Floating multichannel picoammeter

User’s Manual

February 24, 2015

Contents

1 Getting started 3

1.1 Connecting parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

1.2 Turning the picoammeter on/off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

1.3 Charging the picoammeter battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

1.4 Connecting picoammeter to the GEM electrode . . . . . . . . 5

1.5 Installation of USB driver and running LabVIEW application 7

1.5.1 Installation USB driver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

1.5.2 LabVIEW application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

2 Measurement consideration 14

2.1 Leakage currents and guarding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

2.2 Input bias current . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

2.3 Voltage burden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

2.4 Noise and source impedance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

2.4.1 Source resistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

2.4.2 Source capacitance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

2.5 Electrostatic interference and shielding . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

1
2.6 Making connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

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Chapter 1

Getting started

Measurement system based on the Multi-channel floating picoammeter con-

sist of three main parts 1.1:

1. Floating battery powered Picoammeter (±125 nA range)

2. Versatile link optical fiber, 5 m length

3. USB powered FPGA optical receiving daughterboard

Figure 1.1: left: picoammeter, middle: picoammeter + optical fiber, right: FPGA
daughter board

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1.1 Connecting parts
• Connect the picoammeter to the branch where current measurement
is needed according to the instructions described later in this manual.
• Connect one end of optical fibre to the optical transmitter on picoam-
meter.
• Connect second end of the optical fibre to the optical receiver on FPGA
daughter board.
• Connect mini USB cable from FPGA daughter board to your PC.

If there is more than one channel needed repeat the steps for optical
fibre connection for each channel. On figure 1.2 you can see 2 picoammeters
connected with optical fibres to FPGA daughter board which is connected
with USB cable to PC.

Figure 1.2: Two picoammeters connected with optical fibres to FPGA daughter
board

1.2 Turning the picoammeter on/off

A small battery hidden below pcb board in black housing is used as power
supply for the picoammeter. Black housing of the picoammeter has a pocket
where small NdFeB magnet is located.

• Picoammeter is turned on by removing the magnet from the pocket

on the plastic case. If the FPGA board is powered and picoameter is
connected to the board by optical fibre, the red LED on the FPGA
board will lit according to the active optical input.

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 • When you return the magnet into small pocket on black housing pi-
coammeter will turn off.

You can simply check if picoammeter is on/off by removing optical fibre

from picoammeter and looking if red led diode is active.

1.3 Charging the picoammeter battery

Picoammeter is equipped with the 3,7 V 350 mAh LiPo battery. When
fully charged, the battery should last approx. 9 days of the continuous
operation. When battery is depleted picoammeter will stop to work. The
battery is charged using the charger that has to be connected to the micro
USB connector (regular mobile phone charger). Charging wires (black and
white) have to be connected to the picoammeter in same way as on the
figure 1.3.

Figure 1.3: Charging the battery

Red light on charger PCB indicates that charging is active. Blue light
indicates that charging process is completed.

1.4 Connecting picoammeter to the GEM elec-

trode

There are two current measurement connections named PAD2 and PAD1
shown on figure 1.4. When connecting picoammeter for measurement PAD2

5
is connected on high impedance node and PAD1 is connected to low impedance
node. PAD2 is positive current input.

PAD2
PAD1

Figure 1.4: Picoammeter with marked current measurement connections

Figure 1.5 represents block diagram of the picoammeter connection to

the GEM electrode.

Protection resistor

GEM electrode
HV_POT

PAD2 PAD1
pA
Figure 1.5: Block diagram of picoammeter connection

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1.5 Installation of USB driver and running Lab-
VIEW application

1.5.1 Installation USB driver

Copy PMF pA folder somewhere on your PC. The folder that you will need
for driver installation is located inside PMF pA folder and named driver.
The steps for driver installation are next:

• Connect FPGA daughter board with USB cable to your computer.

• When the FPGA board is connected you should be able to see ”PMF
nAmmeter” in Device Manager marked with the flag that indicates
that driver installation is needed.

Figure 1.6

• Do the right click with your mouse on PMF nAmmeter then choose
Update Driver Software.

7
 Figure 1.7

• When Update Driver Software window opens choose Browse my com-

puter for driver software

Figure 1.8

• Find the location on you disk where the folder driver is located and
click next.

8
 Figure 1.9

• If the Windows Security widow shows up with the message that Win-
dows can’t verify the publisher of this driver software choose Install
this driver software anyway.

Figure 1.10

• Once you see Windows has successfully updated your driver software
message click on Close button to finish the driver installation.

9
 Figure 1.11

• If everything went OK there should be ”PMF nAmmeter” in Device

Manager without any flag.

