Large industrial plants—such as those in the oil， gas， electricity， pharmaceutical， and food and beverage industries—rely on electronic instrumentation to provide accurate， stable measurements to control their processes. The stability of an instrument very much depends on its application and the environment in which it operates. Fluctuating temperatures， harsh manufacturing conditions， humidity and elapsed time are all factors that affect stability. When a sensor or instrument experiences temperature variations or physical stress over time its performance will begin to decline， a phenomenon known as ‘drift’。 Measurement data from the sensor becomes unreliable and can seriously affect the quality of factory production. Drift can be identified and rectified via calibration， but this solution can be very expensive and may result in factory downtime. Since sensors and instruments are only as accurate as their references， the focus for the solution to this problem becomes the voltage reference. Thorough understanding and minimization of drift behavior in voltage references leads to tailored calibration strategies that can translate into substantial cost savings.

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