2

3
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Slide 3
Here are some examples of the types of devices that you can test with network
analyzers. They include both passive and active devices (and some that have
attributes of both). Many of these devices need to be characterized for both linear
and nonlinear behavior. It is not possible to completely characterize all of these
devices with just one piece of test equipment.

The next slide shows a model covering the wide range of measurements necessary
for complete linear and nonlinear characterization of devices. This model requires a
variety of stimulus and response tools. It takes a large range of test equipment to
accomplish all of the measurements shown on this chart. Some instruments are
optimized for one test only (like bit-error rate), while others, like network analyzers,
are much more general-purpose in nature. Network analyzers can measure both
linear and nonlinear behavior of devices, although the measurement techniques are
different (frequency versus power sweeps for example). This module focuses on
swept-frequency and swept-power measurements made with network analyzers

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Slide 5
One of the most fundamental concepts of high-frequency network analysis involves
incident, reflected and transmitted waves traveling along transmission lines. It is
helpful to think of traveling waves along a transmission line in terms of a lightwave
analogy. We can imagine incident light striking some optical component like a clear
lens. Some of the light is reflected off the surface of the lens, but most of the light
continues on through the lens. If the lens were made of some lossy material, then a
portion of the light could be absorbed within the lens. If the lens had mirrored
surfaces, then most of the light would be reflected and little or none would be
transmitted through the lens. This concept is valid for RF signals as well, except the
electromagnetic energy is in the RF range instead of the optical range, and our
components and circuits are electrical devices and networks instead of lenses and
mirrors.

Network analysis is concerned with the accurate measurement of the ratios of the
reflected signal to the incident signal, and the transmitted signal to the incident
signal.

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Slide 6
Components are tested for a variety of reasons. Many components are used as
"building blocks" in more complicated RF systems. For example, in most
transceivers there are amplifiers to boost LO power to mixers, and filters to remove
signal harmonics. Often, R&D engineers need to measure these components to
verify their simulation models and their actual hardware prototypes. For component
production, a manufacturer must measure the performance of their products so they
can provide accurate specifications. This is essential so prospective customers will
know how a particular component will behave in their application.

When used in communications systems to pass signals, designers want to ensure

the component or circuit is not causing excessive signal distortion. This can be in the
form of linear distortion where flat magnitude and linear phase shift versus frequency
is not maintained over the bandwidth of interest, or in the form of nonlinear effects
like intermodulation distortion.

Often it is most important to measure how reflective a component is, to ensure that it
absorbs energy efficiently. Measuring antenna match is a good example.

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Slide 7
In many situations, magnitude-only data is sufficient for out needs. For example, we
may only care about the gain of an amplifier or the stop-band rejection of a filter.
However, as we will explore throughout this paper, measuring phase is a critical
element of network analysis.

Complete characterization of devices and networks involves measurement of phase

as well as magnitude. This is necessary for developing circuit models for simulation
and to design matching circuits based on conjugate-matching techniques. Time-
domain characterization requires magnitude and phase information to perform the
inverse-Fourier transform. Finally, for best measurement accuracy, phase data is
required to perform vector error correction.

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Slide 9
The need for efficient transfer of RF power is one of the main reasons behind the
use of transmission lines. At low frequencies where the wavelength of the signals
are much larger than the length of the circuit conductors, a simple wire is very useful
for carrying power. Current travels down the wire easily, and voltage and current are
the same no matter where we measure along the wire.

At high frequencies however, the wavelength of signals of interest are comparable to

or much smaller than the length of conductors. In this case, power transmission can
best be thought of in terms of traveling waves.

Of critical importance is that a lossless transmission line takes on a characteristic

impedance (Zo). In fact, an infinitely long transmission line appears to be a resistive
load! When the transmission line is terminated in its characteristic impedance,
maximum power is transferred to the load. When the termination is not Zo, the
portion of the signal which is not absorbed by the load is reflected back toward the
source. This creates a condition where the envelope voltage along the transmission
line varies with position. We will examine the incident and reflected waves on
transmission lines with different load conditions in following slides

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Slide 10
RF transmission lines can be made in a variety of transmission media. Common
examples are coaxial, waveguide, twisted pair, coplanar, stripline and microstrip. RF
circuit design on printed-circuit boards (PCB) often use coplanar or microstrip
transmission lines. The fundamental parameter of a transmission line is its
characteristic impedance Zo. Zo describes the relationship between the voltage and
current traveling waves, and is a function of the various dimensions of the
transmission line and the dielectric constant (εr) of the non-conducting material in the
transmission line. For most RF systems, Zo is either 50 or 75 ohms.
For low-power situations (cable TV, for example) coaxial transmission lines are
optimized for low loss, which works out to about 75 ohms (for coaxial transmission
lines with air dielectric). For RF and microwave communication and radar
applications, where high power is often encountered, coaxial transmission lines are
designed to have a characteristic impedance of 50 ohms, a compromise between
maximum power handling (occurring at 30 ohms) and minimum loss.

