A solar simulator usually arrives with a classification report, a calibration certificate for its reference cell and sometimes product certificates. Every rating it produces leans on those documents. Checking them takes minutes, and it is the first thing an auditor will do.
What a genuine accredited calibration certificate contains
- The name and address of the calibration laboratory.
- The accreditation body’s mark and the laboratory’s accreditation number.
- A unique certificate number and the date of calibration.
- The instrument identified by model and serial number.
- Results with their measurement uncertainty and coverage factor (for example k = 2).
- A traceability statement and the method or procedure used.
- An authorised signature.
How to verify it
- Look the laboratory up in the accreditation body’s public database (for example SAS in Switzerland, DAkkS in Germany, UKAS in the UK, A2LA in the USA, CNAS in China).
- Check that the quantity and range calibrated are inside the laboratory’s accredited scope.
- Check that the serial number on the certificate matches the instrument you received.
- If in doubt, send the certificate number to the issuing laboratory and ask it to confirm.
- For product certificates (for example TÜV), search the certificate number in the certification body’s online register.
Red flags
- No measurement uncertainty, or no coverage factor.
- No accreditation number, or a number that cannot be found in the accreditation body’s database.
- A calibration outside the laboratory’s accredited scope.
- A manufacturer’s internal certificate presented as an accredited one.
- Identical values or certificate numbers across different serial numbers.
- A certificate that cannot be found in the issuing body’s register.
Pasan’s practice
Pasan measurement chains are traceable to METAS, the Swiss federal metrology institute, under ISO/IEC 17025, and every system is proven in a factory acceptance test and classified again on site. See ISO/IEC 17025 and your solar simulator.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I verify a calibration certificate?
- Check that it names an accredited laboratory with its accreditation number, that the calibration is within the laboratory’s published scope, that it identifies your instrument by serial number and reports results with their uncertainty, then confirm it in the accreditation body’s database or with the issuing laboratory.
- How can I check that a TÜV or other product certificate is real?
- Search the certificate number in the certification body’s online certificate register, and check that the product, model and holder match what you were given.
- What are the warning signs of a fake calibration certificate?
- Missing measurement uncertainty, no accreditation number or one that cannot be found, a calibration outside the laboratory’s scope, a manufacturer’s internal certificate presented as accredited, and identical values across different serial numbers.
