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172 Electronic Instrumentation

lfthe input signal frequency is f, then the clock frequency must be 360 times
the input frequency for accurate measurements.

DIGITAL CAPACITANCE METER 6.13

Since the capacitance is linearly proportional to the time constant, when a
capacitor is charged by a constant current source and discharged through a fixed
resistance, we can use a 555 timer along with some digital test equipment to
measure capacitances.
One obvious way is to measure the time period of the oscillations. By choosing
the right size of charging resistance, we can get a reading directly in microfarads
or nanofarads. Unlike many capacitance measuring schemes, this one easily

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handles electrolytics up to the tens of thousands of microfarads.
A better way is to measure only the capacitor discharge time, as shown in

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Fig. 6.27. With this method, any leakage in the capacitor under test will make
the capacitor appear smaller in value than it actually is, and is an effective
indicator of how the test capacitor will behave in most timing and bypass
circuits.
asy +v
l:: ~
:Cal
En :
100 kHz
Clock
Freq, Ref.

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~ R 5.:
7
8 14 3 • ~
1 Block
o pass
:: I
R
::
I
6
555
5
r- C2 =:=
eer+v
4
Io-
Gate

2J;
ing
Unknown 4 R1:: uClear
Capcitor Cx -'- '>
I -- Counter
--
-
c'l R2: ~
-:
==
~

- +.v ~
Digital .ne
-
--

--t>O-f,,
C
R3 ~
•
•
:
:
u
Display

Up Date
t
R 4 :... :
...~
-J.......

Fig. 8.27 Block diagram of a basic digital capacitance meter

In this circuit, the 555 timer is used as an astable multivibrator. At the peak
of the charging curve, a digital counter is reset and a clock of 100 kHz pulses is
turned on and routed to the counter. When the discharge portion of the cycle is
completed, the display is updated and the value of the capacitor is readout. By
selecting the proper reference frequency and charging currents, one can obtain a
direct digital display of the value of the capacitance.

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180 Electronic Instrumentation

Now, letus see whathappens to the beam when voltage is applied simultaneously
to both vertical and horizontal plates.
When voltage is applied to the vertical and horizontal plates simultaneously,
the deflection of the beam is proportional to the resultant of the two voltages
and the position of the beam is inbetween the horizontal and vertical axis of the
screen.
Suppose a steady voltage is applied to one horizontal and one vertical plate.
When these two deflection voltages are equal, the position of the spot is 45°.
The angle is greater than 45° (spot close to V-axis) when the vertical voltage is
greater than the horizontal, and less than 45° (spot close to the .H-axis) when the
horizontal voltage is greater than the vertical voltage. When the two voltages are

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reversed in polarity, the deflection is in the opposite direction.
If instead of a steady voltage a pulsating positive voltage is applied to the

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same plates as before, a tilt of 45° is obtained from the horizontal if the two
voltages are equal and in phase. The tilt is greater than 45° if the vertical voltage
is greater than the horizontal voltage, and less than 45° if the horizontal voltage

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is greater than the vertical voltage. When a negative voltage is applied to both
plates, the trace extends in the opposite direction. When an alternating voltage

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in phase is applied to the plates, the tilt of the trace is 45° from the horizontal
when the two voltages are equal, it traces a straight line at an angle of 45 degrees.

45° if the horizontal voltage is greater.

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Again the tilt is greater than 45° if the vertical voltage is greater, and less than

The ac trace has equal length from the centre of screen to either tip, when the
ac is symmetrical. When it is asymmetrical, the shorter part corresponds to the
lower voltage half cycle. eer
A single trace is obtained only when the phase angles are 0°, 180°, or 360°. At
other phase angles a double line trace is obtained at equal voltages, the pattern ing
becomes an ellipse with a right tilt for angle between 0-90°, a circle at 90° and
an ellipse with a left tilt between 90-180°. Again, a left tilt between 180-270°, a .ne
circle at 270°, an ellipse with lift tilt between 270-360°.

CRT FEATURES 7.3

t
Electrostatic CRTs are available in a number of types and sizes to suit individual
requirements. The important features of these tubes are as follows.
1. Size Size refers to the screen diameter. CRTs for oscilloscopes are available
in sizes of 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7 inches. 3 inches is most cornrnon for portable
instruments.
For example a CRT having a number 5GPl. The first number 5 indicates that
it is a 5 inch tube.
Both round and rectangular CRTs are found in scopes today. The vertical
viewing size is 8 ern and horizontal is 10 cm.
2. Phosphor The screen is coated with a fluorescent material called phosphor.
This material determines the colour and persistence of the trace, both of which
are indicated by the phosphor.

