User’s Guide
Volume 2
Measurement and Analysis
Agilent 4155C Semiconductor Parameter Analyzer
Agilent 4156C Precision Semiconductor Parameter Analyzer
Agilent Part No. 04156-90020
Printed in Japan January 2001
Edition 1
Legal Notice
The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice.
Copyright © 2001 Agilent Technologies
This document contains information which is protected by copyright. All rights are
reserved. Reproduction, adaptation, or translation without prior written permission
is prohibited, except as allowed under the copyright laws.
• Product Warranty
Agilent Technologies warrants Agilent Technologies hardware, accessories and
supplies against defects in materials and workmanship for the period of one year
from the warranty start date specified below. If Agilent Technologies receives
notice of such defects during the warranty period, Agilent Technologies will, at
its option, either repair or replace products which prove to be defective.
Replacement products may be either new or like-new.
Warranty service of this product will be performed at Agilent Technologies.
Buyer shall prepay shipping charges to Agilent Technologies and Agilent
Technologies shall pay shipping charges to return the product to Buyer.
However, Buyer shall pay all shipping charges, duties, and taxes for products
returned to Agilent Technologies from another country.
Agilent Technologies does not warrant that the operation of Agilent
Technologies products will be uninterrupted or error free. If Agilent
Technologies is unable, within a reasonable time, to repair or replace any
product to a condition as warranted, customer will be entitled to a refund of the
purchase price upon prompt return of the product.
The Agilent Technologies products may contain remanufactured parts
equivalent to new in performance or may have been subject to incidental use.
The warranty period begins on the date of delivery or on the date of installation
if installed by Agilent Technologies. If customer schedules or delays Agilent
Technologies installation more than 30 days after delivery, warranty begins on
the 31st day from delivery.
Warranty does not apply to defects resulting from (a) improper or inadequate
maintenance or calibration, (b) software, interfacing, parts or supplies not
supplied by Agilent Technologies, (c) unauthorized modification or misuse, (d)
operation outside of the published environmental specifications for the product,
or (e) improper site preparation or maintenance.
2 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
To the extent allowed by local law, the above warranties are exclusive and no
other warranty or condition, whether written or oral, is expressed or implied and
Agilent Technologies specifically disclaims any implied warranties or
conditions of merchantability, satisfactory quality, and fitness for a particular
purpose.
Agilent Technologies will be liable for damage to tangible property per incident
up to the greater of $300,000 or the actual amount paid for the product that is the
subject of the claim, and for damages for bodily injury or death, to the extent
that all such damages are determined by a court of competent jurisdiction to
have been directly caused by a defective Agilent Technologies product.
To the extent allowed by local law, the remedies in this warranty statement are
customer’s sole and exclusive remedies. Expect as indicated above, in no event
will Agilent Technologies or its suppliers be liable for loss of date or for direct,
special, incidental, consequential (including lost profit or date), or other damage,
whether based in contract, tort, or otherwise.
For consumer transactions in Australia and New Zealand: the warranty terms
contained in this statement, except to the extent lawfully permitted, do not
exclude, restrict or modify and are in addition to the mandatory statutory rights
applicable to the sale of this product to you.
• Assistance
Product maintenance agreements and other customer assistance agreements are
available for Agilent Technologies products.
For any assistance, contact your nearest Agilent Technologies Sales Office.
• Certification
Agilent Technologies, Inc. certifies that this product met its published
specifications at the time of shipment from the factory. Agilent Technologies
further certifies that its calibration measurements are traceable to the National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), to the extent allowed by the
Institute’s calibration facility, and to the calibration facilities of other
International Standards Organization members.
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 3
• Safety Summary
The following general safety precautions must be observed during all phases of
operation, service, and repair of this instrument. Failure to comply with these
precautions or with specific warnings elsewhere in this manual may impair the
protections provided by the equipment. In addition, it violates safety standards
of design, manufacture, and intended use of the instrument. Agilent
Technologies, Inc. assumes no liability for customer’s failure to comply with
these requirements.
