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    Rf Vector Voltmeter Theory and Operation

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    Rf Vector Voltmeter Theory and Operation

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    13 views11 pages

    HP Journal Vol 17, HP8405A

    Uploaded by

    briankc8
    Rf Vector Voltmeter Theory and Operation

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 11
    THE RF VECTOR VOLTMETER-AN IMPORTANT NEW INSTRUMENT FOR AMPLITUDE AND PHASE MEASUREMENTS FROM 1 MHz TO 1000 MHz A broadband two-channel milliveltmeter and phasemeter simplifies many measurements heretofore often neglected. Included are device gain and loss, impedance and admittance, length inequalities in transmission paths, and precision frequency comparisons. Fig. 1, ~hp- Model 8405A Vector Voltmeter measures amplitudes end ‘Phase simulianeoualy. Inatrument has frequency range of 1 MHz to] Gla, sensitivity of 100 nV fullscale, dynamic range of 5 AB, phase ‘resolution of 0.1", and is simple to operate. Thus it makes feasible many imeasurements which formerly were difficult or impossible. n where inforn nly difficult o obtain. ‘ning feedback ampli- ul phase are so fundamen. ng the electrical length of ical engineering that the cables, measuring group delay, and. tor Voltmeter hasan extraordi- many others. ‘Vector Voltmeter (Fig. 1) isa wochan: nary number of can, Although adequate voltmeters for nel millivoltmeter and phasemeter: it for example, measure complex or vec- measuring amplitudes over a wide fre- nd tor parameters such as impedance yy range have been available for and phase no equally shift, complex insertion loss or gain, convenient means for measuring phase, nents of the signals in ch nnd complex reflection coefficient, ¢wo-port Consequently, simultaneous measure. B; it may then be switched! to network parameters, and filter transfer ments of voltage and phase have not the voltage in channel B so that gain functions. It always been easy to make, Most systems for loss may be determined. It makes lective receiver and as a design tool: which areable 10 measure phase angles these measurements over a broad fre- possible require several control adjustments for quency range (Ito 1000 MHL) ina part leak ‘each measurement, and many of them NeW INstREMENT, of the spectr in to become one of often pecul ajor electronic measuring instr recently been developed by the -hp- Microwave Division. The RF fiers, meas applications, the voltage in channel A, simultaneously measures the phase an- admittanee, amplifier gle between 1 1000 Me YW —, Sampling ‘robe Fig. 2. Block diagram of hp * Modet 84054 Vector Voltmeter ‘Automatic phase control (APC) tuses phase-locked Toop to tune ‘and phase-lock meter to channel vio [+4 ape vourmerer lonasemereR| A signal. APC adjuste frequency | Ye Of voltage-luned local’ onlletor Sampling (VTO) whick triggers sampling: Probe type mixers in probes, RE signals e are reconstructed from samples At intermediate frequency of 20 Hz, where voltage and phase are | 1g| measured. 20KHe are Himited in freq) tivity, and dynamic ra yrange, sensi: we he new Vector Voltmeter (VVM), ‘on the other hand, operates over a fre quency range of 1 MHz to 1 GHz, It has high sensitivity and wide dynamic range. Its phase resolution is 01° any phase angle at all frequencies, and it operates with the simplicity of «vol meter rely selects ap propriate meter ranges, touches two probes to the points of interest, and Teads voltage and phase on two meter. cr, the WM has nine voltage ranges, which have fullscale sensitivities of 100 gV to. V rims. Its dynamic range is 99 AB, which that it can measure gains or losses of (0 95 dB, The 10:1 voltage divide suppl sith the ins tw measure voltages up ta 10 V As a phasemeter, the VWM will measure phase angles between +180" and —180°. 1, has four ranges: + 180°, 160°, 18°, and 6°, The phase rieter can be offset up to.“ 180° in 10° steps so that any phase angle may b read on the =+6 range, whch fas 0.1° resolution, For example, a phase angle of 115° can be measured with 0.1 revolution by selecting a phaemeter offet of -+140" oF 150° and asing the 6° range. Phase readings ate in dlepensdeni of the voltage levels in the two channels, As a volun iment enable it ‘The reference signal for the phase measurement is channel A, An auto matic phase control eireuit (APC tunes and phase-locks the instrument tothe channel A signal. The frequency range of the APC is selected by means of a frontpanel control; there are 21 overlapping ranges, each more than aa octave in width, In making 2 measure ment, the operator selects a frequency range which includes the frequency of the signal whieh is driving the circuit tunder test, ‘The APC then tunes the um tically and esen- tially instantaneously (10 milliseconds). and Keeps it tuned! even if the input Frequency drifts or sweeps at moderate p 10 15 MHz/second), In the input probes of the VWM are ype mixers which convert the RF signals to a 20kHy interme: diate frequency, where the voltage and phase measurements ate made back stabilization of the mixers keeps the voltage conversion loss at 0 dB de. spite H influences, and common local-oscillator drive for both samplers keeps the pl tuccen the IF signals equal to the phase difference between the RF signals, Feed: we diflerence be: ‘The RF waveformsare reconstructed at the intermediate frequency: the 1 components of the RV converted 10 90 LH, the ‘ wavefon seconel harmonies to 40 KH, the thi 13s monies to 60 KHz, and so on, up to highest harmonic of the inpue sig: nal which falls within the lKGHz band: width of the samplers, Outputs ate provided directly from the sampling mixers in both