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Oscilloscope I 81

The trace colours in electrostatic CRTs for oscilloscopes are blue, green and
blue green. White is used in TVs, and blue-white, orange, and yellow are used
for radar.
Persistence is expressed as short, medium and long. This refers to the length
of time the trace remains on the screen after the signal has ended.
The phosphor of the oscilloscope is designated as follows.
PI Green medium
P2 Blue green medium
P5 Blue very short
Pll Blue short
These designations are combined in the tube type number. Hence 5GP 1 is a 5

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inch tube with a medium persistence green trace.
Medium persistence traces are mostly used for general purpose applications.

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Long persistence traces are used for transients, since they keep the fast
transient on the screen for observation after the transient has disappeared.
Short persistence is needed for extremely high speed phenomena, to prevent

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smearing and interference caused when one image persists and overlaps with the
next one.

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P 11 phosphor is considered the best for photographing from the CRT screen.
3. Operating Voltages The CRT requires a heater voltage of 6.3 volts ac or de at
600 rnA.
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Several de voltages are listed below. The voltages vary with the type of tube
used.
(i) Negative grid (control) voltage - 14 V to - 200 V. eer
(ii) Positive anode no. 1 (focusing anode) - 100 V to - 1100 V
(iii) Positive anode no. 2 (accelerating anode) 600 V to 6000 V
ing
(iv) Positive anode no. 3 (accelerating anode) 200 V to 20000 V in some
cases
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4. Deflection Voltages Either ac or de voltage will deflect the beam. The distance
through which the spot moves on the screen is proportional to the de, or peak ac
amplitude. The deflection sensitivity of the tube is usually stated as the de voltage
t
(or peak ac voltage) required for each em of deflection of the spot on the screen.
5. Viewing Screen The viewing screen is the glass face plate, the inside wall
of which is coated with phosphor. The viewing screen is a reetangular screen
having graticules marked on it. The standard size used nowadays is 8 cm x 10 ern
(8 ern on the vertical and 10 em on horizontal). Each centimeter on the graticule
corresponds to one division (div). The standard phosphor colour used nowadays
is blue.

7.3.1 Basic Principle of Signal Display (Function of the Sweep Generator)

The amplitude of a voltage may be directly measured on a calibrated viewing
screen from the length of the straight line trace it produces. This is entirely
satisfactory for de voltage.

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184 Electronic Instrumentation

A triggered scope does not use a continuous or recurrent sweep, but uses a
monostable multivibrator which is in its off state until a trigger pulse arrives,
hence there is no deflection on the screen.
When an input signal is applied, a trigger pulse is generated and applied to
the multivibrator, which switches on and produces a sweep signal, and a trace
appears on the screen. After a specific voltage, depending on the CRT beam
arriving on the RHS, the multivibrator switches back to its off state, causing the
beam to return rapidly to the LHS. (The basic difference between recurrent and
triggered scopes is that the recurrent sweep locks at the frequency of the input
signal, while the triggered scope displays a trace for a specific period of time.
Hence, the triggered scope is ON during a specific time interval and will display

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a waveform or a segment of waveform (e.g. a one shot waveform) regardless
of the signal frequency. Hence transients or single clamped oscillations can be

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observed on the screen.)
Most triggered scopes use a convenient feature of calibrating the sweep
speed, in time per em or division. Sweep frequency is the reciprocal of the time
period.
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5. Intensity Modulation In some applications an ac signal is applied to the control

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electrode of the CRT. This causes the intensity of the beam to vary in step with
signal alternations. As a result, the trace is brightened during the +ve half cycles

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and diminished or darkened during -ve half cycles. This process, is called
intensity modulation or Z-axis modulation (in contrast to X-axis for horizontal and
Y-axis for vertical). It produces bright segments or dots on the trace in response
to positive peak or dim segments or holes in response to negative peaks. eer
BLOCK DIAGRAM OF OSCILLOSCOPE ing 7.4
The major block circuit shown in Fig. 7.4, of a general purpose CRO, is as
follows: .ne
1. CRT
2. Vertical amplifier
3. Delay line Input
I----~Delay
f'vlhe;rirtITCic:aall
Amplifier I-..-~ Line
t
4. Time base
5. Horizontal amplifier
6. Trigger circuit
7. Power supply v H
Electron
The function of the various Gun ....--:::------.
blocks are as follows. ,-...L.._-, Time
Trigger Base Horizontal
Circuit enerator Amplifier High
1. CRT This is the cathode Voltage
ray tube which emits
electrons that strikes the
phosphor screen internally +ve
to provide a visual display
Fig.7.4 Basic eRO block diagram
of signal.

