Page 1 User Manual TDS 520 & 540 Digitizing Oscilloscopes 070-8317-01 This document supports Version 2 firmware. Please check for change information at the rear of this manual. First Printing: March 1992 Last Revised: November 1992...
Page 2 Copyright Tektronix, Inc. 1991, 1992. All rights reserved. Tektronix products are covered by U.S. and foreign patents, issued and pending. Information in this publication supercedes that in all previously published material. Specifications and price change privileges reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.
Page 3 Tektronix, with shipping charges prepaid. Tektronix shall pay for the return of the product to Customer if the shipment is to a location within the country in which the Tektronix service center is located. Customer shall be responsible for paying all shipping charges, duties, taxes, and any other charges for products returned to any other locations.
Page 4 This apparatus has been designed and tested in accordance with IEC Publication 348, Safety Requirements for Electronic Measuring Apparatus, and has been supplied in a safe condition. This manual contains some information and warnings which have to be followed by the user to ensure safe operation and to retain the apparatus in safe condition.
Page 5 Welcome This is the User Manual for the TDS 520 and TDS 540 Digitizing Oscillo- scopes. If you are a new user, try the Tutorial section to become familiar with the operation of your digitizing oscilloscope. The Concepts section covers basic principles of the operation of the oscillo- scope.
Page 6 In the Tutorial and In Detail sections, you will find various procedures which Conventions contain steps of instructions for you to perform. To keep those instructions clear and consistent, this manual uses the following conventions: Names of front panel controls and menu labels appear in boldface print. Names also appear in the same case (initial capitals, all uppercase, etc.) in the manual as is used on the oscilloscope front panel and menus.
Page 7: Table Of Contents
........... 3-40 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 8 Help ............3-48 Horizontal Control .
Page 9: Product Description
500 Megasamples/second maximum digitizing rate (TDS 520). Four-channel acquisition—the TDS 540 offers four full-featured channels; the TDS 520 offers two full-featured channels and two channels with limited vertical scale selections: 100 mV, 1 V, and 10 V. Waveform Math—Invert a single waveform and add, subtract, and multiply two waveforms.
Page 10 Safety Please take a moment to review these safety precautions. They are provided for your protection and to prevent damage to the digitizing oscilloscope. This safety information applies to all operators and service personnel. These two terms appear in manuals: Symbols and Terms statements identify conditions or practices that could result in damage to the equipment or other property.
Page 11 Do Not Operate in Explosive Atmospheres The digitizing oscilloscope provides no explosion protection from static dis- charges or arcing components. Do not operate the digitizing oscilloscope in an atmosphere of explosive gases. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 12: Start Up
Start Up Before you use the digitizing oscilloscope, ensure that it is properly installed and powered on. To properly install and power on the digitizing oscilloscope, do the following: Operation Installation 1. Be sure you have the appropriate operating environment. Specifications for temperature, relative humidity, altitude, vibrations, and emissions are included in Appendix B: Specification at the rear of this manual.
Page 13 Power continues to go to certain parts even when this switch is set to STBY. Once the digitizing oscilloscope is installed, you can leave the principal power switch on and use the ON/STBY button as the power switch. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 14 Check the self test results. If the self test fails, call your local Tektronix Service Center. Depending on the type of failure, you may still be able to use the oscilloscope before it is serv- iced.
Page 15 Like SPC, Probe Cal helps ensure maximum possible accuracy for your most critical measurements. See Probe Cal on page 3-84 for a description of and operating information on this feature. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 16 Start Up...
Page 17 Tutorial...
Page 19: Overview
Overview This section contains four examples that show you how to operate the basic functions of the digitizing oscilloscope. Use the At a Glance section (starting on page 3-2) to help you locate the correct knobs, buttons, and menus. Example 1 teaches you how to reset the digitizing oscilloscope, display and adjust waveforms, and use the autoset function.
Page 20: Example 1: Displaying A Waveform
Example 1: Displaying a Waveform In this first example you learn about resetting the digitizing oscilloscope, displaying and adjusting a waveform, and using the autoset function. All examples in the tutorial begin by resetting the digitizing oscilloscope to a Resetting the known factory default state.
Page 21 Example 1: Displaying a Waveform 2. Press the button directly below the Recall Factory Setup menu item. The display shows side menus along the right side of the screen. The buttons to select these side menu items are to the right of the side menu. Because an accidental instrument reset could destroy a setup that took a long time to create, the digitizing oscilloscope asks you to verify the Recall Factory Setup selection (see Figure 1-3).
Page 22 Example 1: Displaying a Waveform Figure 1-5 shows the display that results from the instrument reset. There are Display Elements several important points to observe: The trigger level bar shows that the waveform is triggered at a level near 50% of its amplitude (from step 4). The trigger position indicator shows that the trigger position of the wave- form is located at the horizontal center of the graticule.
Page 23 Example 1: Displaying a Waveform The display shows the probe compensation signal. It is a 1 kHz square wave Adjusting the of approximately 0.5 V amplitude. You can adjust the size and placement of Waveform Display the waveform using the front-panel knobs. Figure 1-6 shows the main VERTICAL and HORIZONTAL sections of the front panel.
Page 24 Example 1: Displaying a Waveform 1. To create an unstable display, slowly turn the trigger MAIN LEVEL knob (see Figure 1-7) first one direction, then the other. Observe what happens when you move the trigger level above the highest part of the displayed waveform.
Page 25 Example 1: Displaying a Waveform Figure 1-9: The Display After Pressing Autoset NOTE If the corners on your displayed signal look rounded or pointed (see Figure 1-10), then you may need to compensate your probe. The Probe Compensation section on page 3-90 explains how to do that. Figure 1-10: Display Signals Requiring Probe Compensation TDS 620 &...
Page 26: Example 2: Multiple Waveforms
Example 2: Multiple Waveforms In this example you learn how to display and control more than one waveform at a time. The VERTICAL section of the front panel contains the channel selection Adding a Waveform buttons. On the TDS 640 Digitizing Oscilloscope, these are CH 1, CH 2, CH 3, CH 4, and MORE (Figure 1-11);...
Page 27 Example 2: Multiple Waveforms 2. Press SETUP Recall Factory Setup (main) OK Confirm Factory Init (side). 3. Press AUTOSET. 4. Press CH 2. The display shows a second waveform, which represents the signal on channel 2. Since there is nothing connected to the CH 2 input connector, this waveform is a flat line.
Page 28 Example 2: Multiple Waveforms Running: 100kS/s Sample Ch2 Reference Indicator Side Menu Title Figure 1-12: The Vertical Main Menu and Coupling Side Menu Pressing a channel (CH) button sets the vertical controls to that channel. It Changing Controls also adds the channel to the display if that waveform is not already displayed. to Another Channel 1.
Page 29 Example 2: Multiple Waveforms Running: 100kS/s Sample Side Menu Title Figure 1-13: The Menus After Changing Channels Pressing the WAVEFORM OFF button removes the waveform for the current- Removing a ly selected channel. If the waveform you want to remove is not already se- Waveform lected, select that channel using the channel (CH) button.
Page 30: Example 3: Automated Measurements
Example 3: Automated Measurements In this example you learn how to use the automated measurement system to get numeric readouts of important waveform characteristics. To use the automated measurement system, you must have a stable display Displaying of your signal. Also, the waveform must have all the segments necessary for Automated the measurement you want.
Page 31 Example 3: Automated Measurements 5. If it is not already selected, press Select Measrmnt (main). The readout for that menu item indicates which channel the measurement will be taken from. All automated measurements are made on the selected channel. The Select Measurement side menu lists some of the measurements that can be taken on waveforms.
Page 32 Example 3: Automated Measurements Running: 100kS/s Sample Press here to remove menus from screen. Figure 1-15: Four Simultaneous Measurement Readouts The Measure menu lets you remove measurements you no longer want Removing displayed. You can remove any one measurement, or you can remove them Measurement all with a single menu item.
Page 33 Example 3: Automated Measurements General Purpose Knob Setting and Readout General Purpose Knob Icon Highlighted Menu Item with Boxed Readout Value Figure 1-16: General Purpose Knob Indicators There are several important things to observe on the screen: The knob icon appears at the top of the screen. That indicates that the general purpose knob has just been set to adjust a parameter.
Page 34 Example 3: Automated Measurements 1. Press Low Ref (side). 2. On the numeric keypad, press the 2, the 0, and the ENTER ( ) but- tons, which sets the low measurement reference to 20%. Observe that the rise-time value has changed. 3.
