Calibration of an LCR-Meter at Arbitrary Phase Angles Using a Fully Automated Impedance Simulator

A fully automated impedance simulator, called iSimulator, capable of simulating impedances ranging from 1 Omega to 10 M Omega, at arbitrary phase angles, over a large frequency range (from 100 Hz to 20 kHz) is presented. The validation of the instrument is performed by calibrating a commercial LCR-meter up to 20 kHz along the axis of the complex plane. The results of the iSimulator calibration are in good agreement with measurements carried out using the classical artifact-based method. This validation clearly demonstrated the unique capabilities of the iSimulator, based on its flexibility, broad impedance and frequency range, full coverage of the complex plane, and its full automation. In the near future, impedance simulators will definitely play a privileged role in the entire impedance calibration field both in National Metrology Institutes and in industrial calibration laboratories.