Figure 1.12

• When you open NI MAX (Measurement and automation explorer) you

should be able to see PMF nAmmeter in Devices and Interfaces .

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Figure 1.13

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1.5.2 LabVIEW application

Next step is to run LabVIEW application for the picoammeter. Once drivers
are installed you should be able to open pA application

• open folder named PMF pA

• open LabVIEW project pAmmeter.lvproj

• open main application file pAmmeter main.vi

• if the FPGA board is connected to computer click play command to

start the application

Application is organized in two tabs: Measurement and Settings, figure

1.14 and 1.15. Measurement has controls for measurement data display and
filter controls. Settings tab is where calibration data of the picoammeters is
defined.

Sampling frequency between PC and FPGA is fixed to 2 kHz and

cannot be changed via LabVIEW application. To change readout frequency
one should change firmware of the FPGA.

Mean values of the one

transfer data block

Std. Deviations of the

one transfer data block
HIDE/SHOW channel

USB sampling
frequency

Notch filter band, Hz

Notch frequency, Hz

Low-pass filter
crossover frequency

Enable Low-pass/
Notch filter

STOP the application

Figure 1.14: LabVIEW picoammeter application measurement tab

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 Number of data points in
each transfer. Defines
speed of the execution of
the main loop. Eg. 1000
data points at 2 kHz
sampling frequency sets
refresh rate to 2 Hz
Calibration data for
each picoammeter.
The parameters a and
b are marked on back
of the each of the
picoammeter

I=a*(ADC_VALUE)+b

Figure 1.15: LabVIEW picoammeter application settings tab

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Chapter 2

Measurement consideration

In this chapter some considerations for making accurate amps measurements

are mentioned which have been copied from Keithley 6485 Manual [1] and
same consideration can be applied to the measurement with this picoamme-
ter.

It is critical that the picoammeter perform the measurement without in-

terfering with the flow of current in the circuit, possibly affecting operation
or inducing additional errors. Voltage burden is the terminal voltage of a
picoammeter, and ideally this voltage should be zero (no resistive effect).
Some meters, such as DMMs, utilize a shunt resistor to measure the volt-
age drop across a known resistance, and a typical burden of 200mV is not
unusual.

The Keithley 6485 uses an alternative approach referred to as a feedback

picoammeter, where the voltage burden is simply the input voltage of an op-
erational amplifier. Furthermore, since the input voltage of the operational
amplifier is the output voltage divided by the gain (typically 500,000) the
voltage burden is in the microvolt range.

2.1 Leakage currents and guarding

Leakage currents are generated by high resistance paths between the mea-
surements circuit and nearby sources. These currents can considerably de-

14
grade the accuracy of low current, measurements. Some ways to reduce
leakage currents are to use good quality insulators, reduce humidity, and
use guarding. Guarding can also be used to reduce the effect of shunt ca-
pacitance in the measurement circuit.

One way to reduce leakage currents is to use good quality insulators when
building the test circuit. Some good quality insulators are Teflon, polyethy-
lene, and sapphire. Avoid materials such as phenolics and nylon. Refer to
Keithley’s Low Level Handbook for additional information on choosing the
best insulator.

Humidity may also degrade low current measurements. The amount of

water an insulator absorbs will vary depending upon the insulator. It is best
to choose an insulator on which water vapor does not readily form a con-
tinuous film. Sometimes this is unavoidable if the material being measured
absorbs water easily, so it is best to make the measurements in an envi-
ronmentally controlled room. In some cases, an insulator may have ionic
contaminants and, especially in high humidity, a spurious current may be
generated.

Another way to reduce leakage currents is to use guarding. A guard is a

conductor connected to a low impedance point in the circuit that is nearly
at the same potential as the high impedance lead being guarded. Guarding
can isolate the high-impedance input lead of the picoammeter from leakage
current due to voltage sources.

Guarding may also be necessary to prevent leakage current due to text

fixturing. Figure 2.1 shows a high-megohm resistor supported on two insu-
lators mounted in a metal test fixture. This circuit is guarded by connecting
the LO of the picoammeter (A) to the metal case. This will put the top of
the right insulator at almost the same potential as the bottom. The voltage
difference is equal to the voltage burden of the picoammeter. Since the top
and the bottom of the insulator are at nearly the same potential, no signifi-
cant current will flow through it, and nearly all the current from the device
under test will flow through the picoammeter as well.