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Slide 11
Before we begin our discussion about transmission lines, let us look at
the condition for maximum power transfer into a load, given a source
impedance of Rs. The graph above shows that the matched condition
(RL = RS) results in the maximum power dissipated in the load
resistor. This condition is true whether the stimulus is a DC voltage
source or an RF sinusoid.

For maximum transfer of energy into a transmission line from a source

or from a transmission line to a load (the next stage of an amplifier, an
antenna, etc.), the impedance of the source and load should match
the characteristic impedance of the transmission line. In general, then,
Zo is the target for input and output impedances of devices and
networks.
When the source impedance is not purely resistive, the maximum
power transfer occurs when the load impedance is equal to the
complex conjugate of the source impedance. This condition is met by
reversing the sign of the imaginary part of the impedance. For
example, if RS = 0.6 + j0.3, then the complex conjugate RS* = 0.6 -
j0.3.

Sometimes the source impedance is adjusted to be the complex

conjugate of the load impedance. For example, when matching to an
antenna, the load impedance is determined by the characteristics of
the antenna. A designer has to optimize the output match of the RF
amplifier over the frequency range of the antenna so that maximum
RF power is transmitted through the antenna
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Slide 12
Let's review what happens when transmission lines are terminated in various
impedances, starting with a Zo load. Since a transmission line terminated in its
characteristic impedance results in maximum transfer of power to the load, there is
no reflected signal. This result is the same as if the transmission line was infinitely
long. If we were to look at the envelope of the RF signal versus distance along the
transmission line, it would be constant (no standing-wave pattern). This is because
there is energy flowing in one direction only.

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Slide 13
Next, let's terminate our line in a short circuit. Since purely reactive elements cannot
dissipate any power, and there is nowhere else for the energy to go, a reflected
wave is launched back down the line toward the source. For Ohm's law to be
satisfied (no voltage across the short), this reflected wave must be equal in voltage
magnitude to the incident wave, and be 180o out of phase with it. This satisfies the
condition that the total voltage must equal zero at the plane of the short circuit. Our
reflected and incident voltage (and current) waves will be identical in magnitude but
traveling in the opposite direction.

Now let us leave our line open. This time, Ohm's law tells us that the open can
support no current. Therefore, our reflected current wave must be 180o out of phase
with respect to the incident wave (the voltage wave will be in phase with the incident
wave). This guarantees that current at the open will be zero. Again, our reflected and
incident current (and voltage) waves will be identical in magnitude, but traveling in
the opposite direction. For both the short and open cases, a standing-wave pattern
will be set up on the transmission line. The valleys will be at zero and the peaks at
twice the incident voltage level. The peaks and valleys of the short and open will be
shifted in position along the line with respect to each other, in order to satisfy Ohm's
law as described above.

