23rd IMEKO TC 4 International Symposium and the 5th Chinese Conference on Electromagnetic Metrology Technical (IMEKO TC4 2019)

149 / 2019-03-13 17:14:10

RF Attenuation Measurement System Using VNA at BSN

IF substitution,VNA,Attenuator,RF attenuation measurement

Plenary track > Radio Frequency, Microwave and Millimeter Wave Measurements

Measurement of RF attenuation is required in determining the quality and effectiveness of telecommunication system. Measurement system of RF attenuation at 10 dB to 60 dB in the frequency range of 10 MHz to 3 GHz has been established at National Standardization Agency of Indonesia (BSN). The system was developed to support measurement of attenuation, particularly on equipment used by telecommunications industry. The measurement method in this system is IF substitution method. VNA works based on the principle of IF substitution method, so that VNA can be used for measuring RF attenuation. The measurement traceability can be achieved effectively by evaluating the VNA only at one frequency using a step attenuator that has been calibrated to the primary standard of RF attenuation. VNA has a linearity of 0.05 dB in the range of attenuation up to 60 dB and frequency up to 3 GHz. In the range mentioned above, the measurement uncertainty is 0.068 dB. Linearity of VNA and the uncertainty from standard are the dominant uncertainty source in this measurement.