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Channel Emulation Hardware Platforms
Scalable emulation platforms for high-performance RF signal processing
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General Channel Emulation Solutions
From lab validation to real-world radio channel emulation for the most complex fading and interference challenges
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Channel Studio Modeling Software
Real-world radio wave propagation modeling for RF performance testing.
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Aerospace, Satellite and Defense Solutions
Realistic, repeatable radio channel testing for high-velocity, long-distance, and mission-critical comms
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Base Station, Device and WLAN Solutions
Validate wireless system performance under realistic propagation, mobility, and interference conditions
Channel Emulation Hardware Platforms
Keysight's PROPSIM channel emulation hardware brings real-world wireless conditions into the lab to accelerate the development and validation of 5G, 6G, WLAN, and satellite systems. Designed for precise emulation of complex RF environments, including massive multiple-input / multiple-output (MIMO), beamforming, and high-speed mobility, PROPSIM channel emulators enable scalable, repeatable testing across sub-6 GHz and millimeter-wave (mmWave) bands. Whether you are building base stations, devices, or satellite terminals, our channel emulation solutions help reduce reliance on field testing by replicating multipath fading, Doppler effects, and handovers in a controlled setting.
General Channel Emulation Solutions
Keysight’s PROPSIM channel emulation solutions enable engineers to recreate realistic and repeatable radio environments in the laboratory, helping accelerate wireless system validation from early development through final performance testing. Designed to model complex propagation effects, fading conditions, mobility scenarios, and interference sources, these solutions+ support testing across a broad range of wireless, aerospace, defense, satellite, and emerging communication applications. Their flexible architecture allows users to evaluate device, chipset, and system behavior under controlled yet highly realistic conditions that would be difficult, costly, or impossible to reproduce in the field. By combining accurate channel modeling with scalable hardware configurations, Keysight’s PROPSIM solutions help teams improve test repeatability, reduce development risk, and gain deeper insight into system performance. The result is faster design optimization, more reliable validation, and greater confidence before deployment.
Channel Studio Modeling Software
Channel Studio is a state-of-the-art radio wave propagation modeling software for digital twin simulations and real-time performance testing of devices, radio systems, and transceivers. It supports a vast range of both stochastic and deterministic radio frequency (RF) ray tracing channel models. Channel Studio software enables the creation of scenarios with user-defined number of radios and links, mobility and antenna system definitions combined with industry standard or user-defined channel models. An easy-to-use intuitive user interface provides numerical data and graphs to validate and document the model properties. The modeling capabilities include multi-cell, multi-device scenarios with dynamic mobile speed and multipath profiles, link delay and Doppler modeling, and antenna model embedding for base stations and mobile radios. Multi-antenna and antenna array model embedding supports emulation of realistic and time variant multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) correlations and beamforming for single or multiple users (multi-user MIMO or MU-MIMO).
Aerospace, Satellite and Defense Solutions
Keysight's PROPSIM channel emulation solutions enable realistic, repeatable testing of aerospace, satellite, and defense communications. By accurately recreating real-world propagation effects - including mobility, Doppler shifts, long delays, fading, interference, and dynamic network conditions - in a controlled laboratory environment, engineers can evaluate system performance, interoperability, and resilience before deployment. PROPSIM solutions accelerate development, reduce the cost and complexity of field testing, and provide greater confidence that mission-critical communications will perform reliably across high-velocity, long-distance, and operationally demanding environments.
Base Station, Device and WLAN Solutions
Keysight’s PROPSIM solutions provide a comprehensive channel emulation portfolio for validating wireless performance under real-world operating conditions. Supporting cellular infrastructure, user equipment, WLAN devices, chipsets, and advanced communication systems, these solutions recreate realistic propagation environments with configurable fading, mobility, interference, and multipath effects. Engineers can evaluate radio performance across a wide range of deployment scenarios, from laboratory characterization and conformance testing to system-level validation and optimization. The PROPSIM portfolio supports development of 4G, 5G, 5G Advanced, WLAN, and emerging wireless technologies, enabling repeatable and controlled testing that is difficult to achieve over the air. By combining scalable channel emulation capabilities with standards-based and custom channel models, Keysight helps manufacturers, chipset vendors, network equipment providers, and test laboratories accelerate development cycles, improve product quality, and gain greater confidence that wireless systems will perform reliably in complex real-world environments.
Unlocking Revenue with 6G ISAC
6G integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) is expected to transform wireless networks into platforms that not only connect users but also sense the surrounding environment. Discover how operators can create new value from network sensing and learn how the Keysight S8808A ISAC Channel Emulation Toolset enables realistic lab validation using digital twins and real-time channel emulation.
Evaluating FR3 and Next-Gen Networks
6G is predicted to connect physical, digital, and human worlds, shaping around new spectrum utilization, AI, digital twins, and new network architectures. See how to perform the upper mid-band (FR3) end-to-end testing in the lab, enabling the evaluation of new 6G technologies such as network sensing, extreme MIMO, and more with the Keysight AI-assisted radio channel emulation solutions.
