Keysight marks breakthrough in over-the-air test method validation for 5G in China

Last week, Keysight Technologies announced the successful validation of an Over-the-Air (OTA) test method for evaluating the radio frequency (RF) performance of 5G base stations in collaboration with the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) and Tsinghua University. It is to be noted that Keysight’s OTA test solutions help 5G network equipment manufacturers verify radio frequency performance.

The collaboration between Keysight, CAICT and Tsinghua University was established to accelerate the development and deployment of 5G networks in support of the Phase I Step 3 5G trials led by China’s IMT-2020 Promotion Group. The test combined Keysight’s 5G signal generation and analysis solutions with a compact antenna test range (CATR) chamber to create the appropriate OTA test environment for 5G base station performance evaluation.

Roger Nichols, 5G Program Office, at Keysight Technologies, indicated that as a dominant contributor to 5G OTA test method development in the 3GPP standard organization, Keysight is offering early access to OTA solutions for both 5G base station and mobile device testing.

Keysight integrates measurement science with hardware and software tools that support the latest 3GPP release 15 (Rel-15) standard to provide the entire mobile wireless ecosystem with end-to-end OTA test capability. Its integrated OTA test solutions for R&D characterization and RF test of 5G base stations enable users to test a wide range of equipment and its sub-systems in a repeatable way, says Nichols.

“Keysight’s wealth of insight and technical expertise in OTA test combined with its 5G hardware and software technology enabled us to successfully integrate with Tsinghua’s CATR chamber,” said Fei Xu, Deputy Chief Engineer at CAICT, a scientific research institute directly under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) of China. “The result is an OTA RF system that network vendors are already adopting to complete 5G NR gNB RF test in Phase II Step 3 trials.”

“As one of the most prestigious universities in China, successful collaborations with 5G industry leaders such as Keysight and CAICT help create a solid foundation for conducting high-level scientific research and supporting cutting-edge academic development,” said Professor Yidong Huang, Dean of Department of Electronic Engineering of Tsinghua University.