Steven Smith

Communications for Technicians Student Number

BTEC National Assessment

Date 2nd February 2009

Introduction To
Oscilloscope’s

Theory And Practice Of An Oscilloscope For

Trainee Engineers
Introduction To Oscilloscope’s
Theory And Practice Of An Oscilloscope For Trainee Engineers
Table Of Contents

Table Of Contents ...........................................................................................................................1

Background of Oscilloscopes ...........................................................................................................1

What Does An Oscilloscope Do?......................................................................................................2

Explanation And Instructions On How To Use An Oscilloscope..........................................................3

Descriptions And Functions Of The Various Controls ..................................................................3

How To Set Up The Time-Base controls.....................................................................................5

How To Set Up The Amplitude Controls......................................................................................6

Example Of Measuring An AC Signal .........................................................................................6

How To Connect A Signal Source.....................................................................................................8

Calibration.......................................................................................................................................9

Calibration Of Test Probes..........................................................................................................9

Bibliography / References ..............................................................................................................10

Introduction To Oscilloscope’s
Theory And Practice Of An Oscilloscope For Trainee Engineers
Background of Oscilloscopes

Oscilloscopes are widely used in many areas from simple television repair to complex
industries electronics circuitry design. It is a good measuring tools that helps “electronics
engineers” to perform troubleshooting or research work.
“The word ‘Oscilloscope’ is an etymological hybrid. The first part derives from the Latin
‘oscillare’, to swing backwards and forwards; this in turn is from, ‘oscillum’, a little mask
of Bacchus hung from the trees, especially in vineyards, and thus easily moved by the
wind. The second part comes from the Classical Greek ‘skopein’, to observe, aim at,
examine, from which developed the Latin ending ‘scopium’, which has been used to form
names for instruments that enable the eye or ear to make observations.” [B1].
The oscilloscope is available in both analogue and digital formats, the most common
found in the work place is the traditional analogue oscilloscope, and this report will cover
the analogue type. This reports aims to explain the basic functions and use of an
oscilloscope to the company’s trainee engineers
An oscilloscope looks a lot like a small television set, except that it has a grid drawn on
its screen and more controls than a television. An oscilloscope is basically a graph-
displaying device - it shows electrical signals in a graphical form. In most applications
the graph shows how the applied signals change over time: the vertical (Y) axis
represents voltage and the horizontal (X) axis represents time. The front panel of an
oscilloscope consists of control sections divided into Vertical, Horizontal, and Trigger
sections. Also present are the display controls and input connectors all of which are
detailed later.
The heart of the oscilloscope is display screen itself, the CRT. “The CRT is a glass bulb
which has had the air removed and then been sealed with a vacuum inside. At the front is
a flat glass screen, which is coated inside with a phosphor material. This phosphor will
glow when struck by the fast moving electronics and produce light, emitted from the
front and forming the spot and hence the trace. The rear of the CRT contains the electron
‘gun’ assembly. A small heater element is contained within a cylinder of metal called the
cathode. When the heater is activated by applying a voltage across it, the cathode
temperature rises and it then emits a stream of electrons.” [B2].
 What Does An Oscilloscope Do?

The oscilloscope is a handy piece of kit and is useful for making measurements in both
the A.C. and D.C. .It allows the engineer to see a visual display of the electrical signals in
the circuit being tested, allowing a greater understanding of what’s is happening. The
oscilloscope can easily investigate a fault in any electronic system by checking the
signals at the input and output stages. By checking each stage the engineer can quickly
tell if it is operating as expected and the signals are correctly linked to the next stage?
With practice, an engineer can quickly find and correct faults with ease.
The oscilloscope is an extremely simple device. Its main function is to draw a Voltage
over time (V / t) graph, which is produced, on a small, TV like screen. The vertical or Y-
axis displays the voltage and the horizontal or X-axis displays the time.
An example of the screen is shown below. It normally has 8 squares or divisions on the
vertical axis, and 10 squares or divisions on the horizontal axis. Typically they are 1 cm
in each direction.

Figure 1

The numerous controls on the front of the oscilloscope allow the engineer to change the
vertical or horizontal scales of the Voltage over time graph. This allows a clear picture of
the signal being investigated to be displayed.
'Dual trace' (two waveform signals) oscilloscopes have the ability to display two graphs
at the same time. This allows simultaneous signals from different sources in the system to
be compared.

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The graph displayed by the oscilloscope can tell the engineer many things about the
signals. Here are a few:

• You can determine the time and voltage values of a signal.

• You can calculate the frequency of an oscillating signal.

• You can tell if the signal is being distorted.

• You can find out how much of a signal is direct current or alternating current.

