RF Explorer User Manual page 41
Protecting your instrument from damage
RF Explorer is a very sensitive device. It can detect signals as low as -120dBm, which is 10E-12mW or 9nA
over a 50ohm load.
This extreme sensitivity comes at the price of some fragility; your device needs care handling and protection
in order to run for many years without problems.
Most RF technicians know the RF instruments have to be protected in order to survive the high Electro
Magnetic (EM) fields that may be in the environment.
Even expensive $50,000 full sized Spectrum Analyzers and Signal Analyzers for bench labs comes with a long
list of handling procedures the operator must observe in order to limit any chance of damage.
The first and most obvious precaution is to make sure the input RF power is not beyond the acceptable
levels of the instrument. Below are listed max tolerable input power levels, beyond these values the
instrument may get permanent damage or decreased sensitivity.
Note: these are max input levels to avoid damage, not actually measurable levels. As a general indication
keep power levels at least 20dB below these threshold levels to avoid measurement distortion.
You can easily extend these input power ranges by using external attenuators (see section
External
Attenuators in page 43), and/or Power Limiter (see section
RF Explorer Power Limiter
in page 45).
RF Explorer 3G Combo, 6G Combo and RFEMWSUB3G models and all PLUS models with internal attenuator
enable are well protected up to +30dBm (1Watt) input power, which is plenty to play safe in pretty much
any environment. No extra external protection is usually needed for these models if operated correctly.
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