6517B
• Measures resistances up
• 1fA–20mA current measurement
• <20µV burden voltage on
• 200TΩ input impedance
• <3fA bias current
• Up to 425 rdgs/s
• 0.75fA p-p noise
• Built-in ±1kV voltage source
• Unique voltage reversal
• Optional plug-in scanner cards
16
to 10
Ω
range
lowest current ranges
method for high resistance
measurements
Electrometer/High Resistance Meter
Keithley’s 5½-digit Model 6517B Electrometer/High
Resistance Meter offers accuracy and sensitivity specifications unmatched by any other meter of this type. It
also offers a variety of features that simplify measur ing
high resistances and the resistivity of insulating materials. With reading rates of up to 425 read ings/second, the
Model 6517B is also significantly faster than competitive
electrometers, so it offers a quick, easy way to measure
low-level currents.
Exceptional Performance Specifications
The half-rack-sized Model 6517B has a special low current
input amplifier with an input bias current of <3fA with
just 0.75fA p-p (peak-to-peak) noise and <20µV burden
voltage on the lowest range. The input impedance for
ideal circuit loading. These speci fi ca tions ensure the accuracy and sensitivity needed for accurate
low current and high imped ance volt age, resistance, and charge measure ments in areas of re search
such as physics, optics, nanotechnology, and materials science. A built-in ±1kV voltage source with
sweep capability simplifies performing leak age, break down, and resis tance testing, as well as volume
(Ω-cm) and surface resistivity (Ω/square) mea sure ments on insulating materials.
Wide Measurement Ranges
The Model 6517B offers full autoranging over the full span of ranges on current, resistance, voltage,
and charge mea sure ments:
• Current measurements from 1fA to 20mA
• Voltage measurements from 10µV to 200V
• Resistance measurements from 50Ω to 10
• Charge measurements from 10fC to 2µC
Improved High Resistivity Measurements
Many test applications require measuring high levels of resistivity (surface or volume) of materials.
The conventional method of making these measurements is to apply a sufficiently large voltage to
a sample, measure the current that flows through the sample, then calculate the resistance using
Ohm’s Law (R=V/I). While high resistance materials and devices produce very small currents that are
difficult to measure accurately, Keithley’s electrometers and picoammeters are used successfully for
such measurements.
Even with high quality instrumentation, inherent background currents in the material
can make these measurements difficult to perform accurately. Insulating materials,
polymers, and plastics typically exhibit background currents due to piezoelectric effects,
capacitive elements charged by static electricity, and polarization effects. These background currents are often equal to or greater than the current stimulated by the applied
voltage. In these cases, the result is often unstable, providing inaccurate resistance or
resistivity readings or even erroneous negative values. Keithley’s Model 6517B is designed
to solve these problems and provides consistent, repeatable, and accurate measurements
for a wide variety of materials and components, especially when used in combination
with the Model 8009 Resistivity Test Fixture.
voltage and resistance measurements is 200TΩ for near-
16
Ω
Side Text
Simplifies measuring high resistances and the resistivity of insulating materials
1.888.KEITHLEY
www.keithley.com
Alternating Polarity Method
The Model 6517B uses the Alternating Polarity method, which virtually eliminates the
effect of any background currents in the sample. First and second order drifts of the
background currents are also canceled out. The Alternating Polarity method applies a
voltage of positive polarity, then the current is measured after a specified delay (Measure
Time). Next, the polarity is reversed and the current measured again, using the same
delay. This process is repeated continuously, and the resistance is calculated based on a
weighted average of the four most recent current measurements. This method typically
(U.S. only)
LOW LEVEL MEASURE & SOURCE
A GREATER ME ASURE OF C ONFIDENC E
6517B
Electrometer/High Resistance Meter
Ordering Information
6517B Electrometer/High
Accessories Supplied
237-ALG-2 Low Noise
Triax Cable, 3-slot Triax to
Alligator Clips, 2m (6.6 ft)
8607 Safety High Voltage
Dual Test Leads
6517-TP Thermocouple Bead Probe
CS-1305 Interlock Connector
CABLES
6517B-ILC-3 Interlock Cable
7007-1 Shielded IEEE-488 Cable, 1m (3.2 ft)
7007-2 Shielded IEEE-488 Cable, 2m (6.5 ft)
7009-5 R S-232 Cable
7078-TRX-3 Low Noise Triax Cable, 3-Slot Triax Connectors,
7078-TRX-10 Low Noise Triax Cable, 3-Slot Triax Connectors,
7078-TRX-20 Low Noise Triax Cable, 3-Slot Triax Connectors,
8501-1 Trigger Link Cable, 1m (3.3 ft)
8501-2 Trigger Link Cable, 2m (6.6 ft)
8503 Trigger Link Cable to 2 ma le BNCs, 1m (3.3 ft)
8607 1kV Source Banana Cables
PROBES
6517-RH Humidity Probe with Extension Cable
6517-TP Temperature Bead Probe (included with 6517B)
Simplifies measuring high resistances and the resistivity of insulating materials
TEST FIXTURE
8009 Resistivity Test Fixture
OTHER
CS-1305 Interlock Connector
ADAPTERS
237-BNC-TRX Male BNC to 3-Lug Female Triax Adapter
237-TRX-NG Triax Ma le-Female Adapter with Guard
237-TRX-T 3-Slot Male Triax to Dual 3-Lug Female Triax
237-TRX-TBC 3-Lug Female Triax Bulkhead Connector
7078-TRX-BNC 3-Slot Male Triax to BNC Adapter
7078-TRX-GND 3-Slot Male Triax to BNC Adapter with guard
7078-TRX-TB C 3-Lug Fem ale Tria x Bu lkhe ad Con nector
RACK MOUNT KITS
4288-1 Single Fixed Rack Mounting Kit
4288-2 Dual Fixed Rack Mounting Kit
SCANNER CARDS
6521 Low Current Scanner Card
6522 Voltage/Low Current Scanner Card
GPIB INTERFACES
KPCI- 488LPA IEEE-488 Interface/Controller for the PCI Bus
KUSB-488B IEEE-488 USB-to-GPIB Interface Adapter
Resistance Meter
ACCESSORIES AVAILABLE
0.9m (3 ft)
3m (10 ft)
6m (20 ft)
Disconnected
Tee A dapt er
(1.1kV rated)
removed
with Cap
produces a highly repeatable, accurate measurement of resistance (or resistivity) by the seventh
reversal on most materials (i.e., by discarding the
first three readings). For example, a 1mm-thick
sample of 10
14
Ω-cm material can be measured
with 0.3% repeatability in the Model 8009 test
fixture, provided the background current changes less than 200fA over a 15-second period.
