News Article
LED and PV solar cell testing on a budget
At less than$3000 Keithley’s new low voltage testing instrument is claimed to be the industry's lowest-cost SMU instrument in a 1A/20V range.
Keithley Instruments, a global provider of advanced electrical test instruments and systems, has revealed a low-cost addition to its Series 2400 SourceMeter instrument family.
Like all of Keithley's SMU (source measurement unit) instruments, the new Model 2401 SourceMeter instrument is optimised for high precision test applications such as current vs. voltage (I V) characterisation of photovoltaic solar cells, high brightness LEDs (HBLEDs), low voltage materials, and semiconductor devices, as well as resistance measurements; however, it now provides these advanced source and measurement unit capabilities at 20V and 1A signal levels at what Keithley says is an unprecedented low price.
According to marketing manager Charles Cimino, "The Model 2401 is priced at $USD2995, making it the test and measurement industry's lowest cost standalone source measurement instrument with a complete set of measurement ranges, features, and programmable operating modes."
He went on to note that it offers an economical alternative to test systems configured with separate programmable power supplies and digital multimeters or applications for which precision programmable power supplies lack sufficient accuracy, signal range, or resolution.
The Model 2401 operates and is programmed in exactly the same way as the other Series 2400 family member units within its 1A/20V range boundaries. It also integrates a highly stable DC power source with a true instrument-grade 5-1/2 or 6-1/2-digit multimeter in a single enclosure.
In operation, the Model 2401 can act as a voltage source, a current source, a voltmeter, an ammeter, and an ohmmeter, and provides four-quadrant bipolar and automatic source/sink operation. Referring to Keithley SMU convention, operating in I vs. V quadrants 1 or 3, it operates as a source, delivering power to a load. In quadrants 2 or 4, it operates as a sink, dissipating power internally from an external source such as a PV cell or other energy source.
Keithley says the Model 2401's combination of low cost, tightly integrated sourcing and measurement and wide dynamic range makes it well suited for a variety of both benchtop and system applications with low voltage requirements and with limited test hardware budgets.
It can be used for HBLED forward/reverse I-V and LIV (light-current-voltage) testing and solar cell efficiency tests providing data on source and sink current. Precision DC load characterisation, replaces readback supplies or supply/DMM combinations, which typically provide insufficient accuracy (IDDQ testing).
Other applications include active/passive component test, voltage/current/resistance measurements. The Model 2401 can also be operated on battery power and characterise implantable medical devices such as pacemakers. Characterising low-leakage electronic device and circuits (forward/reverse, transistor gain/leakage) it can be used to calibrate 3½- to 4½-digit data acquisition boards, meters, and DMMs.
The U.S. list price of the Model 2401 SourceMeter instrument is $2,995, with sales beginning immediately. Units will ship within eight weeks ARO through September 2011, then within four weeks ARO thereafter.
