University of Colombo

Department of Physics

PH4030-Advanced Physics Laboratory ii

4P 408: DELAY LINE CHARACTERISTICS

Final report

Name:K.R.P.Fernando
Index No:12143
Reg. No:2013/s/13901
Date:December, 2017
 Abstract

The 4P408- Delay line Characteristics practical is mainly focused on the essential parameters of a delay
line. The report includes analysis on delay line behavior. This experiment is based on characteristics
of delay line and they are observed throughout the experiment. Those characteristics were observed by
applying an input square pulse to the delay line in different states. In addition to that the component
values of delay line were obtained. They were as following,
Using WFM data,
Group velocity of delay line = (3.4146 ± 0.2979) × 104 ms−1
Attenuation when open-circuit = (31.1 ± 0.9) dB per section
Attenuation when terminated with matched impedance = (22 ± 5)dB per section
Cut-off frequency (fc ) = (132.4 ± 0.6) kHz
Inductance (L) (Experimental) = (284±29)µH
Capacitance (C) (Experimental) = (20±2)nF
Time delay (τ ) (Calculated) = (2.4 ± 0.2)µs
Time delay (τ ) (Experimental) = (7.5 ± 0.1)µs
Using CSV data,
Group velocity of delay line = (3.7293 ± 0.3514) × 104 ms−1
Attenuation when open-circuit = (31.1 ± 0.6) dB per section
Attenuation when terminated with matched impedance = (22 ± 5)dB per section
Cut-off frequency (fc ) = (133 ± 0.6) kHz
Inductance (L) (Experimental) = (282±29)µH
Capacitance (C) (Experimental) = (20±2)nF
Time delay (τ ) (Calculated) = (2.4 ± 0.2)µs
Time delay (τ ) (Experimental) = (7.0 ± 0.1)µs
Characteristic impedance (Zk ) (Experimental) = (118 ± 11.8)Ω
Characteristic impedance Zk (Measured) = (108.72±0.01)Ω
Inductance (L) (Measured) = (638.6 ± 0.1)µH
Capacitance (C) (Measured) = (32.8 ± 0.2) nF

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Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 How a delay line works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 The uses and applications of delay lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 Pulse generator using NE555 timer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.4 Digital Storage Oscilloscope(DSO) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.5 The low pass filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2 Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.1 Pulse Repetition Frequency(PRF) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.2 Pulse width(Full width at half maximum) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3 Group velocity(V g) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.4 Attenuation Coefficient( α) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.5 Voltage reflection coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.6 The characteristic impedance(Zk ),cut-off frequency(fc ),transit time(td ) . . . . . . . . 4

3 Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.1 Experiment 01 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2 Experiment 02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.3 Experiment 03 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

4 Results and Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

4.1 Results of experiment 01 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1.1 Experiment 01 part(a) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1.2 Experiment 01 part(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1.3 Experiment 01 part(c) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.1.4 Experiment 01 part(d) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.2 Results of experiment 02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.2.1 Experiment 02 part(a) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.2.2 Experiment 02 part(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2.3 Experiment 02 part(c) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.2.4 Experiment 02 part(d) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.3 Results of experiment 03 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.3.1 Experiment 03 part(a) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.3.2 Experiment 03 part(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
4.3.3 Experiment 03 part(c) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5 Error Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.1 Error in Pulse repetition Frequency(f) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.2 Error in Group velocity(Vg ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.3 Error in Relative voltage(Vrel ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.4 Error in log value of Relative voltage(log(Vrel )) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.5 Error in Attenuation coefficient (α) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.6 Error in Reflection coefficient (ρ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.7 Error in Cut-off frequency(fc ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5.8 Error in Capacitance (C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5.9 Error in Inductance (L) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
5.10 Error in transit time (τ ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

6 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

7 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

8 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

9 Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

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9.1 Exercise 01 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
9.2 Exercise 03 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