Find Compatible Software and Accessories For Your Channel Emulator
Choose from a wide variety of channel emulator software for link emulation, fading profiles, and scenario modeling, as well as accessories such as transceiver and interface units, and more.
Explore Channel Emulator Use Cases
Channel emulators support a wide range of measurements across various industries, discover them all
Aerospace and Defense
How to Recreate Satellite Radio Links Between Network Entities
Re-create the satellite radio links between different network entities by understanding satellite trajectory dynamics, Doppler effects, and frequency errors.
Aerospace and Defense
How to Validate NTN Base Stations
Simulate a realistic lab-based environment with emulated end-user devices and satellite channels.
Wireless Communication
Set up a test to emulate real-world field conditions to verify 5G device performance under various mobility scenarios.
Aerospace and Defense
How to Test a NTN Unmodified Device
Compensate for the satellite-related delays and distortions by testing NTN unmodified devices in the lab under different conditions.
Wireless Communication
Perform 6G FR3 testing with geometry-based stochastic channel modeling and semi-deterministic and deterministic site-specific channel modeling.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Choosing the right channel emulator starts with the wireless device, network equipment, or access point you need to test and the real-world radio conditions you need to recreate. Different applications may require different capabilities for OTA validation, MIMO OTA testing, satellite and aerospace links, mobile ad hoc network (MANET) scenarios, RF field-to-lab workflows, or 6G FR3 research.
Look for a solution that can emulate radio conditions, model mobility, interference, and fading, and validate performance under repeatable and controllable scenarios. For advanced applications, consider whether the test setup needs high-performance RF signal processing, realistic OTA emulation, satellite delay and Doppler compensation, dynamic field-condition modeling, or software for link emulation, fading profiles, and scenario modeling.
Key channel emulator considerations include the number of RF channels, scalability, supported fading profiles, delay and Doppler capabilities, interference modeling, mobility modeling, and the ability to recreate complex radio channel conditions in the lab. These capabilities determine how effectively the emulator can reproduce the conditions a wireless signal experiences in real-world operation.
You should also consider the software and accessories needed for the full workflow. Channel emulator software can support link emulation, fading profiles, and scenario modeling, while accessories such as transceiver and interface units can help complete the test configuration for more complex wireless, OTA, satellite, MANET, or field-to-lab scenarios.
Channel emulators can be used to test wireless devices, network infrastructure equipment, and WLAN access points in a laboratory environment. They also support applications such as OTA validation, MIMO OTA testing, satellite and aerospace communications, non-terrestrial network testing, MANET and tactical radio ecosystems, 5G device benchmarking, and emerging 6G FR3 research.
The required setup depends on the application. 5G device testing may focus on real-world field conditions and mobility scenarios. Satellite and NTN testing may require emulated satellite channels, long delay compensation, Doppler effects, frequency errors, and link distortions. 6G FR3 research may require geometry-based stochastic channel modeling, semi-deterministic modeling, or deterministic site-specific channel modeling.
Channel emulators support modern wireless testing by recreating the multipath, fading, delay, Doppler, interference, and mobility effects that influence end-to-end system performance. In MIMO OTA environments, they help engineers test devices under realistic over-the-air conditions without relying only on uncontrolled field testing.
This is important for advanced wireless systems because performance depends on how devices and network equipment respond to complex and changing radio environments. For 5G, WLAN, NTN, and 6G FR3 workflows, channel emulation enables repeatable testing of realistic scenarios such as mobility, fading, satellite channel behavior, and extreme MIMO research conditions.
A channel emulator is typically part of a larger wireless test environment that may include hardware emulators, software tools, OTA systems, anechoic chambers, transceiver units, interface units, and application-specific test equipment. The goal is to recreate real-world radio conditions in the lab while maintaining control, repeatability, and measurement consistency.
For OTA, MIMO OTA, satellite, MANET, and RF field-to-lab workflows, integration should account for the complete signal path, scenario modeling, RF path behavior, mobility conditions, and repeatable test execution. Software for link emulation, fading profiles, and scenario modeling helps engineers configure and reproduce test conditions across development and validation workflows.
Common channel emulation challenges include recreating realistic field conditions, modeling complex fading and interference, scaling test setups for advanced scenarios, and maintaining repeatability across OTA, satellite, MANET, MIMO, and 6G research workflows. These challenges become more demanding when testing mobility, high Doppler shift, long delay compensation, or dynamic field environments.
They can be addressed by selecting a channel emulation solution matched to the application and by using the right combination of hardware, software, accessories, and scenario models. Field-to-lab workflows, fading profiles, link emulation, repeatable scenario control, and application-specific toolsets help engineers validate wireless performance with more confidence while reducing reliance on unpredictable field trials.