NOTE Agilent 4155C/4156C/41501B comply with INSTALLATION CATEGORY II for
mains input and INSTALLATION CATEGORY I for measurement input terminals,
and POLLUTION DEGREE 2 defined in IEC 1010-1.
Agilent 4155C/4156C/41501B are INDOOR USE products.
NOTE LEDs in Agilent 4155C/4156C/41501B are Class 1 in accordance with IEC 825-1.
CLASS 1 LED PRODUCT.
• GROUND THE INSTRUMENT
This is Safety Class I instrument. To minimize shock hazard, the instrument
chassis and cabinet must be connected to an electrical ground. The power
terminal and the power cable must meet International Electrotechnical
Commission (IEC) safety standards.
• DO NOT OPERATE IN AN EXPLOSIVE ATMOSPHERE
Do not operate the instrument in the presence of flammable gases or fumes.
Operation of any electrical instrument in such an environment constitutes a
definite safety hazard.
• KEEP AWAY FROM LIVE CIRCUITS
Operation personnel must not remove instrument covers. Component
replacement and internal adjustments must be made by qualified
maintenance personnel. Do not replace components with power cable
connected. Under certain conditions, dangerous voltages may exist even
with the power cable removed. To avoid injuries, always disconnect power
and discharge circuits before touching them.
• DO NOT SERVICE OR ADJUST ALONE
Do not attempt internal service or adjustment unless another person, capable
of rendering first aid and resuscitation, is present.
4 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
• DO NOT SUBSTITUTE PARTS OR MODIFY INSTRUMENT
Because of the danger of introducing additional hazards, do not install
substitute parts or perform any unauthorized modification to the instrument.
Return the instrument to a Agilent Technologies Sales and Service Office for
services and repair to ensure that safety features are maintained.
• DANGEROUS PROCEDURE WARNINGS
Warnings, such as example below, precede potentially dangerous procedures
throughout this manual. Instructions contained in the warnings must be
followed.
WARNING Dangerous Voltage, capable of causing death, are present in this instrument.
Use extreme caution when handling, testing, and adjusting.
• Safety Symbols
The general definitions of safety symbols used on equipment or in manuals are
listed below.
Instruction manual symbol: the product will be marked with this symbol when it
is necessary for the user to refer to the instruction manual in order to protect
against damage to the instrument.
Indicates dangerous voltage and potential for electrical shock. Do not touch
terminals that have this symbol when instrument is on.
Protective conductor terminal. For protection against electrical shock in case of
a fault. Used with field wiring terminals to indicate the terminal which must be
connected to ground before operating equipment.
Frame or chassis terminal. A connection to the frame (chassis) of the equipment
which normally includes all exposed metal structures.
Indicates earth (ground) terminal.
Alternating current.
Direct current.
ON (Supply).
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 5
OFF (Supply).
STANDBY (Supply).
CAT 1
Means INSTALLATION CATEGORY I. Measurement terminals on the rear
panel comply with INSTALLATION CATEGORY I.
WARNING The warning sign denotes a hazard. It calls attention to a procedure, practice,
condition or the like, which, if not correctly performed or adhered to, could result in
injury or death to personal.
CAUTION The caution sign denotes a hazard. It calls attention to an operating procedure,
practice, condition or the like, which, if not correctly performed or adhered to, could
result in damage to or destruction of part or all of the product.
• Herstellerbescheinigung
GEÄUSCHEMISSION
Lpa < 70 dB
am Arbeitsplatz
normaler Betrieb
nach DIN 45635 T. 19
• Manufacturer’s Declaration
ACOUSTIC NOISE EMISSION
Lpa < 70dB
operator position
normal operation
per ISO 7779
6 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Printing History
Edition 1: January 2001
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 7
In This Manual
This manual provides information for measurement and analysis functions of
Agilent 4155C/4156C, and consists of the following chapters:
• Sweep Measurements
Describes how to perform sweep measurements.
• Knob Sweep Measurements
Describes how to perform knob sweep measurements.
• Sampling Measurements
Describes how to perform sampling measurements.
• Quasi-static C-V Measurements
Describes how to perform quasi-static C-V measurements.
• Stress Force
Describes how to perform stress force. Stress function is effective for the
reliability testing of semiconductor devices.
