT) and its inverse. FFTs are of great importance to a wide variety of applications, from digital signal processing to solving partial differential equations to algorithms for quickly multiplying large integers.

Flash memory is a non-volatile solid state storage device that is packaged as a chip. It can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It is primarily used in memory cards, USB flash drives, MP3 players, and solid-state drives for general storage and transfer of data between computers and other digital products. It is a specific type of EEPROM (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory) that is erased and programmed in large blocks.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based global navigation satellite system (GNSS) that provides reliable location and time information in all weather and at all times when and where an unobstructed line of sight is available to four or more GPS satellites. The system is maintained by the United States government and is freely accessible by anyone with a GPS receiver. The Global Positioning System is making it possible for people using ground receivers to determine their geographic location within 10 meters to 100 meters. The satellites use simple mathematical calculations to broadcast information that is translated as longitude, latitude, and altitude by Earth-based receivers.

Impedance is a measure of RF component electrical resistance, measured in ohms. In most cable and antenna systems, the standard impedance is 50 ohms.

Insertion Loss (or Cable Loss) is a measure of the total amount of signal energy absorbed (lost) by the cable assembly. It is measured in dB. S21 (an S-Parameter) is another name for this measurement.

An Internet Protocol address (IP address) is usually a numerical label that is assigned to each device (computer or printer for example) that is participating in a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP address serves two main functions: location addressing and host (or network) interface identification. The Internet Protocol originally defined an IP address as a 32-bit number. This was known as Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4), which is still in use. Growth of the Internet requires a new addressing system. An Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) that uses 128 bits for the address was developed in 1995, and it is standardized as RFC 2460. IPv6 began being deployed worldwide in the year 2000. IP adresses are binary numbers, but they are usually stored in text files and displayed in human-readable notations, such as decimal nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn or 172.16.255.1 (for IPv4), and hexadecimal nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn or 2C01:AB18:0:1234:FF03:567C:8:1 (for IPv6). In IPv4, each decimal group (nnn) represents values from 000 to 255, or binary values of 8 bits. In IPv6, each hexadecimal group (nnnn) represents values from 0000 to FFFF, or binary values of 16 bits (0000 0000 0000 0000 to 1111 1111 1111 1111).

Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) is a numerical label that is used to identify a network interface of a computer or other network node participating in an IPV6-enabled computer network. IPv6 uses 128 bits for the address (as compared to an IPv4 address, which is defined as a 32-bit number). Pv6 was developed in 1995, and it is standardized as RFC 2460. V6 began being deployed worldwide in the year 2000. I addresses are binary numbers, but they are usually stored in text files and displayed in human-readable notations, such as hexadecimal nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn.nnnn or 2C01:AB18:0:1234:FF03:567C:8:1 (where FFFF [Hex] = 65535 [Dec]). Ea hexadecimal group (nnnn) represents values from 0000 to†FFFF, or binary values of 16 bits (0000 0000 0000 0000 to 1111 1111 1111 1111).

Noise Figure (NF) is a measure of degradation of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that is caused by components in a radio frequency (RF) device. The noise factor (F) of a system is defined as the signal-to-noise ratio of the input power of the system divided by the signal-to-noise ratio of the output power of that system. F (the noise figure) is defined as the decibel value of the noise factor. NF = 10log (F) where log uses the base 10, or common log. This formula is valid only then the input termination is at standard noise temperature.

The Open Base Station Architecture Initiative (OBSAI) specifications define a set of requirements for a wireless base transceiver station (BTS). Reference Point 3 (RP3) within the OBSAI specifications defines the digital interface between the Base Band Module (BBM) and the Radio Frequency Module (RFM). This is an alternative to the traditional Radio Frequency (RF) coaxial connection, or the CPRI digital interface.

Occupied Bandwidth (OBW) is a measure of the bandwidth containing 99% of the total integrated power of the transmitted spectrum, centered on the assigned channel frequency. Interference to other channels or to other systems can occur if OBW is too large.

OSL or Open Short Load calibration method for coaxial line types. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. Refer to Calibration. Compare this with SSL or Offset Short 1, Offset Short 2, Load calibration method for waveguide line types.

OSLT or Open Short Load Thru calibration method for coaxial line types. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. Refer to Calibration. Compare this with SSLT or Offset Short 1, Offset Short 2, Load, Thru calibration method for waveguide line types.

Over The Air (OTA): OTA refers generally to any transfer of information or signal that takes place in a wireless environment, rather than using a wired connection. OTA is usually used in connection with a standard defining the provisioning of mobile devices and applications, such as downloading or uploading content or software, and commonly used in conjunction with the Short Messaging Service (SMS). SMS OTA Messages contain information that is used to configure the settings of a WAP browser in a mobile phone (refer to SMS and WAP).

Return Loss is a measurement (in dB) of reflected energy caused by impedance mismatch. May also be referred to as S11. Although S11 values are expressed as negative numbers, Return Loss values are expressed as positive numbers because by definition the ìLossî expression implies a negative sign. The higher the value, the better the impedance match (think of a large negative number being less than a smaller negative number). 40 dB is nearly ideal. Only 0.01 % of the total transmitted power is reflected if the Return Loss measurement value is 40 dB. A measured value of 0 dB would be a complete reflection, or stated another way, 100 % of the transmitted power is reflected back. Return Loss is typically a pass/fail measurement.

Radio Frequency (RF) is the frequency of radio sine waves. RF generally refers to wireless communications within a frequency range of 3 kHz to 300 GHz. Formally, according to the Article 2 of the Radio Law, radio frequency is below 3,000 GHz. Radio frequencies can be used for communications between a mobile telephone and an antenna mast.

Standard Commands for Programmable Instruments (SCPI)

SOLT or Short Open Load Thru calibration method for coaxial line types with simple and redundant standards. It is not band-limited. It requires well-defined standards. It has lower accuracy at higher frequencies. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. Refer to Calibration. Compare this with SSLT or Offset Short 1, Offset Short 2, Load, Thru calibration method for waveguide line types.

SSL or Short Short Load or Offset Short 1, Offset Short 2, Load calibration method for waveguide line types uses Shorts with different offset lengths. It is a calibration (common in waveguide) with simple and redundant standards, but it is band-limited. It requires well-defined standards. It has lower accuracy at higher frequencies. Offset Short 1 is 1/8 wavelength, and Offset Short 2 is 3/8 wavelength. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. Refer to Calibration. Compare this with OSL or Open Short Load calibration method for coaxial line types.

SSLT or Short Short Line Thru or Offset Short 1, Offset Short 2, Load, Thru calibration method for waveguide line types uses Shorts with different offset lengths. It is a calibration (common in waveguide) with simple and redundant standards, but it is band-limited. It requires well-defined standards. It has lower accuracy at higher frequencies. Offset Short 1 is 1/8 wavelength, and Offset Short 2 is 3/8 wavelength. Calibrations standards with known reflection coefficients are used to calculate the correction factors. Refer to Calibration. Compare this with OSLT or Open Short Load Thru calibration method for coaxial line types.

Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR). VSWR is another method to measure reflected energy caused by impedance mismatch. It is expressed as a ratio of X:1. VSWR measures the voltage peaks and valleys. A ratio of 1:1 would be a perfect match. A typical cable and antenna system would be around 1.43:1 (VSWR) or 15 dB Return Loss.

Watt (W) is a unit of measure for power.