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List of Figures
1.1 A unit cell of delay line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 The result of a delay line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.3 The pulse generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.4 Low pass filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2.1 Pulse repetition frequency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.2 The pulse width at half maximum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.3 Transmission line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3.1 The apparatus of experiment 01 part(a) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.2 The apparatus of experiment 01 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
3.3 The apparatus of experiment 02 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
3.4 The apparatus of experiment 03 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4.1 The result of experiment 01-part(a) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.2 The result of experiment 01-part(b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.3 The result of experiment 01-part(c) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
4.4 The graph of Delay time(µs) vs. section number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.5 The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number using WFM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.6 The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number using CSV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4.7 The input end and and corresponding output end pulses when terminated with open
circuit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.8 Comparing amplitudes of the first reflected pulse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
4.9 The observations on each section when the output end is short circuited . . . . . . . . 12
4.10 The observed pulse at input end when terminated with characteristic impedance . . . 12
4.11 The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number for WFM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.12 The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number for CSV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
4.13 Voltage of the first reflected pulse when short circuited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.14 Observed pulses at different positions of the line at 500Hz frequency . . . . . . . . . . 14
4.15 Observed pulses at different positions of the line at 1000Hz frequency . . . . . . . . . 14
4.16 The Graph of voltage vs. log10 f for WFM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.17 The Graph of voltage vs. log10 f for CSV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

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1 Introduction
A delay line is a network of electrical components in series, where each individual element creates a
time difference or phase change between its input signal and its output signal. There are two basic
types of delay line technologies.And they are,

• Passive delay lines or analog delay lines

These are built with analog components which can delay both analog and digital signals.They
attenuate signal from input to output and use components such as capacitors and inductors.
• Active delay lines or digital delay lines
These are built with digital components which can delay only digital signals. Active delay lines
do not attenuate the signal from input to output, and are characterized by a specific logic family.
eg:TTL(Transistor-Transistor logic),CMOS(Complementary metal-oxide semiconductors)
and ECL(Emitter coupled logic).

In this 4P-408 practical a passive delay line is used with a series of combination of unit cells as
shown below.

Figure 1.1: A unit cell of

delay line

1.1 How a delay line works

The electronic delay line circuits operate on the principle of being in a stable mode until triggered by a
pulse. Then the signal shift to a quasi stable state for a period of time determined by the time constant
of LCR circuit. After that period of time the circuit returns again to its stable mode until the signal is
triggered by another pulse. The output pulse of the delay line is not an exact reproduction of the input
pulse. Its amplitude and the pulse width depends on the circuit producing it.

(b) Delay line

(a) Input pulse (c) Output pulse

Figure 1.2: The result of a delay line

1
1.2 The uses and applications of delay lines
Delay lines are applied in many types of signal processing circuits. The PAL television standard uses
a delay line to store an entire video scan line. Acoustic and electromechanical delay lines are used
to provide a reverberation effect in musical instrument amplifiers or to simulate an echo. High speed
oscilloscopes use an analog delay line to allow observations of waveform just before some trigger event.
Delay lines are widely used in musical instruments in digital wave guide synthesis and also in sound
synthesis methods. And also delay lines are used in radar systems, moving target indication and in
ground based systems and much more.
1.3 Pulse generator using NE555 timer

(a) The pulse generator circuit

diagram (b) Output of pulse generator

Figure 1.3: The pulse generator

The 555 timer works in the astable mode and it causes the IC to trigger it self producing a stream
of pulses when it is connected to a power supply. Pin 2 and 6 are connected so that the circuit act as
an oscillator. Capacitor C1 is being charged through two resistors in series which are R1 and VR. But
the capacitor discharges through VR only. By changing the capacitor and resistor values the frequency
of the pulse can be changed.

1.4 Digital Storage Oscilloscope(DSO)

DSO is an oscilloscope which stores and analyze the signal digitally. The output of the channel 1 and
channel 2 can be stored in a USB drive or in the internal storage for further analysis. There are PNG,
WFM and CSV type storage available on the oscilloscope. The WFM files can be opened using a WFM
viewer to take measurements easily. The CSV files can be used to analyze data using MATLAB.
1.5 The low pass filter
Basically a low pass filter is a electrical circuit that can be designed to reject all unwanted high
frequencies and accept the signals wanted by the circuit designer. The low pass filters allow low
frequency signals from 0 Hz to its cut-off frequency(fc ) to pass while blocking the others.Passive low
pass filters does not have amplifying elements. So the signal get distorted.

(a) The low pass filter section (b) Frequency response of low pass filter

Figure 1.4: Low pass filter

2
2 Theory
2.1 Pulse Repetition Frequency(PRF)
The pulse repetition frequency is the number of pulses of a repeating signal in a specific time unit,
normally measured in pulses per second. When a particular signal turned on and off the number of
switches refers to the pulse repetition frequency. The value is much lower than the frequency of the
pulse.

