R&S®NRP Power Meter
The art of measuring power accurately
- 90 dB dynamic range
- High measurement speed
- Autofilter function
- Intelligent sensors - plug in and measure
- Accurate measurement of average power regardless of bandwidth and modulation
- Multislot measurements for common time division systems
- Handling of external components through Γ and S parameter correction
- Simultaneous operation of up to 4 sensors on basic unit
- Operation of sensor directly from PC via USB interface
Autofilter function
The setting of the display filter is essential for the measurement speed that can be attained. As a rule, noise is superimposed on the signal to be measured. Relative noise content increases as power decreases. To obtain a noise-free display, a large averaging factor has to be selected for low signal levels, but such a factor increases the measurement time. Therefore a compromise must be made between sufficient signal/noise ratio and acceptable measurement time. The following rule of thumb applies: Reducing the noise by a factor of 10 increases the measurement time by a factor of 100. With the classic autofilter function, the averaging factor is, therefore, increased gradually, which on the one hand keeps the measurement time acceptable but on the other does not make it possible to maintain a specific noise level.
The enhanced autofilter function implemented in a power meter for the first time mitigates this problem. Using the Fixed Noise mode, the relative noise content and the maximum measurement time can be defined, thus allowing the compromise between S/N ratio and measurement time to be optimized for the individual application. Consequently, the instrument provides stable measurement results in the shortest possible time.
