Agilent HP Keysight E5250A Low-leakage Switch Mainframe

The Agilent HP Keysight E5250A is a modular low-leakage switch mainframe engineered for semiconductor parametric test systems requiring minimal signal leakage and high measurement precision. It expands measurement station capacity through configurable switching architectures—either as a cross-point matrix or multiplexer—supporting automated device characterization, long-term reliability testing, and parallel production screening. The mainframe accepts plug-in card modules to establish signal routing topologies tailored to specific measurement requirements.

– Technical Specifications

Matrix Configuration (E5252A cards):
• 10 × 12 matrix, expandable to 10 × 48 per frame
• Two low-leakage I-V inputs; four standard I-V inputs
• Two C-V paths with capacitance compensation
• Two auxiliary inputs for pulsed and differential measurements
• Kelvin and non-Kelvin switching modes supported
• Six triaxial (low-current) inputs; four coaxial (general-purpose) inputs
• Triaxial inputs 1–4: dedicated internal paths
• Triaxial inputs 5–6 and coaxial inputs: 3:1 multiplexed, sharing two internal paths

Multiplexer Configuration (E5255A cards):
• 24-channel per card (8 × 3), expandable to 96 channels per frame
• Up to 384 channels with four ganged E5250A frames
• Six triaxial inputs and three DC-bias coaxial inputs per card

Measurement Performance:
• Measurement resolution: 20 fA through switch
• Transient current settling: < 3.5 s to < 450 fA after 10 V step
• Bandwidth: 10 MHz (−3 dB) with E5252A cards
• Channel isolation: 10 TΩ (triaxial paths)
• Offset current: < 0.1 pA (low-leakage I-V port); < 1000 pA (general I-V port)
• Offset voltage: < 80 µV (low-leakage I-V port); < 110 µV (general I-V and C-V HF ports at 5 min)
• Channel crosstalk capacitance: 10⁸ cycles (dry switching)

Environmental:
• Operating temperature: 5 °C to 40 °C
• Storage temperature: −40 °C (upper limit )

– Key Features

• Femtoampere-level measurement capability enabling ultra-sensitive device parametrics
• Triaxial/coaxial input architecture with dedicated and multiplexed path options
• Configurable relay matrix for cross-point switching or channel multiplexing
• Low offset voltage and current specifications minimize measurement error
• High relay endurance suitable for high-cycle test environments
• Ganging capability scales channel count to 384 across four frames

– Typical Applications

• Semiconductor device characterization (I-V, C-V)
• Long-term reliability and stress testing
• Parallel production test with cost-effective power supplies
• Pulsed and differential voltage measurements
• High-precision leakage current measurement

– Compatibility & Integration

Works with Keysight B1500A, 4155C, and 4156C parametric measurement instruments.