Meaning
Radio frequency transceivers operating within close physical proximity generate mutual coupling and intermodulation products that threaten receiver sensitivity. Engineers identify any co-located transmitter when antenna separation falls below the distance required for passive spatial isolation inside a shared housing. Board design must incorporate filtering and shielding to prevent out-of-band energy from degrading adjacent receiver channels.
The designation applies strictly within the physical enclosure boundary of the host device.
Spurious Coupling
High-power cellular modems mounted near short-range radios radiate unwanted harmonic energy directly into nearby receiver paths. Placing a co-located transmitter adjacent to sensitive receiver circuitry mandates harmonic attenuation filters along the trace layout. Unfiltered emissions reduce receiver sensitivity and trigger packet retransmissions across active data links.
Isolation Boundary
Mechanical layout controls passive isolation through internal metallic shielding and targeted ground plane stitching. Incorporating a co-located transmitter into a compact device enclosure restricts component placement options to prevent localized thermal and electromagnetic saturation. Shielding cans absorb radiated noise before signal energy enters neighboring traces.
Integration Test
Handover documentation records desensitization measurements under concurrent multi-radio operation during final validation. Engineers evaluate co-located transmitter impact by measuring bit error rates across all supported frequency combinations. Acceptance criteria require stable throughput without receiver blockages across maximum power test profiles.
