This paper discusses the use of VNAs as a flexible and versatile tool to accurately and quantitatively characterize materials properties, such as electrical permittivity and magnetic permeability, ranging from a few kHz up to the THz range. Additionally, different methods have been presented to extract permittivity and permeability of the MUT from either 1- or 2-port S-parameter measurements.
The type of MUT that can be characterized using a VNA ranges from biological matter and liquids to solids and powders. The available algorithms that allow converting the measured S-parameters into relevant materials properties have been discussed. An overview of recently published real case studies employing different VNA-based techniques have been presented, showcasing the broad applicability of the VNA as a tool to characterize materials properties at high frequencies.
