• Latest
  • Trending
  • All
  • Capacitors
  • Resistors
  • Inductors
  • Filters
  • Fuses
  • Non-linear Passives
  • Applications
  • Integrated Passives
  • Oscillators
  • Passive Sensors
  • New Technologies
  • Aerospace & Defence
  • Automotive
  • Industrial
  • Market & Supply Chain
  • Medical
  • RF & Microwave
  • Telecommunication

Dielectric properties: why they’re important and how to measure them

23.6.2017

Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

15.3.2023

TDK Extends Range of Industrial Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Inductors

15.3.2023

Premo Unveils New series of 11kW 3-Phase On-Board Charger Transformers

15.3.2023

TAIYO YUDEN Releases 150C Automotive Power Inductors

15.3.2023

TAIYO YUDEN Announces Completion of MLCC Material Building

15.3.2023

TDK’s High-Impedance Multilayer Common Mode Filters Mitigates Noise Issues in Automotive Interfaces

14.3.2023
  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • EPCI Membership & Advertisement
  • About
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
Passive Components Blog
  • Home
  • NewsFilter
    • All
    • Aerospace & Defence
    • Antenna
    • Applications
    • Automotive
    • Capacitors
    • Circuit Protection Devices
    • Filters
    • Fuses
    • Inductors
    • Industrial
    • Integrated Passives
    • Market & Supply Chain
    • Medical
    • New Materials & Supply
    • New Technologies
    • Non-linear Passives
    • Oscillators
    • Passive Sensors
    • Resistors
    • RF & Microwave
    • Telecommunication

    Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

    TDK Extends Range of Industrial Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Inductors

    Premo Unveils New series of 11kW 3-Phase On-Board Charger Transformers

    TAIYO YUDEN Releases 150C Automotive Power Inductors

    TAIYO YUDEN Announces Completion of MLCC Material Building

    TDK’s High-Impedance Multilayer Common Mode Filters Mitigates Noise Issues in Automotive Interfaces

    Sumida Introduces Unshielded High-Inductance Inductors

    Cornell Dubilier Announces Low Inductance DC Link Film Capacitors

    Bourns Introduces Automotive Resettable TCO Thermal Cut-off Protection Device

    Trending Tags

    • Ripple Current
    • RF
    • Leakage Current
    • Tantalum vs Ceramic
    • Snubber
    • Low ESR
    • Feedthrough
    • Derating
    • Dielectric Constant
    • New Products
    • Market Reports
  • VideoFilter
    • All
    • Antenna videos
    • Capacitor videos
    • Filter videos
    • Fuse videos
    • Inductor videos
    • Non-linear passives videos
    • Oscillator videos
    • Passive sensors videos
    • Resistor videos
    • Sensors

    Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

    Understanding Basics of Current Sense Resistors

    What Decoupling Capacitor Value To Use And Where To Place Them

    How to Measure Rated Current on Power Inductors

    LTspice Simulation of a Spark-Gap Circuit Protection Surge Arrester

    Approximate Inductor Design Using Two Alternative Cores

    1kW Phase Shift Full Bridge Converter Design and Simulation

    Multiphase Buck Trans-Inductor Voltage Regulator (TLVR) Explained

    Smart Power Distribution Unit Architecture and Inductor Losses

    Trending Tags

    • Capacitors explained
    • Inductors explained
    • Resistors explained
    • Filters explained
    • Application Video Guidelines
    • EMC
    • New Products
    • Ripple Current
    • Simulation
    • Tantalum vs Ceramic
  • Knowledge Blog
  • Suppliers
    • Preferred Suppliers
    • Who is Who
  • Events
  • Home
  • NewsFilter
    • All
    • Aerospace & Defence
    • Antenna
    • Applications
    • Automotive
    • Capacitors
    • Circuit Protection Devices
    • Filters
    • Fuses
    • Inductors
    • Industrial
    • Integrated Passives
    • Market & Supply Chain
    • Medical
    • New Materials & Supply
    • New Technologies
    • Non-linear Passives
    • Oscillators
    • Passive Sensors
    • Resistors
    • RF & Microwave
    • Telecommunication

    Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

    TDK Extends Range of Industrial Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Inductors

    Premo Unveils New series of 11kW 3-Phase On-Board Charger Transformers

    TAIYO YUDEN Releases 150C Automotive Power Inductors

    TAIYO YUDEN Announces Completion of MLCC Material Building

    TDK’s High-Impedance Multilayer Common Mode Filters Mitigates Noise Issues in Automotive Interfaces