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Slide 14
Finally, let's terminate our line with a 25 Ω resistor (an impedance
between the full reflection of an open or short circuit and the perfect
termination of a 50 Ω load). Some (but not all) of our incident energy
will be absorbed in the load, and some will be reflected back towards
the source. We will find that our reflected voltage wave will have an
amplitude 1/3 that of the incident wave, and that the two waves will be
180o out of phase at the load. The phase relationship between the
incident and reflected waves will change as a function of distance
along the transmission line from the load. The valleys of the standing-
wave pattern will no longer be zero, and the peak will be less than that
of the short/open case.
The significance of standing waves should not go unnoticed. Ohm's
law tells us the complex relationship between the incident and
reflected signals at the load. Assuming a 50-ohm source, the voltage
across a 25-ohm load resistor will be two thirds of the voltage across a
50-ohm load. Hence, the voltage of the reflected signal is one third the
voltage of the incident signal and is 180o out of phase with it. However,
as we move away from the load toward the source, we find that the
phase between the incident and reflected signals changes! The vector
sum of the two signals therefore also changes along the line,
producing the standing wave pattern. The apparent impedance also
changes along the line because the relative amplitude and phase of
the incident and reflected waves at any given point uniquely determine
the measured impedance. For example, if we made a measurement
one quarter wavelength away from the 25-ohm load, the results would
indicate a 100-ohm load. The standing wave pattern repeats every half 15
wavelength, as does the apparent impedance.
Slide 16
Let's now examine reflection measurements. The first term for
reflected waves is reflection coefficient gamma (Γ). Reflection
coefficient is the ratio of the reflected signal voltage to the incident
signal voltage. It can be calculated as shown above by knowing the
impedances of the transmission line and the load. The magnitude
portion of gamma is called rho (ρ). A transmission line terminated in Zo
will have all energy transferred to the load; hence Vrefl = 0 and ρ = 0.
When ZL is not equal to Zo , some energy is reflected and ρ is greater
than zero. When ZL is a short or open circuit, all energy is reflected
and ρ = 1. The range of possible values for ρ is therefore zero to one.
Since it is often very convenient to show reflection on a logarithmic
display, the second way to convey reflection is return loss. Return loss
is expressed in terms of dB, and is a scalar quantity. The definition for
return loss includes a negative sign so that the return loss value is
always a positive number (when measuring reflection on a network
analyzer with a log magnitude format, ignoring the minus sign gives
the results in terms of return loss). Return loss can be thought of as
the number of dB that the reflected signal is below the incident signal.
Return loss varies between infinity for a Zo impedance and 0 dB for an
open or short circuit.
As we have already seen, two waves traveling in opposite directions
on the same transmission line cause a "standing wave". This condition
can be measured in terms of the voltage-standing-wave ratio (VSWR
or SWR for short). VSWR is defined as the maximum value of the RF
envelope over the minimum value of the envelope. This value can be 16
computed as (1+ρ)/(1-ρ). VSWR can take
Slide 18
Transmission coefficient Τ is defined as the transmitted voltage divided by the
incident voltage. If |Vtrans| > |Vinc|, the DUT has gain, and if |Vtrans| < |Vinc|, the DUT
exhibits attenuation or insertion loss. When insertion loss is expressed in dB, a
negative sign is added in the definition so that the loss value is expressed as a
positive number. The phase portion of the transmission coefficient is called insertion
phase.

There is more to transmission than simple gain or loss. In communications systems,

signals are time varying -- they occupy a given bandwidth and are made up of
multiple frequency components. It is important then to know to what extent the DUT
alters the makeup of the signal, thereby causing signal distortion. While we often
think of distortion as only the result of nonlinear networks, we will see shortly that
linear networks can also cause signal distortion.

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Slide 20
Now lets examine how linear networks can cause signal distortion. There are three
criteria that must be satisfied for linear distortionless transmission. First, the
amplitude (magnitude) response of the device or system must be flat over the
bandwidth of interest. This means all frequencies within the bandwidth will be
attenuated identically. Second, the phase response must be linear over the
bandwidth of interest. And last, the device must exhibit a "minimum-phase
response", which means that at 0 Hz (DC), there is 0o phase shift
(0o ± n*180o is okay if we don't mind an inverted signal).
How can magnitude and phase distortion occur? The following two examples will
illustrate how both magnitude and phase responses can introduce linear signal
distortion.

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Slide 21
Here is an example of a square wave (consisting of three sinusoids) applied to a
bandpass filter. The filter imposes a non-uniform amplitude change to each
frequency component. Even though no phase changes are introduced, the
frequency components no longer sum to a square wave at the output. The square
wave is now severely distorted, having become more sinusoidal in nature.

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Slide 22
Let's apply the same square wave to another filter. Here, the third harmonic
undergoes a 180o phase shift, but the other components are not phase shifted. All
the amplitudes of the three spectral components remain the same (filters which only
affect the phase of signals are called allpass filters). The output is again distorted,
appearing very impulsive this time.

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Slide 26
In order to completely characterize an unknown linear two-port device, we must
make measurements under various conditions and compute a set of parameters.
These parameters can be used to completely describe the electrical behavior of our
device (or network), even under source and load conditions other than when we
made our measurements. For low-frequency characterization of devices, the three
most commonly measured parameters are the H, Y and Z-parameters. All of these
parameters require measuring the total voltage or current as a function of frequency
at the input or output nodes (ports) of the device. Furthermore, we have to apply
either open or short circuits as part of the measurement. Extending measurements
of these parameters to high frequencies is not very practical.