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Oscilloscope 185

2. Vertical Amplifier This is a wide band amplifier used to amplify signals in the
vertical section.
3. Delay Line It is used to delay the signal for some time in the vertical sections.
4. Time Base It is used to generate the sawtooth voltage required to deflect the
beam in the horizontal section.
5. Horizontal Amplifier This is used to amplify the sawtooth voltage before it is
applied to horizontal deflection plates.
6. Trigger Circuit This is used to convert the incoming signal into nigger pulses
so that the input signal and the sweep frequency can be synchronised

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7.Power Supply There are two powersupplies, a-ve High Voltage (HV) supply and
a +ve Low Voltage (LV) supply. Two voltages are generated in the CRO. The +ve

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volt supply is from + 300 to 400 V. The -ve high voltage supply is from - 1000 to
- 1500 V. This voltage is passed through a bleeder resistor at a few m.A. The
intermediate voltages are obtained from the bleeder resistor for intensity, focus

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and positioning controls.
Advantages of using -ve HV Supply
(i)
En
The accelerating anodes and the deflection plates are close to ground
potential. The ground potential protects the operator from HV shocks

(ii)
when making connections to the plates.
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The deflection voltages are measured WIt ground, therefore HV blocking

eer
or coupling capacitor are not needed, but low voltage rating capacitors
can be used for connecting the HV supply to the vertical and horizontal

(iii)
amplifiers.
Less insulation is needed between positioning controls and chasis. ing
SIMPLE eRO 7.5 .ne
The basic block diagram of a simple CRO is shown in Fig. 7.5. The ac filament
supplies power to the CRT heaters. This also provides an accurate ac calibrating
voltage. CRT dc voltage is obtained from the HV de supply through voltage
t
dividers R, - Rs. Included along with this voltage divider is a potentiometer (R3)
which varies the potential at the focusing electrode, known as focus control, and
one which varies the control grid voltage, called the intensity control (Rs).
Capacitor C, is used to ground the deflection plates and the second anode for
the signal voltage, but de isolates these electrodes from the ground.
Normally S2 is set to its linear position. This connects the sweep generator
output to the horizontal input. The sweep voltage is amplified before being
applied to the horizontal deflecting plates.
When an externally generated sweep is desired, S2 is connected to its
external position and the external generator is connected to the input. The sweep
synchronising voltage is applied to the internal sweep generator through switch
S" which selects the type of synchronisation.

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186 Electronic Instrumentation

r-
I
ac Heater
Calibration
Voltage
( )
I
I
I
I -u L V
-: CRT
Supply I
I
I
I
_ll L
-o
i
I
Direct

R2: : c, ~
i/P)
Rl :; • --
: : f---e Vert. }
• - :I-e Hon.
= I~ :I •
R3• •: Focus '] Z-Axis
: Vertical
High - Amplifier "'V ertical
Voltage Input
I

R4: ;
dc

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•~

•~ Intensity
~ ~ Horizontal
Amplifier
Sweep $2
Sawtooth Selector
Horizontal
Input

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•
-==
-
To Amplifier & Sweep
Sweep
Generator Linear
.I External

asy + - $1 Internal
Low dc Voltage Sync
Ext. Sync
Supply Amplifier l~1
ync Line~ Input

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-
Selector -
Fig. 7.5

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Simple CRO

7.5.1 CRT Showing Power Supply

Figure 7.6 shows the various voltages applied to CRT electrodes. The intensity
control controls the number of electrons by varying the control grid voltage. eer
Focusing can be done either electrostatically or electromagnetically. Electrostatic
focusing is obtained by using a cylindrical anode, which changes the electrostatic ing
lines of force which controls the beam.
First Anode 2nd Anode .ne
Control
Cathode Grid
=>
Sereen
t
Intensity
Control -1100 V -900 V -500 V
o +300 V ToAll
Other
-1200 V Focus Ckts.
"-';H""ig=h-' Low
L..._-----jVoltage1-----------------+---iVoltage
Sup~ Supp~