    Sumida Introduces Unshielded High-Inductance Inductors

    Cornell Dubilier Announces Low Inductance DC Link Film Capacitors

    Bourns Introduces Automotive Resettable TCO Thermal Cut-off Protection Device

    Trending Tags

    • Ripple Current
    • RF
    • Leakage Current
    • Tantalum vs Ceramic
    • Snubber
    • Low ESR
    • Feedthrough
    • Derating
    • Dielectric Constant
    • New Products
    • Market Reports
  • VideoFilter
    • All
    • Antenna videos
    • Capacitor videos
    • Filter videos
    • Fuse videos
    • Inductor videos
    • Non-linear passives videos
    • Oscillator videos
    • Passive sensors videos
    • Resistor videos
    • Sensors

    Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

    Understanding Basics of Current Sense Resistors

    What Decoupling Capacitor Value To Use And Where To Place Them

    How to Measure Rated Current on Power Inductors

    LTspice Simulation of a Spark-Gap Circuit Protection Surge Arrester

    Approximate Inductor Design Using Two Alternative Cores

    1kW Phase Shift Full Bridge Converter Design and Simulation

    Multiphase Buck Trans-Inductor Voltage Regulator (TLVR) Explained

    Smart Power Distribution Unit Architecture and Inductor Losses

    Trending Tags

    • Capacitors explained
    • Inductors explained
    • Resistors explained
    • Filters explained
    • Application Video Guidelines
    • EMC
    • New Products
    • Ripple Current
    • Simulation
    • Tantalum vs Ceramic
  • Knowledge Blog
  • Suppliers
    • Preferred Suppliers
    • Who is Who
  • Events
No Result
View All Result
Passive Components Blog
No Result
View All Result

Dielectric properties: why they’re important and how to measure them

23.6.2017
Reading Time: 5 mins read
0 0
0
SHARES
3.6k
VIEWS

source: Electropages article

Keysight Technologies’ Giovanni D’Amore explains six methods of measuring this vital material characteristic.

RelatedPosts

Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

TDK Extends Range of Industrial Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Inductors

Premo Unveils New series of 11kW 3-Phase On-Board Charger Transformers

Have you heard of dielectric properties? If you have, you’re probably thinking back to charge storage experiments you did in physics lessons at school. You might also have come across them when analysing the way dielectric materials affect a capacitor’s characteristics. But, contrary to their perceived niche status, dielectric properties are important in many ways across many sectors. It’s therefore vital to be able to measure them accurately.

Below, we’ll outline a range of use cases, and look at six ways to measure dielectric properties, explaining when you might use each one.

Dielectric properties: a breadth of use cases

We’ve already established that dielectric properties are important in the electronics industry when it comes to capacitor performance. Electronics engineers are also interested in dielectric properties of substrates, and the printed circuit boards (PCBs) they create with them. Furthermore, dielectric properties play a role when making antennas using PCB traces, when creating ‘phantom’ materials for systems that measure specific absorption rates, when working with absorbers, and when managing the propagation of electromagnetic fields by applying ferrite materials.

Those working in defence and aerospace will also be concerned with dielectric properties, particularly when it comes to developing stealth technology, radomes and materials that absorb radiation.

Across various industries, manufacturers need ways of characterising materials. This includes composite and ceramic materials for car parts; plastics and polymers for insulation, films and fibres; hydrogels used in soft contact lenses and nappies; and liquid crystal found in displays.

In the food sector, dielectric properties are an important measurement technique, used in the creation of microwaveable food when researching spoilage, moisture and packaging.

In forestry, dielectric measurements are used to identify how much moisture is contained in wood and paper, while in mining, they help analyse the contents of oil.

Elsewhere, these properties are used in the pharmaceutical industries to support drug research and manufacturing. Human tissue characterisation, fermentation and biomass system design and bio-implant research are all areas that take advantage of the technique.

Measuring dielectric properties

There are different ways to measure dielectric properties, with each using precise instruments, fixtures to hold the material under test (MUT) and software that helps you measure complex permittivity and permeability factors, and then shows the results.

There are a range of products in this space, including impedance analysers, network analysers and LCR meters able to deliver accurate results when you apply frequencies up to 1.5 THz. Complementing these are fixtures that enable you to use the coaxial probe, coaxial/waveguide transmission line, free space, resonant cavity and parallel plate measurement techniques, which are shown in Figure 1 and described further below.

 

Fig1-Measuring-dielectric-properties
 

Figure 1: There are different ways to measure a material’s dielectric properties. (Source: Keysight Technologies)

 

So how do these measurement techniques work, and when might you use them?

Coaxial probe method

This technique is best for semi-solid materials (powders) and liquids. It’s non-destructive, straightforward and only requires a single measurement. A typical coaxial probe measurement system is made up of a network or impedance analyser, coaxial probe and appropriate software.

Choose your analyser and probe based on your measuring frequency, though the overall range is between 10M Hz and 50 GHz. You can also get probes that can withstand temperatures from -40°C to +200°C. These can be produced with a big flange, meaning you can also measure flat solid materials. There are slim probes available too, which are particularly helpful for taking measurements in chemical reaction chambers, fermentation tanks and other environments with small openings. For the medical, chemical and food sectors, there are high-performance probes that blend many of the above characteristics with the ability to be sterilised in an autoclave.