Page 35 Example 3: Automated Measurements The snapshot measurements do not continuously update. Snapshot executes a one-time capture of all measurements and does not update those measurements unless it is performed again. 2. Press Again (side) to do another snapshot and update the snapshot measurements.
Page 36: Example 4: Saving Setups
Example 4: Saving Setups This example shows you how to save all the settings of the digitizing oscillo- scope and how to recall the setup later to quickly re-establish the previously saved state. The oscilloscope provides several storage locations where you can save the setups.
Page 37: Recalling A Setup
Example 4: Saving Setups Figure 1-18: Save/Recall Setup Menu 7. Press one of the To Setup side menu buttons to store the current instru- ment settings into that setup location. Remember which setup location you selected for use later. There are more setup locations than can be listed at one time in the side menu.
Page 38 Example 4: Saving Setups 1 20 Section Name (Nm:Sect)
Page 39 Concepts...
Page 41: Overview
At the end of each topic, For More Information will point you to sources where more information can be found. To explore these topics in more depth and to read about topics not covered in this section, see In Detail. Page 3-1 lists the topics covered. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 42: Triggering
Triggering This section describes the edge trigger of the main trigger system and ex- plores, in a general sense, the topic of triggering. This oscilloscope also has logic and pulse triggers in the main trigger system and a delayed trigger system.
Page 43 If another trigger event is not detected before the timer times out, the oscilloscope forces a trigger anyway. The length of time it waits for a trigger event depends on the time base set- ting. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 44 Triggering Be aware that auto mode, when forcing triggers in the absence of valid trig- gering events, does not sync the waveform on the display. In other words, successive acquisitions will not be triggered at the same point on the wave- form;...
Page 45 By analyzing what happened before the glitch, you may uncover clues about the source of it. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 46: Slope And Level
Triggering The slope control determines whether the oscilloscope finds the trigger point Slope and Level on the rising or the falling edge of a signal (see Figure 2-3). You set trigger slope by selecting Slope in the Main Trigger menu and then selecting from the rising or falling slope icons in the side menu that appears.
Page 47: Acquisition
In fact, the oscilloscope may take several samples for each record point (Figure 2-5). Interval for One Waveform Record Point Samples For a Record Point Figure 2-5: Several Points May be Acquired for Each Point Used TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 48 For example, if you want to digitize on all channels at one time (four on the TDS 540 and two on the TDS 520), each of those channels can digitize at a maximum real-time speed of 250 Megasamples/second (per channel).
Page 49 Acquisition If you focus on only one channel at the maximum possible real-time rate, the TDS 520 oscilloscope can acquire at 500 Megasamples/second using both its digitizers, while the TDS 540 oscilloscope can combine all four digitizers and acquire at 1 Gigasample/second.
Page 50 Acquisition Record Points 1st Acquisition Cycle 2nd Acquisition Cycle 3rd Acquisition Cycle nth Acquisition Cycle Figure 2-7: Equivalent-Time Sampling The oscilloscope takes a few samples with each trigger event and eventually constructs a waveform record using the samples from multiple acquisitions. That feature lets you accurately acquire signals with frequencies much higher than the digitizing oscilloscope real-time bandwidth.
Page 51: Acquisition Modes
AC, DC, or Ground (GND). You also can set the input impedance. DC coupling shows both the AC and DC components of an input signal. AC coupling shows only the alternating components of an input signal. 2 11 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 52 Acquisition Ground (GND) coupling disconnects the input signal from the acquisition. Input impedance lets you select either 1 M or 50 impedance. NOTE If you select 50 impedance with AC coupling, the digitizing oscillo- scope will not accurately display frequencies under 200 kHz. See Scaling and Positioning Waveforms , on page 2-13.
Page 53: Scaling And Positioning Waveforms
Record View Channel Reference Icon Original Position Positioned Vertically Positioned Horizontally Original Scale Scaled Scaled Horizontally Vertically Figure 2-8: Scaling and Positioning 2 13 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 54 Scaling and Positioning Waveforms You can adjust the vertical position of the selected waveform by moving it up Vertical System or down on the display. For example, when trying to compare multiple wave- forms, you can put one above another and compare them, or you can overlay the two waveforms on top of each other.
Page 55 (after time, events, or both) acquisitions. The delayed time base is useful in catching events that follow other events. See Triggering on page 2-2 for more information on the delayed trigger. 2 15 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 56 Scaling and Positioning Waveforms You can use zoom to see more detail without changing the acquired signal. Zoom When you press the ZOOM button, a portion of the waveform record can be expanded or compressed on the display, but the record points stay the same. Zoom is very useful when you wish to temporarily expand a waveform to inspect small feature(s) on that waveform.
Page 57: Measurements
100 mV/division, then you could easily calculate your peak-to-peak voltage: 5 divisions 100 mV/division = 500 mV. 2 17 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 58 Measurements Cursor Measurements Cursors are fast and easy-to-understand measurements. You take measure- ments by moving the cursors and reading their numeric values from the on screen readouts, which update as you adjust their positions. Cursors appear in pairs. One part of the pair is active and the other inactive . You move the active cursor (the solid line) using the general purpose knob.
Page 59 Fast Fourier Trans- formed, integrated, or differentiated math waveforms. See Tutorial Example 3: Automated Measurements , on page 1-12. See Waveform Math , on page 3-127, for using cursors to measure math waveforms. 2 19 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 60 Measurements 2 20 Concepts...
Page 61 In Detail...
Page 63: Overview
Waveform Math Probe Accessories Zoom Probe Cal Many of these tasks list steps you perform to accomplish the task. You should read Conventions on page ii of Welcome before reading about these tasks. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 64: At A Glance
At a Glance The At a Glance section contains illustrations of the display, the front and rear panels, and the menu system. These will help you understand and operate the digitizing oscilloscope. This section also contains a visual guide to using the menu system.
Page 65 3-124 Zoom, Ground Probe Compensation, page page 3-90 3-130 Horizontal Control, Triggering, page 3-120 page 3-49 Delay Triggering, page 3-25 Edge Triggering, page 3-36 Logic Triggering, page 3-58 Pulse Triggering, page 3-99 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 66 At a Glance Rear Panel Map GPIB Principal Power Switch, Fuse, Power connector, Connector page viii page viii page viii page 3-106 Serial Number Rear Panel Security Connectors Bracket SIGNAL OUT – (Provides analog signal output) AUX TRIGGER INPUT – (Provides auxiliary trigger signal input) MAIN TRIGGER OUTPUT –...
Page 67: Display Map
Each channel’s Trigger vertical scale, parameters, page 3-124 page 3-122 Horizontal scale and time base The main menu with type, page 3-49 choices of major actions TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 68 At a Glance To Operate a Menu 1. Press front-panel menu button. (Press SHIFT first if button label is blue.) 2. Press one of these buttons to select from main menu. 3. Press one of these buttons to select from side menu (if displayed).
Page 69 At a Glance To Operate a Pop-Up Menu Press Press here to to display pop-ups. remove menus from screen. Press it again to make selection. A pop-up selection changes the other main menu titles. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 70 At a Glance Menu Map Press these but- To bring up these menus: tons: Acquire Menu see page 3-11) Application Menu (see the Programmer manual for more details Cursor Menu see page 3-20) Delayed Trigger Menu (see page 3-25) Display Menu see page 3-31 ) Hardcopy Menu (see page 3-40)
Page 71 Main Trigger Menu –Pulse (see page 3-99) Measure Menu (see page 3-66) More Menu (see page 3-127) Save/Recall Setup Menu (see page 3-110) Save/Recall Waveform Menu (see page 3-112) Status Menu (see page 3-119) TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 72 At a Glance Press these buttons: To bring up these menus: Utility Menu – Calibration see page 3-117) Utility Menu – Config see pages 3-111 and 3-43) Utility Menu – Diagnostics see the Service manual) Utility Menu – I/O (see page 3-106) Vertical Channel Menu see page 3-124) Zoom Menu...
Page 73: Acquisition Modes
If you set the time base so fast that it requires real-time interpolation or equivalent-time sampling, the mode automatically changes from Peak Detect to Sample, although the menu selection will not change. 3 11 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 74 Acquisition Modes Single Waveform Acquisition Samples Acquired in Four Acquisition Displayed Waveform Acquisition Intervals Mode Record Points Drawn on CRT Interval 1 Sample Uses first sample in interval Use for fastest acquisition rate. This is the default mode. Peak Detect Uses highest and lowest samples in two intervals Use to reveal aliasing and for glitch detection.
