Keysight offers precision SMU Series software control options
Santa Rosa, CA. Keysight Technologies has introduced a number of different low- or no-cost software control options for its B2900A Series Precision Source/Measure Units (SMUs). The software options provide users access to a range of capabilities to support basic voltage and current sourcing up through full characterization of devices and materials using an intuitive graphical user interface.
The SMU is a critical component in the engineer’s toolkit. It is typically utilized during the development or test of electronic devices when precision low-level sourcing and measuring is required. However, different applications demand different capabilities, and generally those capabilities come from the software used to control the SMU. While many SMU vendors do offer software to control their products, often times they don’t offer users any flexibility in selecting between multiple software control options to meet their needs and what they do offer comes with a sizable price tag.
By using one of the B2900A software control options, users eliminate the need to create their own software measurement environment and in the process, reduce both their development and evaluation times. Such flexibility makes the B2900A SMUs suited for university educators requiring low-cost solutions for student lab use, circuit designers needing to integrate SMUs with other benchtop instruments, and R&D engineers needing an accurate yet low-cost current-voltage characterization solution for devices and materials.
“Our new software control options, which include our most popular and commonly used BenchVue and EasyEXPERT group+ solutions, are intended to give our B2900A SMU customers optimal flexibility in finding their ideal solution,” said Masaki Yamamoto, general manager of Keysight’s Hachioji Semiconductor Test Division. “Not only do customers get to decide for themselves which capabilities they need, but they are also guaranteed the best-in-class measurement performance at a low starting price that comes with using the B2900A SMUs. This low price point, coupled with the little to no added cost for the control software, enables our customers to realize a significant reduction in total test cost.”
Keysight’s new software control options for the B2900A SMUs include:
- EasyEXPERT group+, which provides powerful IV parametric characterization for a wide range of devices and materials. The software is currently utilized in Keysight’s high-end precision current-voltage analyzer products (e.g., the B1500A, B1505A and E5270B/E526xA);
- BenchVue, which enables benchtop integration of B2900A SMUs (as voltage/current sources) with a wide variety of other Keysight instruments, such as oscilloscopes and meters; and
- Graphical Web Interface, which allows any Java-enabled web browser to control B2900A SMUs over the LAN. Because special software is not required, this control option enables quick measurements on the fly.
In addition, B2900A Quick I/V Measurement software permits easy measurement setup and execution on a Windows-based PC via a user-friendly GUI. This control option supports all B2900 precision instrument family products, including SMUs, low-noise sources and electrometers, and it works on multiple interfaces (LAN, USB and GPIB). The basic 1-channel precision SMU model for the benchtop (B2901A) is available at a starting price of $5,000.
