A network analyzer is a device used to analyze the properties of electrical networks, especially those properties associated with the reflection and broadcast of electrical signals known as scattering parameters (S-parameters). Network analyzers are used chiefly at high frequencies; operating frequencies can range from 9 kHz to 110 GHz [1].

The two main categories of Network Analyzers are

    * Scalar Network Analyzer (SNA) - Measures amplitude features only
    * Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) - Measures both amplitude and phase features

A VNA may also be called a gain-phase meter or an Automatic Network Analyzer. An SNA is basically identical to a spectrum analyzer in combination with a tracking generator. As of 2007, VNAs are the most universal type of network analyzer, and so references to an unqualified 'network analyzer' most regularly mean a VNA. The three biggest VNA manufacturers are Agilent, Anritsu, and Rohde & Schwarz.

A new category of network analyzer is the Microwave Transition Analyzer (MTA) or Large Signal Network Analyzer (LSNA), which calculates both amplitude and phase of the fundamental and harmonics. The MTA was commercialized prior to the LSNA, but was lacking some of the user-friendly calibration features now accessible with the LSNA.

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