14 Nov 2011

Developments in Oscilloscope Technology – An Interview with Tektronix

With the launch of the MDO4000 Mixed Domain Oscilloscope, Ian Poole talks to Trevor Smith of Tektronix about recent and forthcoming developments within oscilloscope technology.

Tektronix is a name that has long been associated with oscilloscope technology.

While the company has broadened its product range in recent years, they are still at the forefront of oscilloscope technology.

However oscilloscope technology is changing, and the boundaries of oscilloscopes are widening, giving more flexibility to these intruments. This has been necessary to allow engineers to address the more demanding requirements being applied upon them.

One area is that of the every growing number of wireless based applications. With the expectation of a billion connected devices by 2016 according to the UMTS Forum, and Ericsson predicting 20 billion connected devices by 2020, the scene is set for an explosion in wireless related developments. This is one reason for Tektronix developing their mixed domain oscilloscope range.

Tektronix MDO 4000 Series Instrument

However there are many other developments taking place in the oscilloscope arena, so we decided to talk to Trevor Smith at Tektronix to find out more about the developments taking place.

First, though, we decided to look back at how Tektronix arrived at where they are now to put everything in perspective.

Trevor, how did you come to be involved in oscilloscope developments?

I was an engineering apprentice at British Aerospace (now BAe Systems) during the 1970’s. Oscilloscopes were the “tool of choice” for validating radar, IFF and guidance systems that we were working on.

Trevor Smith

Tektronix 7000 series mainframe/plug-in analogue scopes were the state-of-the-art instruments in those days. Senior engineers used the 7000 series to solve the toughest design problems, and taught us youngsters to do likewise!

How did Tektronix start in oscilloscopes?

Tektronix was founded in 1946 by Howard Vollum and Jack Murdock, who invented the world’s first triggered oscilloscope – the Model 511. The 511 was far more accurate than anything then on the market, enabling engineers to make proper waveform measurements instead of just basic visualisation. Later, Tektronix introduced "plug-in" oscilloscopes that could be adapted for different applications. The plug-in oscilloscopes were an instant success, helping Tektronix to become the market leader in oscilloscopes – which we still are today.

Howard Vollum and Jack Murdock

How have the scopes been developed over time?

The early days were characterised by a succession of analogue oscilloscopes that served the needs of the radio and emerging television industries. Tektronix lab oscilloscopes were used extensively in the development of consumer electronics products and our portable instruments were used by service engineers worldwide. Tektronix built its own CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) manufacturing plant which produced successive generations of high performance tubes which enabled Tektronix to stay ahead of the competition for many years.

As we moved into the 1960’s the telecommunications industry and, of course, the space race drove development of higher bandwidth scopes with performance and features to match, culminating in the world’s first 1GHz analogue oscilloscope.

In the 1970’s the computer industry needed to view high speed, low repetition rate or single-shot digital signals. They would have loved the digital scopes we produce today, but the required sampling technology wasn’t available then. So, instead, Tektronix developed various CRT-based analogue storage technologies including bistable phosphor storage and the ubiquitous Micro Channel Plate displays that were incorporated in the portable 2467 and laboratory 7104 models.

Introduction of the microprocessor and development of CCD sampling technology in the 1980s led to development of the first digital storage oscilloscopes which, arguably, enabled the whole digital electronics revolution that was to follow. The capability to capture, store and analyse waveform data with oscilloscopes like the 2430 & 2440 models enabled engineers to examine cause-and-effect in designs and find glitches that had eluded them before.

Subsequent generations of digital scopes in the 1990’s and 2000 offered successively more performance and features to validate signal integrity in the embedded systems that are in everyday use now. Advanced logic triggers, improved display technologies, faster sampling and long capture memories and DSP based analysis tools gave engineers deep insight into functionality of their designs to ensure performance and reliability, even for “mission critical” applications like automotive, aerospace and medical electronics.

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