6-port network analyzers

Industrial and university metrology laboratories use heterodyne network analyzers to characterize passive (attenuators, filters, etc.) and active (transistors, amplifiers, etc.) microwave (or microwave) networks. This type of analyzer, made up of non-ideal microwave components, is prone to systematic errors and therefore requires appropriate calibration using a calibration kit consisting, in principle, of fixed and sliding loads, shorts and open circuits, supplied either by the analyzer manufacturer or by a specialized manufacturer.

After calibration, the analyzer must be checked using a verification kit, generally comprising fixed attenuators and matched and mismatched air lines. The components of a verification kit must have known values, and therefore be calibrated. The aim is to be able to characterize them completely, in modulus and phase, reflection and transmission. The 6-port vector network analyzer can perform this calibration.

The notations used in this file are the same as those used in the Microwave Network Analyzers file. ref. [3] , for further information.