• Analyzing Measurement Results
Describes how to analyze measurement results manually and automatically.
• Measurement Units and Functions
Provides information about measurement units and measurement functions.
• Measurement Support Functions
Provides information about several functions which support measurements.
• Built-in Functions
Provides information about the built-in mathematical functions and read out
functions.
• Connecting Measurement Devices
Explains how to connect the measurement devices to the instrument.
8 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Contents
1. Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3
Basic Sweep Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
Subordinate Sweep Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Synchronous Sweep Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Pulse Sweep Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-11
Defining Measurement Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
To Define Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-16
To Set up Primary Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-18
To Set up Secondary Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-19
To Set up Synchronous Sweep . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
To Set up Constant Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-21
To Set up SMU Pulsed Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-22
To Set up PGU Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-24
To Set up Stop Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
To Display Graphics Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-27
To Display List Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-28
To Execute or Stop Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-29
Making a Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-30
Step 1. Prepare for the measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-31
Step 2. Mount your DUT on the test fixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-33
Step 3. Define the channel assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-35
Step 4. Define the user functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-37
Step 5. Set up the measurement parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-39
Step 6. Set up the results display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-41
Step 7. Execute the measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-43
2. Knob Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Available units and functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 Contents - 1
Contents
Normal Sweep and Knob Sweep Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
Features of Knob Sweep Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
KNOB SWEEP screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Analysis of the Knob Sweep Measurement Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9
Executing Measurements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
To Define Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11
To Execute Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
To Stop Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
To Change Measurement Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
3. Sampling Measurements
Measurement Functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Available Units. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Sampling Interval and Measurement Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Sampling Measurement Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Sampling Completion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9
Source Output Sequence and Time Origin. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Linear Sampling Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Thinned-out Sampling Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-16
Logarithmic Sampling Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-19
Defining Measurement Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-24
To Define Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-26
To Set up Sampling Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-27
To Set up Constant Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-29
To Set up PGU Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-30
To Define Stop Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-32
To Display Graphics Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-33
To Display List Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-34
To Execute or Stop Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-35
Making a Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Contents - 2 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Contents
Step 1. Prepare for the measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Step 2. Mount your DUT on the test fixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-36
Step 3. Define the channel assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-37
Step 4. Set up the measurement parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-38
Step 5. Set up the results display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-40
Step 6. Execute the measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-41
4. Quasi-static C-V Measurements
Measurement Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Available Units. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Capacitance Data Calculation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6
Defining Measurement Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
To Define Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-10
To Set up QSCV Sweep Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11
To Set up Stop Condition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-12
To Set up Constant Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
To Set up PGU Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
To Define Measurement Conditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-14
To Display Graphics Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-15
To Display List Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
To Execute or Stop Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Making a Measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-18
Step 1. Prepare for measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-18
Step 2. Mount your DUT on the test fixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-18
Step 3. Define the channel assignments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-19
Step 4. Set up the source parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-20
Step 5. Set up the measurement parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-22
Step 6. Set up the results display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-24
Step 7. Execute the measurement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-25
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 Contents - 3
Contents
Maximum Measurement Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-26
Considering Measurement Accuracy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-28
5. Stress Force
Stress Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Stress Output Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Stress Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Stress Force Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-7
Stress Stop Function at Abnormal Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Defining Stress Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
To Set up Stress Source Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-13
To Set up Stress Condition/Timing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
To Set up ac (Pulse) Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
To Set up dc Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
To Force Stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
6. Analyzing Measurement Results
Analysis Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Marker on the GRAPH/LIST: GRAPHICS screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
Marker on the GRAPH/LIST: LIST screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Line Drawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Scaling Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-11
Overlay Display Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Automatic Analysis Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Manual Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13
To Specify a Measurement Point on Curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14
To Specify between Measurement Points on Curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-16
To Display or Move Cursor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-18
To Adjust Display Range to Measurement Curve Automatically . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Contents - 4 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Contents
To Zoom the Display Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
To Center Display at Cursor Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20
To Draw Line through Two Specified Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20
To Draw Line through Specified Point with Specified Gradient . . . . . . . . . . 6-22
To Draw Tangent to Specified Point of Measurement Curve . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-24
To Draw Regression Line for Specified Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-26
To Display and Select a Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-28
To Display Grid on the Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-28
To Change Data Variable on Graph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-29
To Change Range of X or Y Axis Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-30
