vector display

The display type where the electron beam is directed so the image (consisting of trace, graticule, and annotation) is written directly onto the display face. It is not created from a series of dots as with the raster display.

video

A term describing the output of an analyzer’s envelope detector. The frequency range extends from 0 Hz to a frequency that is typically well beyond the widest resolution bandwidth available in the analyzer. However, the ultimate bandwidth of the video chain is determined by the setting of the video hlter.

video amplifier

A post-detection, dc-coupled ampliEer that drives the vertical deflection plates of the display. Refer also to video bandwidth and video filter.

video average

The digital averaging of analyzer trace information. It is available only on analyzers with digital displays. Each point on the display is averaged independently and the average is computed based on the number of sweeps selected by the user. The averaging algorithm applies a factor to the amplitude value of a given point on the current sweep (l/n, where n is the number of the current sweep); applies another factor to the previously stored average [(n - l/n)]; and combines the two for a current average. After the designated number of sweeps are completed, the factors remain constant, and the display becomes a running average.

video bandwidth

The cut-off frequency (3 dB point) of an adjustable low-pass Iilter in the video circuit. When the video bandwidth is equal to or less than the resolution bandwidth, the video circuit cannot fully respond to the more rapid fluctuations of the output of the envelope detector. The result is a smoothing of the trace, or a reduction in the peak-to-peak excursion, of broadband signals such as noise and pulsed RF when viewed in broadband mode. The degree of averaging or smoothing is a function of the ratio of the video bandwidth to the resolution bandwidth.

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