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Application Notes
Introduction
Its wide dynamic range makes the spectrum analyzer the test instrument of choice for measuring harmonic distortion, intermodulation distortion, adjacent channel power ratio, spurious-free dynamic range, gain compression, etc. Distortion measurements such as these are bounded on one side by the noise floor of the spectrum analyzer and on the other side by the signal power strength at which the spectrum analyzer’s internally generated distortion masks the distortion being measured. The simultaneous low noise floor and low internally generated distortion products uniquely qualify the spectrum analyzer for making distortion measurements.
Having wide dynamic range and accessing this dynamic range are two different things. Unless the user is given enough information on how to optimize the spectrum analyzer to make distortion measurements, its dynamic range performance cannot fully be exploited. Many distortion measurements are very straightforward: measure the fundamental tone power, measure the distortion product power, and compute the difference. Problems arise when the device under test has distortion product levels that approach the internally generated distortion product levels of the spectrum analyzer. Further complications arise when trying to maximize speed and minimize measurement uncertainty. In these cases more care in the measurement technique is required.
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