To Change Variable Assigned to X, Y1, or Y2 Axis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-31
To Overlay an Internal Memory Measurement Curve onto Plotting Area . . . 6-32
To Scroll the LIST screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-34
To Display or Move Marker on LIST screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-35
To Change Variables of LIST screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-36
Automatic Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-37
To Draw Line by Specifying Two Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-38
To Draw Line by Specifying Gradient and One Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-40
To Draw Tangent to Specified Measurement Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-42
To Draw Regression Line by Specifying Two Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-44
To Display Marker at Specified Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-47
7. Measurement Units and Functions
Measurement Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
GNDU - Ground Unit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
SMU - Source Monitor Unit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
VSU - Voltage Source Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-17
VMU - Voltage Monitor Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-18
PGU - Pulse Generator Unit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-20
Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-23
Voltage and Current Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-23
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Contents
Power Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-27
Measurement Ranging Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-29
Auto Ranging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-30
Limited Auto Ranging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-31
Compliance Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-32
Fixed Range . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-32
Measurement Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-33
Integration Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-33
Overhead Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
To Specify Source Output Time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
SMU Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-37
Self-calibration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
Zero Offset Cancel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-39
To Measure Offset Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-39
To Perform Offset Cancel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-41
QSCV Zero Offset Cancel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-42
To Measure Offset Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-42
To Perform Offset Cancel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-44
Operation States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-45
Idle State. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-45
Measurement State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-45
Stress Force State. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Standby State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Changing among Operation States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Output Sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
Sequential Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-49
Simultaneous Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
Contents - 6 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Contents
8. Support Functions
User Function and User Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3
Output or Measurement Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3
User Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-5
User Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-6
Syntax of Data Variable Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Standby Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
Standby Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
Standby State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
Available Units and Output Values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-14
Output Values of non-Standby Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-14
Output Sequence of Standby Channels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-15
When Getting Setup File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-16
To Use Standby Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-17
R-BOX Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-18
Resistance Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-18
Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-18
Setups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-20
Circuit Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-21
To Use R-Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-23
SMU/PG Selector Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-25
Setup and Switching Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-26
Restrictions using Selector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-26
To Use Selector. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-27
Switching Matrix Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-28
Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-28
To Control Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-31
To Control Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-36
To Use Matrix Setup File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-40
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Contents
Trigger Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-41
Trigger Input . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-43
Trigger Output . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-44
9. Built-in Functions
Built-in Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
ABS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
AT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
AVG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
COND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
DELTA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
DIFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-7
EXP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
INTEG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
LGT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
LOG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
MAVG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
MAX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
MIN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
SQRT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Read Out Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12
@CX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
@CY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
@CY1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
@CY2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
@IX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-14
@IY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-14
@IY1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
@IY2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-15
@L1CO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-16
@L1G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-16
Contents - 8 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Contents
@L1G1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-17
@L1G2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-18
@L1X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
@L1Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
@L1Y1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
@L1Y2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
@L2CO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-19
@L2G . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-20
@L2G1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-21
@L2G2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-22
@L2X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
@L2Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
@L2Y1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
@L2Y2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
@MI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-23
@MX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
@MY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
@MY1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
@MY2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-24
10. Connecting Measurement Devices
Using Test Fixture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Using Connector Plate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
To Reduce Leakage Current . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
To Measure Low Resistance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-7
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 Contents - 9
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Contents - 10 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
1 Sweep Measurements
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Sweep Measurements
This chapter consists of the following sections which describes how to execute a
sweep measurement:
•“Measurement Functions”
•“Defining Measurement Conditions”
•“Making a Measurement”
For details about the measurement setup screens, see Setup Screen Reference
manual.
1-2 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
Measurement Functions
For sweep measurements, the sweep source channels perform staircase sweep
output of voltage or current, while the monitor channels measure voltage or current
for each sweep step.
The 4155C/4156C provides three types of sweep measurement:
•“Basic Sweep Measurement”
One sweep source (VAR1) is used.
•“Subordinate Sweep Measurement”
A primary (VAR1) and secondary sweep source (VAR2) are used.
