04 August 2005
A breed apart
Difficult to fathom and unwieldy to use, will logic analysers ever become redundant? By Vanessa Knivett.
Logic analysers have a reputation for being costly, difficult prima donnas. Oscilloscopes, meanwhile, are regarded as trusty workhorses. As designs become more complex and oscilloscopes become more sophisticated however, will the logic analyser be increasingly sidelined?
Logic analysers certainly have a role – particularly once users have finished the parametric stage of their design. Traditionally, logic analysers come into play when users need to see the relationship between many signals at once and when they want to look at signals in the same way as hardware. And there are instances when a logic analyser is the best tool – for instance, when debugging an fpga where multiple circuits are running at different clock speeds.
Nevertheless, there has been a significant shift within the test equipment market. With more mixed signal designs and the move from parallel to high speed serial data, ’scopes now boast features that encroach upon the logic analyser’s territory.
Author
Vanessa Knivett
Supporting Information
Websites
http://www.agilent.com
http://www.lecroy.com
http://www.livingston.com
Companies
Agilent Technologies UK Ltd
Lecroy Ltd
Livingston UK Ltd
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