Case Study: Large aerospace & defense component manufacturer achieves 1% EVM and rapid 5G mmWave OTA phased‑array characterization with Keysight

Winning in 5G with Rapid Characterization of Evolving Antenna Designs

Large Component Manufacturer, a U.S. maker of aerospace and defense components, needed to be first to market with a 5G mmWave phased‑array antenna offering 1 GHz of bandwidth. The company faced the challenge of characterizing phased‑array performance with realistic 5G New Radio signals over the air (OTA), a capability its prior VNA‑based approach could not provide. Keysight supplied its 5G waveform generation and analysis testbed (including M9383A PXIe signal generation and Signal Studio) to address this gap.

Keysight implemented a complete OTA test solution—M9383A microwave signal generator with Signal Studio, N9040B UXA signal analyzer and 89600 VSA software—enabling real‑time beamforming/beam‑tracking, demodulation and EVM analysis. The Keysight testbed delivered accurate, repeatable OTA measurements (measuring down to 1% EVM), full transmit/receive channel coverage, and faster iteration of antenna designs, letting the Large Component Manufacturer rapidly validate performance and accelerate time to market.