A new voltage probe with improved performance at the 10 kHz–500 kHz frequency range for field measurements in LV networks

Abstract Voltage measurements in the frequency range from 10 kHz to 500 kHz are used to quantify the level of the Narrow Band Power Line Communication transmitted signals, the noise and the non-intentional conducted emissions generated by the devices connected to the Low Voltage grid. Considering that the voltage levels within this frequency range are very small if compared to measurements below 2 kHz, measuring equipment of higher precision is needed, but existing standards do not currently cover this frequency band. In this paper, a voltage adapter with improved performance at the 10 kHz–500 kHz frequency range for field measurements in LV networks is presented. Moreover, a measurement setup and methodology for the frequency-dependent characterization of this type of voltage adapters is described, which is used to demonstrate the outperformance of the designed probe with respect to four commercial devices.