CRO

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

revised April 21, 2006 (You will do two experiments; this one and the Charge-to-Mass Ratio of the Electron experiment. Sections will switch rooms and experiments half-way through the lab.)

Learning Objectives:
During this lab, you will 1. learn how to measure time-varying electronic signals with a cathode ray oscilloscope (CRO). 2. estimate the uncertainty in measurements made with a CRO and estimate the uncertainty in a quantities that are calculated from quantities that are uncertain.

A. Introduction
The cathode ray oscilloscope, CRO or simply scope, is used in many fields of basic and applied research and in electronics development and repair. It is generally the

tool of choice for examining signals that change with time on a scale of 1 second to 1 nanosecond. The sketch of the scope in Figure 1 includes a triangular wave signal, a voltage that, as a function of time, continually (and linearly) ramps up and down between two limiting voltages. The operation of the CRO is described in detail in Appendix IX. You should read that appendix before attempting this lab. In this lab, you will learn how to use the CRO to investigate various types of timedependant phenomena that you will encounter in your studies of electricity and magnetism. You should also become more comfortable with certain aspects of sine waves, such as phase differences and the relation of frequency to period, that are critical to understanding interference effects and electromagnetic radiation. This experiment requires that you complete the worksheet worth 30 points that can be found in Appendix XI. Attach the worksheet and graphs from Lab #3A to the paper from Lab #3B and use one cover sheet for both.

B.

Apparatus

You will be using a dual-trace oscilloscope, a special scope probe designed to

Figure 1: Cathode ray oscilloscope controls. 1 Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

mate with the scope, a doorbell transformer, function generator, microphone and tuning forks. Figure 1 is a diagram of the front panel of the scope, with labels for the important controls. A photograph of the scope is posted on the lab web site. The scope probe resembles a pen with an alligator clip attached to it by a short wire. The alligator clip is for the ground connection and is not needed when the scope probe is connected to ground-referenced electronics but is used to establish the ground of other objects you may be measuring. (DO NOT connect this alligator clip to a signal output; it will cause a short circuit!) The signal connection of the scope probe is a spring loaded hook located inside the tip of the probe. This hook is exposed by retracting its cover (do not unscrew or remove the cover). Some but not all probes let you switch between 1X and 10X where the 10X divides the signal by a factor of 10. If your probe has this option, be certain to use the 1X setting.

C. Familiarization and Use

Turn the POWER switch on and leave it on for the entire lab period. Electronic devices can produce a lot of waste heat and their properties can change with temperature; sensitive instruments are generally left on so that they give more stable readings. These are dual trace oscilloscopes (they have two quasi-independent inputs), so you must select channel 1 [CH 1 (16)] for the following measurements. (The numbers in parentheses refer to the control locations shown in Figure 1 and are described in Appendix IX.) Set the SOURCE (21) selection switch to INT (for internal triggering), the MODE(25) to AUTO, the MODE (16) switch to CH1 and the INT TRIG (22) selection switch to CH1. Cathode Ray Oscilloscope 2

The scope is usually used to plot a changing voltage as a function of time, with the instantaneous voltage read along the vertical or y-axis while time is measured along the horizontal or x-axis. The scope face has a measurement grid that is 8 cm tall by 10 cm long. The grid lines are referred to as divisions or DIV. Some of the DIV lines have short markings every 2 mm or 0.2 DIV. The horizontal sweep control (18/19) sets the time it takes the scope beam to scan across the screen horizontally. This control is labeled as TIME/DIV where TIME may be measured in seconds (s), milliseconds (ms) or microseconds (s) depending on the position of this control. The vertical gain controls (10/12 and 11/13) are labeled as VOLTS/DIV. These control the amplification of the signal or how large a given signal appears relative to the vertical or y-axis. The units may be volts/DIV or millivolts/DIV (mV) depending on where these knobs are set. Be sure that the sweep (18/19) and vertical gain(10/12&11/13) controls are kept locked in their calibrated positions at all times. Each of these controls has two concentric knobs, an inner knob that is painted red on most of the scopes and an outer knob. The inner knob lets you vary the setting continuously but means that you no longer have a quantitative reading. The outer knob has calibrated click stops. Dont use the continuously variable inner knob to make any of the adjustments described in this manual; keep them turned fully clockwise onto their clickstops. You should only use the outer companion controls which have discrete, calibrated settings. Otherwise, your measurements will be meaningless. Turn the TIME/DIV(18) knob to the slowest sweep possible (fully counterclockwise, CCW). With nothing connected to the scope inputs, the input voltage is effectively