Figure 2.1: Pulse repetition frequency

1
P ulse repetiton f requency = (1)
P ulse repetition interval

2.2 Pulse width(Full width at half maximum)

The elapsed time between the rising and the falling edge of a single pulse is referred as the pulse width
of a signal. To make the measurement accurately, the 50% power level is used as the reference line.
This method is referred as the full width at half maximum (FWHM) to make the measurement more
accurate.

Figure 2.2: The pulse width at half maximum

2.3 Group velocity(V g)

The pulse consists of different frequency components that travel together as a group in a medium. This
pulse travel at a velocity different from the phase velocity. (phase velocity is the speed at which a wave
with a single definite frequency propagate through a medium)
dω
Vg = (2)
dk
Where ω is angular frequency and k is wave number.

2.4 Attenuation Coefficient( α)

When a signal travels through a medium its intensity diminishes with distance. The amplitude change
of a decaying signal can be expressed as,
A = A0 e−αz (3)
Where A0 - unattenuated amplitude of the propagating signal, A- reduced amplitude of the signal, z-
distance traveled from the initial location, α -attenuation coefficient

3
2.5 Voltage reflection coefficient
The reflection coefficient is a parameter that describes how much of an electromagnetic wave reflected
by an impedance discontinuity in the delay line medium. It is equal to the ratio of amplitudes in reflected
wave and incident wave.
Z − Zk
ρυ = (4)
Z + Zk

Figure 2.3: Transmission line

• When the delay line is open circuited,

Z → ∞. Then ρυ → 1. So the reflected pulse hac same amplitude and phase as the incident
pulse.
• When the delay line short circuited,
Z → 0. Then ρυ → -1. So the reflected pulse is out of phase which has a 180 ◦ phase shift
respect to the incident pulse. And also the amplitude of both pulses are the same.
• When the impedance is matched, Z=Zk and ρυ =0. So there is no reflection from the end of
the delay line.

And also when Z> Zk ,the reflection coefficient is lass than one. Which means the reflected pulse
has a low amplitude compared to the incident pulse. When Z< Zk , the reflection coefficient is less than
one in its magnitude but the sign is negative. Which means the reflected pulse has low amplitude and
a phase of 180◦ compared to the incident pulse. The impedance matching is important when designing
signal processing systems.

2.6 The characteristic impedance(Zk ),cut-off frequency(fc ),transit time(td )

Characteristic impedance is the instantaneous impedance a signal sees as it moves down the line.
r
L
characteristic impedance(Zk ) = (5)
C
1
cut − of f f requency(fc ) = √ (6)
π LC
Transit time is the time taken by the delay line to travel from starting and to the finishing end of the
line. √
transit time(τ ) = LC (7)

4
3 Methodology
3.1 Experiment 01
The pulse generator was connected to a 9V power supply. And then the pulses generated were observed
using the oscilloscope. Then the circuit was connected as shown below to observe the input and output
end pulses.

Figure 3.1: The apparatus of experiment 01

part(a)

Figure 3.2: The apparatus of experiment 01

The apparatus was plugged as shown above. Then the results were stored in the oscilloscope using
the USB drive. The measurements were taken using the WFM files stored in the drive by opening
those files using WFM viewer. The amplitude of the input pulse, pulse width at half maximum and
the pulse repetition frequency was measured. Then the far end of the delay line was terminated by an
open circuit. Again the pulse was observed at the input end. The reflected pulses were identified by
observing the pulses and input and output and of the delay line. The delay time and output voltage
of the first reflected pulse were measured at each section. Then the graphs of the delay time vs. the
section number and the graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number was plot using the measurements. Then
the group velocity and the attenuation of the delay line was calculated using the gradients.

3.2 Experiment 02
The same experimental apparatus was used in the experiment 02. And the delay line was short circuited
as in Figure 3.3.
Using the second channel of the DSO the signal was observed at each section. And the forward
traveling pulse and the reflected pulse was observed when the output end of the delay line is open
circuited. Then the amplitude of first reflected pulse near input end was was measured and compared
with the amplitude when the delay line is short circuited. In part(c) of experiment 02, the DSO probe
was moved along successive sections along the line and the forward and reflected pulse was observed
for each section. Then the short circuited end was connected to a resistor box with zero resistance.
Then the resistance of the box was increased while observing the first reflected pulse at the input end
until its amplitude become zero.

