The Agilent Technologies E8257N signal generator is an electronic instrument that generates repeating electronic signals.It contains an electronic oscillator, a circuit that is capable of creating a repetitive waveform. Generator, Sweep, 40 GHz.

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Both SDG models have low SSB (single sideband) phase noise of -135 dBc/Hz at 1 GHz offset with frequency settling time of 100 μs. The IQ modulators have ACLR (Adjacent Channel Leakage Ratio) of -71 dBc on WCDMA signals.

The SVA vector-signal analyzers also come in two models: SVA-6 (6 GHz) and SVA-13 (13 GHz). You can input signals with peak signal power levels up +30 dBm directly into either instrument. Their maximum sensitivity of -148 dBm/Hz lets you distinguish low-level signals from noise when measuring a transmitter’s spurious outputs. The instruments can measure wireless signals for most wireless standards, including LTE (Long-Term Evolution). Measurements include power, modulation quality, and signal spectrum. Both SVA models have a noise floor of -138 dBc/Hz at 2 GHz with 10 MHz offset and frequency settling occurs in 250 μs at frequencies up to 6 GHz.

When using the SDG and SVA instruments in a single test setup, you can synchronize them so they operate as a single source-and-measuring system. The instruments have a mechanical interlocking system that lets you attach them to each other on a bench or in a rack.

The reason that Brand X’s DMM is so much slower is because its measurement arming time is ~ 6 ms! Agilent’s M9183A measurement arming time is < 100 us. With an arm time of 6 ms Brand X is wasting the benefit gained by the high speed PXI bus. In fact, with such a large arm time a ‘box’ DMM using USB, LAN, or GPIB is faster. For instance Agilent’s 34410A DMM takes only ~ 2 ms to make a measurement (that is including IO latency).

Full blog post by Neil Forcier

The Agilent N9344C handheld spectrum analyzer (HSA) is designed for the field. Whether you are installing and maintaining RF systems, doing on-site troubleshooting, monitoring RF environments, or analyzing interference, you can depend on the N9344C HSA for fast and accurate measurement.

Built in a rugged, fanless, and compact chassis, the N9344C HSA is more than easy to use – its measurement performance gives you the assurance you need to know that the job has been done right. The 6.5 inch TFT display on the N9344C HSA provides a vivid and bright view of the spectrum – in both indoor and outdoor environments. Automatic LCD brightness and keypad backlight control provides clear viewing during the day and at night. Take comfort in the N9344C HSA’s unique ergonomic backpack and gain true “hands-free” operation. Increase your work efficiency with the personalization features like customizable frequency channel tables, amplitude corrections, or simply use the free PC software to remotely control the N9344C HSA through the USB/LAN connection.

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Being assigned the task of finding a defect in a modern IC device can be similar to having to find that errant basketball. Are you ready for this task? Your company’s reputation for quality may depend on it.

When it comes to products for the medical or automotive markets, the quality requirements are extremely high, targeting very low to zero DPPM (defective parts per million). In many cases, the customer sets these requirements, dictating, for instance, both the specific metrics for test-coverage goals and the fault models that you must use. Test requirements also can be associated with specific industry standards, such as those from the Automotive Electronics Council, to ensure that comparative metrics are used.

Many companies have entire organizations and teams dedicated to product quality and yield enhancement, and DFT (design for test) is a key element from product planning through production. Although high test coverage is commonly used as a defining metric, it is only one piece of providing high-quality IC products. In addition to ensuring adequate test coverage, you must generate the correct test patterns, ensure they run on the specified ATE (automatic test equipment), and also ensure they work on first silicon and in production test. And when material starts to fail tests, you must be able to identify the root cause so the problem can be avoided next time. Quality doesn’t happen by accident; it must be designed into the product and process.

Planning for quality

Some wise person once said that most people don’t plan to fail; they just fail to plan. A comprehensive test plan is imperative for achieving high-quality ICs. The first step in developing a plan is to determine what the quality requirements are for the design and what elements in the design need to be tested to ensure those requirements are met. For instance, is the design all digital logic, or does it also have some analog pieces? Does the design include embedded memories or PLLs (phase-locked loops) for on-chip clock generation? Are there high-speed I/O pins or any other special interface requirements? What are the requirements for the target market?

Here are some of the main items to consider when putting together a test plan:

• For large designs or when using multiple ATPG (automatic test-pattern generation) fault models, it is common to include some on-chip test-compression technique. Does this design need test compression? If so, how much?
• Which BIST (built-in self-test) algorithms will you use to test any on-chip memory?
• Which type of ATE will you use? What are its capabilities and limitations? Will testing occur at the wafer level, at the packaged-part level, or both?
• Must tests run at system speed? How many clock domains are there, and how should testing be done between those domains?
• Will diagnostics and FA (failure analysis) be done when ICs fail during production test? How will that data be used to improve yield and quality?
• What standards need to be complied with, such as IEEE 1149.1 or 1149.6 for boundary scan?

Full article by Colin Renfrew, Freescale Semiconductor, and Bruce Swanson, Mentor Graphics — Test & Measurement World

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The LeCroy WaveRunner 64Xi-A-N is the most powerful and capable scope available in its class. Basic system validation using advanced triggers, fast viewing modes, measurement parameters, or serial decodes is simple and easy. Advanced debug, multi-domain analysis, and waveshape analysis are possible with tools unique to WaveRunner 64Xi-AN. equipped with a 10.4″ Color touch screen display and multiple functionality features the 64Xi-AN is up to the task.

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But not every computer is a shrinking violet. Some of them are downright tough — as in, they could outlast their human users in some of the most adverse conditions this planet can throw at them.

The military even has special tests to separate the wheat from the chaff. Called Military Specification 810f, or Mil-Spec 810f, it shows which devices are truly rugged in a bastion of tests and which are merely durable. The GCN Lab performs these same tests each year in our rugged device roundup. But you don’t have to be in the military to get your hands on these survivalists of the computer world. They are just as rugged and often just as useful for civilians. Anyone can drop their phone in an airport lounge, and the carpet there isn’t very thick.

The GCN Lab gathered 10 rugged devices that ran the spectrum of what’s available in rugged gear. Everything from a vehicle-mounted wireless access point to handheld devices and laptop PCs stepped up to face the ultimate test of computing fitness. And unlike the military test, which allows five units to tag team together with one stepping in if another fails, we in the Lab only have one of each. So it’s pass/fail — or perhaps live/die in rugged testing — although we do assign a rugged grade based on how intact a working device is at the end of our battery of punishment.

The Top 10 rugged Devices are as follows:

Armor X10gx Tablet

Dell Latitude E6400 XFR

Fortress Technologies ES820 Vehicle Mesh Point

GammaTech R13S Rugged Laptop-Tablet

GammaTech D14RM Rugged Notebook

Getac PS236 Fully Rugged Handheld

IronKey Enterprise

Motion Computing J3500

Panasonic Toughbook 31

Casio G’zOne Brigade

For Full Review and Video Demonstrations of Top 10