Fig.7.S CRT showing power supplies

VERTICAL AMPLIFIER 7.6

The sensitivity (gain) and frequency bandwidth (B.W.) response characteristics of
the oscilloscope are mainly determined by the vertical amplifier. Since the gain-

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Oscilloscope 193

is applied to each pair of plates, and as the electron beam travels the signal also
travels through the delay lines. The time delays are so arranged that the same
electrons are deflected by the input signal. In this way the electron beam picks
up the level of the input signal. The time delays between the plates correspond
exactly to the transit times of the electrons. (In addition, new fluorescent materials
have now been developed to increase the brigbtness at HF.)

7.13.1 Characteristics of a HF CRO or (H F Improvement in a CRO)

1. The vertical amplifier must be designed both for high B. W. and high
sensitivity or gain. Making the vertical amplifier a fixed gain amplifier
simplifies the design. The input to the amplifier is brought to the required

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level by means of an attenuator circuit. The final stages is the push-pull
stage.
The LF CRT is replaced by an HF CRT.
3.
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A probe is used to connect the signals, e.g. a high Z passive probe acts
like a compensated attenuator.
4.

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By using a triggered sweep, for fast rising signals, and by the use
of delay lines between the vertical plates, for improvement of HF
characteristics.
5.
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New fluorescent materials that increase the brightness of the display are

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used.

DUAL BEAM eRO 7.14

Figure 7.18 illustrates a block diagram of a Dual Beam CRO.
eer
Signal A Pre-amplifier
and
Attenuator
t--.-'
Delay Line
Main
Vertical
Amplifier ing
.ne
f--+.

Signal B Pre-amplifier
Delay line
Main
t
and I-r---+' Vertical
Attenuator Amplifier
Trigger
selector
A / Switch
B~-eS~Trigger 1---+-1 Sweep I------+i Horizontal
Circuit Generator Amplifier
Ext__'

r Line

Fig. 7.18 Dual beam eRO

The dual trace oscilloscope has one cathode ray gun, and an electronic switch
which switches two signals to a single vertical amplifier. The dual beam CRO

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194 Electronic Instrumentation

uses two completely separate electron beams, two sets ofVDPs and a single set
ofHDPs. Only one beam can be synchronised at one time, since the sweep is the
same for both signals, i.e. a common time base is used for both beams. Therefore,
the signals must have the same frequency or must be related harmonically, in
order to obtain both beams locked on the CRT screen, e.g. the input signal of an
amplifier can be used as signal A and its output signal as signal B.

DUAL TRACE OSCI LLOSCOPE 7.15

Figure 7.19 (a) shows a block diagram ofa dual trace oscilloscope.
This CRO has a single electron gun whose electron beam is split into two by
an electronic switch. There is one control for focus and another for intensity.

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Two signals are displayed simultaneously. The signals pass through identical
vertical channels or vertical amplifiers. Each channel has its own calibrated input

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attenuator and positioning control, so that the amplitude of each signal can be
independently adjusted.

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Channel A Pre-amplifier
and
Attenuator
1----.-' '----1
Delay Line
Electronic
Switch
I.V:-e-:-rti:-ca--:lt------,
Amplifier
V0 P

En x - Y Mode

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Channel B Pre-amplifier
and h---t-J
Attenuator \
\

eer
\
\
\ HOP
\

Sweep \........
-1 Horizontal

ing
Generatorl--illr Amplifier

T
A

Trigger .ne
Ext _j
Trigger .
Line Trigger
Switch
Circuit

Fig.7.19 (a) Dual trace oscilloscope

t
A mode control switch enables the electronic switch to operate in two modes
i.e. Alternate and Chop mode. When the switch is in ALTERNATE position,
the electronic switch feeds each signal alternately to the vertical amplifier. The
electronic switch alternately connects the main vertical amplifier to channels A and
B and adds a different dc component to each signal; this de component directs the
beam alternately to the upper or lower half of the screen. The switching takes place
at the start of each new sweep of the sweep generator. The switching rate of the
electronic switch is synchronised to the sweep rate, so that the CRT spot traces the
channel A signal on one sweep and the channel B signal on the succeeding sweep
[Fig. 7.19 (b)].

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