A smarter oscilloscope for faster debug

The top-of-the range PicoScope 6824E has dual 5 GS/s analogue to digital converters and 4 gigasamples of capture memory as standard. It offers a rich set of built-in tools for embedded systems debug, including DeepMeasure that captures the measurement results of each one in up to a million cycles.

Eight and 16 channels address challenges faced by engineers when debugging complex IoT and embedded systems that have mixed analogue and digital elements, such as serial and parallel communications with high-speed low-voltage signalling.

FlexRes architecture allows the hardware to be configured by the user to optimise either the sampling rate, to 5 GS/s at eight-bit resolution, or up to 12-bit resolution with 1.25 GS/s sampling. For diverse applications such as capturing and decoding fast digital signals, or looking for distortion in sensitive analogue signals, flexible resolution allows both measurements to be made with the same oscilloscope.

The advantage of deep capture memory is the ability to capture long-duration events while maintaining a high sample rate, which means that the oscilloscope can make the best use of its bandwidth. The PicoScope 6824E, with standard 4 GS memory, can capture a 200-millisecond signal at a sampling rate of 5 GS/s, so 200 picoseconds resolution (a ratio of 1:1,000,000,000). Deep captures can be explored with the included waveform buffer navigator and zoomed in by up to a million times using the zoom/pan controls.

The PicoScope 6000E Series utilises PicoScope 6 PC software, a proven and popular graphical user interface with over 100,000 users worldwide. It presents information in time, frequency and digital domains as required by the user. Mask limit testing and user-defined alarms are included, as well as capture memory segmentation from 1 to 10,000. Translated into 22 languages, PicoScope 6 can be used anywhere in the world.

To address the proliferation of serial communication technologies, PicoScope 6 includes decoders for 21 serial protocols as well as parallel bus decoding of the digital channels. The most recent additions to the list of supported protocols are BroadR-Reach (100BASE-T1) Automotive Ethernet, Manchester and DALI. More protocols are in development and will be deployed as free-of-charge updates in the future.

The PicoScope 6000E Series delivers the best performance in its class, with better than -50 dB harmonic distortion at one megahertz on all models and over 60 dB SFDR (PicoScope 6824E). Baseline noise specification is less than 150μV RMS on the most sensitive range.

PicoScope 6000E further increases its value with an integrated 200 MS/s arbitrary waveform generator (AWG) and 50MHz function generator with built-in sine, square, triangle, DC voltage, ramp up, ramp down, Gaussian and half-sine functions.

Pico is also introducing the Pico probe holder system. It uses novel flexible ‘gooseneck’ holders and is designed to work perfectly with Pico 2.5mm passive probes with spring tips for all PicoScope 6000 Series scopes. The holders are mounted on a mirror-finished steel base plate, equipped with magnetic PCB posts with insulation washers to hold the device under test (DUT) to address the perennial problem of how to make reliable multiple probe connections to a DUT.

Trevor Smith, Business Development Manager for Test & Measurement products at Pico Technology commented: “The PicoScope 6000E will disrupt the mid-range oscilloscope market. It offers new capabilities that engineers need to debug and validate their next generation of electronic designs. It offers better price/performance than traditional benchtop oscilloscopes, with many features included as standard that are only available as expensive upgrade options on competing products. Coupled with the new probe holder system and proven PicoScope 6 software, this product is a winner.”

PicoScope 6000E Series oscilloscopes are available now with prices starting at $11,395.