Ku Telemetry Modulator for Suborbital

A modulator utilizing the Ku-band instead of the usual S-band has been developed to improve transmission rates for suborbital platforms. The unit operates in the 14.5–15.5-GHz band and supports data rates up to 200 Mbps. In order to keep the modulator costs low, the modulator is based on the LCT2 [Low Cost TDRSS (Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System)] Transceiver design, which utilizes a single-board modulator incorporating an Analog Devices quadrature modulator IC, with I&Q [inphase (I) and quadrature (Q)] bandwidths of 70 MHz. A pin-compatible version of the chips with I&Q bandwidths of up to 160 MHz is used to achieve the higher data rates. To support the higher data rate, an LVDS (low-voltage differential signaling) user interface will be incorporated into the modulator board. The LCT2 configuration uses a 1×4 in. (≈2.5×10.2 cm) high-power S-band amplifier module. The new amplifier printed circuit board (PCB) module is replaced with a compact S-band to Ku-band upconverter, with an RF output of +5 dBm.