Page 75 The oscilloscope saves the highest and lowest values in two adjacent intervals similar to the Peak Detect mode. But Envelope mode, unlike Peak Detect, gathers peaks over many trigger events. 3 13 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 76 Acquisition Modes After each trigger event, the oscilloscope acquires data and then compares the min/max values from the current acquisition with those stored from pre- vious acquisitions. The final display shows the most extreme values for all the acquisitions for each point in the waveform record. Average Mode Average mode lets you acquire and display a waveform record that is the averaged result of several acquisitions.
Page 77 You can choose to acquire exactly one waveform sequence or to acquire waveforms continuously under manual control. Press SHIFT ACQUIRE MENU Stop After (main) RUN/STOP button only, Single Acquisition Sequence, or Limit Test Condition Met (side) (see Figure 3-3). 3 15 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 78 Acquisition Modes Figure 3-3: Acquire Menu—Stop After RUN/STOP button only (side) lets you start or stop acquisitions by toggling the RUN/STOP button. Pressing the RUN/STOP button once will stop the acquisitions. The upper left hand corner in the display will say Stopped and show the number of acquisitions.
Page 79 Limit Test Sources main menu item. See Acquisition , on page 2-7. For More Information See Limit Testing , on page 3-53. 3 17 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 80: Autoset
Autoset The autoset function lets you quickly obtain and display a stable waveform of usable size. Autoset automatically sets up the front panel controls based on the characteristics of the input signal. It is much faster and easier than a manual control-by-control setup.
Page 81 Trigger Coupling Trigger Holdoff Vertical Scale As determined by the signal level Vertical Coupling DC unless AC was previously set. AC remains unchanged. Vertical Bandwidth Full Vertical Offset 0 volts Zoom 3 19 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 82: Cursor Measurements
Cursor Measurements Use the cursors to measure the difference (either in time or voltage) between two locations in a waveform record. Cursors are made up of two markers that you position with the general pur- Description pose knob. You move one cursor independently or both cursors in tandem, depending on the cursor mode.
Page 83 V Bars: the value after shows the time (or frequency) difference be- tween the cursors. The value after @ shows the time (frequency) of the selected cursor relative to the trigger point. 3 21 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 84 Cursor Measurements Paired: the value after one shows the voltage difference between the the two short horizontal bars; the other shows the time (or frequency) difference between the two long vertical bars. The value after @ shows the voltage at the short horizontal bar of the selected cursor relative to ground (see Figure 3-7).
Page 85 Press TOGGLE again to resume tracking. A solid line indicates the adjustable cursor and a dashed line the fixed cursor. 3 23 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 86 Cursor Measurements Time Units You can choose to display vertical bar cursor results in units of time or fre- quency. Press CURSOR Time Units (main) seconds or 1/seconds (Hz) (side). Cursor Speed You can change the cursors speed by pressing SHIFT before turning the general purpose knob.
Page 87: Delayed Triggering
Wait the User-Specified Delayed Triggerable Number of Delayed After Events Trigger Events Wait the Wait Delayed Triggerable User-Specified User-Specified After Events/Time Number of Delayed Time Trigger Events Figure 3-9: Delayed Triggerable 3 25 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 88 Delayed Triggering After Time waits the user-specified time, then waits for the next delayed trigger event, then acquires. After Events waits for the specified number of delayed trigger events and then acquires. After Events/Time waits for the specified number of delayed trigger events, then waits the user-specified time, then acquires.
Page 89 Main Trigger Point Main Trigger Source Delayed Trigger Source Start Posttrigger Acquisition Time Delay Waiting for nth Event (From Delay Trig Menu) (Where n=4) Figure 3-10: How the Delayed Triggers Work 3 27 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 90 Delayed Triggering Delayed Triggerable You must make sure that the Main Trigger menu settings are compatible with Delayed Triggerable. 1. Press TRIGGER MENU. 2. If Type is set to Logic, press Type (main) to toggle it to either Edge or Pulse as fits on your application.
Page 91 The Source menu lets you select which input will be the delayed trigger source. 7. Press Source (main) Ch1, Ch2, Ch3 (Ax1 on the TDS 520), Ch4 (Ax2 on the TDS 520), or Auxiliary (TDS 540 only) (side). Figure 3-11: Delayed Trigger Menu 8.
Page 92 Delayed Triggering NOTE When you set the Vertical SCALE smaller than 200 mV, the oscillo- scope reduces the Set to TTL or Set to ECL trigger levels below standard TTL and ECL levels. That happens because the trigger level range is fixed at center.
Page 93: Display Modes
Intensified Samples also displays waveform record points as dots. However, the points actually sampled are displayed intensified relative to the interpolated points. (The contrast between real and interpolated points is set to a fixed value.) 3 31 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 94 Display Modes In addition to choosing Intensified Samples in the side menu, the oscilloscope must be interpolating (equivalent time must be off) or Zoom must be on with its horizontal expansion greater that 1X. See interpolation on page 2-9; see Zoom beginning on page 3-130.
Page 95 Filter Type The display filter types are sin(x)/x interpolation and linear interpolation. For more information see the Concepts section, page 2-9. Press DISPLAY Filter (main) Sin(x)/x Interpolation or Linear Interpo- lation (side). 3 33 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 96 Display Modes NOTE When the horizontal scale is set to rates faster than 50 ns/div, or when using the ZOOM feature to expand waveforms horizontally, interpolation occurs. (The filter type, linear or sin(x)/(x), depends on which is set in the Display menu.) Otherwise, interpolation is not needed.
Page 97 XY format. You cannot display Math waveforms in XY format. They will disappear from the display when you select XY. See Acquisition on page 2-7. For More Information 3 35 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 98: Edge Triggering
To select which source you want for the trigger: Press TRIGGER MENU Type (main) Edge (pop-up) Source (main) Ch1, Ch2, Ch3 (Ax1 on the TDS 520), Ch4 (Ax2 on the TDS 520), AC Line, or Auxiliary (side). 3 36 In Detail...
Page 99 LF Rej does the opposite of high frequency rejection. Low frequency rejection attenuates signals below 80 kHz. Noise Rej provides lower sensitivity. It requires additional signal ampli- tude for stable triggering, reducing the chance of falsely triggering on noise. 3 37 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 100 Edge Triggering Slope To select the slope that the edge trigger will occur on: 1. Press the TRIGGER MENU Type (main) Edge (pop-up) Slope (main) to select the slope that the edge trigger will have. 2. Alternatives for slope are the rising and falling edges. Level Press the TRIGGER MENU Type (main)
Page 101 (that is, when the time base setting in the Horizontal menu is Intensified or Delayed Only). See Triggering , on page 2-2. For More Information See Triggering , on page 3-120. 3 39 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 102: Hardcopy
EPS Mono and Color formats are compatible with the Tektronix Phaser Color Printer, HPGL is compatible with the Tektronix HC100 Plotter, and Epson is compatible with the Tektronix HC200 Printer.
Page 103 Option 13, the only choice is GPIB. (If your instrument is equipped with Option 13, see the TDS Family Option 13 Instruction Manual for setting up hardcopy over the RS-232 and Centronics ports.) 3 41 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 104 Hardcopy Landscape Format Portrait Format Figure 3-17: Hardcopy Formats Printing the Hardcopy You can print a single hardcopy or send additional hardcopies to the spool (queue) while waiting for earlier hardcopies to finish printing. To print your hardcopy(ies): Press HARDCOPY to print your hardcopy. While the hardcopy is being sent to the printer, the oscilloscope will display the message “Hardcopy in process—Press HARDCOPY to abort.”...
Page 105 7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 to set other parameters as desired. 8. Press OK Enter Date/Time (side) to put the new settings into effect. This sets the seconds to zero. 3 43 REV JUL 92 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 106 Send the data to a computer with both GPIB and RS-232 or Centronics ports. Using a GPIB-Based Hardcopy Device You can connect the digitizing oscilloscope directly to a GPIB-based hardcopy device (see Figure 3-19). An example of a GPIB hardcopy device is the Tektronix HC100 Plotter. 3 44 In Detail...