• You can tell how much of the signal is noise. (B3)

The purpose of the oscilloscope is not limited to testing electronic circuits. With the
proper transducer, an oscilloscope can be used in all kinds of circumstances. A transducer
is a device that produces an electrical signal in response to physical response, such as
sound, pressure, light, or heat. For example, a microphone is a transducer.
An automotive engineer uses an oscilloscope to measure engine vibrations. A medical
researcher uses an oscilloscope to measure brain waves. The possibilities are endless.

Explanation And Instructions On How To Use An Oscilloscope

Descriptions And Functions Of The Various Controls

Below is a typical standard analogue oscilloscope front display; this shows the various
controls on the front panel. These are numbered and are used for reference through out
this report.

Figure 2

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The basic control functions vary between oscilloscopes but most common controls are:
Power
Turns oscilloscope mains power on or off (1).
Brightness
This controls the intensity of the waveform displayed. The operator should not allow the
scope to be left unattended with a high brilliance, as this will certainly burn the trace into
the display. An increase in sweep speed will normally require and increase in brightness
level. (2)
Focus
The focus control adjusts the sharpness of the waveform and focusing the screen is best
done whilst viewing a waveform. (3)
Trace
Selects, which trace or signal is to be displayed on the screen.
A - Selects trace A only (single channel).
B - Selects trace B only (single channel).
A+B - Selects both trace A and trace B (dual channel).

ADD - Both channel inputs are added and displayed as a single trace. (11)
Time base
The speed the spot travels across the screen of the tube can be varied by means of the
Time base selector switch (9). This is calibrated in Seconds (S), Milliseconds (mS) or
Microseconds (uS).
Trigger selector
Selects the trigger source. Dual beam scopes may be triggered from either Channel A or
channel B. The oscilloscopes also has the facility to trigger from an external source, an
external TRIGGER input is on the front panel. (5)
Trigger level
A trace displaying a waveform without the use of TRIGGER will roll in much the same
way as a TV with the horizontal hold set wrongly. Trigger action will stop the trace from
starting, until a determined part of the waveform occurs.

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This will make each "sweep" of. The tube face occurs in exactly the same place and the
display will appear to be stationary. The trigger level control is used to select that point of
the waveform.
Position control
Rotation of this knob will adjust the vertical position of the Channel 1 and Channel 2
waveform on the screen (15)
Voltage Sensitivity or amplitude controls
The range on this control is from 20 volts/div (less sensitive) to 5mV/div (more
sensitive). The “2” position on the Channel 1 input implies that a 2-volt signal would
cause a deflection of 2 divisions vertically on the oscilloscope face. (14)
Sensitivity calibration
This knob is used to change the vertical scale. If it is not turned all the way clockwise, the
scope will be uncalibrated and your data will be worthless. Check this knob frequently as
you take data. (13)
Channel AC-GND-DC Switch
AC -Input coupling with blocking of any DC signal component.
GND -The input signal is connected to ground. This mode is useful in determining the
zero reference.
DC -Coupling, both the DC and AC components of the input signal are displayed. (16)
How To Set Up The Time-Base controls

The oscilloscope sweeps an electron beam across the display screen from left to right at a
speed set by the TIMEBASE control (9). The time base control, controls the amount of
time the sweeping dot takes to move 1cm; effectively it is setting the scale on the x-axis.
The time base control is normally labeled TIME/CM.
When the oscilloscope is set to slow time base
settings (such as 50ms/cm) you can see a dot
moving across the screen but at faster settings
(such as 1ms/cm) the dot is moving so fast that
it appears to be a straight static line.
Figure 3

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When a signal is viewed on the scopes display, the period of the signal can be measured
by counting the number of horizontal divisions that the signal "covers" on the display and
multiplying by the scale of each division.
Example, if the applied signal "covers" 4 divisions or squares across the screen at 5
milliseconds per division, then the signal period is 20 milliseconds and hence the
frequency is 50Hz.
The variable time base control can fine-tune the speed of the sweep, but it must be left in
the calibrated position if you wish to take time readings from the trace drawn on the
screen.
Make sure that X-Y mode is not selected as this disables the time base.
How To Set Up The Amplitude Controls

The amplitude adjustment of the oscilloscope controls how tall the input voltage signals
will appear on the screen. The screen is marked off with horizontal lines to indicate the
signal's voltage. The absolute voltage per horizontal line is adjustable. Thus, if the
amplitude is set to 1V/ then inside each block (or 1cm square) the signal is 1volt per
division. The purpose of this adjustment is that you can see a very large or a very small
signal on the same screen.

Figure 4

Example Of Measuring An AC Signal

To produce an alternating signal in this example we will use a signal generator.

