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Keysight Technologies
Correlating Microwave Measurements between
Handheld and Benchtop Analyzers
Using FieldFox Handheld Analyzers up to 26.5 GHz
Application Note
Abstract
For the first time, technology breakthroughs have enabled high-performance
measurement capabilities in a handheld analyzer. High-accuracy microwave
measurements of network, spectrum, power and frequency can quickly be made using
modern all-in-one analyzers with results that correlate to benchtop instruments to
within hundredths of a db. This application note discusses the powerful capabilities
of modern-day handheld analyzers and includes measurement comparisons between
FieldFox handheld analyzers and several benchtop instruments including signal
analyzers, power meters and vector network analyzers.
Introduction
For the first time, technology breakthroughs have enabled high-performance measurement capabilities in a
handheld analyzer. High-accuracy microwave measurements of network, spectrum, power and frequency can
quickly be made using modern all-in-one analyzers with results that correlate to benchtop instruments often to
within hundredths of a dB. For example, Figure 1 shows the S-parameters of a 10 GHz bandpass filter measured
using a benchtop Keysight Technologies, Inc. PNA-X vector network analyzer (VNA) overlaid with measurements
using a Keysight FieldFox handheld analyzer. As shown on the figure, the measured parameters are nearly
identical between the two instruments. Markers are placed in the passband and rejection portions of the response.
The relative difference in the S11 markers between the two instruments is less than 0.02 dB. The relative marker
difference in S21 is 0.02 dB in the passband and 0.52 dB in the filter skirt at a level of 78 dB down from the peak.
For this example, there is excellent correlation between measurements using the high- performance benchtop
instrument and the modern all-in-one handheld.
When working to compare the performance between two instruments, there is no substitution for examining the
specifications found on the vendor's datasheets but it may be difficult to directly compare the two as the
specifications are often listed under unique operating conditions.
For example, the total amplitude accuracy listed on the datasheet for the Keysight MXA signal analyzer is specified
over a temperature range of 20