The Keithley 6220 DC Current Source Meter combines ease-of-use with exceptionally low-current noise. Low-current sourcing is critical to applications in test environments ranging from R&D to production, especially in the semiconductor, nanotechnology, and superconductor industries. High sourcing accuracy and built-in control functions make the 6220 ideal for applications like hall measurements, resistance measurements using delta mode, pulsed measurements, and differential conductance measurements.

The Need for Precision, Low-Current Sourcing

Device testing and characterization for today's very small and power-efficient electronics requires sourcing low-current levels, which demands the use of a precision, low-current source. Lower stimulus currents produce lower - and harder to measure - voltages across the device.

Simple Programming

Both current sources are fully programmable via the front panel controls, or from an external controller via RS-232 or GPIB interfaces. The 6220 can source DC currents from 100fA to 105mA. The output voltage can be set from 0.1V to 105V in 10mV steps. Voltage compliance (which limits the amount of voltage applied when sourcing a current) is critical for applications in which overvoltages could damage the device under test (DUT).

Define and execute current ramps easily

The 6220 offers tools for defining current ramps and stepping through predefined sequences of up to 65,536 output values using a trigger or a timer; it supports linear, logarithmic, and custom sweeps.

Figure 1. Perform, analyze, and display differential conductance measurements

Figure 2. Delta mode offers 1000-to-1 noise reduction

Figure 3. The Model 6220 and the free example start-up control software

Pulsed Tests

Even small amounts of heat introduced by the measurement process itself can raise the DUT's temperature, skewing test results or even destroying the device.