Pasternack, a leading manufacturer and supplier of RF, microwave and millimeter wave products, releases their brand new lines of USB controlled microwave and millimeter wave components which includes amplifiers, attenuators and PIN diode switches.
The new components from Pasternack are controlled and powered by a convenient USB 2.0 port with driverless installation, meaning no external power supply is required. The attenuators and PIN diode switches require an easy-to-use downloadable software program which interfaces with any Windows computer. The company is releasing two models each of the amplifiers, switches and attenuators that cover extremely wide frequency bands up to 40 GHz. The modules are 50 Ohm hybrid MIC designs that do not require any external matching components.
Pasternack’s new USB controlled amplifiers offer typical performance of 12 dB gain, 10 dBm P1dB, a 4.5 dB noise figure and operate over a 50 MHz to 18 GHz band or 50 MHz to 40 GHz band. The attenuators offer typical performance of 30 dB attenuation, 5 to 8 dB of insertion loss, a 1 dB step size and are available in two programmable models that cover 100 MHz to 18 GHz and 100 MHz to 40 GHz. Lastly, the SPDT switches offer typical performance 3 to 5 dB of insertion loss, 65 to 70 dB isolation, a 6 µsec switching speed and are available in two models that cover 500 MHz to 18 GHz and 500 MHz to 40 GHz. All models operate over a broad temperature range of -40°C to +85°C and depending on the frequency, are available with either female SMA or 2.92mm connectors.
“Pasternack now offers a complete selection of high performance broadband USB controlled amplifiers, attenuators and switches. The USB 2.0 connection is convenient and innovative, utilizing a computer interface to power and control these devices for ease of use,” says Tim Galla, Active RF Components Product Manager at Pasternack.
