Application Note
AN3009
S-Parameter S2P File Format
Rev. V2
Introduction
Listed among many of M/A-COM’s products are files
that describe the small signal scattering matrix, or s-
parameters, of the device. The S2P format is an
industry standard and thus is recognized by many
simulation programs. This application note de-
scribes the basic file format. The general case of
the touchstone standard, not described in this appli-
cation note, extends to more than two ports. Touch-
stone is a registered trademark of Agilent corpora-
tion and is used with permission.
Comment Lines
Comment lines are denoted by a ‘!’ preceding the
text.
! This is a comment line
Comment lines are used optionally for description
and test conditions.
Data
The data consists of 9 columns. The first column is
always frequency with the units defined in the option
line. The next 8 columns define the two port
parameters for that given frequency. The order of
these parameters are:
<FREQ>
<X11>
<X11> <X21> <X21> <X12> <X12>
<X22> <X22>
Where X can be S, Z, Y, H, or G as defined in the
option line. The real or magnitude of the parameter
is listed first (denoted by the boldface), followed
immediately by the imaginary or phase (denoted by
the italicized). Phase angles are always measured
in degrees. These formats are also defined in the
option line.
S1P files describe a single reflection impedance.
There are only three columns denoted by
FREQ
X11
X11
File Format Description
S2P files are ASCII text files. As such, they can be
viewed or edited by any standard text editor. The
files are not case sensitive.
Option Line
Each file generally has an option line that resembles
the following.
# GHZ S MA R 50
In the event that no option line is shown, the values
shown above are the defaults.
The ‘#’ defines the line as an option line.
‘GHZ’ defines the units of frequency used in the
data. GHZ, MHZ, KHZ, and HZ are acceptable val-
ues.
‘S’ is the type of parameter that has been measured.
Typically, this is the type of data the M/A-COM pro-
vides. Other possibilities include Y, Z, H, and G
which are well documented in many circuit analysis
textbooks.
‘MA’ is what format that the complex data is in.
DB:
Decibel Magnitude/Degree Angle
MA: Linear Magnitude/Degree Angle (polar form)
RI:
Real Part/Imaginary Part (rectangular form)
The ‘DB’ form decibel magnitude is computed as
20*Log(linear magnitude).
‘R 50’ define the system impedance at which the
measurements were taken. For CATV systems this
impedance will be 75 ohms. Normalized measure-
ments will have a value of 1 ohm.
1
Visit www.macomtech.com for additional data sheets and product information.
Noise Parameters
Noise parameters describe the noise circles of a
device. They are optionally included at the end of
an S2P file. There is not a separate option line for
noise parameters. The first frequency of the noise
parameters must be less than the highest frequency
of the two port parameters so the simulators can
distinguish where the two port data stops and the
noise data begins.
There are five columns that describe noise
parameters. The following describes the noise
parameter data format.
<FREQ> <NF> <|G|> <ÐG> <Rn>
•
North America
Tel: 800.366.2266 •
Europe
Tel: +353.21.244.6400
•
India
Tel: +91.80.4155721
•
China
Tel: +86.21.2407.1588
M/A-COM Technology Solutions Inc. and its affiliates reserve the right to make
changes to the product(s) or information contained herein without notice.
Application Note
AN3009
S-Parameter S2P File Format
Rev. V2
Noise Parameters (cont’d)
The frequency is governed by the option line. The
NF is the minimum noise figure in dB. The |G| and
ÐG are the linear magnitude and phase of the
optimum reflection coefficient respectively. The form
of this impedance is always the same, irrespective of
the option line. Rn is the effective noise resistance
normalized to the system impedance defined in the
option line. It defines the rate at which the noise
figure increases as the reflection coefficient is
moved away from the optimum (how tightly packed
the noise circles are).
Example
The following page holds an example of the S2P
format described.
! This is a comment line which is often used to add relevant information to the file.
! Times, dates, part numbers, or test conditions are good candidates for comments.
! There can be as many comments as desired.
# GHZ DB S R 50
!Freq
0.5
0.75
1
1.25
1.5
1.75
2
2.25
2.5
2.75
3
0.5
0.75
1
1.25
1.5
1.75
2
S11(dB)
-6.83
-8.315
-9.136
-9.681
-9.933
-10.09
-10.17
-10.28
-10.8
-11.65
-13.25
1.118
1.131
1.145
1.162
1.181
1.203
1.228
S11(ang)
-130.4
-176.6
137.6
91
45.01
-0.7431
-43.74
-83.98
-122.4
-160.1
161.5
0.1656
0.2488
0.3353
0.4226
0.5076
0.5869
0.6579
S21(dB)
14.28
14.39
14.1
13.64
13.1
12.5
11.91
11.29
10.73
10.2
9.737
-96.62
-86.38
-78.08
-70.25
-62.54
-54.92
-47.48
S21(ang)
116.6
58.17
5.361
-44.49
-92.5
-139.4
175
130.3
86.24
42.44
-0.6358
0.1263
0.1463
0.1793
0.2303
0.3058
0.4133
0.5616
S12(dB)
-25.96
-25.59
-25.75
-25.6
-25.39
-25.47
-25.16
-24.97
-24.05
-23.39
-22.68
S12(ang)
-32.11
-76.93
-117
-153.1
173.4
140.1
107.4
76.51
44.2
11.11
-22.68
S22(dB)
-6.493
-8.972
-11.1
-13.3
-15.76
-18.64
-22.49
-26.44
-23.76
-19.56
-17.05
S22(ang)
88.3
44.29
4.467
-33.35
-68.61
-99.81
-122.1
-115.9
-101.3
-115.7
-141
2
Visit www.macomtech.com for additional data sheets and product information.
•
North America
Tel: 800.366.2266 •
Europe
Tel: +353.21.244.6400
•
India
Tel: +91.80.4155721
•
China
Tel: +86.21.2407.1588
M/A-COM Technology Solutions Inc. and its affiliates reserve the right to make
changes to the product(s) or information contained herein without notice.