•“Synchronous Sweep Measurement”
A primary (VAR1) and synchronous sweep source (VAR1') are used.
Also, you can set up a combined subordinate and synchronous sweep measurement.
Available Units SMUs and VSUs can be sweep sources (VAR1, VAR2, and VAR1'). A sweep or
constant source SMU can be set to the pulsed source to prevent thermal drift of the
DUT.
Output Range Sweep source units use the following output range:
• minimum range covers all sweep output values in Linear sweep.
• minimum range covers all sweep output values in Log voltage sweep.
• optimum range for output value every sweep step in Log current sweep.
Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1 1-3
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
Basic Sweep Measurement
Basic sweep measurement uses one sweep source (VAR1).
The following sweep types are available:
• LIN/LOG
• Linear staircase
• Logarithmic staircase
• SWEEP MODE
• Single Source channel sweeps the output from user specified start value to
stop value.
• Double Source channel sweeps the output from user specified start value to
stop value, then from stop value to start value.
You can select any combination of LIN/LOG and SWEEP MODE as shown in the
following table:
1-4 Agilent 4155C/4156C User’s Guide Vol.2, Edition 1
Figure 1-1 Basic Sweep Measurement
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
To set up basic sweep measurement, select VAR1 function for desired SMU or VSU
on CHANNELS: CHANNEL DEFINITION screen.
Parameters
Also, specify the following parameters for VAR1 on MEASURE: SWEEP SETUP
screen.
Parameter Description
sweep mode Single or double sweep.
linear/log Linear or logarithmic sweep. For logarithmic sweep, select the
number steps in one decade as follows:
LOG10 10 steps in one decade.
LOG25 25 steps in one decade.
LOG50 50 steps in one decade.
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Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
start Start value of sweep. For logarithmic sweep, start must not be
zero. Allowable range of start depends on output range of
sweep source. For output range of each measurement channel,
refer to Chapter 7.
stop Stop value of single sweep or turning back value of double
sweep. For logarithmic sweep, stop must have same polarity as
start, and must not be zero. Allowable range of stop depends on
output range of sweep source. For output range of each
measurement channel, refer to Chapter 7.
step • For linear sweep, step is step increment of sweep. Number
of sweep steps is calculated from start, stop, and step.
Calculated number of steps must be in range: 2 to 1001.
• For logarithmic sweep, step is invalid. Number of sweep
steps is calculated from start, stop, and number of steps in
one decade, which is specified by log parameter. Calculated
number of steps must be in range: 2 to 1001.
compliance Compliance value of sweep source. This parameter applies to
SMU only. Allowable range of compliance depends on the
compliance range of sweep source. For the compliance range of
each measurement channel, refer to Chapter 7.
power compliance (Optional) Power compliance value of sweep source. This
parameter applies to SMU only. Allowable range depends on
power compliance range of sweep source. For details, refer to
Chapter 7.
hold time Time required for DUT to settle after forcing start value.
Allowable range is 0 to 655.35s. Resolution: 10 ms.
delay time Time required for DUT to settle after stepping the output.
Allowable range: 0 to 65.535 s. Resolution: 100 ms
Refer to Setup Screen Reference for setting up these parameters.
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Subordinate Sweep Measurement
For subordinate sweep measurement, you set up a secondary sweep source (VAR2)
in addition to a primary sweep source (VAR1). After primary sweep is completed,
the output of secondary sweep source is incremented or decremented by the
specified step value, then the primary sweep source is swept again.
Figure 1-2 Subordinate Sweep Measurement
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
To set up the subordinate sweep measurement, select the following on CHANNELS:
CHANNEL DEFINITION screen:
• VAR1 function for desired primary sweep source (SMU or VSU).
• VAR2 function for desired secondary sweep source (SMU or VSU).
Subordinate sweep measurement has the following restriction:
• For the secondary sweep source, only single sweep mode and linear staircase
mode are available.
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Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
Parameters
The parameters for primary sweep source (VAR1) are same as the parameters for
sweep source of basic sweep measurement. For secondary sweep source (VAR2),
specify the following parameters on MEASURE: SWEEP SETUP screen.