set to zero and the scope will plot zero as a function of time, a flat line. You should see a spot moving across the screen. If you dont see this spot, try adjusting the vertical position (14) which should be somewhere near its midpoint. If this doesnt work, ask a TA for help. Note what happens as you now increase the sweep frequency by turning the TIME/DIV knob clockwise. This increases the speed as which the scopes electron beam scans across the face of the scope, letting you follow signals that themselves are changing faster, i.e. are of a higher frequency. C.1. Square Wave - Time and Voltage Measurement The scope has a CAL(26) output tab which supplies a 0.5 V peak-to-peak (V pp ), 1 kHz square wave signal. The term peak-to-peak means that the signal is measured from its absolute maximum to its absolute minimum, or top to bottom. This CAL signal can be used to check the calibration of the scope settings, but we will actually be using it to check whether you know how to make proper measurements with the scope. If the measurements you are instructed to make below do not agree with the expected values, ask for help. Use the scope probe to connect the CAL tab to the CH1(6) input of the oscilloscope. DONT USE THE ALLIGATOR CLIP on the probe to connect to this tab! This shorts it out. Use the hook inside the retractable tip. Connect the BNC plug on the other end of the scope probe to the scopes Channel 1 input. This input is a BNC jack, a common form of coaxial connector. Align the slots of the BNC plug of the scope probe to the pins of the BNC jack on the scope. Push the plug into place and rotate it 90 to lock it in position. Set the AC-GND-DC (8) switch to DC. The TIME/DIV (18) should be at about 0.5 ms while the channel 1 3

VOLTS/DIV (10) should be at about 0.2 V/div. These settings will let you view the signal but you should expect to change them to optimize your measurements. Set the trigger LEVEL (24) control to the full CW (+) position and then decrease and adjust this knob until you get a stable image. Setting this triggering is often the trickiest part of using an oscilloscope. Once you have a stable image, adjust the Time/Div switch until you see a sequence of a few cycles of a square wave on the screen. Adjust the vertical gain (VOLTS/DIV) and vertical position so that the signal almost fills the screen vertically. You will have to estimate the accuracy of many of your measurements. You may assume that any errors in the scope electronics are negligible and that the only errors are due to your ability to judge the position of a signal on the screen. For some arbitrary signal, how well do you think you can determine its position, in terms of either mm, cm, or DIV (your choice of units)? Later, when you need to convert your estimate of this error into an error in time or voltage, just multiply by the setting of the TIME/DIV knob or VOLTS/DIV knob respectively. C.1.1. Time Measurement The period of the square wave, as for any repetitive wave, is the time it takes to repeat itself. Measure the period of the calibration square wave by multiplying the length, in cm or DIV, of one or more periods times the setting of the TIME/DIV knob. (Measure as large an image as possible to obtain the highest possible precision in your time measurements. If there are 4 full periods on the screen, measure the time for all 4 and divide by 4 to get the period; in this case you will also have to divide your error estimate by 4. Alternately, change the TIME/DIV so that 1-2 periods fill your screen.) You can shift the signal horizontally

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

using the x-position control (20) to start or end the sweep at some convenient mark on the CRT. Use the period you measured to calculate the frequency (and estimated error) of the calibration signal. Remember that frequency is just one over the period. To find the error in the frequency, you should use the derivative method, (1/T) = (T)/T2 . C.1.2. Voltage Measurement Determine the peak-to-peak voltage of the square wave by multiplying the measured height of the square wave by the setting of the VOLTS/DIV. Note that you can offset the signal (14) to make this measurement easier. Remember too that more careful measurements can be made if you adjust the calibrated VOLTS/DIV knob so that the signal almost fills the screen vertically. Compare this result with the expected value of 0.5 V pp . C.2 Measurements of a Sine Wave You have been looking at a square wave. Another common signal is a sine wave [V = V 0 sin(t + )] such as the 110-volt AC power line. You will use a doorbell transformer to reduce the signal to a safer level. Connect the center and either one of the two outer terminals of the transformer to the CH 1 input of the oscilloscope. Adjust the sweep time, the vertical sensitivity and other controls until you get a stable picture. (It probably wont be a very good sine wave, but thats what you often have at an outlet.) Sketch the waveform (dont forget to label the scales on your sketch). Measure and record the period and calculate the frequency. Measure and record the peak-topeak voltage of the signal. Use a DMM set to measure AC voltages to check the voltage output of the transformer. Are your CRO measurements of the transformer voltage consistent with the DMM measurements? This probably wont appear to be the case at first, the meter

should read less than half of your scope measurement. One reason for this is that your oscilloscope measurement was a peak-to-peak voltage. This is twice the amplitude of the sine wave, the V 0 term the equation V 0 sin(t + ). Another reason is that the DMM measures the RMS (root mean square) voltage, given by V 0 cos (t ) dt (1) V RMS = < V > = dt where the integrals are over one period. VRMS is more closely related to the strength of a signal than is V0; although the two are the same for a DC signal, they vary significantly for various types of AC signals. The integral of cos2(t)dt divided by the integral of time, over any number of whole periods, is just . Vrms is proportional to the square root of this factor or the square root of . Taken all together, Vpp = 2 2 Vrms. Knowing this, are your scope and DMM measurements consistent? You can view a cleaner sine wave using a function generator. Connect the HIGH output of your function generator to channel 2 of your scope, leaving the transformer connected to channel 1. Switch the scope to CHOP MODE (16) to view both channels 1 and 2 but set the trigger (22) to channel 2. Turn on the function generator and set it to produce sine waves at about 60 Hz with a magnitude similar to that of the transformer. The controls of your function generator are poorly marked and calibrated and should not be trusted to be accurate. Use your scope to determine that you have the settings right. To do this, adjust the scope so that the channel 1 signal appears on the top half of the screen while channel 2 occupies the bottom half. The amplitudes and periods of the two signals should be comparable. If necessary, adjust the scope and function generator settings. Try adjusting the trigger
2 2