Page 107 RS-232 or Centronics hardcopy device (see Figure 3-20). For example, a National Instruments GPIB-PRL (a GPIB-to-Centronics converter) will permit you to make screen prints on a Tektronix HC200 Dot Matrix printer with just a Centronics port. Digitizing Hardcopy Device Oscilloscope (e.g., Tek HC200)
Page 108 Oscilloscope Figure 3-21: Connecting the Digitizing Oscilloscope and Hardcopy Device Via a PC If your controller is PC-compatible and it uses the Tektronix GURU or S3FG210 (National Instruments GPIB-PCII/IIA) GPIB package, you can operate this setup as follows: 1. Use the MS-DOS cd command to move to the directory that holds the software that came with your GPIB board.
Page 109 Your hardcopy device should now print a picture of the digitizing oscilloscope screen. See Remote Communication , on page 3-106. For More Information See the TDS Family Option 13 Instruction Manual , Tektronix part number 070-8567-00 (Option 13 equipped instruments only). 3 47 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 110: Help
Help The on-line help system provides brief information about each of the digitizing oscilloscope controls. To use the on-line help system: Operation Press HELP to provide on-screen information on any front panel button, knob or menu item (see Figure 3-22). When you press that button, the instrument changes mode to support on-line help.
Page 111: Horizontal Control
SHIFT button. When the light above the shift button is on and the display says Coarse Knobs in the upper right corner, the POSI- TION knob speeds up significantly. Figure 3-23: Horizontal Controls 3 49 REV JUNE 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 112 Horizontal Control At the top of the display, the Record View shows the size and location of the Horizontal Readouts waveform record and the location of the trigger relative to the display (see Figure 3-24). The Time Base readout at the lower right of the display shows the time/division settings and the time base (main or delayed) being referred to (see Figure 3-24).
Page 113 The Horizontal Lock setting in the Zoom menu determines which wave- forms the horizontal position knob adjusts whether zoom is on or not. Specifi- cally, it acts as follows: 3 51 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 114 None—only the waveform currently selected can be zoomed and posi- tioned horizontally Live—all channels (including AUX channels for the TDS 520 Oscillo- scope) can be zoomed and positioned horizontally at the same time All—all waveforms displayed (channels, math, and/or reference) can be zoomed and positioned horizontally at the same time See Zoom, on page 3-130 for the steps to set the horizontal lock feature.
Page 115: Limit Testing
Average acquisition mode. If you are unsure how to do this, see Acquisition Modes on page 3-15. Once you have selected a source, select a destination for the template. 2. Press Template Destination (side) Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, or Ref4. 3 53 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 116 Limit Testing Figure 3-25: Acquire Menu—Create Limit Test Template Now create the envelope by specifying the amount of variation from the template that you will tolerate. Tolerance values are expressed in frac- tions of a major division. They represent the amount by which incoming waveform data can deviate without having exceeded the limits set in the limit test.
Page 117 Ring Bell if Condition Met (side) to ON. If you want the digitizing oscilloscope to stop when waveform data exceeds the limits set, toggle Stop After Limit Test Condition Met (side) to ON. 3 55 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 118 Limit Testing NOTE The button labeled Stop After Limit Test Condition Met corre- sponds to the Limit Test Condition Met menu item in the Stop After main menu. You can turn this button on in the Limit Test Setup menu, but you cannot turn it off. In order to turn it off, press Stop After and specify one of the other choices in the Stop After side menu.
Page 119 2, depending on the TDS model number of your digitizing oscilloscope). See Acquisition, on page 2-7. For More Information See Acquisition Modes, on page 3-11. See Display Modes, on page 3-31. See Zoom, on page 3-130. 3 57 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 120: Logic Triggering
When you use a state trigger, you define: The precondition for each logic input, channels 1, 2, and 3 for the TDS 540 (1, 2, and Ax1 on the TDS 520) The direction of the state change for the clock input, channel 4 (Aux 2 for the TDS 520) The Boolean logic function—select from clocked AND, NAND, OR, and...
Page 121 —At the end of trigger holdoff, the oscilloscope waits until the edge of channel 4 on the TDS 540 (or Aux 2 on the TDS 520) transitions in the speci- fied direction. At that point, the oscilloscope samples the inputs from the other channels and triggers if the conditions defined in Table 3-4 are met.
Page 122 The logic inputs are channels 1, 2, 3, and 4 for the TDS 540 and 1, 2, and Aux 1 and Aux 2 for the TDS 520 when using Pattern Logic Triggers. For State Logic Triggers, channel 4 (Aux 2 for the TDS 520) becomes the clock input, leaving the remaining channels as logic inputs.
Page 123 Ch1 or Ch2 (side). On the TDS 540 you can also select Ch3 or Ch4 (side). On the TDS 520 you can select Ax1 or Ax2 (side). 2. Use the MAIN TRIGGER LEVEL knob, the general purpose knob, or the keypad to set each threshold.
Page 124 Pattern (pop-up) Define Inputs (main) Ch1, Ch2, Ch3, and Ch4 (side). (On the TDS 520, Ch3 and Ch4 are replaced by Ax1 and Ax2.) 2. Repeatedly press each input selected in step 1 to toggle it to either High ( H ), Low ( L ), and Don’t Care ( X ) for each channel. (You can also use the general purpose knob.)
Page 125 True for more than menu item (150 s), the oscilloscope issues the trigger at that point, not at the point at which it has been true for 216 3 63 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 126 When you select State logic triggering, the oscilloscope uses channel 4 on State Operations the TDS 540 (or Ax 2 on the TDS 520) as a clock for a logic circuit made from the rest of the channels. See page 3-60 for details on operations common to both pattern and state triggers.
Page 127 Type (main) Logic (pop-up) Class (main) State (pop-up) Define Logic (main) AND, OR, NAND, or NOR (side). See Triggering , on page 2-2. For More Information See Triggering , on page 3-120. 3 65 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 128: Measurement System
Measurement System There are various ways to measure properties of waveforms. You can use graticule, cursor, or automatic measurements. This section describes auto- matic measurements ; cursors and graticules are described elsewhere. (See Cursor Measurements on page 3-20 and Measurements on page 2-17.) Automatic measurements are generally more accurate and quicker than, for example, manually counting graticule divisions.
Page 129 Voltage measurement. The absolute difference between the maximum and minimum amplitude in the entire waveform or gated region. Phase Timing measurement. The amount one waveform leads or lags another in time. Expressed in degrees, where 360 cycle. 3 67 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 130 Measurement System Table 3-5: Measurement Definitions (Cont.) Name Definition Period Timing measurement. Time it takes for the first complete signal cycle to happen in the waveform or gated region. The reciprocal of frequency. Measured in seconds. Positive Duty Timing measurement of the first cycle in the waveform or gated region. The Cycle ratio of the positive pulse width to the signal period expressed as a percentage.
Page 131 The following are hints on making automatic measurements: You can only take a maximum of four measurements at a time. To add a fifth, you must remove one or more of the existing measure- ments. 3 69 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 132 Measurement System To vary the source for measurements, simply select the other channel and then choose the measurements you want. Be careful when taking automatic measurements on noisy signals. You might measure the frequency of the noise and not the desired waveform.
Page 133 Displaying the cursor menu and turning V Bar cursors off will not turn gating off. (Gating arrows remain on screen to indicate the area over which the measurement is gated.) You must turn gating off in the Gating side menu. 3 71 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 134 Measurement System NOTE Cursors are displayed relative to the selected waveform. If you are making a measurement using two waveforms, this can be a source of confusion. If you turn off horizontal locking and adjust the hori- zontal position of one waveform independent of the other, the cursors appear at the requested position with respect to the se- lected waveform.
Page 135 —To select the waveform you want to measure to , use the the main menu item Delay to. The waveform you are measuring from is the selected waveform. 1. Press MEASURE Select Measrmnt (main) Delay (side) Delay To (main) Measure Delay to. 3 73 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 136 2. Press Measure Delay to (side) repeatedly or turn the general purpose knob to choose the delay to waveform. The choices are Ch1, Ch2, Ch3, Ch4 (on the TDS 540); Ch1, Ch2, Ax1, Ax2 (on the TDS 520); and Math1, Math2, Math3, Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, and Ref4 (both models).
Page 137 Snapshot Display Figure 3-34: Snapshot Menu and Readout To use snapshot, obtain a stable display of the waveform to be measured. Pressing AUTOSET may help. 1. Press MEASURE SNAPSHOT (main). 3 75 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 138 Measurement System 2. Press either SNAPSHOT (main) or AGAIN (side) to take another snap- shot. 3. Push Remove Measrmnt. Considerations When Taking Snapshots Be aware of the following items when using snapshot: Be sure to display the waveform properly before taking a snapshot. Snapshot does not warn you if a waveform is improperly scaled (clipped, low signal amplitude, low resolution, etc.).
