On each measurement channel CNT-104S can produce gap-free samples back-to-back as fast as 1 sample per 50 ns which corresponds to setting Sample Interval to 0 s. However, for most cases one doesn't need samples to be generated with such a high frequency, then using non-zero Sample Interval can be considered. In this case samples in each measurement channel will be generated not faster than once per set Sample Interval.
Sample Interval hints:
- Sample Interval clock is not synchronized to signal, meaning actual Sample Interval between 2 consecutive samples can be less or more than Sample Interval set by the user.
- When doing parallel measurement, sample interval is applied to each measured series independently. E.g., when measuring Frequency A, B, D, E and using 1 ms Sample Interval, one will get 1000 Frequency Samples per second from each input.
- Sample Interval for averaging measurement functions (Frequency, Period Average and their Smart alternatives) acts as an averaging gate. The larger the gate (Sample Interval) – the greater the resolution.
- The CNT-104S contains two cascaded memories for result saving. The first is the cache buffer that can holdup to 20000 raw samples with a maximum writing speed of 20 million Samples/s. The second is the main memory, that can hold up to 32 million results, with a maximum writing speed of 12.5 million samples per second, or 80 ns between samples. The data is written to the cache buffer in parallel from up to 4 inputs, meaning the capture speed is independent of the number of inputs used. The data transfer from the fast cache buffer to the slower main memory is done in serial, so the maximum capture speed varies with the number of channels Setting max number of samples of samples to 20k for a single channel measurement, or 5k for a 4 channel measurement, will guarantee a sampling rate of 20 million values/s, at a sample interval of 50 ns. When setting a larger number of samples , the Sample Interval (given that signal period is less than or equal to the set Sample Interval) must be increased to minimum 80 ns for 1-channel and minimum 320 ns for 4-channel measurements, to avoid cache buffer overflow. If not, the measurement is aborted to avoid data loss.
Example. Measurement function is Frequency A,B,D,E, Sample Interval is 50 ns, Sample Count is set to 10000 and period of all input signals is 50 MHz. 4 measurement channels are used in parallel, each supposed to deliver samples at a rate of 20 million samples per second, which is greater than the speed cache buffer can be fetched with (12.5 million samples). Total number of samples to be generated is 4 x (10000 + 1) = 40004 (N + 1 raw samples are needed to calculate N frequencies), which is twice greater than measurement logic buffer capacity. So, the buffer will overflow and measurement will be aborted. Solution would be to either increase Sample Interval to 320 ns (4 channels x 80 ns, giving 12.5 million samples per second total) or to decrease Sample Count to 4999 (giving 4 x (4999 + 1) = 20000 samples total).
To avoid this situation please watch out for warning text when setting Sample Count and/or Sample Interval or warning icon when choosing measurement function and inputs.
- When using Sample Interval close to 50 ns, actual sample interval might vary between 50 ns and 100 ns. In case of Time Interval measurement – it can result in generating less samples than was ordered by Sample Count setting. To avoid this please consider setting Sample Interval to 0 if you need minimal sample interval between samples. Setting Time Interval to 0 disables Sample Interval clock, meaning taking samples as fast as possible (close to 50 ns if signal period is 50 ns or greater).
- Sample Interval setting doesn’t affect Voltage measurement where interval between samples directly depends on Voltage Mode (please see Voltage measurement principles for details).
- Sample Interval setting doesn’t affect manual Totalize measurement where interval between samples is always 100 ms.