rf-bench-drivers-utils 0.1.0

RF math utilities for bench instrument automation — power conversions, noise, impedance, attenuators, S-meter

rf-bench-drivers-utils

Pure RF math utilities for bench instrument automation. Part of the rf-bench-drivers family of packages.

Install

pip install rf-bench-drivers-utils

Import

from rf_bench.utils import dbm_to_vpp, thermal_noise_floor, format_freq

What's in the box

rf_bench.utils is a single module (rf_utils.py) of pure functions. No instrument connections, no side effects, numpy is the only dependency.

Category	Key functions
Power / voltage	dbm_to_vpp, vpp_to_dbm, dbm_to_vrms, vrms_to_dbm, dbm_to_watts, watts_to_dbm, dbm_to_uv, uv_to_dbm
Power ratio / extended dB	db_to_linear, linear_to_db, db_to_voltage_ratio, voltage_ratio_to_db, dbm_to_dbw, dbw_to_dbm, dbm_to_dbuv, dbuv_to_dbm
Impedance / reflection	rl_to_vswr, vswr_to_rl, gamma_to_vswr, vswr_to_gamma, rl_to_gamma, gamma_to_rl, vectorized variants
Noise / dynamic range	thermal_noise_floor, noise_figure_from_mds, mds_from_noise_figure, ip3_from_imd, ip3_to_dynamic_range, cascaded_noise_figure, noise_temp_to_nf, nf_to_noise_temp
Propagation / antenna	wavelength, quarter_wave, half_wave, freespace_path_loss
Passive components	capacitive_reactance, inductive_reactance, lc_resonant_freq, l_from_resonant, c_from_resonant, q_factor, bw_from_q, parallel_resistance, voltage_divider, skin_depth
Attenuator design	pi_attenuator, t_attenuator
IM products	intermod_products
S-meter	s_unit_to_dbm, dbm_to_s_unit
Frequency formatting	format_freq, format_freq_short
Standard value series	nearest_rbw, nearest_value, SIGLENT_RBW_SERIES, E12_SERIES, E24_SERIES, E48_SERIES, E96_SERIES
Two-channel measurement	dominant_frequency, gain_phase_from_fft, complex_impedance_series

All functions default to 50 Ω reference impedance where applicable. Frequencies are in Hz throughout; use format_freq() for human-readable display.

Quick examples

from rf_bench.utils import (
    dbm_to_vpp, thermal_noise_floor, rl_to_vswr,
    cascaded_noise_figure, pi_attenuator, format_freq,
)

# 0 dBm into 50 Ω
print(dbm_to_vpp(0))           # 0.6325 Vpp

# Thermal noise floor at 500 Hz bandwidth
print(thermal_noise_floor(500))  # -143.0 dBm (approx)

# Return loss to VSWR
print(rl_to_vswr(20))           # 1.222

# Cascaded noise figure: 2 dB cable -> 20 dB LNA (3 dB NF) -> IF amp
print(cascaded_noise_figure([(-2, 2), (20, 3), (10, 5)]))  # ~5.06 dB

# Pi attenuator values for 6 dB at 50 Ω
print(pi_attenuator(6))         # {'r_shunt': 150.5, 'r_series': 37.35}

# Frequency formatting
print(format_freq(14_200_000))  # '14.2000 MHz'

Related packages

This package is one of four that together replace the original rf-bench monolith:

Package	PyPI name	Import	Contents
rf-bench-drivers-utils	rf-bench-drivers-utils	rf_bench.utils	RF math (this package)
Siglent drivers	rf-bench-drivers-siglent	rf_bench.siglent	SSA3000X, SDG1000X, SDS2000X, SDM3000X, SPD3303X
Icom drivers	rf-bench-drivers-icom	rf_bench.icom	IC7300 via Hamlib rigctld
Yaesu drivers	rf-bench-drivers-yaesu	rf_bench.yaesu	FT891 via Hamlib rigctld

All four packages share the rf_bench namespace; install as many as you need.

License

GPL-3.0-or-later