A SAW-based group demodulator for onboard processing in communications satellites

An experimental 24-channel multicarrier (64-kb/s bit rate for each carrier) group demodulator using surface acoustic wave (SAW) chirp Fourier transform (CFT) processing is described. The demodulated data are combined into a single time division multiplexing (TDM) bit stream at the standard T1 rate of 1.544 Mb/s. Measured data on this M unit demonstrate superior performance (40-dB sidelobe suppression, 0.34-dB combined interference degradation), inherent reliability, and power efficiency of SAW technology when processing a large number of channels over wide bandwidths. This unit will be tested further using the Olympus satellite in a double-hop mode.<
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