Before starting ensure that the entire function generator controls are completely turned
clockwise and all buttons are in an out position.
The amplitude dial on the generator is used to adjust the peak-to-peak voltage of the
produced a.c. waveform. This has a range of 0 to 25volts.In this example set this control
to 5volts.

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The function buttons set the type of waveform produced, this being a sine, square, or
triangular. Again in this example set this to sine wave.
The frequency and range buttons are used in conjunction with each other for setting the
frequency of the output produced waveform. Set this to 2khz.
Connect the interconnecting bnc leads from the signal generator to the oscilloscope.
Be careful to watch the polarity of the two pieces of equipment (red to red, black to
black).
Then set the volts /div buttons, the vertical axis represents the number of volts.
Then set the sec /div or timbase setting (9). The numbers corresponding to the outer dial
represent the amount of time Per Cm Square in the horizontal direction.
Use triggering level to obtain a steady trace on the display
Position the displayed wave so it lines up with a cm square line marking, count the
number of cm squares between top and bottom of the trace.mulitpy the number of cm
squares by the volts/cm setting and this will give you the maximum peak voltage.
Position the displayed sine wave trace so that the beginning of the wave lines up with a
cm squares along the x-axis. Count the number of cm squares along the x-axis of one
cycle of the sine wave and multiply by the sweep time. This is the frequency being
measured.
Remember that the signal generator is producing the voltage and frequency the
oscilloscope is measuring the output.
You should have obtained an oscilloscope trace like the one shown below.
INSERT PICTURE FROM MULTISIM

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How To Connect A Signal Source

The input lead to an oscilloscope should be a co-axial lead and the diagram below shows
its construction. The central wire carries the signal and the screen is connected to earth
(0V) to shield the signal from electrical interference (noise).

Construction of a coaxial lead

Figure 5

The oscilloscope has two input ports, which are standard BNC sockets (12). The leads
with BNC sockets are connected with a push and twist action, and disconnected with a
twist and pull action.
Equipment connected to the oscilloscope is connected just like a voltmeter. The screen or
black connection of the input lead is connected to mains earth at the oscilloscope this
means it must be connected to earth or 0V on the circuit being tested. It is important to
remember that the oscilloscope can only take readings of voltages. This means that the
oscilloscope should always be connected in parallel to the circuit in which we are trying
to find the voltage off.
To connect the
oscilloscope to a signal
source such as a signal
generator you will need
a connecting lead,
which is coaxial with
two bnc connectors at
each end.
Figure 6

Normally the output of the signal generator has more than one output. We nearly always
use the 600ohm output. This is connected to the CH 1 input of the oscilloscope using the
BNC to BNC lead.
Also a high-quality connector, called a probe is used as its designed not to influence
testing results of circuits by not loading the circuit being measured.
Switch on the function generator and oscilloscope and allow them to warm up a few
minutes. The rotating frequency control and range switches are used together to
determine the frequency of the output signal.

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.

Adjust the output level to produce a visible signal on the oscilloscope screen. Adjust the
TIME/DIV and VOLTS/DIV buttons to obtain a clear display.

Calibration

Calibration Of Test Probes

When using the oscilloscope it is very easy just to plug the test probes in and start using
the scope, this is wrong .The probes have to be calibrated otherwise their response will
not be flat. To calibrate the probes there is a built in sine wave calibrator, basically a built
in signal generator that generates a low frequency square wave (~1kHz).
First of all adjust the focus and intensity to get a nice sharp line on the display. Then set
the input to ac and plug in the probe to the channel you are looking at (i.e. channel 1)
Put the probe tip to the calibrator tip and probe ground clip to the oscilloscope ground. At
this point you should be able to see the square wave displayed on the screen. There
should be some sort of screw for adjustments in the compensation box of the probe. By
inspecting the square wave signals in the oscilloscope you can compensate the probe.
Overcompensated or under-compensated probes may produce significant errors in rise
time and amplitude.

Figure 7

Standard Probe Kit

Figure 8

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Bibliography / References

Below are books I explicitly referred to in this report all other are bibliography.

B1

B2
B3 https://www.cs.tcd.ie/courses/baict/bac/jf/labs/scope/oscilloscope.html
Figure 1 http://i.ehow.com/images/GlobalPhoto/Articles/4526145/xandyaxis_Full.jpg

Figure 2 http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/Hbase/Electronic/scopec.html#c39

Figure 4 http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/Hbase/Electronic/scopec.html#c39

Figure 5 http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/cro.htm

Figure 6 http://www.doctronics.co.uk/scope.htm

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Figure 7 http://www.scienceprog.com/oscilloscope-probes-for-accurate-signal-measurements/

Figure 8 Rapid Electronics http://www.rapidonline.com/

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