 

Fig2-Dielectric-probes
 

Figure 2: Different kinds of dielectric probe equipment (Source: Keysight Technologies)

 

Transmission line method

This broadband technique is designed for machinable solids. The MUT sits within an enclosed transmission line, and the frequency coverage is primarily restricted by the size of the sample holder.

Free space method

This non-contact technique uses antennas to direct microwave energy through or on to a material. You can use this method at high temperatures and at millimetre-wave frequencies.

Resonant cavity method

A resonant cavity is a high Q structure that will resonate at particular frequencies. When you introduce the MUT, this impacts on the centre frequency and Q factor of the cavity. This enables you to calculate its permittivity. Keysight makes a range of resonators, including the 85072A 10-GHz split-cylinder resonator and split-post dielectric resonators.

Parallel-plate capacitor method

This is the technique you might remember from school physics lessons. You create a capacitor by sandwiching a thin piece of your material between two electrodes. The parallel-plate capacitor method is ideal for achieving accurate, low-frequency measurements of liquids or thin sheets of material, typically using an impedance analyser or LCR meter.

Inductance measurement method

Finally, there’s the inductance measurement method, which measures a material’s inductance as though it were a toroidal core, thereby enabling you to derive its permeability. You wrap wire around the MUT and evaluate its inductance with respect to the wire ends. Keysight’s 16454A magnetic material test fixture is a good structure to use with single-turn inductors, because it won’t leak flux when you put a toroidal core into it.

The figure below shows the different testing approaches and types of fixture against the materials you’re testing and your measurement frequency.

 

Fig3-Keysight-probes-measurement-techniques
 

Figure 3: Different probes and measurement techniques enable you to measure a variety of materials at a range of test frequencies. (Source: Keysight Technologies)
 

Supporting software

Interpreting dielectric measurements as permeability and permittivity measurements can sometimes be difficult, but you can make your life easier by using software such as Keysight’s N1500A materials measurement suite. This helps you work with a network analyser, and guides you through the testing process, from set-up and measurement to transforming the resulting S-parameter data into the formats you require.

Because it works with a range of measurement techniques and mathematical models, the software can be used in most situations. You can also use it to model potential interactions between the MUT and the fixture, enabling you to extract bulk material properties.

The screenshot below shows how you define the MUT in relation to the fixture holding it in place. So-called ‘de-embedding’ enables you to cover one or both sides of your sample with dielectric backing. De-embedding mathematically eradicates the effect of the backing material, meaning you’re left solely with the electromagnetic properties of the sample. This technique is ideal when the sample isn’t able to stand by itself, or is attached to a substrate.

 

Fig4-software
Figure 4: Specialist software enables you to define your sample holder and use a technique called de-embedding. (Source: Keysight Technologies)

 

Related Posts

Capacitors

Investigating Modeling Techniques of Class II Ceramic Capacitors Losses for High Voltage and Current Applications

15.3.2023
2
Inductors

TDK Extends Range of Industrial Single Pair Ethernet (SPE) Inductors

15.3.2023
1
Market & Supply Chain

TAIYO YUDEN Announces Completion of MLCC Material Building

15.3.2023
2

Upcoming Events

Mar 15
March 14 @ 12:00 - March 16 @ 14:00 EDT

Design and Test of Non-Hermetic Microelectronic

Mar 19
March 19 - March 23

APEC 2023

Mar 22
14:00 - 15:00 CET

Parasitic Components in Power Converters – Fundamentals and Measurements Rohde & Schwarz Webinar

View Calendar

Popular Posts

  • Ripple Current and its Effects on the Performance of Capacitors

    3 shares
    Share 3 Tweet 0
  • What is a Dielectric Constant of Plastic Materials ?

    4 shares
    Share 4 Tweet 0
  • Understanding High-Precision Resistor Temperature Coefficient of Resistance

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • How to Choose the Right Inductor for DC-DC Buck Applications

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Capacitor Selection for Coupling and Decoupling Applications

    28 shares
    Share 28 Tweet 0
  • Why Low ESR Matters in Capacitor Design

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Leakage Current Characteristics of Capacitors

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Capacitor Losses (ESR, IMP, DF, Q), Series or Parallel Eq. Circuit ?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter Subscription

 

PCNS Call for Papers !

Archive

2022
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017

Symposium

Passive Components Networking Symposium

Passives e-Learning

Knowledge Blog

  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • EPCI Membership & Advertisement
  • About

© EPCI - Premium Passive Components Educational and Information Site

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Video
  • Knowledge Blog
  • Preferred Suppliers
  • Events

© EPCI - Premium Passive Components Educational and Information Site

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.