Systems and methods for detecting passive intermodulation sources using thermal imaging
Aspects of the present disclosure are directed to systems and methods for detecting a passive intermodulation (PIM) source in a radio frequency (RF) device through analysis of a thermal image of the RF device.
1. A method of identifying a passive intermodulation (PIM) source in a radio frequency (RF) device, the method comprising:
inputting one or more RF signals to the RF device;
using a thermal imaging device to capture a thermal image of at least a portion of the RF device while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device;
identifying the PIM source based at least in part on a first heat signature included in the captured thermal image.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein identifying the PIM source based at least in part on a first heat signature included in the captured thermal image comprises comparing the first heat signature included in the captured thermal image to a second heat signature.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the second heat signature comprises a reference heat signature that is associated with a second RF device of the same type as the first RF device, the second RF device having been identified as having PIM levels below a predetermined threshold.
4. The method of claim 3 , the method further comprising adjusting for a temperature difference between a background temperature associated with the first heat signature and a background temperature associated with the second heat signature when comparing the first heat signature in the captured thermal image to the second heat signature.
5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the second heat signature is also included in the captured thermal image.
6. The method of claim 5 , the method further comprising dividing the captured thermal image into geographical zones, wherein the first and second heat signatures are associated with different ones of the geographical zones.
7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising placing an RF absorbent material on the RF device, and wherein using a thermal imaging device to capture a thermal image of at least a portion of the RF device comprises capturing a thermal image of the RF absorbent material.
8. The method of claim 1 , the method further comprising dividing the captured thermal image into a plurality of geographical zones.
9. A method of detecting a source of passive intermodulation (PIM) in a radio frequency (RF) device under test, the method comprising:
capturing, by a thermal imaging device, a thermal image of the RF device while one or more RF signals are input to the RF device, the thermal image including one or more heat signatures;
comparing at least one of the heat signatures to one or more reference heat signatures; and
based on the comparison, determining a source of PIM of the RF device under test.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the one or more reference heat signatures are associated with a second RF device that has been identified as having PIM levels below a predetermined threshold.
11. The method of claim 9 , the method further comprising adjusting for a temperature difference between the background temperature associated with the one or more heat signatures and a background temperature associated with the one or more reference heat signatures.
12. The method of claim 9 , further comprising placing an RF absorbent material on the RF device under test, and wherein capturing, by the thermal imaging device, the thermal image of the RF device while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device, comprises capturing a thermal image of the RF absorbent material that corresponds to the thermal image of the RF device under test while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device.
13. The method of claim 9 , the method further comprising dividing the thermal image into a plurality of geographical zones.
14. A method of identifying a passive intermodulation (PIM) source in a radio frequency (RF) device, the method comprising:
inputting one or more RF signals to the RF device;
using a thermal imaging device to capture a thermal image of at least a portion of the RF device while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device;
identifying the PIM source based at least in part by comparing a first heat signature included in the captured thermal image to a second heat signature.
15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the second heat signature comprises a reference heat signature that is associated with a second RF device that has been identified as having PIM levels below a predetermined threshold.
16. The method of claim 14 , the method further comprising adjusting for a temperature difference between a background temperature associated with the first heat signature and a background temperature associated with the second heat signature.
17. The method of claim 14 , wherein the second heat signature is also included in the captured thermal image.
18. The method of claim 17 , the method further comprising dividing the captured thermal image into a plurality of geographical zones, wherein the first and second heat signatures are associated with different ones of the geographical zones.
19. The method of claim 14 , further comprising placing an RF absorbent material on the RF device, and wherein using a thermal imaging device to capture a thermal image of at least a portion of the RF device while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device comprises capturing a thermal image of the RF absorbent material while the one or more RF signals are input to the RF device.
20. The method of claim 14 , wherein the captured thermal image also includes a background area behind the RF device, the method further comprising determining a temperature of the background area.