Page 139: Probe Accessories
Ideally, the inductance is low enough that the resulting frequency is above the frequency at which you want to take measurements. For that purpose, the probes include several accessories to help reduce ground lead inductance. 3 77 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 140 Probe Accessories Ground Lead Low-Inductance Ground Lead Figure 3-36: Signal Variation Introduced by Probe Ground Lead (1 ns/division) The following descriptions explain how to use many of the accessories that Standard Probe came with your probe. Figure 3-37 shows both standard and optional probe Accessories accessories and how they attach to your probe.
Page 141 Adapter (Optional) Slip-on Ground Lead (Standard) Alligator Clip Ground Lead (Standard) Retractable Hook Tip (Standard) Low Inductance KlipChip Spring Tip (Optional) (Standard) Low Inductance Ground Lead (Standard) Figure 3-37: Probe Accessories 3 79 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 142 Probe Accessories Marker Rings The marker rings help you keep track of individual probes and signal sources when you have a complicated test setup. Use the marker rings whenever you want to identify a particular probe. Long Ground Leads Use long ground leads when a long reach is important and high-frequency information is not.
Page 143 Instructions for installing the probe tip-to-circuit board adapters are packaged with the adapters. For the best performance and ease of testing, Tektronix strongly recommends that you incorporate the probe tip-to-circuit board adapters (or the probe tip-to-chassis adapters described below) into your next design.
Page 144 Probe Accessories Probe-Tip-to-Chassis Adapter The probe-tip-to-chassis adapter makes your test point accessible without removing instrument covers or panels. It provides an easy-access, low-induc- tance test point anywhere on your circuit. The probe-tip-to-chassis adapter has the same low inductance properties as the probe-tip-to-circuit board adapter described previously.
Page 145 30 MHz may require using one of the low-inductance ground leads. Because of the length of the signal lead, the dual-lead configuration is also more susceptible to signal crosstalk than other tip configurations. Figure 3-38: Dual-Lead Adapter 3 83 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 146: Probe Cal
Cal if you have changed to a different probe since the last Probe Cal was performed. NOTE Earlier TDS 520 & 540 Oscilloscopes may not be equipped with the hardware needed to operate Probe Cal. To determine if your oscillo- scope has Probe Cal, display the Vertical menu. If the menu label Cal Probe is less bright than the other labels in that menu, Probe Cal is not installed.
Page 147 “Compensation Error.” This error implies that the probe gain (2% error) and/or offset (50 mV) is too great to be compensated. You can substitute another probe and continue. You may want to have your probe checked by service personnel. 3 85 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 148 Probe Cal Figure 3-39: Probe Cal Menu and Gain Compensation Display 11. If the Probe Offset Compensation message is displayed, continue with step 15; otherwise, continue with step 12. 12. If the Compensation Error message is displayed, continue with step 13; otherwise continue with step 18.
Page 149 Probe Cal, the oscilloscope cannot determine whether it is the same probe. Therefore, it displays the Re-use Probe Calibration data? menu (see Figure 3-40). 3 87 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 150 Probe Cal Figure 3-40: Re-use Probe Calibration Data Menu If the Re-use Probe Calibration data? menu is displayed, you can choose one of the following options: Press OK Use Existing Data (side) to use the Probe Cal data last stored to compensate the probe.
Page 151 Some optical probes and most active probes (such as the optional accessory P6205) have complex interfaces. 3 89 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 152: Probe Compensation
Probe Compensation Passive probes require compensation to ensure maximum distortion-free input to the digitizing oscilloscope and to avoid high frequency amplitude errors (see Figure 3-41). Probe Compensated Correctly Probe Overcompensated Probe Undercompensated Figure 3-41: How Probe Compensation Affects Signals To compensate your probe: Operation 1.
Page 153 Figure 3-42 shows where the adjustment is located. Figure 3-42: P6139A Probe Adjustment See Probe Accessories , on page 3-77. For More Information See Probe Selection , on page 3-92. 3 91 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 154: Probe Selection
There are five major types of probes: passive, active, current, optical, and time-to-voltage probes. Most of these types are discussed here; see your Tektronix Products Catalog for more information. Passive voltage probes measure voltage. They employ passive circuit compo- Passive Voltage nents such as resistors, capacitors, and inductors.
Page 155 High voltage probes have the added advantage of lower input capacitance (typically 2-3 pF). P6009 P6015A Figure 3-43: The P6009 and P6015A High Voltage Probes 3 93 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 156 Probe Selection Active voltage probes, sometimes called “FET” probes, use active circuit Active Voltage elements such as transistors. There are three classes of active probes: Probes High speed active Differential active Fixtured active Active voltage measuring probes use active circuit elements in the probe design to process signals from the circuit under test.
Page 157 Current probes enable you to directly observe and measure current wave- Current Probes forms, which can be very different from voltage signals. Tektronix current probes are unique in that they can measure from DC to 1 GHz. Two types of current probes are available: one that measures AC current only and AC/DC probes that utilize the Hall effect to accurately measure the AC and DC components of a signal.
Page 158 Probe Selection Optical probes let you blend the functions of an optical power meter with the Optical Probes high-speed analog waveform analysis capability of an oscilloscope. You have the capability of acquiring, displaying, and analyzing optical and electrical signals simultaneously. Applications include measuring the transient optical properties of lasers, LEDs, electro-optic modulators, and flashlamps.
Page 159 500 to 950 nm, DC to 250 MHz, 5 V/mW P6713 1100 to 1700 nm, DC to 300 MHz, 5 V/mW Time-to-Voltage Converter TVC 501 Time delay, pulse width and period measurements 3 97 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 160 Probe Selection Another way to classify probes is by application. Different applications de- Probes by mand different probes. Use Table 3-8 to select a probe for your application. Application Table 3-8: Probes by Application Telecommuni- Industrial Consumer/ High Energy Certification, cations &...
Page 161: Pulse Triggering
Figure 3-45 shows the pulse trigger readouts. Table 3-9 on page 3-100 de- scribes the choices for the pulse triggers. Trigger Class = Runt Figure 3-45: Pulse Trigger Readouts 3 99 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 162 Pulse Triggering Table 3-9: Pulse Trigger Definitions Name Definition Glitch positive Triggering occurs if the oscilloscope detects positive spike widths less than the specified glitch time. Glitch negative Triggering occurs if the oscilloscope detects negative spike widths less than the specified glitch time.
Page 163 Source (main) Ch1 or Ch2 (side). On the TDS 540 you can also press Ch3 or Ch4 (side). On the TDS 520 you can select Ax1 or Ax2 (side). Mode & Holdoff To change the holdoff time and select the trigger mode: 1.
Page 164 Pulse Triggering In Normal mode the oscilloscope acquires a waveform only if there is a valid trigger. (You can force a single acquisition by pressing FORCE TRIGGER.) 2. To change the holdoff time, press Holdoff (side). Use the general pur- pose knob or the keypad to enter the value in percent.
Page 165 Runt (pop-up) Source (main) Ch1, Ch2, Ch3 (Ax1 for the TDS 520), or Ch4 (Ax2 for the TDS 520) (side). (See Figure 3-47.) 2. Press Polarity (main) Positive, Negative, or Either (side). 3. Press Thresholds (main) and set the upper and lower thresholds for runt detection with the side menu selections and the keypad or the general purpose knob.
Page 166 Pulse Triggering Selected Trigger Bar at Upper Threshold Unselected Trigger Bar at Lower Threshold Runt Pulse Crosses First Threshold Only, Recrosses First Threshold Level, and Triggers Acquisition Figure 3-47: Main Trigger Menu—Runt Class Thresholds To set the two threshold levels used in detecting a runt pulse: 1.
Page 167 Width (pop-up) Level (main) Level, Set to TTL, Set to ECL, or Set to 50% (side). See Triggering , on page 2-2. For More Information See Triggering , on page 3-120. 3 105 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 168: Remote Communication
Besides the base protocols, Tektronix has defined codes and formats for messages to travel over GPIB. Each device that follows these codes and formats, such as the TDS 520 and TDS 540, supports standard commands. Use of instruments that support these commands can greatly simplify devel- opment of GPIB systems.
Page 169 GPIB Device GPIB Device Figure 3-48: Typical GPIB Network Configuration Cables —An IEEE Std 488.1-1987 GPIB cable (available from Tektronix, part number 012–0991–00) is required to connect two GPIB devices. Connector —A 24-pin GPIB connector is located on the oscilloscope rear panel.
