The S-Parameter Measurements Interactive Example enables you to connect a single or dual vector signal transceiver (VST) setup to perform full S-parameter measurements without interacting directly with the Pulsed RF Measurement Library API. Use the example to determine the performance of the device being tested.

Note The S-Parameter Measurements API and interactive example requires calibration kit characterization data in the SNP file format. Keysight and many other calibration kit manufacturers provide characterization data in the XML-based *.xkt format. To use Keysight calibration kits with the S-Parameter Measurement API and Interactive example, use the Calibration Kit SNP File Creator tool to convert *.xkt files to SNP format (.s1p or .s2p). Refer to Converting Calibration Kit Characterizations to SNP Format for more information about using the tool.

The S-Parameter Measurements Interactive Example is located at: C:\Program Files\National Instruments\PRFM Library.

Refer to the following figure for an overview of the S-Parameter Measurements interactive panel.

Figure 15. S-Parameter Measurements Interactive Example Environment


  1. Menu Bar
  2. Configuration Pane
  3. Display Panes
  4. Control Pane

Configuration Pane Status Indicator

The state of the S-Parameter panel displays in the Status Indicator area of the Control Pane. Possible values are listed below.

Table 15. Status Indicator Possible States
State Description
Initializing The application is starting up, including initializing the user interface of the interactive example, internal registers, and events.
Ready to Connect The application is initialized properly and waiting for user intervention to configure or connect the hardware.
Ready–Connected The hardware is connected and configured without error. The application waits for the user to initiate a calibration or measurement.
Measuring The DUT is connected. The application continuously sweeps forward and reverse, and the interactive example displays the S-parameter measurements. The Status Indicator also displays a timestamp indicating when the calibration file was created.
Error An error has occurred during configuration or execution. The status indicator displays an error message, and the application automatically reverts to the last safe state. You can correct the error and redo any actions necessary. Errors are automatically logged in a text file in the following location: \Documents\LabVIEW Data\S-Parameters Measurement\System Level Errors\System Errors.txt
Exit The application exits following a user command, such as clicking Stop, closing the panel, navigating to File » Exit, or an error occurred during application startup.

Control Pane

The following user commands are available using the Control Pane.

Table 16. Control Pane Controls and Indicators
Control/Indicator Description
Measure/Pause Click Measure to begin the DUT sweep. When you click Measure for the first time or after performing calibration, a window appears to remind you to connect the DUT to the couplers before beginning measurement. During measurement, the Measure button changes to a Pause button. Clicking Pause stops the DUT sweeps but keeps the connection to the hardware open.
Note The Measure button is only enabled after connecting to the hardware.
Commit Click Commit to commit any modifications made in the Configuration Pane to the hardware. The Commit button is enabled only when the application is in an idle state (neither Measuring nor Error state), and you must stop measurement or calibration processes to commit parameters to the hardware.
Calibrate Click Calibrate to begin a guided calibration. The Calibration Wizard window opens to guide you through the calibration steps.
Note The Calibrate button is enabled only after connecting to the hardware.
Log Click Log to log the S-parameters as a .s2p file. The file saves to the location specified in the Configuration Pane.
Stop Click Stop to exit the application.
DUT Connected Displays TRUE when you confirm that the DUT is connected in the window that appears after you click Measure. This indicator is set to FALSE once you perform calibration or if you discard the message that appears after you click Measure.