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

level (24) to see how it shifts the point at which the trace starts. Change the trigger source to channel 1 to see the effect. C.3. Lissajous Figures An alternate method for comparing two signals is to plot one on the horizontal (X) and the other on the on the vertical (Y) axis. This will produce Lissajous figures which allow for very quick visual comparison of the relative frequency and phase of two signals (but which are rarely used except as special effects in science fiction movies). Set the oscilloscope to operate in X-Y mode (TIME/DIV knob (18) fully CW) with the output of the transformer still connected to the x-axis (CH1) and the sine-wave output of the function generator, set to 60 Hz, connected to the y-axis (CH2). Adjust the frequency (slightly) and output amplitude of the function generator until you repeatedly see a diagonal straight line at an angle of roughly 45 with the horizontal. Because of changing phases, the signal will slowly drift from a line to a circular shape and back again. To understand what is happening, think back to your high school trigonometry course. If someone told you to make an xy plot as a function of time of a signal given by x = Acost and y = Acost, where A is some arbitrary amplitude, is an angular frequency and t is time, hopefully you can see that you would just trace out a 45 line, since x = y at every instant of time. What changes if x = Acost and y = Asint? Now you would sketch out a circle. Whats the difference? Its just the phase difference between the x and y signals, since the sin function is just the cos function shifted by 90. What happens if the phase difference between x and y slowly changes with time? The pattern slowly drifts from a line to a circle and back. Sketch the pattern you observe on the scope at a few representative times as it changes.

Switch the oscilloscope back to 2 ms TIME/DIV, chop mode and note the gradual phase change of the oscillator signal relative to the transformer signal. The signal on which the scope is triggered should remain steady while the other sine wave gradually drifts to the left or right. The speed of this drift corresponds to the rate at which your Lissajous pattern changes shape. Try adjusting the frequency to make the drift larger or smaller, switching quickly back and forth between XY mode and a 2 ms sweep setting to observe the corresponding effect on the Lissajous pattern. Next, slowly increase the frequency of the signal from the function generator until it is approximately doubled, then fine-tune it to produce a fairly stable Lissajous pattern. Measure the frequency with the scope, confirm that it is roughly 120 Hz and sketch this Lissajous pattern. (Its a lot harder to explain the shape of a Lissajous pattern when the frequencies of the two signals are different but the drift in the pattern is still related to a drift in their relative phases.) Vary the frequency between 60 - 120 Hz and locate the simplest, nearly stable pattern in this range. Measure this frequency and sketch the Lissajous pattern. (In principle, there are an infinite number of patterns in this range of frequencies but one should stand out as simpler than any others.) Try to analyze the experiment and/or the theory to determine what conditions on the frequencies are necessary for a relatively simple, stable pattern to appear, ignoring the drifts caused by slowly varying phases. C.4. Sound Waves Disconnect all of the input leads from the scope and set the sweep to 1 msec/div. Attach a microphone to the channel 1 input. Use AC coupling and a high sensitivity (the signal will be small) and set the trigger source to channel 1. Find the frequency of a

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

Figure 2: Example of beats. tuning fork struck with the rubber end of the mallet supplied to you. (Change the sweep speed and vertical gain as necessary to make a good measurement.) Note that the loudest sound comes from the opening in the sounding box, not directly from the vibrating metal tines. Borrow another fork from a neighbor, strike both simultaneously and try to hear beats and see them on the scope (a definition of beats is given below). Since the beats will be at a lower frequency than the signal from a single tuning fork, you will have to slow your scopes sweep speed by one or two clicks of the TIME/DIV knob to see them. (There are a few pairs of tuning forks that

produce particularly clear beat patterns. These are marked with matching colored squares or circles.) Beats are the phenomenon that two sine waves of similar frequencies add to produce a signal that looks like a sine wave whose frequency is the average of the original sine waves with an overall modulation at a frequency given by half the difference in the original signals (Fig. 2). For example, if you add a 1000 Hz tone to a 1060 Hz tone, you will produce a 1030 Hz tone that increases and decreases in magnitude at 30 Hz. The 30 Hz is sometimes called an envelope that modulates the amplitude of the 1030 Hz signal. (The AM in AM radio refers to a similar modulation.) If you have time, you may wish to investigate the sound of your own voice using the microphone and scope, although this is not required for the worksheet. What is the frequency of your speaking voice? What are the highest and lowest frequency tones you can vocalize by singing, humming, etc.? Can you match the tone of your tuning fork? Can you and your lab partner(s) sing in harmony and produce beats? (Only the BEST lab partners can do this!)

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope