Performance evaluation of a handheld network analyzer for testing of balanced twisted-pair copper cabling

Performance evaluation of a handheld network analyzer (field tester) for certifying balanced twisted-pair copper cabling is carried out in this paper. Some key parameters such as return loss, near-end cross-talk, and insertion loss for cabling have been investigated, in order to comply with the newly proposed IEC-61935 standard. Accuracy of the field tester is then compared with a four-port vector network analyzer (with fixtures) in laboratory. Good agreements have been observed which demonstrate its measurement capability up to 2 GHz.