Parameter Description
start Start value of secondary sweep. Allowable range of start
step Step increment of secondary sweep.
number of steps Number of secondary sweep steps.Allowable range: 1 to 128.
NOTE Stop value
Stop value of secondary sweep is calculated from start, step, and number of steps.
Allowable range of stop depends on the output range of secondary sweep source.
For the output range of each measurement channel, refer to Chapter 7.
compliance Compliance value of secondary sweep source. This parameter
depends on the output range of secondary sweep source. For the
output range of each measurement channel, refer to Chapter 7.
applies to SMU only. Allowable range of compliance depends
on the compliance range of secondary sweep source. For the
compliance range of each measurement channel, refer to
Chapter 7.
power compliance (Optional) Power compliance value of secondary sweep source.
This parameter applies to SMU only. Allowable range of power
compliance depends on the power compliance range of sweep
source. For details, refer to Chapter 7.
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Synchronous Sweep Measurement
For synchronous sweep measurement, you set up a synchronous sweep source
(VAR1') in addition to a primary sweep source (VAR1). The output of the
synchronous sweep source is swept synchronously with the output of the primary
sweep source at a constant offset value and ratio.
Figure 1-3 Synchronous Sweep Measurement
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
To set up synchronous sweep measurement, select the following on CHANNELS:
CHANNEL DEFINITION screen:
• VAR1 function for desired primary sweep source (SMU or VSU).
• VAR1' function for desired synchronous sweep source (SMU or VSU).
Synchronous sweep mode has the following restrictions:
• For the following, VAR1' is always set to the same mode as VAR1:
• linear/log staircase
• single/double sweep mode
• VAR1 and VAR1' must be same V/I output mode. For example, if VAR1 is set to
V mode, then VAR1' must be set to V or VPULSE mode.
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Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
Parameters
The parameters for primary sweep source (VAR1) are same as the parameters for
sweep source of basic sweep measurement. For synchronous sweep source (VAR1'),
specify the following parameters on MEASURE: SWEEP SETUP screen.
Parameter Description
offset Offset between outputs of primary and synchronous sweep
sources.
ratio Ratio between outputs of primary and synchronous sweep
sources.
compliance Compliance value of synchronous sweep source. This
parameter applies to SMU only. Allowable range of compliance
depends on the compliance range of synchronous sweep source.
For the compliance range of each measurement channel, refer to
Chapter 7.
power compliance (Optional) Power compliance value of synchronous sweep
source. This parameter applies to SMU only. Allowable range
of power compliance depends on the power compliance range
of synchronous sweep source. For details, refer to Chapter 7.
The relationship between the output of primary and synchronous sweep sources is
determined by the following equation:
synchronous output = primary output ´ ratio + offset
The synchronous output determined by above equation must not exceed the output
range of synchronous sweep source.
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Pulse Sweep Measurement
For a sweep measurement, a sweep or constant source SMU can be a pulse source.
But only one SMU can be a pulse source. Figure 1-4 shows the relationship between
pulse source and other sources.
Figure 1-4 Pulse Source and Other Sources
Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
For the pulse sweep measurement, the delay time of the primary sweep source is
ignored, and each step of the primary sweep source is synchronized with output of
the SMU pulse source. Measurements are made during the pulse output.
The pulse output of PGU is not synchronized with any other source.
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Sweep Measurements
Measurement Functions
Figure 1-5 SMU Pulse
Parameters
Specify SMU pulse parameters (MEASURE: SWEEP SETUP):
Parameter Description
pulse period SMU forces the next pulse after specified pulse period.
Allowable range: 5 ms to 1 s. Resolution: 100 ms.
pulse width Time from when SMU output starts to change from base value
to time when SMU starts to return from peak value.
Measurements are made while the peak value is output.
Allowable range: 0.5 ms to 100 ms. Resolution: 100 ms.
base value The base output value of the SMU pulse.
Be aware that if any of following are true, pulsed SMU channel may not output the
pulse period and pulse width you specified:
• Measurement range differs from compliance range (lowest range that includes
compliance).
• Ranging mode is set to auto range or limited auto range.
• Multi-channel measurement is set.
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