Agilent offers real-time spectrum analyzer recorder application

April 16, 2014. Agilent Technologies Inc. has announced the availability of the option RTR, which the company calls the industry’s first real-time spectrum recorder and analyzer application example for real-time spectrum analyzers (RTSAs).

Option RTR enhances the RTSA capabilities currently available for the Agilent PXA and MXA signal analyzers. Option RTR enables engineers to record, analyze, and play back signal spectrum density data for detecting and analyzing signal anomalies, and for viewing the evolution of signals and spectrum density over time. Option RTR includes the application, the application source code for user extensibility, and MATLAB software to extend the application’s capabilities as needed to meet current and future testing needs.

Option RTR addresses many important signal analysis challenges, including

detecting and analyzing signal anomalies, such as hard-to-detect edge cases;
identifying the highest power signal received during a period of interest by placing density and density envelope cursers;
studying a signal spectrum in which low-powered signals are followed by high-powered signals at the same frequency; and
studying a spectrum in which multiple signal bursts occur at different frequencies at different times, and the relative times and the number of occurrences of the signals at each frequency is important.

By detecting, analyzing, and resolving signal anomalies early, engineers are able to accelerate time-to-insight and time-to-market of RF designs such as radar, defense, and wireless-communication devices.

“Option RTR provides meaningful real-time recorder and playback capabilities, which allows our customers to solve difficult signal analysis challenges,” said Bob Witte, vice president, Agilent’s Technology Leadership Organization. “In addition, if a project has signal-analysis requirements beyond the out-of-the-box application capabilities, customers can immediately customize and extend the solution to meet their unique testing needs.”

Option RTR can be purchased with an Agilent N9030A PXA or N9020A MXA with real-time spectrum analyzer option RT1 or RT2. Option RT1 or RT2 and option RTR can be added later as an upgrade to the N9030A or N9020A.