Simple DMM-like Operation
The Model 6517B is designed for easy, DMM-like
operation via the front panel, with single-button
control of im por tant functions such as resistance measurement. It can also be controlled
via a built-in IEEE-488 inter face, which makes it
possible to program all func tions over the bus
through a computer controller.
High Accuracy High Resistance
Measurements
The Model 6517B offers a number of features
and capabili ties that help ensure the accuracy of
high resistance mea sure ment applications. For
example, the built-in volt age source simplifies
determining the relation ship between an insulator’s resistivity and the level of source voltage
used. It is well suit ed for capacitor leakage and
insulation resistance mea sure ments, tests of the
surface insula tion resis tance of printed circuit
boards, voltage coefficient test ing of resistors,
and diode leakage characteriza tion.
Temperature and Humidity Stamping
Humidity and temperature can influence the
resist ivity values of materials significantly. To
help you make ac curate comparisons of readings
acquired un der varying conditions, the Model
6517B offers a built-in type K thermo couple and
an optional Model 6517-RH Relative Humidity
Probe. A built-in data storage bu f fer allows
recording and recalling read ings stamped with
the time, tempera ture, and relative humidity at
which they were acquired.
Accessories Extend
Measurement Capabilities
A variety of optional accessories can be used
to extend the Model 6517B’s applications and
enhance its performance.
Scanner Cards. Two scan ner cards are available to simplify scan ning multiple signals. Either
card can be easily inserted in the option slot of
the instru ment’s back panel. The Model 6521
Scan ner Card offers ten channels of low-level
cur rent scanning. The Model 6522 Scanner Card
provides ten channels of high impedance vol t age
switching or low current switching.
Test Fixture. The Model 8009 Resistivity
Chamber is a guard ed test fixture for measuring
vol ume and sur face resistivities of sam ple mater ials. It has stain less-steel elec trodes built
to ASTM stan dards. The fixture’s elec trode
dimensions are pre- programmed into the Model
6517B, so there’s no need to calculate those
values then enter them man ually. This accessory
is designed to protect you from contact with
potentially hazardous voltages —opening the lid
of the cham ber automatically turns off the Model
6517B’s volt age source.
Applications
The Model 6517B is well suited for low current
and high impedance voltage, resistance, and
charge meas ure ments in areas of re search such
as physics, optics, and mater ials science. Its
extremely low voltage bur den makes it particularly appropriate for use in solar cell applications, and its built-in voltage source and low
current sensitivity make it an excellent solution
for high resistance measurements of nanomaterials such as polymer based nanowires. Its high
speed and ease of use also make it an ex cellent
choice for quality control, product engineering,
and production test appli ca tions involving leakage, breakdown, and resistance testing. Volume
and sur face resistivity measurements on nonconduc tive mater ials are particularly enhanced
by the Model 6517B’s voltage reversal method.
The Model 6517B is also well suited for electrochemistry applications such as ion selective electrode and pH measurements, conductivity cells,
and potentiometry.
Model 6517B Enhancements
The Model 6517B is an updated version, replacing the earlier Model 6517A, which was intro-
duced in 1996. Software applications created
for the Model 6517A using SCPI commands can
run without modifi cations on the Model 6517B.
However, the Model 6517B does offer some
useful enhancements to the earlier design. Its
internal battery-backed memory buffer can now
store up to 50,000 readings, allowing users to log
test results for longer periods and to store more
data associated with those readings. The new
model also provides faster reading rates to the
internal buffer (up to 425 readings/ second) and
to external memory via the IEEE bus (up to 400
readings/ second). Several connector modifi cations have been incorporated to address modern
connectivity and safety requirements.
1.888.KEITHLEY
LOW LEVEL MEASURE & SOURCE
www.keithley.com
(U.S. only)
A GREATER ME ASURE OF C ONFIDENC E
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