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11 Signal Chain Design Poses Difficult Challenges "There is a lot of careful signal chain selection and simulation involved in the process. ADI has a unique integrated solution to solve issues, like the digital pre-distortion (DPD) technique, which is designed and built into the SoC." Ching Man Staff Applications Engineer, Analog Devices For example, • Higher frequency signals are more prone to signal reflections, which can result in ringing and distortion. • mmWave propagation characteristics are different from those in other frequencies, particularly in terms of loss, blockage, absorption, and so forth. • Capacitive and inductive coupling add to distortion and noise. • Higher frequencies experience more attenuation and losses. Additionally, 5G architecture and component selection have become even more involved. Whether on the transmission side or the receiver side, designers might need modulators, modules within modulators, analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), filters, oscillators, and modulation schemes. The need for niche expertise becomes even clearer: Designers need experts or expertise in wireless protocols, analog-to-digital conversion, digital-to-analog conversion, block integration, and much more. Failure of the fundamental architecture or one integration point, one block, or one component will bring down the entire chain. Therefore, modeling and simulation are more essential than ever in designing the signal chain. These processes enable faster radio development and debugging because errors, interference, and performance impairments are discovered and addressed before anything gets put onto the PCB. " mmWaves' sensitivity to the environment could potentially be overcome using smart beamforming techniques, enhancing signal directivity, and reducing potential interference for a certain transmission path. However, this significantly increases design complexity (and potentially cost) which is a trade-off to be carefully considered." Stephanie Liao B5G/6G Research and PoC Engineer, MediaTek

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