The AD5933 is a high precision impedance converter system solution that combines an on-board frequency generator with a 12-bit, 1 MSPS, analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The frequency generator allows an external complex impedance to be excited with a known frequency. The response signal from the impedance is sampled by the on-board ADC and a discrete Fourier transform (DFT) is processed by an on-board DSP engine. The DFT algorithm returns a real (R) and imaginary (I) data-word at each output frequency.

Once calibrated, the magnitude of the impedance and relative phase of the impedance at each frequency point along the sweep is easily calculated. This is done off chip using the real and imaginary register contents, which can be read from the serial I2C interface.

A similar device, also available from Analog Devices, Inc., is the AD5934, a 2.7 V to 5.5 V, 250 kSPS, 12-bit impedance converter, with an internal temperature sensor and is packaged in a 16-lead SSOP.

Applications

Electrochemical analysis
Bioelectrical impedance analysis
Impedance spectroscopy
Complex impedance measurement
Corrosion monitoring and protection equipment
Biomedical and automotive sensors
Proximity sensing
Nondestructive testing
Material property analysis
Fuel/battery cell condition monitoring