Results of A New RF Cable Correction Method
Authors: Scott McBride, David Musser
Publication: AMTA 2006
Copyright Owner: NSI-MI Technologies
As an RF cable is moved during data acquisition, its insertion loss will often change. Techniques have been published that measure and compensate those changes in insertion loss. Each of these techniques, however, requires stable access to both the signal source and the receiver at one end of the cable bundle. This requirement poses a challenge when trying to compensate a moving RF cable between a receive antenna and a mixer where there are additional axes below the mixer. This paper will show measured results of a new technique developed by MI Technologies to do similar compensation where the source and receiver are at opposite ends of the moving (or otherwise changing) cable bundle. The technique was developed for transmission efficiency measurements on radomes, but also has applicability for quiet-zone field probing or any other scenario where a strong signal is always being received. It requires the use of multiple identical RF cables in the cable bundle, and measures multiple cable combinations to determine the cable characteristics.