Page 170 Remote Communication To set up remote communications, ensure that your oscilloscope is physically Operation cabled to the controller and that the oscilloscope parameters are correctly set. Plug an IEEE Std 488.2-1987 GPIB cable into the GPIB connector on the oscilloscope rear panel and into the GPIB port on your controller (see Fig- ure 3-50).
Page 171 For More Information See the TDS Family Programmer Manual , Tektronix part number 070-8318-0. See the TDS Family Option 13 Instruction Manual , Tektronix part number 070-8567-00 (Option 13 equipped instruments only). 3 109 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 172: Saving And Recalling Setups
Saving and Recalling Setups You may want to save and reuse setups for many reasons. For example, after changing the setting during the course of an experiment, you may want to quickly return to your original setup. You can save and recall up to ten instru- ment setups from internal oscilloscope memory.
Page 173 See Tutorial Example 4: Saving Setups , on page 1-18. For More Information See Factory Initialization Settings , on page A-41. 3 111 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 174: Saving And Recalling Waveforms
50,000 record points. The digitizing oscilloscope can display up to 11 (9 on the TDS 520) wave- forms at one time. That includes waveforms from the four (two on the TDS 520) input channels, four reference waveforms, and three math wave- forms.
Page 175 Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, or Ref4 (main). Note that in Figure 3-54, the main menu item Ref2, Ref3, and Ref4 appear shaded while Ref1 does not. References that are empty appear shaded in the More main menu. 3 113 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 176 Saving and Recalling Waveforms Figure 3-54: More Menu See Selecting Channels , on page 3-115. For More Information 3 114 In Detail...
Page 177: Selecting Channels
The channel selection buttons are on the right of the display and are labeled CH 1, CH 2, CH 3 (AUX 1 on the TDS 520), CH 4 (AUX 2 on the TDS 520), and MORE. They determine which channel is selected. The MORE button allows you to select internally stored Math and Ref waveforms for display and manipulation.
Page 178 To selecting a channel: Operation Pressing CH 1, CH 2, CH 3 (AUX 1 on the TDS 520), or CH 4 (AUX 2 on the TDS 520) turns the channel on if it is not already on. You do not use the channel selection buttons when triggering. Instead you select the trigger source in the Main Trigger menu or Delayed Trigger menu.
Page 179: Signal Path Compensation
When compensation completes, the status message will be updated to Pass or Fail in the main menu. 5. Verify the word Pass appears under Signal Path in the main menu. (See Figure 3-57.) 3 117 REV MAY 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 180 Signal Path Compensation Figure 3-57: Performing a Signal Path Compensation 3 118 In Detail...
Page 181: Status
Trigger displays parameter information about the triggers. Waveforms displays information about the various waveforms, including live, math, and reference. I/O displays information about the I/O port(s). Firmware Version Figure 3-58: Status Menu—System 3 119 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 182: Triggering
Triggering Triggers determine when the digitizing oscilloscope starts acquiring and displaying a waveform. The TDS 500 series has three types of triggers: edge, logic, and pulse. Although these three triggers are unique, they have some common character- istics that can be defined and modified using the Trigger menu, buttons, and knob.
Page 183 The lights are labeled TRIG’D, READY, and ARM. When TRIG’D is lighted, it means the digitizing oscilloscope has recog- nized a valid trigger and is filling the posttrigger portion of the waveform. 3 121 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 184 Triggering When READY is lighted, it means the digitizing oscilloscope can accept a valid trigger event and it is waiting for that event to occur. When ARM is lighted, it means the trigger circuitry is filling the pretrigger portion of the waveform record. When both TRIG’D and READY are lighted, it means the digitizing oscil- loscope has recognized a valid main trigger and is waiting for a delayed trigger.
Page 185 See Delay Triggering , on page 3-25. For More Information See Edge Triggering , on page 3-36. See Logic Triggering , on page 3-58. See Pulse Triggering , on page 3-99. See Triggering , on page 2-2. 3 123 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 186: Vertical Control
Vertical Control You can control the vertical position and scale of the selected waveform using the vertical menu and knobs. By changing the vertical scale, you can focus on a particular portion of a Vertical Knobs waveform. By adjusting the vertical position, you can move the waveform up or down on the display.
Page 187 P6205), the input impedance of the oscilloscope automatical- ly becomes 50 . If you then connect a passive probe (like the P6139A ) you need to set the input impedance back to 1 M 3 125 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 188 Vertical Control Bandwidth To eliminate eliminate the higher frequency components, change the band- width of the selected channel: Press VERTICAL MENU Bandwidth (main) Full, 100 MHz, or 20 MHz (side). Fine Scale Press VERTICAL MENU Fine Scale (main) to make fine adjustments to the vertical scale using the general purpose knob or the keypad.
Page 189: Waveform Math
Figure 3-63: More Menu Math1, Math2, and Math3 1. Press MORE Math1, Math2, or Math3 (main) to select the waveform that you want to display or change. 3 127 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 190 Waveform Math NOTE If your digitizing oscilloscope is equipped with Option 2F, Advanced DSP Math, the menu item FFT will be at the same brightness as the menu items Single Wfm Math and Dual Wfm Math; otherwise, FFT will be dimmed. See the TDS Family Option 2F Instruction Manual for information on FFTs and other advanced math wave- forms.
Page 191 If your oscilloscope is equipped with option 2F, you can also create inte- For More grated, differentiated, and Fast Fourier Transform waveforms. If your oscillo- Information scope is equipped with that option, see the TDS Family Option 2F Instruction Manual . 3 129 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 192: Zoom
None—only the waveform currently selected can be magnified and positioned horizontally (Figure 3-65). Live—all channels (including AUX channels for the TDS 520 Oscillo- scope) can be magnified and positioned horizontally at the same time. (Waveforms displayed from an input channel are live; math and reference waveforms are not live.)
Page 193 Figure 3-65: Zoom Mode with Horizontal Lock Set to None Setting Interpolation To change the interpolation method used: Press DISPLAY Filter (main) Sin(x)/x Interpolation or Linear Inter- polation (side). 3 131 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 194 Zoom Reset Zoom To reset all zoom factors to their defaults (Table 3-10), press ZOOM Reset Zoom Factors (side). Table 3-10: Zoom Defaults Parameter Setting Zoom Vertical Position Zoom Vertical Gain Zoom Horizontal Position Tracking Horizontal Position Zoom Horizontal Gain Press ZOOM Off (side) to return to normal oscilloscope (non-zoom) opera- tion.
Page 195 Appendices...
Page 197: Appendix A: Options And Accessories
Appendix A: Options and Accessories This section describes the various options as well as the standard and option- al accessories that are available for the TDS 520 and TDS 540 Digitizing Oscilloscopes. The following options are available: Options Options A1–A5: International Power Cords...
Page 198 The following options add to the services available with the standard warranty. (The standard warranty appears following the title page in this manual.) Option M2: When Option M2 is ordered, Tektronix provides five years of warranty/remedial service. Option M3: When Option M3 is ordered, Tektronix provides five years of warranty/remedial service and four oscilloscope calibrations.
Page 199 Appendix A: Options and Accessories Option 23: Active Probes With this option, Tektronix ships two active high speed voltage probes (the P6205 10X FET). Option 9C: Certificate of Calibration and Test Data Report Tektronix ships a Certificate of Calibration which states this instrument meets...
Page 200 206-0364-00 Accessory Pouch 016-0708-00 You can also order the following optional accessories: Optional Accessories Table A-4: Optional Accessories Accessory Part Number TDS 520 Service Manual 070-8312-01 TDS 540 Service Manual 070-8314-01 Plotter (GPIB and Centronics Standard) HC100 Oscilloscope Cart K218...
Page 201 P6711 Opto-Electronic Converter, 500 to 950 nm, DC to 250 MHz 5 V/ P6713 Opto-Electronic Converter, 1100 to 1700 nm, DC to 300 MHz. 5 V/mW. TVC 501 Time-to-voltage converter. Time delay, pulse width and period measurements. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 202 Appendix A: Options and Accessories Probe Accessories The following optional accessories are recommended for use with the stan- dard probe listed under Standard Accessories. Table A-5: Probe Accessories Accessory Part Number Connector, BNC: BNC to Probe Tip Adapter 013-0226-00 Connector, BNC: 50 , BNC to Probe Tip Adapter 013-0227-00 Connector, Probe: Package of 100, compact...
