A PC-based low cost impedance and gain-phase analyzer

In this paper, we present a practical and inexpensive impedance/gain-phase analyzer (IGPA), which is very useful in the design of electronic circuits. This instrument allows the Bode diagram of any network or electronic circuit with an input and an output to be obtained, even though this implementation was not previously known. It can also obtain the module and phase diagrams of any impedance separately. The device under test (DUT) is connected to a personal computer (PC) via the parallel port by means of an electronic circuit implemented for this purpose. The results are shown on the screen of the PC and can be accessible for use in any further operation. The instrument operates in the frequency range of 10 Hz to 200 kHz. The measured results obtained with our equipment have been compared with those obtained with a commercial unit, with a good agreement between them being seen.