MoRFeus is a 30 MHz–6 GHz field-configurable Fractional-N wideband frequency converter and signal generator. Its LCD display and button interface enable dynamic field-level configuration - from switching between signal generator and other modes, to setting the local oscillator frequency and more. It was designed for wideband frequency up- and down-conversion - with an LO frequency range of 85 MHz–5.4 GHz and input/output frequency range of 30 MHz–6 GHz.

MoRFeus is small, lightweight, and functional. It was designed for low spurious emissions and is packaged in a precision-milled aluminum enclosure.

Use cases for moRFeus are many:

Wideband radios
Distributed antenna systems
Diversity receivers
Software-defined radios
Frequency band shifters
Point-to-point radios
WiMax/LTE infrastructure
Satellite communications
Wideband jammers
Remote radio heads
Frequency up/down conversion
Automated test equipment (ATE)
Wireless communication systems

How it works:

MoRFeus integrates into popular RF environments using SMA connectors and is powered using an external micro-USB 5 V supply. The LCD display and button interface provide a dynamic way to program the mixer LO frequency in the field with a step size of 1.5–3 Hz*. Dynamic toggling between mixer and generator modes adds to field-level functionality. An optional bias voltage of 5 V is available via RF choke to the mixer input to supply active antenna systems. The device is also USB HID programmable, enabling automatic operation from a PC running Windows or Linux.

Features:

RF output frequency: 30 MHz–6 GHz
LO frequency: 85 MHz–5400 MHz
Fractional-N synthesizer
LO step size: 1.5–3 Hz*
USB programmable (Windows or Linux)
Generator/mixer function toggle
Small, portable form factor
Adjustable mixer bias current
LCD display With backlight
Button control interface

General Specifications:

Input voltage: 5 V
ESD protection (RF IN and OUT ports): IEC 61000-4-2 contact discharge, 8 KV
Bias voltage: 5 V
Active bias current protection: 425 mA
Mixer input/output isolation: see mixer performance
Input IP3: +23 dBm
RF/IF input absolute maximum power: +15 dBm
Operating temperature -40 to +85
Storage temperature range -65 to +150
Dimensions: 88 mm x 38 mm x 68 mm

*Step size is frequency-dependent. Lower step sizes (1-2 Hz) are characteristic of lower frequency domains and higher step sizes (2-3 Hz) of higher domains.

Synthesizer:

LO	Phase Noise (dBc/Hz)	Offset
1 GHz	-108	10 kHz
1 GHz	-107	100 kHz
1 GHz	-135	1 MHz
2 GHz	-102	10 kHz
2 GHz	-101	100 kHz
2 GHz	-130	1 MHz
3 GHz	-98	10 kHz
3 GHz	-98	100 kHz
3 GHz	-125	1 MHz
4 GHz	-96	10 kHz
4 GHz	-95	100 kHz
4 GHz	-124	1 MHz

Mixer Performance:

LO	Input Power	Input Frequency	Output Frequency	Output Power	Conversion Gain
400	2.47	500	100	-8.95	-11.42
400	-1.894	1000	600	-10	-8.106
400	-9.65	1500	1100	-25	-15.35
400	-10.27	2000	1600	-28.1	-17.83
400	-11.112	2500	2900	-28.4	-17.288
850	-.073	900	50	-12.04	-11.31
1500	-10.757	2400	900	-20.24	-9.483
2400	-9.65	1500	900	-25.5	-15.85
4000	-1.894	1000	3000	-21.3	-19.406
4000	-15.4	5400	1400	-37.3	-21.9

Mixer Current:

moRFeus offers an optional mixer current control which impacts the linearity of the output signal. The controls are exposed for advanced users to experiment and fine tune mixer performance.

Generator Mode:

In generator mode, the output port of moRFeus is set to the LO frequency. It has a range limited by the internal LO which is 85 Mhz to 5.4 GHz (it should be noted that the mixer input handles frequencies up to 6G Hz). Generator mode can be used to generate arbitrary CW signals for testing or mixing purposes.

A plot of Output Power versus Mixer Current Setting:

In generator mode, output power changes relative to the mixer current setting. When the mixer current is set to 0, output power is relatively low. For settings 1-7, output power is stronger. This chart plots output power relative to the mixer current setting.

Output Power vs Mixer Current setting (generator mode):

Device Information:

Comparisons:

Outernet moRFeusSignal Hound VSG25A Vector Signal GeneratorRF Explorer Signal Generator (RFE8GEN)Mini-circuits ZX05-63H-S+ (Mixer)Windfreak MixNV (Mixer + Signal Generator)

RF Input Frequency Range	30 MHz-6 GHz	N/A	N/A	750 MHz-6 GHz	1 MHz-6 GHz
RF Output Frequecy Range	30 MHz-6 GHz	100 MHz-2.5 GHz	24 MHz-6 GHz	DC-1 GHz	1 MHz-6 GHz
LO Frequency Range	85 MHz-5.4 GHz	N/A	N/A	750 MHz-6 GHz	85 MHz-5 GHz
Frequency Resolution	1.5–3 Hz¹	< 1 Hz	1 KHz	N/A	1 Hz
Phase noise at 1 GHz and 10 kHZ offset	-108 dBc/Hz	-88 dBc/Hz	N/A	N/A	-108 dBc/Hz
Frequency up/down Converter	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes
Signal Generator	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Field-configurable	Yes	No	Somewhat	No	No
User Interface	Button/LCD display and software-programmable	Windows PC VSG25A software required	LCD Display and RF Explorer for Windows PC client	N/A	Software-programmable, Windfreak software w/ Labview GUI
Bias Current Available	Yes	No	No	No	No
RF In/Out Connectors	Yes, SMA	Out, SMA	Out, SMA	Yes, SMA	Yes, SMA
Power Input Connector	micro-USB	USB Type B	mini-USB	N/A	mini-USB
Stand-alone Signal Generator	Yes ²	No ³	Yes	No	No ³
Stand-alone Frequency Converter	Yes	No ⁴	No ⁵	No ⁶	No ³
Price	$149	$495	$189	$53	$499