Command Reference   

This chapter lists all common commands and SCPI commands implemented by the analyzer.

Common commands

SCPI commands are listed in alphabetical order; refer to the TOC or to the index.

Special Terms and Notation

This section explains the meaning of special syntax elements used in the SCPI command reference sections. A general description of the SCPI command syntax can be found in section SCPI Command Structure and Syntax .

Compatibility with ZVR and other instruments
The SCPI command set for the R&S ZVA vector network analyzer has been designed for compatibility with older R&S network analyzers of the ZVR type. A special class of commands, marked with the symbol , has been implemented primarily for compatibility reasons. Use these commands if you want to maintain compatibility with ZVR analyzers. If you want to make full use of the ZVA features and don't need ZVR compatibility, you should use the generalized, R&S ZVA-specific commands. A link to a generalized command is provided in the description of each ZVR-specific command.
Similar considerations also hold for other commands that have been "implemented for compatibility reasons".

• Information in the command tables

  All commands are described according to the same scheme. The following information is provided:

  1. Complete command syntax and parameter list

  2. Description of the command and its relationship with other commands  

  3. List and description of the parameters with their numerical ranges, default values and default units

  4. SCPI conformance information, supported command types (setting command, query)

  5. Program example

• Order of commands

  The commands are arranged in alphabetical order. SCPI systems or subsystems are arranged in one topic. At the beginning of each topic, and expandable command tree gives an overview of all commands in the SCPI subsystem.

• Parameters

  Many commands are supplemented by a parameter or a list of parameters. Parameters either provide alternative options (setting a or setting b or setting c ..., see special character "|"), or they form a list separated by commas (setting x,y).

  • <Par_Name> In the command tables and lists, parameters are generally described by a name (literal) written in angle brackets (<>). This literal merely serves as a parameters description; in an application program it must be replaced by one of the possible settings reported in the detailed parameter description.

  Example: CONTrol:AUXiliary:C[:DATA] <numeric_value> 
  with <numeric_value> = 0 to 15
  possible command syntax:        CONT:AUX:C 1

  • NAN (Not A Number) is generally used to represent missing data, e.g. if a portion of a trace has not been acquired yet. It is also returned after invalid mathematical operations such as division by zero. As defined in the SCPI standard, NAN is represented as 9.91 E 37.

  • INV (invalid) is returned e.g. if a limit check is performed without defining the appropriate tolerance values.

• Upper/lower case

  Upper/lower case characters characterize the long and short form of the mnemonics in a command.  The short form consists of all upper-case characters, the long form of all upper case plus all lower case characters. On the ZVA, either the short form or the long form are allowed; mixed forms will generally not be recognized. Either the short form or the long form are permissible. The instrument itself does not distinguish upper case and lower case characters.

• Special characters

  • | A vertical stroke in the parameter list characterizes alternative parameter settings. Only one of the parameters separated by | must be selected.

  Example: The following command has two alternative settings:
  FORMat[:DATA] ASCii | REAL

  • [  ]Key words in square brackets can be omitted when composing the command header (see SCPI Command Structure and Syntax). The complete command must be recognized by the instrument for reasons of compatibility with the SCPI standard. Parameters in square brackets are optional as well. They may be entered in the command or omitted.

  • {  } Braces or curly brackets enclose one or more parameters that may be included zero or more times.

• Numeric suffixes

  Symbols in angular brackets (<Ch>, <Chn>, <Mk>,...) denote numeric suffixes. Numeric suffixes are replaced by integer numbers to distinguish various items of the same type. The analyzer provides numeric suffixes for channels, traces, ports, markers etc. If unspecified, a numeric suffix is replaced by 1.

  The marker suffix must be in the range between 1 and 10, the number of ports depends on the analyzer model. No restrictions apply to channel, trace, and diagram area suffixes.

  In remote control, one active trace can be selected for each channel; see Active Traces in Remote Control. This concept simplifies the remote control command syntax, because it allows the active trace in a particular channel to be referenced by means of the channel suffix. To keep the syntax transparent, <Ch> is used for channel settings (it denotes the configured channel), whereas <Chn> is used for trace settings (it denotes the active trace in the channel).