Page 203 Appendix A: Options and Accessories Accessory Software The following optional accessories are Tektronix software products recom- mended for use with your digitizing oscilloscope: Table A-6: Accessory Software Software Part Number EZ-Test Program Generator S45F030 Wavewriter: AWG and waveform creation S3FT400...
Page 204 Appendix A: Options and Accessories Appendices...
Page 205: Appendix B: Specification
Appendix B: Specification This appendix begins with a general description of the traits of the TDS 520 and TDS 540 Digitizing Oscilloscope. Three subsections follow, one for each of three classes of traits: nominal traits, warranted characteristics, and typical characteristics .
Page 206 Appendix B: Specification Measurement aids, such as three types of cursors for making parametric measurements on displayed waveforms and Measure, which can auto- matically extract parameters from a signal and display them on screen. Our proprietary digital signal processor, the DSP. This dedicated proces- sor supports advanced analysis of your waveforms when doing such compute-intensive tasks as interpolation, waveform math, and signal averaging.
Page 207: Nominal Traits
TDS 520 and 540 Digitizing Oscilloscopes. (Traits that differ according to model or only apply to one model are preceded by the appropriate model number, TDS 520 or TDS 540, in the tables.) Included are electrical and mechanical traits.
Page 208 Description TDS 540: Range, Sensitivity, All 1 mV/div to 10 V/div Channels TDS 520: Range, Sensitivity, CH 1 and Same as listed for the TDS 540 CH 2 TDS 520: Range, Sensitivity, AUX 1 and 100 mV/div, 1 V/div, and 10 V/div AUX 2 The sensitivity ranges from 1 mV/div to 10 V/div in a 1–2–5 sequence of coarse settings.
Page 209 The maximum record length of 15,000 points (50,000 points with Option 1M) is selectable with all acquisition modes except Hi Res. In Hi Res, the maximum record length is 5,000 points (15,000 points with Option 1M). A 13 REV APRIL 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 210 Appendix B: Specification Table A-9: Nominal Traits—Triggering System Name Description Range, Delayed Trigger Time Delay 16 ns to 250 seconds Range, Events Delay 2 to 10,000,000 Range (Time) for Pulse-Glitch or Pulse- 2 ns to 1 s Width Triggering Ranges,Trigger Level or Threshold Source Range Any Channel...
Page 211 Forced-air circulation with no air filter Construction Material Chassis parts constructed of aluminum alloy; front panel constructed of plastic laminate; circuit boards constructed of glass-laminate. Cabi- net is aluminum and is clad in Tektronix Blue vinyl material. Finish Type Tektronix Blue vinyl-clad aluminum cabinet Weight Standard digitizing oscilloscope 12.3 kg (27 lbs), with front cover.
Page 212: Warranted Characteristics
Offset Accuracy is the accuracy of this Voltage level. The samples must be acquired under the same setup and ambient conditions. To ensure the most accurate measurements possible, run an SPC calibration first. When using the TDS 520 and/or TDS 540 Digitizing Oscilloscope at a Volts/Div setting 5 mV/div, an SPC calibration should be run once per week to ensure that instrument performance levels meet specifications.
Page 213 The limits given are for the ambient temperature range of 0 _ C to +30 _ C. Reduce the upper bandwidth frequencies by 2.5 MHz for each _ C above +30 _ C. The AC Coupled Lower Frequency Limits are reduced by a factor of 10 when 10X, passive probes are used. A 17 REV APRIL 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 214 Selected (1 WI + 25 ppm of Reading 1 to 4 Channels/Full Bandwidth + 200 ps) TDS 520: Accuracy, Delta Time For single-shot acquisitions using sample or high-resolution acquisi- Measurement tion modes on CH 1 and/or CH 2: Channels On/Bandwidth...
Page 215 2.5 V open circuit; 1.0 V into a 50 load to ground 0.7 V into a load of 4 mA; Vout (LO) 0.25 V into a 50 load to ground A 19 REV APRIL 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 216 Name Description Output Voltage and Frequency, Characteristic Limits Probe Compensator Voltage TDS 520 (B021799 and below); 0.5 V (base-top) TDS 540 (B022999 and below): load; 0.25 V (base-top) into a 50 load TDS 520 (B021800 and above); 0.5 V (base-top)
Page 217: Typical Characteristics
Characteristics that differ according to model or only apply to one model are preceded by the appropriate model number, TDS 520 or TDS 540, in the tables.) Typical characteristics are described in terms of typical or average performance. Typical characteristics are not warranted.
Page 218 1 mV/div–99.5 mV/div 100 mV/div –995 mV/div 20 V 1 V/div–10 V/div 200 V TDS 520: Step Response Settling Same as is listed for the TDS 540 Errors ( CH 1 and CH 2 only) Calculated Rise Time Volts/Div Setting Rise Time 5 mV/div–10 V/div...
Page 219 The TRIG’D LED stays constantly lighted when the SEC/DIV setting is 2 ms or faster but may flash when the SEC/DIV setting is 10 ms or slower. See the characteristic Sensitivity, Edge-Type Trigger, DC Coupled in Table A-15, which begins on page A-19. A 23 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 220 Glitch or the threshold crossing. For <5 nsec pulse width or rearm time, 2 divisions are required. TDS 520: Sensitivity, Derating Aux All trigger sensitivity specifications are derated by 50% for AUX 1 Channel Trigger and AUX 2 inputs.
Page 221: Appendix C: Algorithms
Appendix C: Algorithms The Tektronix TDS Series Digitizing Oscilloscope can take 25 automatic measurements. By knowing how the instrument makes these calculations, you may better understand how to use your instrument and how to interpret your results. The TDS Series Digitizing Oscilloscope uses a variety of variables in its Measurement calculations.
Page 222 Appendix C: Algorithms 1. It makes a histogram of the record with one bin for each digitizing level (256 total). 2. It splits the histogram into two sections at the halfway point between (also called 3. The level with the most points in the upper histogram is the value, High and the level with the most points in the lower histogram is the...
Page 223 0.0 and ( RecordLength – 1.0), inclusive. StartCycle = MCross1 EndCycle —is the ending time for cycle measurements. It is a floating-point number with values between 0.0 and ( RecordLength – 1.0), inclusive. EndCycle = MCross3 A 27 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 224 Appendix C: Algorithms MCross1 MCross3 (StartCycle) (EndCycle) MCross2 MidRef + (Hysteresis x Amplitude) MidRef MidRef – (Hysteresis x Amplitude) Figure A-1: MCross Calculations Waveform[<0.0 ... RecordLength–1.0>] —holds the acquired data. TPOS —is the location of the sample just before the trigger point (the time reference zero sample).
Page 225: Burst Width
For details of the integration algorithm, see page A-35. Cycle RMS The true Root Mean Square voltage over one cycle. If StartCycle = EndCycle then CycleRMS = Waveform[Start] . Otherwise, EndCycle Waveform StartCycle CycleRMS = EndCycle StartCycle SampleInterval A 29 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 226 Appendix C: Algorithms For details of the integration algorithm, see page A-35. Delay Timing measurement. The amount of time between the MidRef and Mid2Ref crossings of two different traces, or two different places on the same trace. Delay measurements are actually a group of measurements. To get a specific delay measurement, you must specify the target and reference crossing polarities, and the reference search direction.
Page 227 100% (highest) voltage reference value. (See “High, Low” earlier in this section) Using the min-max measurement technique: High 0% (lowest) voltage reference value calculated. (See “High, Low” earlier in this section) Using the min-max measurement technique: A 31 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 228 Appendix C: Algorithms Maximum Amplitude (voltage) measurement. The maximum voltage. Typically the most positive peak voltage. Examine all Waveform[ ] samples from Start to End inclusive and set Max equal to the greatest magnitude Waveform[ ] value found. Mean The arithmetic mean for one waveform. Remember that one waveform is not necessarily equal to one cycle.
Page 229 MCross1Target in the same direction (polarity) as that found for the target waveform is found. 4. The phase is determined by the following: MCross1Ref MCross1Target Phase Period A 33 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 230 Appendix C: Algorithms If the target waveform leads the reference waveform, phase is positive; if it lags, negative. Phase is not available in the Snapshot display. Positive Duty Cycle Timing measurement. The ratio of the positive pulse width to the signal peri- od, expressed as a percentage.
