Our entire pop culture is based around different inventions that have gone to change our world as we know it. Picture almost any of your favorite movies or TV shows from the past few years and you’ll see that the change in technology has had a greater impact on not just the story telling aspect but the entire concept of their production.

In many ways, the same can be said about the entire world. As technology changes, so does the rest of the world. That change is almost always a precursor to greater things. At the same time, perhaps tragically, something that might be considered as revolutionary today may well be considered obsolete within a few years.

A perfect example of that is the floppy disk. There was time when people would never leave their homes without a floppy disk as it contained all the essential data that they needed. They have since been swiftly replaced by USBs.

These USBs have grown to become an important part of other devices as well. One of those is the Oscilloscope. Today, most engineers want the best USB scope on the market but what exactly is an oscilloscope and why do engineers need it so much?

The Basics

The basic function of any oscilloscope is to be the device that provides the perfect display of the voltage v. time aspect. Additionally, the voltage is supposed to be displayed on the vertical axis while the time is displayed on the horizontal axis.

The reason why oscilloscopes are so popular is because they represent a terrific way to see the visual representation of any signal and view the proportionate strength. So why should you be using these oscilloscopes? Here are some of the top reasons.

Bandwidth

You’ll find a lot of oscilloscopes that can provide you with different variations of bandwidth. You can choose the best one according to your needs as well as the purpose you plan to use it for. There are certain oscilloscopes that are easy to use for students while some are designed to be handled by seasoned professionals.

Sample Rate

The sample rate is an important factor why you should be using an oscilloscope. You should keep one important detail in mind that the greater the number of samples per second, the higher the quality will be. Quality can make an obvious impact in the overall visual representation of the waveform.

Signal Integrity

It’s one thing to have a clear and visually accurate representation. But more important than that is the ability to actual form that waveform correctly. For example, a heart rate monitor should always display the correct heart rate. It won’t matter how visually impressive the wave form is if it cannot present an accurate depiction of the wave form.

Channels

Primarily, there are two channels that you can use when using an oscilloscope. Each signal is either analog or digital. You can typically use 2-4 channels per oscilloscope.