15
 Figure 2.1: Guarding to reduce leakage currents

2.2 Input bias current

An ideal picoammeter would read 0 A with an open input. In practice,

however, ammeters do have some current that flows when the input is open.
This current is known as the input bias (offset) current and may be large
enough to corrupt low current measurements. The input bias current for
Model 6485 is included in the offset portion of the accuracy specification.

2.3 Voltage burden

The input resistance of the picoammeter causes a small voltage drop across
the input terminals. This voltage is known as the voltage burden. If the
voltage burden is large in relation to the voltage of the measured circuit,
then significant measurement errors will occur.

Refer to Figure 2.2 to see how voltage burden affects current measure-
ments. Assume VS is 5mV and RS is 5kΩ to configure a 1µA current source
(5mV/5kΩ = 1µA). An ideal picoammeter with zero voltage burden would
allow 1µA to flow and measure it accurately.

16
 In practice however, every picoammeter has a voltage burden. If the
voltage burden (VB ) is 1mV, the current that flows will be:

VS − VB 5mV − 1mV
IM = = = 0.08µA (2.1)
RS 5kΩ

The 1mV voltage burden caused a 20% current reduction. Percent error
in a measured reading (IM ) due to voltage burden can be calculated as
follows:

100%
IM %error = (2.2)
VS /VB
The voltage burden of Model 6485 depends on the selected range (see speci-
fications). Voltage burden may be reduced by performing the voltage offset
correction procedure.

Figure 2.2: Voltage burden considerations

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2.4 Noise and source impedance

Noise can seriously affect sensitive current measurements. The following

paragraphs discuss how source resistance and input capacitance affect noise
performance.

2.4.1 Source resistance

The source resistance of the DUT will affect the noise performance of current
measurements. As the source resistance is reduced, the noise gain of the
picoammeter will increase, as we will now discuss.

Figure 2.3 shows a simplified model of the feedback picoammeter. RS

and CS represent the source resistance and source capacitance, VS is the
source voltage, and VN OISE is the noise voltage. Finally, RF and CF are
the feedback resistance and capacitance respectively.

The source noise gain of the circuit can be given by the following equa-
tion:

OutputVNOISE = InputVNOISE (1 + RF /RS ) (2.3)

Note that as RS decreases in value, the output noise increases. For exam-
ple, when RF = RS , the input noise is multiplied by a factor of two. Since
decreasing the source resistance can have a detrimental effect on noise per-
formance, there are usually minimum recommended source resistance values
based on measurement range. Table 2.1 summarizes minimum recommended
source resistance values for various measurement ranges. Note that the rec-
ommended source resistance varies by measurement range because the RF
value also depends on the measurement range.

Table 2.1: Minimum recommended source resistance values

Range Minimum Recommended Source Resistance

2 nA, 20 nA 1MΩ to 1GΩ
200 nA, 2µA 10kΩ to 10MΩ
20µA, 200µA 100Ω to 100kΩ
2 mA, 20 mA 10Ω to 1kΩ

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 PMF pA has input range from -100 to +100 nA. Minimum
recomedned series resistance is 10 kΩ.

Figure 2.3: Simplified model of a feedback picoammeter

2.4.2 Source capacitance

DUT source capacitance will also affect the noise performance of the Model
6485 picoammeter. In general, as source capacitance increases, the noise
also increases. To see how changes in source capacitance can affect noise
gain, again refer to the simplified picoammeter model in Figure 2.3. The
elements of interest for this discussion are the source capacitance, CS and
the feedback capacitance CF . Taking into account the capacitive reactance
of these two elements, the previous noise gain formula must be modified as
follows:
OutputVNOISE = InputVNOISE (1 + ZF /ZS ) (2.4)
Here, ZF represents the feedback impedance made up of CF and RF , while
ZS is the source impedance formed by RS and CS . Furthermore,

RF
ZF = p , (2.5)
[(2πf RF CF )2 + 1]
and
RS
ZS = p (2.6)
[(2πf RS CS )2 + 1]

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Note that as CS increases in value, ZS decreases in value, thereby increasing
the noise gain. Again, at the point where ZS = ZF , the input noise is
amplified by a factor of two.

The maximum value of source capacitance (CS ) for the lower ranges of
the Model 6485 picoammeter is 10,000pF. You can, however, usually measure
at higher source capacitance values by inserting a resistor in series with the
picoammeter input, but remember that any series resistance will increase
the voltage burden by IIN ·RSERIES . For example, the range of resistance
listed in Table 2.1 will result in voltage burden values in range of 2mV to
2V. A useful alternative to a series resistor is a series diode, or two diodes
in parallel back-to-back. The diodes can be small-signal types and should
be in a light-tight enclosure.

