EXPERIMENT 3

THE FUNCTION GENERATOR AND THE OSCILLSCOPE

Function Generator :
A function generator is a device that can produce various patterns of voltage at a variety of
frequencies and amplitudes. It is used to test the response of circuits to common input signals.
The electrical leads from the device are attached to the ground and signal input terminals of the
circuit under test.
As you can see in Figure (1); the function generator can be separated into four major sections
1- Amplitude knob: varies the voltage difference between the high and low voltage of the
output signal.
2- The direct current (DC) offset knob: varies the average voltage of a signal relative to the
ground.
3- The frequency knob and freq. ranges: controls the rate at which output signal oscillates.
4- O/P shape : allow the user to choose the shape of the output from a number of options:
a. Square wave: The signal goes directly from high to low voltage.
b. Sine wave: The signal curves like a sinusoid from high to low voltage.
c. Triangle wave: The signal goes from high to low voltage at a fixed rate.

Freq. ranges

o/p shape

Freq. Knob DC offest Ampl. knob o/p

Figure(1)

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Oscilloscope:
Using an Oscilloscope can be easy! The less you ask from it, the easier it is to use.
Work in any circuits & electronics lab relies heavily on the use of the digital multimeter
(DMM), the Oscilloscope, and the Function Generator. You have already gained some
experience with the DMM; in this experiment we want you to become familiar with the
Oscilloscope.

The Oscilloscope is simply the most useful instrument available for testing circuits because it
allows you to see (observe) the signals at different points in the circuit. The best way of
investigating an electronic system is to monitor signals at the input and output of each system
block, checking that each block is operating as expected and is correctly linked to the next. With
a little practice, you will be able to find and correct faults quickly and accurately. Also it can be
employed to measure voltage, frequency and phase shift. Many other quantities such as pulse
width, rise time, fall time and delay time can be investigated.

The function of an Oscilloscope is very simple. It draws a V/t graph, a graph of voltage against
time, voltage on the vertical or Y-axis, and time on the horizontal or X-axis. As you can see in
Figure (2), the screen of an Oscilloscope almost has 8 squares/divisions on the vertical axis, and
10 squares/divisions on the horizontal axis. Usually, these squares are 1 cm in each direction.
The Oscilloscope has extremely high input impedance (1 MΩ parallel with 25 pF), which means
it will not significantly affect the input signal. This is nice because you can use it to test a circuit
without having to worry about it causing the circuit to behave differently. The probes are
connected to an Oscilloscope using BNC’s( Baby N- Connector).

Figure (2)
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An Oscilloscope can be separated into four major sections As you can see in Figure (7):
1- Display .
2- Vertical.
3- Horizontal
4- Triggering sections. Table 1 summarized these sections.

Figure (3)
Table 1: Oscilloscope sections:

Display POWER Turns ac mains on and off.

Control INTENSITY Adjusts the brightness of the trace.

Vertical VOLTS/DIV Vertical sensitivity controls the number of volts between

each horizontal line on the screen.
Control POSITION Allows you to move the trace up or down as you see it fit.
This way you can zero the trace when no voltage is applied,
or if you are viewing two waves at once you can separate
them
VERT MODE Channel 1/A: shows only channel 1’s signal.
Channel 2/B: shows only channel 2’s signal.
Dual: shows both signals at once.
Add: Algebraically adds channel 1 to channel 2.

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 VAR Variable: allows you to adjust the calibration of the signal.
Be sure this is locked in the CAL position.
AC/GND/DC Called coupling switch.
-AC coupling: the scope will display the AC component;
block any DC component from being displayed.
-DC coupling : the scope will display the complete signal
including the DC component.
- GND: Disconnects the input signal from the system so you
can establish a zero line.
Horizontal POSITION Allows you to adjust the wave to the left or right.

Control TIME/DIV Controls the rate at which the trace travels between divisions.
Set it to one second and the trace will take a second to travel
between one division and the next.
X10 MAG Multiplies the time trace by 10.

X–Y This cause the scope to graph channel 1/A on the x-axis and
channel 2/B on the Y-axis.
SWP VAR When in, you can vary the time base away from the
Time/Div dial.
Be sure this is locked in the CAL position.
Triggering LEVEL Allows the user to vary the waveform in order to synchronize
the start of the wave.
Section HOLD OFF Allows fine tuning of the Level. Useful when a trace is tough
to lock-on to.
AUTO Automatically operates trigger on its own action.
COUPLING Usually set to AC for this lab.

SOURCE Set to Channel 1/A or Channel 2/B. Which ever works better.

SLOPE + - Flips the waveform on both channels by determining whether

the
slope triggers on the positive or the negative slope.

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How to read the Amplitude and Frequency of a signal displayed on scope screen:
The major advantage of the oscilloscope over other measuring devices such as the DMM (Digital
Multimeter) is the fact that we can measure the amplitude of the signal, the frequency of a signal
and we can also see if the signal is of the shape that we are expecting. So the oscilloscope can be
used to make quantitative and qualitative measurements. The reading from scope is given as
peak to peak value, but the reading from the multimeter is the RMS value of
the signal.
As an Example: suppose we want to read the amplitude and the frequency
of the signal shown in figure (4). We must have the volt/div value and the
time/div value. Assume the volt/div= 2 V/div and the time/div =
0.2msec/div.
The peak signal occupies two divisions in the vertical side and the period of
the signal occupies four divisions in the horizontal side.
Figure (4)
So: Vp = 2 Div * 2V/Div = 4 volt
Period = 4 div * 0.2ms/div = 0.8 msec Frequency = 1/ 0.8ms = 1250 Hz.