Use an agile RF transceiver in an adaptive SDR communication system
Summary
However, these more demanding functional requirements can conflict with the need for lower SWaP as communications systems move to smaller battery-powered platforms, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAS) and portable units. Design solutions based on traditional discrete superheterodyne radio architectures offer high performance, wide dynamic range, and minimal spurious noise. (Image source: Analog Devices) In contrast, direct conversion (zero-IF) architectures reduce both the filtering requirements and the need for very high-bandwidth analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), resulting in a simpler design that can be implemented on a single chip (Figure 2). The ADRV9002 device provides a fully integrated solution in a 196-ball chip scale package (CSP) ball grid array (BGA), as well as minimising size and weight for SDR ADEF communications systems. Along with meeting the demand for higher performance across a wider range of frequencies, developers need to lower SWaP to support the migration of these applications to battery-powered systems.