Signal Switching

In a test system, switching is as important as, or even more important, some elements, such as generation, digitization, signal conditioning, and so on. Since all the signals are routed between the unit under test (UUT) and the various resources composing the test system, the switching must in fact be sized to support all the signals, both in generation and in measurement. To achieve this, several elements must be taken into consideration by the user: whether they are differential signals or referenced to ground; What bandwidth is required? What are the switching and switching voltages and currents? What is cross channel crosstalk?

In the majority of test systems, there is no single switching solution, but several adapted to the relevant signals. For example, strong currents (power supplies, etc.), high voltages (insulation measurement, for example), low voltages (temperature sensor, etc.), high frequency signals (RF, microwave, etc.). The configuration of these signals will also require a suitable switching selection: 1 wire, 2 wire or 4 wire configurations, independent relays (SPST, DPST, SPDT …), multiplexer (1 to N), matrix Coaxial signals for high frequency signals.