Flat-screen technology has become ubiquitous. It has almost completely replaced CRTs in test instruments as well as in other appliances. Unfortunately, flat-screen tech can be a bit confusing because of vendors that use their own trade names to refer to their specific type of flat display technology. Here, we’ll try to clear up some of […]
FAQ
The rise, fall, and modern uses of CRT technology
A few decades ago, virtually all computer monitors, radar installations, TVs and oscilloscopes employed cathode ray tubes for the user’s visual interface. Today, except for a few educational models and replacements for radar installations, CRTs aren’t used as displays. (CRT material and process technologies are still common in the vacuum tube industry as a whole […]
Displaying digital data in the MDO3000 Series oscilloscope
An application module lets the Tektronix MDO3000 Series oscilloscope decode and trigger on any of the principal serial bus types. For a parallel bus, the MDO3MSO option is required. Serial bus types include Audio, CAN, LIN, FlexRay, I2C, SPI, MIL-STD-1553, RS-232, RS-422, RS-485 and UART. Digital data, serial or parallel, can be entered into B1 […]
More MDO3000 Series scope menus and front panel controls
A previous article covered many of the Tektronix MDO3000 Series Oscilloscope menus and front panel controls. Now we bring the survey closer to completion. Rather than memorizing all the details, you can refer to the user manual, connect to the internal or external AFG for sample waveforms, and start pushing buttons. Don’t worry, the oscilloscope […]
The system of menus in the Tektronix MDO3000 Series oscilloscope
New users are invariably challenged by the large number of front-panel controls and extensive menu trees found on modern scopes. Many menu items have single-word designations, which only begin to describe their extensive functions. In on-screen menus, specific display modes are not always where you expect to find them. Learning the layout of this architecture […]
Displaying waveforms and trace data in the Tektronix MDO3000 Series oscilloscope
When you are trying to get an accurate idea of waveform qualities from a scope display, the display settings are quite important. So it can be helpful to review the setup process in widely used scopes such as a Tektronix MDO3000. Display style and persistence in this instrument can be accessed by pressing the Acquire […]
Basic and advanced modes in the Tektronix AFG31000 Series arbitrary function generator
Early signal generators, dependent upon vacuum-tube technology and subject to failure, were ancestors of today’s far more precise and durable arbitrary function generators. These instruments have advanced modes and functions that figure prominently in research and product development as well as troubleshooting and repair. Here the word “arbitrary” means the instrument is capable of generating […]
Bandwidth basics and fundamentals
Bandwidth has a variety of meanings in different contexts. In signal processing, it is the difference in frequency (Hertz) between the upper and lower limits in a continuous frequency band. In instrumentation, such as an oscilloscope, it is the range of frequencies above 0 Hz in which the instrument exhibits a specified level of performance. […]
Differences between stand-alone and scope-based spectrum analyzers
Most oscilloscope manufacturers also offer an extensive line of spectrum analyzers. There are similarities as well as differences between these two distinct instruments. The oscilloscope is optimized to display signals in the time domain, its default mode. Additionally, pressing Math>FFT, the same signal appears in the frequency domain. In the Tektronix MDO (mixed domain oscilloscope), […]
The ups and downs of oscillators in test equipment
Examine the low-frequency signal source in many kinds of test equipment and you are likely to find a harmonic oscillator. A harmonic oscillator typically consists of an amplifier that gets its input from its own output. A part of the output feeds back to input while the rest is an output signal. To support oscillations, […]