2.5 Electrostatic interference and shielding

Electrostatic interference is probably the most common source of error when

making low current measurements. Electrostatic coupling or interference oc-
curs when an electrically charged object is brought near an uncharged object.
At low impedance levels, the effect of the interference are not noticeable be-
cause the charge dissipates rapidly. However, high resistance materials do
not allow the charge to decay quickly, which may result in unstable measure-
ments. The erroneous readings may be due to either DC or AC electrostatic
fields, so electrostatic shielding will help minimize the effects of these fields.

DC fields can produce noisy readings or undetected errors. These fields

can be detected when movement near an experiment (such as the movement
of the person operating the instrument or others in the immediate vicinity)
causes fluctuations on the picoammeter’s display. To perform a quick check
for interference, place a piece of charged plastic, such as a comb, near the
circuit. A large change in the meter reading indicates insufficient shielding.

AC fields can be equally troublesome. These are caused most often by

power lines and RF fields. If the AC voltage at the input is large, part of this
signal is rectified, producing an error in the DC signal being measured. This
can be checked by observing the analog output of the picoammeter with an
oscilloscope. A clipped waveform indicates a need to improve electrostatic
shielding.

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 Figure 2.4 shows an example of AC electrostatic coupling. An electro-
static voltage source in the vicinity of a conductor, such as a cable or trace
on a PC board, generates a current proportional to the rate of change of
the voltage and of the coupling capacitance. This current can be calculated
with the following equation:

dV dC
i=C +V (2.7)
dt dt

Figure 2.4: Electrostatic coupling

For example, two conductors, each with l cm2 area and spaced l cm apart
by air, will have almost 0.1 pF of capacitance. With a voltage difference of
100V and a vibration causing a change of capacitance of 0.01 pF/second (a
10% fluctuation), a current of 1 pA will be generated.

To reduce the effects of the fields, a shield can be built to enclose the
circuit being measured. The easiest type of shield to make is a simple metal
box or meshed screen that encloses the test circuit. Shielded boxes are also
available commercially.

Figure 2.5 illustrates an example of shielding. Made from a conductive

material, the shield is always connected to the low impedance input of the
electrometer or picoammeter. If circuit low is floating above ground, observe
special safety precautions to prevent anyone from touching the shield.

The cabling in the circuit also requires shielding. Capacitive coupling

between an electrostatic noise source and the signal conductors or cables can
be greatly reduced by surrounding those conductors with a grounded metal
shield, as shown in Figure 2.6. With this shield in place, the noise current

21
 Figure 2.5: Shielding a high impedance device

generated by the electrostatic voltage source and the coupling capacitance

flows through the shield to ground rather that through the signal conductors.

Figure 2.6: Electrostatic shielding

To summarize, error currents due to electrostatic coupling can be mini-

mized by following these guidelines:

• Keep all charged objects (including people) and conductors away from
sensitive areas of the test circuit.

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 • Avoid movement and vibration near the test area.
• When measuring currents ¡1nA, shield the device under test by sur-
rounding it with a metal enclosure and connect the enclosure electri-
cally to the test circuit common terminal.

Shielding vs. Guarding

Shielding usually implies the use of a metallic enclosure to prevent elec-

trostatic interference from affecting a high impedance circuit. Guarding im-
plies the use of an added low impedance conductor, maintained at the same
potential as the high impedance circuit, which will intercept any interfering
voltage or current. A guard does not necessarily provide shielding.

2.6 Making connections

To avoid measurement errors, it is critical to make proper connections from

the picoammeter to the device under test. To make a proper connection,
always connect the high resistance terminal of the meter (PAD2)
to the highest resistance point of the circuit under test.

Figure 2.7 shows a picoammeter connected to a current source that con-

sists of a voltage source in series with a resistor. An AC powered voltage
source usually has a significant level (often several volts) of line frequency
common mode voltage.

Figure 2.7: Connecting the HI terminal (picoammeter) to high resistance

23
 As shown in Figure 2.8, this will cause a current (i) to flow through the
low to ground capacitance of the picoammeter (A). Picoammeter HI (PAD2)
is connected to the highest resistance side of the circuit being measured, the
“R” side of this current source. This circuit is connected properly, so this
current does not flow through the picoammeter and, therefore, does not
cause any measurement errors.

Figure 2.8: Proper connection

However, when the HI of the picoammeter is connected to the low

impedance power supply, this AC current (i) flows through the picoammeter
(A) as illustrated in Figure 2.9. This current may affect the measurement
accuracy, especially at low signal levels.

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Figure 2.9: Improper connection

25
Bibliography

[1] Model 6485 Picoammeter Instruction Manual, Keithley Instruments

26