A study of noise phenomena in microwave components using an advanced noise measurement system

A novel 9 GHz measurement system with thermal noise limited sensitivity has been developed for studying the fluctuations in passive microwave components. The noise floor of the measurement system is flat at offset frequencies above 1 kHz and equal to -193 dBc/Hz. The developed system is capable of measuring the noise in the quietest microwave components in real time. We discuss the results of phase and amplitude noise measurements in precision voltage controlled phase shifters and attenuators. The first reliable experimental evidences regarding the intrinsic flicker phase noise in microwave isolators are also presented.