Specific test benches
Expertise
The team has built solid expertise driven by the main research themes (Technologies for CAD, Multiphysics systems and microsystems). Indeed, concerning the modeling activities, we have developed procedures for accurate and exhautive measurements, which are required to perform parameters extraction. Experimental results are systematically compared to theory for model validation. Concerning the integrated circuits developed for sensory applications (magnetic, imaging), we design test boards and experimental procedures that often need to comply with industrial or medical standards. Therefore, our expertise consists in:
- Device parameters extraction (electrical, temperature, etc.)
- Magnetic transducers design and characterization
- Ultra low-noise and low-power mixed signal ASICs (sensor systems) and ad-hoc test boards design and characterization including ultra-low noise, low frequency, high accuracy measurement
- Light transducers design and characterization
- Ultra-fast ASICs (ultra-fast imagers) and ad-hoc test boards design and characterization including ultra-high speed, high accuracy measurement
- Test bench-orientated FPGA System-on-Chip (SoC) design
- Test bench automatisaton (with LabView)
Magnetic sensors characterization
Our activities on magnetic sensors imply the use of an accurately calibrated and reliable magnetic source. Therefore, one of our test benches has been built around a custom (designed and fabricated by CNRS engineers) Helmhotz coil. This source has been calibrated with nanotesla accuracy with an NMR probe. It is either driven by standard DC current sources (for static sensitivity measurement) or by an AC power source / power analyser (Agilent 6813B)(for dynamic response). Measurement data are acquired with an 8½ digit digital multimeter (Agilent 3458A) and a data acquisition / data logger switch unit (Agilent 34970A). The test bench also features an FFT dynamic signal analyser (Agilent 35670A) (for spectral noise analysis).
Fast imagers characterization
Our activities on fast imagers imply the use of a highly controllable light pulse source and ultra-fast data acquisition capabilities. Two of the SMH experimental rooms are dedicated to ultra-fast imagers characterization. One of them is dark room that features, among other fast-imager-specific material, a femtosecond-pulse laser source (Spectra-Physics Tsunami) and a high-speed video camera (Optronis CR600x2). The second room is mainly used for solid-state imagers characterization and features in particular a 13 GHz oscilloscope (Lecroy Wavemaster 813Zi) and a PXI plateform (National Instrument PXIe-1062Q) dwelling a 12-bit 80 MS/s digitizer and a 16 to 24-bit digitizer.
