Tektronix RSA6000 series real-time spectrum analyzer
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This real-time spectrum analyzers (RTSA) places special emphasis on capturing so-called "runt" pulses, elusive transients buried in larger signals or short pulses within a string of longer ones, and which often overlap in time and frequency with the desired signal, so they are especially hard to trap and separate. The RSA6000 series does this by adding advanced triggering on signals within signals, with numerous trigger qualifiers across time, frequency, and amplitude parameters. Time-qualified and hold-off features eliminate false triggering, while an amplitude-qualified trigger captures runt signals; pulses of specific amplitude and/or width within a pulse train can also be isolated.

The units include a "DPX transform engine" for real-time signal capture and processing, which collects hundreds of thousands of spectrums per second over a 110-MHz bandwidth, to minimize the chance of missing time-interleaved or transient signals during a broadband search. The "Trigger on This" function means that if you can an artifact on screen, the DPX Density trigger will allow you to make the analyzer trigger on it to capture relevant data.

DPX Density trigger allows defining, triggering on short, high-resolution pulses within longer ones, among other factors
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Basic performance specifications include +17 dBm third-order intercept at 2 GHz (typical); displayed average noise level of -151 dBm/Hz at 2 GHz; and ±0.5 dB absolute amplitude accuracy to 3 GHz. The trigger function works on transients with a minimum duration of 10.3 μsec in the frequency domain, and 20 nsec in the time domain, and includes a frequency mask to capture changes in the frequency domain.

The RTSA includes numerous analysis functions, spanning various parameter correlations; power, spectrum, and statistics measurements for channel power, ACLR, power versus time, and spur search; phase and jitter measurements; as well as pulse and modulation measurements. – Bill Schweber

Price and availability: The RSA6000 entry-level unit begins at $77,900; it is also available as a user-installable upgrade package for existing RSA models, beginning at $9900.

For more information: contact Tektronix, Inc., http://www.tektronix.com