Knowledge Centre
The hard part of measurement is rarely operating the instrument. It is knowing what to measure, why to measure it that way, and whether the number you get back can be trusted. These are the fundamentals, technical articles and application guides we have written. If you are working out whether a capability or an application fits, start here.
Written by KanTek Technology's engineering team. Where a third-party technical paper is cited, the original author is named and linked.
Fundamentals
“What is…?” Introductions to measurement concepts that assume no prior grounding in the field.
Error Vector Magnitude (EVM) Explained
How can a single percentage sum up the modulation quality of an entire transmitter?
EVM 誤差向量幅度是什麼
Calibration, Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty
Everything a calibration certificate is really worth sits in three places: the as-found readings, the uncertainty column, and the decision rule.
校正、追溯性與量測不確定度
Noise Figure: The Ceiling on Receiver Sensitivity
NF is not how much noise there is; it is how many dB this stage falls short of the theoretical limit.
雜訊指數 NF：接收機靈敏度的上限
Jitter Basics: Eye Diagrams, TIE, and Random/Deterministic Decomposition
Jitter and phase noise are one phenomenon in two coordinate systems; until you separate RJ from DJ, there is no total jitter at 10⁻¹² to quote.
抖動 Jitter：眼圖、TIE 與隨機/決定性分解
Oscilloscope Bandwidth, Sample Rate and Probes
Four things to settle before you choose a scope: bandwidth follows the edge, sample rate is not bandwidth, ADC bits decide whether you see the small signal at all, and the probe is part of the measurement.
示波器頻寬、取樣率與探棒
Phase Noise: What It Is, What It Costs, and How It Is Measured
A quoted “−110 dBc/Hz” says nothing whatsoever until it names the offset frequency.
相位雜訊：載波旁邊的那圈裙擺
RF Power Measurement: Average, Peak and Pulsed
For one and the same signal, average power, peak power and pulse power will be three different numbers.
射頻功率量測：平均、峰值與脈衝
Spectrum Analyzer Basics: RBW, VBW, Sweep Time and Dynamic Range
RBW decides whether you can resolve two signals, whether you can see the small one, and how long you have to wait.
頻譜分析儀入門：RBW、VBW 與掃描時間
Frequency Counter Basics: Gate Time, Resolution and the Timebase
Twelve digits are not something the counter counts — they are what the interpolator and the timebase decide between them.
頻率計數器入門：閘門時間與解析度
S-parameters & Vector Network Analysis
Why does RF describe a component with waves instead of with voltage and current?
S 參數與向量網路分析入門
Signal Generator Basics: CW Output, Modulation and Spectral Purity
From CW to vector modulation: each of those spectral purity numbers on the datasheet ruins a different measurement.
訊號產生器入門：CW、調變與訊號純度
EMC Pre-Compliance Testing and EMI Receivers
Find the frequencies that break the limit line and fix them on your own bench, before you book time at the accredited lab.
EMC 預合規測試與 EMI 接收器
Allan Deviation: Reading Frequency Stability in the Time Domain
The standard deviation of an oscillator never settles — the longer you measure, the larger the number gets, which is exactly why stability needed a different definition.
亞倫偏差：時頻穩定度該怎麼看
Selection Guides
Choosing between instruments: what the specifications mean and which ones decide the outcome.
How to Choose a Spectrum Analyzer: Seven Specifications That Decide
Frequency range, RBW, DANL, phase noise, dynamic range, analysis bandwidth and options — ask what the application is before you ask what the specification is.
頻譜分析儀怎麼選：七個決定性規格
Choosing a Frequency Standard: OCXO, Rubidium, Caesium and GNSS Disciplining
Which reference you should buy depends on whether the stability you care about is at 1 second or across a whole day.
頻率標準怎麼選：OCXO、銣原子與 GNSS
How to Choose an Oscilloscope: Bandwidth, Memory Depth and Probes
Turn the job in front of you into numbers you can put on an RFQ: bandwidth, sample rate in the channel configuration you will actually run, how long an event you have to capture, and a probe budget costed per channel.
示波器怎麼選：頻寬、記憶體與探棒
FAQ
Straight answers to the questions customers ask most often.
Instrument Calibration FAQ: Intervals, OEM vs Third Party, and Certificates
The ten questions that come up before and after a calibration: how the interval is set, whether it has to go back to the OEM, and how to read the certificate.
儀器校正常見問題：週期、原廠與報告
Rent or Buy? Five Questions Before You Commit to Test Equipment
Not which one is cheaper, but the answers to three things: how long you need it, how long the specification stays current, and what it costs to own.
儀器該租還是買？決策的五個問題
More on the way
These categories are being written. If there is a topic you would like sooner, write and tell us.
- Technical ArticlesDeeper technical argument: the principle, its limits, and why certain approaches go wrong.
- Application GuidesHow it is actually done: the procedure, the settings that matter, and what to watch for on site.
Now you know the theory, which instrument do you actually need?