Rigol DP832 power supply as automated Curve Tracer

[RoGeorge]

Made a Python script to control the DP832 for curve tracing.   

The advantage of a DP800 power supply is that:
   - DP832 and other DP800 series power supplies can be controlled remotely
   - can set votlages and currents with mV and mA resolution (and accuracy, too, if calibrated)
   - has 2-3 output channels, like it would be 2-3 different power supplies in one instrument
   - has automated switching from CV to CC mode
   - has adjustable over voltage and over current protection for each channel output
   - can measure its own voltage, current and power for each channel

That will be enough to automate voltage/current setting and reading in order to trace some I-V plots using nothing but a program and some alligator clip wires to connect the component under test.

For now I only used it for MOSFET curve tracing:
   - connect the GS of the MOSFET to channel 1 (CH1) of the DP832, and the DS to CH2
   - open the control script and set the desired parameters, for example the Vgs max, Id max, etc.
   - run the curve tracer script and the result should look like this on the screen (also saved on disk):





The control script 'dp832_curve_tracer_v0.ipynb' attached was made in Jupyter Lab using Python, PyVISA, Numpy and Matplotlib, all FOSS, should work on any OS but I've tested it with Linux only, on a Kubuntu 20.04 LTS.



The upper cell has most of the configurable parameters of the curve tracer.

[Smokey]

Linking in this other thread, which is pretty relevant:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/rigol-dp832-remote-command-update-rate/