channels. Since the in put waveforms are preserved in the IF Is. the VWM ean be used to con: ny low-frequency oscilloscopes, wave analyzers, and distortion analyz: cers to high-frequency sampling instru: ments for signals of moderate harmonic content. A similar sampling prineiple was originally employed by -bp- in sampling.type oscilloscopes.” For the voltage and pl ments, the IF signals from the sav pling mixers are filtered so that only their 20kHz fundamentals remain, nnd the amplitudes of these fun mentals and the phase angle between them are measured and displayed on the two frontpanel ameters (see block diagram, Fig, 2) Since only the funda. mentals are measured, the amplitude nel phase readings are not affected by the harmonic content of the input sig: nals, The narrow bandwidth IF filters (URED) also reduce th the meter inputs, The de meter signals for both voltage and phase are avail- able at the rear panel and ean be sect tw drive recorders a.carn ct mama nay, ae hp: 6086 hp: 8050 hp. 84054 VECTOR VOLTMETER, SIGNAL. [GENERATOR ‘SLOTTED LINE (a) 440 420 400 380 360 PHASE (degrees) 340 320 290 295 300 PROBE POSITION (mm) (G} PHASE-MEASURING CAPABILITIES Figs. 3(b) and 3(¢) demonstrate the phase-measuring capabilities of the Vector Voltmeter. They show, first of all, how the high phase resolution of the VVM makes possible very precise measurements of length. Fig. 3(b) also includes an example of the phase- measurement accuracy of the instru- ment. ‘To obtain the data for Figs. 3(b) and 8(¢), a 1-GH> signal was applied first ton unloaded slotted line and then to the same slotted line with a 50ohm load [sce block diagram, Probe A of the VWM was p output of the slotted line, and probe B was attached to the movable slotted- line probe. Fig. 3(b) 1s a plot of the phasemeter readings versus. the posi tion of the slotted-line probe. The measured curve closely follows the the: oretical curve fi open lossless line. Without the 50-ohm oad, the stand- ing-wave ratio on the line was 505. This was determined by measuring the mum and minimum voltages on ne with the volumeter of the VVM_ switched to channel B. The phase-vs position curve fs the stepslike curve of shows one of the steep portions of this curve with an \led horizontal scale. The maxi jum rate of change of phase can be determined from Fig. 3(¢) to be 50° per millimeter, or 0.05° per micrometer Thus, a change equal to the diameter sae 100200 ~—«300~—«400, PROBE POSITION (mem) (2) Demonstration of phase-measuring capabilities of Vector Voltmeter. Phasemeter readings vs. slotted- line probe positions for setup of (a) are plotted in (b). Steepest portion of (b) curves is shown expanded in (c). Maximum rate of change of phase of 50° mm, or 2 per human hair diameter, is easily measured. With slotted line terminated in 50 ohms, maximum devia- tion of phase from linear, theoretically 22.8° jor meas- ured VSWR of 2.26, is measured as 22°. Frequency is 1.003 GHe. ‘of a human hair in the position of the slotted-line probe was accompanied by about a 2° phase change, and was easily resolved by the high-resolution (0.1°) phasemeter. With the 50-chm load, the VSWR was 2.26, Had the VSWR been 1.0, the phase-vs-position curve would have CORRECTION In the article “RFI Measurements Down to 10" kis With. Spectrum i Vol. 17, No. 7, Mareh, 1966, high. Optimum LO power is about 8 mi. cam bo used, bt the thi been linear, as shown by the dashed line in Fig. 3¢b). The theoretical maxi deviation from linear of the phase curve for a VSWR of 2.26 is —1 = 228°, ag= The measured maximum deviation shown in Fig. 3(b) is about 22 AMPLIFIER MEASUREMENTS Fig. 4(b) shows curves of gain, phase, and group delay versus frequency for a transistor amplifier stage operating, 1 the 100-12-MIHz range, ‘The curves were measured with the Vector Volt meter in the setup of ed! with previo lable ods, the time and effort req take the data were minimal, ves are show 4(b). With the switch shown 4a) in the closed posit ig. 4a). Com- eth (a) Tip 608 SIGNAL GENERATOR hp S245, ‘COUNTER the second amplifier stage was reduced 0 zero. The solid curves of Fig. 4(b) were obtained with the switel open (second stage gain >1) and the dashed curves were obtained with the switeh closed. The difference between the ‘curves shows that the impedance seen by the first stage has been changed by the Miller effect of the collectorso. base capacitance of the second transis: tor and the gain of the second stag Besides amplitude and phase curves, Fig. 4(b) shows group-del ‘which delay distortion produced by the Miller effect is apparent. A group de lay curve can be obtained either by plotting the slope of the phase cu ‘or directly from the phasemeter. By changing the input frequency in incre ments of 2.78 KH, or 27.8 kHy, or 278 Kis, ete. the group delay can be read direetly from the corresponding changes in the phasemeter readings. The scale factors will in this ease be Ips, 100 ns, or 10 ns, etc., per degree, since 1 ys = 1 degree at 2.78 KHz, and so on. Group delay information is very useful in cable testing, where constant time delay for all frequencies is desir le. MEASUREMENTS OF TRANSISTOR AND NETWORK PARAMETERS Another important applic: the new VVM is measuring transistor gain and other transistor parameters The wide frequency range of the VVM, its ability to measure very small signals, make it wellsuited for tran: sistor measurements, Fig. 5(a) shows a test setup which is being used at -hp- to measure transistor ng parameters, or «parameters. The sparameters contain the same in- ion for seater 7 Vector votes 99 7 PO lvoe Phase / ~ zn S. Ecol 299 \ S| 229 sol 2 O Babe VN 3 se Jo \\

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