Correct Selection of Oscilloscope Bandwidth

Insufficient oscilloscope bandwidth can lead to signal attenuation, waveform distortion, and measurement errors.

 

Use a practical case to illustrate:

Input a 20MHz, 1V sine wave and enable the oscilloscope's 20MHz bandwidth limit (analog bandwidth limitation),

The amplitude drops to 700mV (-3dB attenuation point), and distortion becomes more pronounced at higher frequencies. The original waveform is restored after disabling the limit.

A square wave with an input of 20MHz and 1V is directly transformed into a sine wave under a 20MHz bandwidth limitation.

 
 
 

How to choose the appropriate oscilloscope bandwidth?

Sine wave signal: Fivefold rule

The oscilloscope bandwidth should be at least 5 times the frequency of the signal being measured

Square wave / digital signal: the ninefold rule

The oscilloscope bandwidth should be at least 9 times the frequency of the signal being measured

 
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