Page 231 = the (interpolated) value at Otherwise, Waveform Start Start SampleInterval For details of the integration algorithm, see below. Integration Algorithm The integration algorithm used by the digitizing oscilloscope is as follows: is approximated by where: A 35 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 232 Appendix C: Algorithms W(t) is the sampled waveform is the continuous function obtained by linear interpolation of W(t) RecordLength A and B are numbers between 0.0 and –1.0 If A and B are integers, then: where s is the sample interval. Similarly, is approximated by where:...
Page 233 MidRef samples were out of range. However, if was chosen using the % choice from the Measure menu’s Set Levels in % Units selection, then MidRef could give a “CLIPPING” warning. A 37 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 234 Appendix C: Algorithms NOTE When measurements are displayed using Snapshot, out of range warnings are NOT available. However, if you question the validity of any measurement in the snapshot display, you can select and display the measurement individually and then check for a warning message.
Page 235: Appendix D: Packaging For Shipment
The shipping carton must be constructed of cardboard with 170 kg (375 pound) test strength. 2. If you are shipping the digitizing oscilloscope to a Tektronix field office for repair, attach a tag to the digitizing oscilloscope showing the instrument owner and address, the name of the person to contact about the instru- ment, the instrument type, and the serial number.
Page 236 Appendix E: Packaging for Shipment A 40 Appendices...
Page 237: Appendix E: Factory Initialization Settings
Cursor time units Seconds Delayed edge trigger coupling Delayed edge trigger level Delayed edge trigger slope Rising Delayed edge trigger source Channel 1 Delay trigger average # Delay trigger envelope # A 41 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 238 Appendix E: Factory Initialization Settings Table A-22: Factory Initialization Defaults (Cont.) Control Changed by Factory Init to Delay time 15.152 ns Delay events, triggerable after main Delayed, delay by ... Delay by Time Delayed, time base mode Delayed Runs After Main Display clock No Change Display format...
Page 239 Measure High Ref 90% and 0 V (units) Measure Low Ref 10% and 0 V (units) Measure Mid Ref 50% and 0 V (units) Measure Mid2 Ref 50% and 0 V (units) A 43 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 240 Appendix E: Factory Initialization Settings Table A-22: Factory Initialization Defaults (Cont.) Control Changed by Factory Init to Pulse glitch trigger polarity Positive Pulse runt high threshold 2.0 V Pulse runt low threshold 0.0 V Pulse runt trigger polarity Positive Pulse trigger class Glitch Pulse trigger filter state On (Accept glitch)
Page 241 Glossary & Index...
Page 243 That is, the ratio of the input measure to the output measure. For example, a 10X probe will attenuate, or reduce, the input voltage of a signal by a factor of 10. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 244 A timing measurement of the duration of a burst. Channel One type of input used for signal acquisition. The TDS 540 has four channels; the TDS 520 has two. Channel Reference Indicator The indicator on the left side of the display that points to the position around which the waveform contracts or expands when vertical scale is changed.
Page 245 HighRef value (typically 90%) to a LowRef value (typically 10%) of its amplitude. Frequency A timing measurement that is the reciprocal of the period. Measured in Hertz (Hz) where 1 Hz = 1 cycle per second. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 246 Glossary Gated Measurements A feature that lets you limit automated measurements to a specified portion of the waveform. You define the area of interest using the vertical cursors. General purpose knob The large front-panel knob with an indentation. You can use it to change the value of the assigned parameter.
Page 247 For example, if you want to digitize on all channels at one time (four on the TDS 540 and two on the TDS 520), each of those channels can digitize at a maximum real-time speed of 250 megasamples per second.
Page 248 Glossary The value used as 0% in automated measurements (whenever high ref, mid ref, and low ref values are needed as in fall time and rise time measurements). May be calculated using either the min/max or the histogram method. With the min/max method (most useful for general waveforms), it is the minimum value found.
Page 249 Positive duty cycle A timing measurement of the ratio of the positive pulse width to the signal period, expressed as a percentage. Positive overshoot Amplitude (voltage) measurement. High PositiveOvershoot Amplitude TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 250 Glossary Positive width A timing measurement of the distance (time) between two amplitude points—rising-edge MidRef (default 50%) and falling-edge MidRef (default 50%)—on a positive pulse. Posttrigger The specified portion of the waveform record that contains data acquired after the trigger event. Pretrigger The specified portion of the waveform record that contains data acquired before the trigger event.
Page 251 Toggle button A button that changes which of the two cursors is active. Trigger An event that marks time zero in the waveform record. It results in acquisition and display of the waveform. TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 252 Glossary Trigger level The vertical level the trigger signal must cross to generate a trigger (on edge mode). Vertical bar cursors The two vertical bars you position to measure the time parameter of a waveform record. The oscilloscope displays the value of the active (moveable) cursor with respect to trigger and the time value between the bars.
Page 253 Peak Detect, 3-15 Average, Acquire menu, 3-15 Main menu, 3-2 Repetitive Signal, 3-15 Side menu, 3-2 Ring Bell if Condition Met, 3-55 RUN/STOP, 3-16 Sample, 3-15 Single Acquisition Sequence, 3-16 Stop After, 3-15 , 3-56 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 254 Deskjet, 3-40 Configure, Utility menu, 3-41 , 3-108 Deskjet, Hardcopy menu, 3-41 DANGER, statement on equipment, Connector BNC, A-6 Differences – TDS 520 and TDS 540, v GPIB, 3-4 , 3-107 Date/Time On hardcopies, 3-43 Differential active probes, 3-94 Contrast, Display menu, 3-32...
Page 255 Edge, Main Trigger menu, 3-36 , 3-123 Format, 3-41 GPIB, 3-41 Edges, Measure Delay menu, 3-74 HPGL, 3-41 Either, Main Trigger menu, 3-102 , Interleaf, 3-41 Gated Measurements, 3-71 , G-4 3-103 REV APRIL 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 256 Landscape, 3-41 Set to 90%, 3-51 Vertical POSITION, 1-5 , 2-14 , 3-124 Laserjet, 3-41 Time Base, 3-26 , 3-50 Vertical SCALE, 1-5 , 2-14 , 3-124 Layout, 3-41 Trigger Position, 3-51 Port, 3-41 HORIZONTAL MENU button, 2-6 , Portrait, 3-41 3-26 Thinkjet, 3-41 Horizontal POSITION knob, 3-49...
Page 257 Low, 3-67 , G-6 State, 3-60 , 3-64 Minimum, 3-67 , G-6 Maximum, 3-67 , G-6 Thresholds, 3-103 Mean, 3-67 , G-6 Mode, Cursor, 2-18–2-19 Trigger When, 3-61 , 3-63 REV APRIL 1992 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 258 Mode & Holdoff, Main Trigger menu, OK Create Measurement, Measure Position, Vertical menu, 3-126 3-39 , 3-62 , 3-101 Delay menu, 3-75 Positive duty cycle, 3-68 Mode, Acquire menu, 3-15 OK Erase Ref & Panel Memory, Positive overshoot, 3-68 Utility menu, 3-111 Model number location, 3-2 Positive width, 3-68 OK Store Template, Acquire menu,...
Page 259 Setup menu, 3-111 Sample interval, G-9 Set Thresholds, Main Trigger menu, Recalling, Waveforms, 3-112 Sample, Acquire menu, 3-15 3-61 Record length, v , 2-8 , 3-51 , A-1 , G-8 Sampling, 2-8 , G-9 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 260 3-117–3-118 3-33 3-108 Sin(x)/x interpolation, 2-9 , 3-33 , G-5 Trigger Level Bar, Readout, 3-32 TDS 520 and 540 differences, v Sin(x)/x interpolation, Display menu, Trigger MAIN LEVEL knob, 1-6 , 2-6 , Tek Secure, 3-111 , G-9 3-33 3-120...
Page 261 Waveform, Display menu, 3-32 Reset Zoom Factors, 3-132 POSITION knob, 2-14 Waveforms, Math, 3-127 Zoom Off, 3-132 Readout, 3-124 Scale, 3-124 Waveforms, Status menu, 3-119 Zoom Off, Zoom menu, 3-132 SCALE knob, 1-5 , 2-14 TDS 520 & TDS 540 User Manual...
Page 262 I 10 Index...
Page 263 MANUAL CHANGE INFORMATION 16-APRIL-92 C2-0492 Date: Change Reference: TDS 520/TDS 540 User Manual 070-8317-01 Product: Manual Part No.: DESCRIPTION Product Group 55 Effective for All Serial Numbers Add this insert to page A-17, Table A-13: Warranted Characteristics–Signal Acquisition System Name...

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