Glossary
TDS 500B, TDS 600B, & TDS 700A User Manual
Glossary–3
Cursors
Paired markers that you can use to make measurements between two waveform
locations. The oscilloscope displays the values (expressed in volts or time) of
the position of the active cursor and the distance between the two cursors.
Cycle area
A measurement of waveform area taken over one cycle. Expressed in
volt-seconds. Area above ground is positive; area below ground is negative.
Cycle mean
An amplitude (voltage) measurement of the arithmetic mean over one cycle.
Cycle RMS
The true Root Mean Square voltage over one cycle.
DC coupling
A mode that passes both AC and DC signal components to the circuit.
Available for both the trigger system and the vertical system.
Delay measurement
A measurement of the time between the middle reference crossings of two
different waveforms.
Delay time
The time between the trigger event and the acquisition of data.
Digitizing
The process of converting a continuous analog signal such as a waveform to a
set of discrete numbers representing the amplitude of the signal at specific
points in time. Digitizing is composed of two steps: sampling and quantizing.
Display system
The part of the oscilloscope that shows waveforms, measurements, menu
items, status, and other parameters.
Edge Trigger
Triggering occurs when the oscilloscope detects the source passing through a
specified voltage level in a specified direction (the trigger slope).
Envelope acquisition mode
A mode in which the oscilloscope acquires and displays a waveform that
shows the variation extremes of several acquisitions.