White's DFX - Glossary

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All-Metal:
Any mode or control setting allowing total acceptance of all metal types, iron, aluminum, tin,
nickel, gold, brass, lead, copper, silver etc.
Audio ID:
Circuitry which produces different audio tones (pitch) for different target's conductivity.
Black Sand:
One of the most extreme components of non-conductive, negative ground minerals. Mag-
netic. Also called Magnetite (Fe304) or magnetic iron oxide.
Cache:
Any intentionally buried or secreted hoard of valuables.
Conductive Salts:
One of the major mineral types which make up the positive ground minerals. Wet
ocean salt/sand will produce a positive response due to its similar conductivity to metal.
Conductivity:
The measure of a metal target's ability to allow eddy currents on its surface.
Depth:
The greatest measure of a metal detectors ability to transmit an electromagnetic fi eld into the
ground.
De-tuning:
Method of manually or automatically desensitizing a metal detector so that it may locate the
center of a target.
Discrimination:
Circuitry which ignores or otherwise indicates, a specifi c target based on its conductiv-
ity/phase.
Drift:
A loss or increase in threshold caused by temperature, time, or battery condition.
Eddy Currents:
Small circulating currents of electricity.
Ferrous:
Descriptive of any iron or iron bearing material.
Frequency:
The number of complete alternating current cycles produced by the transmit oscillator per
second.
Ground Balance:
A state of operation in which specialized circuitry can ignore the masking effect ground
minerals have over metal targets.
Hot Rock:
A rock which contains a higher concentration of mineralization than the surrounding ground.
Matrix:
Refers to the total volume (average) of ground penetrated by a metal detector.
Menu:
Series of listings and prompts on a visual display designed to aid the operator in feature selection.
Metal:
Metallic substances: iron, foil nickel, aluminum, gold, brass, copper, silver, etc.
Microprocessor:
An electronic component that can be programed to perform certain electronic functions.
Mineralized Ground:
Any soil containing conductive or magnetic components.
Mode:
A condition of operation selected by the operator for specifi c functions.
Motion Mode:
Any mode that requires loop movement to respond to metals.
Non-ferrous:
Not of iron, any metal that is not iron.
Non-Motion Mode:
Any mode of operation that doesn't require movement of the loop to respond to metal
targets.
Phase:
The length of time between eddy current generation sustained on a metals surface and the resulting
secondary electromagnetic fi eld effect on the loops receive winding.
Pinpointing:
Finding the exact center of a metal target.
Reject:
An indication of a target non-acceptance by silence or a broken sound.
Sensitivity:
The measure or capacity of a metal detector to perceive changes in conductivity within the
loops detection pattern.
Signal:
An audio or display response alerting the operator that a target has been detected.
Stability:
The ability of a metal detector to maintain smooth predictable performance.
Target:
Refers to any object that causes an audio or display indication.
Glossary
Glossary