Assistance Needed: Power Profiler II Connection and Mode Selection for PCBA Testing

[Viknesh]

Dear Team, 

We want to use the Power Profiler II as our ammeter to measure the current of our newly designed PCBA. However, we’re uncertain about the proper connections for our setup based on the illustration in the manual (page 11, Figure 6 Link: docs.nordicsemi.com/.../PPK_user_guide_Intro.html), which depicts an nRF board. It suggests using an external power source for the DUT and connecting the Vin pin to the series line.

In our setup:

• Vin is connected to the power line.
• GND is connected to ground.

However, we’re unsure about the correct connection for the Vout pin. Could you please clarify where it should be connected?

Additionally, could you advise whether we should select Source Meter Mode or Ammeter Mode in the application for this configuration? Your guidance will be highly appreciated!

[SwRa]

HI Viknesh,

For the source meter mode, the pin connection is as follows:

VOUT ->  P22 VDD_nRF
GND ->  P21

For Ampere meter mode:

VIN ->  P22 VDD_nRF'
VOUT ->  P22 VDD_nRF
GND ->  P21

This has been explained in the documentation: https://docs.nordicsemi.com/bundle/ug_ppk2/page/UG/ppk/setting_up.html 

Please also take a look at this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B42lPvkUSoc

Best Regards,

Swathy

[Viknesh]

Hi Swathy,

Thank you for the information. We are not using an nRF board; instead, we are using the Power Profiler to test our custom-made PCBA. 

I connected the PPK2 between the power source and the device as shown in the block diagram below. I measured the voltage at Vin, which is 7.2 volts, and Vout, which is also 7.2 volts to the device. The PCBA is ON, and I can see the device name in the NRF application. The application is set to Ampere Meter mode; however, the current reading is very low.

Am I measuring correctly?