Page 21 - Issue 1 2023

ELECTRONICS

making for an overall minimal hardware solution size that is
extremely portable and well-suited for demonstrations and
travel. The only additional equipment required to showcase an
X-Microwave prototype is an RF source and an RF measurement
tool.
A clean lab bench and modular ecosystem enable faster and
more productive debugging, getting you to production with less
headache and fewer engineering hours.

Conclusion
X-Microwave is the solution to (almost) everything painful
about conventional evaluation board RF prototyping, an art that
has traditionally taken more than its fair share of engineering
hours and frustration. X-Microwave is today’s faster and
more accurate prototyping process to 60 GHz, enabling more
compact and easily modifiable designs for simple signal chain
debugging and experimentation. X-Microwave prototypes
are also extremely portable when used with ADI’s FMC-X-
Microwave bridge board, requiring only a single 12 V DC supply
for power and a Raspberry Pi for digital control, making each
signal chain a demo that can fit in a small shoebox and be set
Figure 10: An FMC-XMW bridge board, AD-FMCXMWBR1-EBZ.
up in less time than it takes a slide deck to load. This level of
shortest for attaching bias and control boards, to the longest performance could understandably be more expensive than
for attaching X-Microwave wall edges with a lid on top. Finally, current prototyping practices, and yet except for the one-time
the tools needed for connecting all the pieces – a 1/16” hex key start-up costs, prototyping with X-Microwave often has a cost
to tighten the screws, and tweezers to place small things in tiny comparable to that of building the system with eval boards.
spots. Once your RF and bias and control blocks arrive, follow Some X-MWblocks® are actually more economical than their
the map you made with the X-Microwave online layout tool to eval board counterparts, even before considering the benefits
put your board together. that reduced engineering time brings to your bottom line.
Now, all you need before testing is to power the boards and
hook up digital control. To connect power and digital control to Acknowledgements
the bias and control boards, the AD-FMCXMWBR1-EBZ bridge I would like to acknowledge some of the many great people
board is your best option. It provides up to eight GPIO lines, who helped me with this project, first and foremost being
two full SPI buses with eight chip select lines each, and two full Steve Ruscak and Jeff Stevens for their guidance on the project
I C buses. The bridge board also affords two different modes and their assistance with the article process. I would also like
2
of digital control: (1) a Raspberry Pi connected directly to the to thank my RF mentors for their invaluable help in the lab,
bridge board, driving the chain with something as simple as Wesley Harris and Sydney Wells for their suggestions early on
a few-line Python script, or (2) an FPGA, interfaced with the in shaping the article, and Carolyn Reistad for her valued advice
X-Microwave signal chain through the FMC connector on the and recommendations.
bridge board, enabling the development and test of near-
production software alongside the hardware prototype. A single About the Author
12 V DC supply connected to the bridge board provides seven Jacob Ciolfi is an associate engineer in the field rotational
distinct voltage rails for the X-Microwave signal chain, three of training program, specializing in RF applications. He joined
which are adjustable using potentiometers. A few other settings, Analog Devices in 2021 after graduating from Worcester
including bridge board level shifters, can be selected using Polytechnic Institute with a B.Sc in electrical and computer
jumpers. Finally, the bridge board connects to the X-Microwave engineering. In his free time, Jake enjoys playing volleyball,
prototype with only two cables, resulting in a distinct lack of cooking, and travel.
clutter on the RF lab bench – a stark contrast to its usual state
as a maze of banana cables and alligator clips. The bridge board Analog Services is represented in South Africa by
takes the already compact and clean X-Microwave RF prototype Altron Arrow. For more information email Conrad Coetzee,
and adds an elegant solution for digital control and power, ccoetzee@arrow.altech.co.za

EngineerIT | Issue 1 2023 | 21