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For the two port device there are two independent equations may be written,
expressing the independent variable b in terms of the dependant variable a. In
the above diagram b1 comprises the sum of a quantity reflected from port 1
and a quantity that is the result of transmission through the device in the
reverse direction. The quantities are scaled to be proportional to the voltage
wave amplitude and phase such that |bn|2 = power emerging from the n’th port
and |an|2 is the power incident on the n’th port.

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Slide 27
At high frequencies, it is very hard to measure total voltage and current at the device
ports. One cannot simply connect a voltmeter or current probe and get accurate
measurements due to the impedance of the probes themselves and the difficulty of
placing the probes at the desired positions. In addition, active devices may oscillate
or self-destruct with the connection of shorts and opens.

Clearly, some other way of characterizing high-frequency networks is needed that

doesn't have these drawbacks. That is why scattering or S-parameters were
developed. S-parameters have many advantages over the previously mentioned H,
Y or Z-parameters. They relate to familiar measurements such as gain, loss, and
reflection coefficient. They are defined in terms of voltage traveling waves, which are
relatively easy to measure. S-parameters don't require connection of undesirable
loads to the device under test. The measured S-parameters of multiple devices can
be cascaded to predict overall system performance. If desired, H, Y, or Z-parameters
can be derived from S-parameters. And very important for RF design, S-parameters
are easily imported and used for circuit simulations in electronic-design automation
(EDA) tools like Agilent's Advanced Design System (ADS). S-parameters are the
shared language between simulation and measurement.

An N-port device has N2 S-parameters. So, a two-port device has four S-

parameters. The numbering convention for S-parameters is that the first number
following the "S" is the port where the signal emerges, and the second number is the
port where the signal is applied. So, S21 is a measure of the signal coming out port
2 relative to the RF stimulus entering port 1. When the numbers are the same (e.g.,
S11), it indicates a reflection measurement, as the input and output ports are the
same. The incident terms (a1, a2) and output terms (b1, b2) represent voltage
traveling waves.

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Slide 29
S-parameters are essentially the same parameters as some of the terms we have
mentioned before, such as input match and insertion loss. It is important to separate
the fundamental definition of S-parameters and the format in which they are often
displayed. S-parameters are inherently complex, linear quantities. They are
expressed as real-and-imaginary or magnitude-and-phase pairs. However, it isn't
always very useful to view them as linear pairs. Often we want to look only at the
magnitude of the S-parameter (for example, when looking at insertion loss or input
match), and often, a logarithmic display is most useful. A log-magnitude format lets
us see far more dynamic range than a linear format.

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To quantify and express these reflected and transmitted coefficients, the
scattering or S-parameter were defined. S-parameters give a simple way to
quantify and organize these ratios of voltages exiting or scattering from a
network relative to the voltages incident upon the network.
S-parameters are always a ratio of two complex (magnitude and phase)
quantities. S-parameter notation identifies these quantities using the
numbering scheme shown above. The first number refers to the test-device
port where the signal is emerging, or another way to look at it, which
network analyzer port is the signal being measured. The second number
refers to which test-device port the signal is incident or which network
analyzer port the signal is coming from. For example, the S-parameter, S11,
identifies the measurement as the complex ratio of the signal emerging from
port 1 of the device to the signal applied to port 1 of the device (a reflection
measurement).

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A two-port device or network has four S-parameters. Two of the terms are
related to the reflection from the input and output ports of the DUT. The
other two terms are related to the transmission through the DUT in the
forward and reverse directions. These concepts can be expanded to multi-
port devices and the number of S-parameters is a function of 2n, where n =
the number of ports. For example, a four port device would have 16 S-
parameters.

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To define S-parameters, it is assumed that a sinewave is incident upon one
port of the device while the other port is terminated by a Z0 load.

For a 2-port device, there will be 2 scenarios:

• 1) The stimulus is incident upon port 1 of the device. This will be call the
forward condition, defined above.
• 2) The stimulus is incident upon port 2 (reverse).

