What is CalReady? Does FieldFox have internal cal standards?

Each FieldFox is calibrated at the factory, at room temperature, at test ports 1 and 2, so you have an accurate CAT/VNA 2-port calibration stored in each FieldFox, one that is unique to that instrument. This calibration is called CalReady, and is completed over the entire frequency range of the analyzer. The symbol on the display is CalRdy. This calibration includes corrected error terms for directivity, source match, load match, transmission and reflection tracking, and isolation for both ports, 12 error terms. You can choose to apply a full 2-port cal CalReady, which uses all 12 error terms, or an enhanced response cal CalReady, which uses a subset of those error terms. You can select your CalReady type in the Cal {more} menu or the System {Preferences} menu. These twelve error terms only get updated when the instrument is sent back to a Keysight service center for the annual cal cycle. If you’ve kept your analyzer for five years, have worn the connectors, have not had it factory-calibrated, please be aware that you are still using the CalReady terms from five years ago. If you are depending on the CalReady, we highly recommend an annual calibration. You can check the date of your CAT/NA factory calibration by pressing [System], {Service Diagnostics}, {System Information}, {Next Page}. Read the date for the Reflectometer Factory Cal.

If your measurement temperature is very different than room temperature, you should consider performing a user cal, as CalReady error terms do not have built-in corrections for temperature variations. Of course this all assumes measurements directly at the test ports.

For more information about Keysight Fieldfox series, please visit FieldFox Handheld RF and Microwave Analyzers.