An integrated digital platform for rapid evaluation of novel wireless architectures

This paper presents the design and realization of a testbed for novel wireless architectures. The main objective of the testbed is to provide an easy-to-use and programmable integrated digital platform that interfaces to a flexible IF/RF section. The digital section is composed of different digital devices in order to fulfill the processing and control needs of the targeted wireless architecture. The flexible IF/RF section is constructed with discrete analog/RF circuits that are connected together to achieve the targeted architecture functionality. The resulting testbed allows architecture exploration and fast prototyping for wireless applications. We present the case of a LINC (linear amplification using nonlinear components) transmitter and compare results of the realized testbed with those obtained with a setup using commercial signal generators.