Industry professionals and researchers need hardware equipment and solutions that can help them develop devices and communication systems in the 5G field. Farran offers standard and customized products that enable customers to bridge their technology gap and develop game changing solutions that allow advancement into new applications and markets. The release of Farran’s 5G Communication Extender, FCE-V-TR-0001, enables the user to evaluate performance and compliance of the device under test’s that are used in digitally modulated communication systems (e.g. QAM) in the 5G frequency range. This communication extender is compliant with 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Release 17 standards for all current 5G mmWave bands and carrier bandwidths. 

From our research we discovered that no single solution was available in the market to meet the test requirements of the 3GPP mmWave frequency range (24.25 to 52.6 GHz) of 5G communications. Therefore, this product was designed and developed to enable users to perform connectorized as well as over-the-air (OTA) measurements to test 5G devices and systems, communications and modulation schemes and perform channel sounding in the new 3GPP mmWave frequency range. The FCE-V-TR-0001 was developed to meets the wide-ranging needs of the on-wafer, benchtop and OTA test environments. It is based on a single mmWave electronically tunable transmit/receive module that is fully compliant with the Release 17 standard and covers 24.25 to 52.6 GHz frequency range.

Michael Crowley, principal engineer and designer of FCE-V-TR-0001 commented, “We are delighted to have released this product, that has been designed with Farran’s extensive expertise in mmWave to the fore. Combined with our deep knowledge of up- and down-converter systems to work with industry leading test equipment, we expect the FCE series of product to help our customers extend the range of their existing test equipment and meet the challenges that 5G will present.”

Tom Scanlon, director of Sales & Marketing stated, “From observing industry trends, we saw a gap in the market for a stand-alone 5G Communication Frequency Extender that covered the full 3GPP Release 17 frequency range of 24.25 to 52.6 GHz. The Farran FCE-V-TR-0001 fills this gap and will enable developers and researchers perform wideband mmWave testing at these frequencies, with this cost-effective solution coupled with high performance and reliability. Farran are thrilled to offer this exciting new product to our existing and new customer base.”