The test system must be able to sample the incident signal seen as quantity a1
in the forward direction and a2 in the reverse direction. The setup must also
measure the signal reflected and transmitted (b). Lastly, to yield S-
parameters, the system must be able to take the complex (magnitude and
phase) ratio of the reflected or transmitted signal versus the incident signal
(b/a). The measurements and ratios must be complex to produce true S-
parameters.

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With the stimulus at port 2, (reverse condition):

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Slide 28
S11 and S21 are determined by measuring the magnitude and phase of the incident,
reflected and transmitted voltage signals when the output is terminated in a perfect
Zo (a load that equals the characteristic impedance of the test system). This
condition guarantees that a2 is zero, since there is no reflection from an ideal load.
S11 is equivalent to the input complex reflection coefficient or impedance of the
DUT, and S21 is the forward complex transmission coefficient. Likewise, by placing
the source at port 2 and terminating port 1 in a perfect load (making a1 zero), S22
and S12 measurements can be made. S22 is equivalent to the output complex
reflection coefficient or output impedance of the DUT, and S12 is the reverse
complex transmission coefficient.
The accuracy of S-parameter measurements depends greatly on how good a
termination we apply to the load port (the port not being stimulated). Anything other
than a perfect load will result in a1 or a2 not being zero (which violates the definition
for S-parameters). When the DUT is connected to the test ports of a network
analyzer and we don't account for imperfect test-port match, we have not done a
very good job satisfying the condition of a perfect termination. For this reason, two-
port error correction, which corrects for source and load match, is very important for
accurate S-parameter measurements (two-port correction is covered in the
calibration section).

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Let’s look at some examples of S-parameters for typical devices. Shown here
is a 20 dB attenuator. Remembering that S-parameters are voltage ratios, it
makes sense that the forward transmission S-parameter, S21, would be .1 with
some phase shift from incident to output. An attenuator is just a voltage
divider, so its reverse transmission characteristics, S12, will be similar. One
of the attenuator’s design goals is to be well matched to Z0. Therefore, the
reflection S-parameters, S11, and S 22 will be small (0.09 and 0.05
respectively).

Once these linear ratios have been measured, they can easily be converted to
other common formats such as standing wave ratio (SWR), or expressed as
gain or loss parameters in dB.

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A transistor will have a very different set of S-parameters from an attenuator.
Notice, in the forward direction, S21 is a positive whole number denoting
device gain, where in the reverse direction the device is lossy. The reflection
S-parameters indicate a large percent of the incident signal is reflected. This
is typical of transistors to have a poor match and require a matching networks
to couple signals into and out of the device.
We can start to see the value of making these measurements. From here the
designer can create matching networks for the transistor to maximize signal
transfer, gain and stability of the combined or cascaded networks.

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Slide 15
Now that we fully understand the relationship of electromagnetic waves, we must
also recognize the terms used to describe them. Common network analyzer
terminology has the incident wave measured with the R (for reference) receiver. The
reflected wave is measured with the A receiver and the transmitted wave is
measured with the B receiver. With amplitude and phase information of these three
waves, we can quantify the reflection and transmission characteristics of our device
under test (DUT). Some of the common measured terms are scalar in nature (the
phase part is ignored or not measured), while others are vector (both magnitude and
phase are measured). For example, return loss is a scalar measurement of
reflection, while impedance results from a vector reflection measurement. Some, like
group delay, are purely phase-related measurements.
Ratioed reflection is often shown as A/R and ratioed transmission is often shown as
B/R, relating to the measurement receivers used in the network analyzer

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Slide 34
Here is a generalized block diagram of a network analyzer, showing the major
signal-processing sections. In order to measure the incident, reflected and
transmitted signal, four sections are required:

• Source for stimulus

• Signal-separation devices

• Receivers that downconvert and detect the signals

• Processor/display for calculating and reviewing the results
We will briefly examine each of these sections. More detailed information about the
signal separation devices and receiver section are in the appendix.

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.
Abstract

This presentation covers the principles of measuring high-frequency electrical

networks with network analyzers. You will learn what kind of measurements
are made with network analyzers, and how they allow you to characterize both
linear and nonlinear behavior of your devices. The session starts with RF
fundamentals such as transmission lines and the Smith Chart, leading to the
concepts of reflection, transmission and S-parameters. The next section covers
all the major components in a network analyzer. Error modeling, accuracy
enhancement, and various calibration techniques will then be presented.
Finally, some typical impedance matching examples will be covered.

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