News Article
New Precision Single-Phase Power Analyser Released
New semiconductor technologies such as GaN (gallium nitride) and SiC (silicon carbide) are emerging to meet the greater demands of today. To meet these requirements, new test and measurement tools are needed to keep pace.
Tektronix has expanded its family of precision power analysers with the introduction of the PA1000 single-phase power analyser.
Featuring a patent pending Spiral Shunt design, the PA1000 provides engineers designing and testing power supplies, consumer electronics and other electrical products with accurate power measurements in the shortest possible time.
Features such as a colour graphical display, one-button application modes and intuitive menu system enable optimum instrument set up in seconds, and the powerful PWRVIEW PC software includes comprehensive reporting features such as a full compliance IEC62301 standby power certificate.
Engineers developing power supplies for single-phase electronics face new demands for greater energy efficiency and lower line pollution, along with a growing array of government regulations and commercial demands to reduce energy consumption.
As new semiconductor technologies emerge, test and measurement tools such as the PA1000 will assume more importance
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The PA1000 claims 0.05 percent basic accuracy and 1 MHz measurement bandwidth. Two internal current shunts are included on each PA1000 - one for current measurements up to 1 A, for precise low-current measurements, and another for current measurements up to 20 A. The 1 A shunt is particularly useful for maintaining measurements resolution and accuracy on demanding low-current signals common to standby power testing.
A full-colour graphics display, unusual in this instrument class, makes setup and other tasks easy and intuitive, with one-button access to measurement results, power waveforms, harmonic bar graphs, and menus.
Application-specific test modes for standby current, lamp ballast testing and energy integration help to simplify optimisation of instrument settings, saving engineers time and reducing mistakes. PWRVIEW PC software further simplifies testing with one-click test automation for compliance-test applications.
The PA1000 offers standard features including LAN, USB and GPIB interfaces, harmonic analysis, and PC software that cost extra on many analysers. A five-year warranty and Tektronix worldwide support and service add to the value proposition.
Based on recent field and metrology analysis, Tektronix has released improved accuracy specifications for the PA4000 power analyser and extended the standard warranty to five years from the previous three years. The new accuracy specifications apply to RMS voltage, RMS current and Power. For instance RMS voltage accuracy was rated at ± 0.04 percent and has now been improved to a rating of ± 0.01 percent.
