Copper Mountain Technologies, a company that develops innovative and robust RF test and measurement solutions for engineers all over the world have developed an Automatic Fixture Removal (AFR) solution. It is an intuitive software plug-in that is used to accurately measure hard to access devices, such as SMD sized components mounted on a fixture by de-embedding the fixture effects. The AFR VNA software plug-in enables the measurement of a wide range of components through comprehensive methods tailored to specific fixture properties.
It moves the calibration plane towards hard to access DUTs and performs de-embedding using metrology grade algorithms such as time-gating, filtering, or bisect methods on a 2-port 2xThru or 1xReflect fixture to eliminate the fixture effects on the DUTs. These methods provide the user with better measurement accuracy and reliability based on the components being tested.
Key Functionalities of Algorithms
- Time-gating approach is ideal for fixtures with long electrical lengths of leading transmission lines or for higher frequency options.
- The Filtering algorithm is useful in cases where signals in both parts of the fixture significantly overlap in the time domain.
- Bisect method covers instances with short electrical length of the fixture leading transmission lines and inadequate time domain resolution.
The AFR software plug-in is easy to use and is compatible with all CMT 2 and 4-port Cobalt series VNAs up to 20 GHz and Compact series two-port, two-path VNAs up to 44 GHz.
