Any potential interference would occur in a very narrow radio frequency band, which technically isn't even part of the C-band (3.7–3.98 GHz) used by telecommunications service providers. Radar altimeter (RADALT) systems use the 4.2–4.4 GHz band. However, there is a possibility of interference at the edges of these bands, which can be mitigated by testing and fine-tuning both 5G networks and RADALT systems before their live deployment.
VIAVI has established a test bench consisting of:
- He VIAVI ALT-9000The ALT-9000 provides altitude simulations with real-world RF time-delay and path loss models to test any RADALT system format, including low probability of intercept (LPI), combined altitude radar altimeter (CARA), and next-generation variants. The ALT-9000 is essential for enabling rigorous testing procedures and workflows to assess, evaluate, and monitor RADALT vulnerability to any potential 5G interference.
- He VIAVI OneAdvisor 800The OneAdvisor 800 provides real-time spectrum analysis for the 5G C-band frequency range with a 2D and 3D spectrogram. It monitors and detects channel leakage and frequency bleeding, as well as spurious emissions that could potentially affect RADALT's operations.
- He VIAVI Ranger, which provides wideband recording and playback of RF signal environments. The Ranger records real-world 5G signals and plays them back on RADALT devices during testing to simulate 5G C-band interference. When used in conjunction with the ALT-9000 and One Advisor 800, the Ranger enables advanced testing under real-world conditions.