5
 Figure 3.3: The apparatus of experiment 02

With that matching impedance at the output end the amplitude of each first reflected pulse was
measured along each section of the delay line. Then another value for attenuation constant was obtained
by plotting the graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number again. In part (d) of the experiment the delay
line was short circuited at the output end and the input and output and signals were compared in the
basis of reflection coefficient.
3.3 Experiment 03
The input terminals were connected to a signal generator (AF oscillator) and the output end was
terminated by its characteristic impedance as follows.

Figure 3.4: The apparatus of experiment 03

A square pulse of 500 Hz frequency was inputed to the delay line using the AF oscillator. The
attenuation of the signal was observed from section to section on the line. Then the frequency of the
pulse was increased to 1000 Hz to compare the attenuation of both cases. Then by keeping the input
amplitude constant at the input end the frequency was changed in an appropriate range to get the
measurements of output voltage of the line. After that a graph of output voltage vs. log10 (frequency)
was plot to obtain the cut-off frequency of the delay line. By using the given theoretical equations
for cut-off frequency, characteristic impedance the experimental values for inductance and capacitance
was calculated. And then the LCR meter was used to measure the inductance,capacitance and the
resistance of the delay line to compare with the experimentally obtained values. Then the transit time
was calculated using those inductance and capacitance measured and compared with the transit time
obtained in experiment 01.
Since CSV file format can be used to obtain measurements instead of WFM format, the same
waveforms obtained in each experiment was analyzed using MATLAB through CSV files. The filtering
methods in MATLAB was used to obtain a noise free signal for analysis.

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4 Results and Analysis
4.1 Results of experiment 01
4.1.1 Experiment 01 part(a)

(a) Using WFM viewer (b) Using CSV file in Matlab

Figure 4.1: The result of experiment 01-part(a)

Amplitude of the pulse(WFM)=(6.8 ± 0.3)V
Amplitude of the pulse(CSV)=(6.72 ± 0.03)V
Pulse width at half maximum=(2.9 ± 0.1)µs
The WFM and CSV waveforms gave same value for pulse width at half maximum.
The pulse repetition interval(T)(WFM)=(80 ± 1)µs
Pulse repetition frequency(WFM)= T1 = (12.5 ± 0.2)KHz
The pulse repetition interval(T)(CSV)=(79.7 ± 0.1)µs
Pulse repetition frequency(CSV)= T1 = (12.55 ± 0.02)KHz

4.1.2 Experiment 01 part(b)

Figure 4.2: The result of experiment 01-part(b)

The attenuating pulses are the first reflected, second reflected and third reflected pulses.
4.1.3 Experiment 01 part(c)

Figure 4.3: The result of experiment 01-part(c)

The pulses of the line appear mid way between those at the input.

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4.1.4 Experiment 01 part(d)
Figure 1: Data of experiment 01 part(d) for calculating group velocity

Section number Time delay using WFM(±0.1µs) Time delay using CSV(±0.1µs)
1 0.7 0.1
2 1.6 1.0
3 2.8 1.9
4 3.8 2.9
5 4.7 3.9
6 5.8 4.4
7 7.3 5.4
8 7.5 7.0

Figure 4.4: The graph of Delay time(µs) vs. section number

Using WFM data,

The gradient of the graph(G1 )=(1.03± 0.09)µs per section
The length of each section(L)=(3.50± 0.05)cm
−2
The group velocity of delay line= GL1 = 3.50×10 m per section
1.03×10−6 s per section
= 3.4146×104 ms−1
=34146 ± 2979ms−1
Using CSV data,
The gradient of the graph(G2 )=(0.94± 0.09)µs per section
The length of each section(L)=(3.50± 0.05)cm
−2
The group velocity of delay line= GL1 = 3.50×10 m per section
0.94×10−6 s per section
= 3.7293×104 ms−1
=37293 ± 3514ms−1

Figure 2: Data of experiment 01 part(d) for calculating attenuation constant using WFM
Section number Vout (±0.3 V) Vrel log10 Vrel
1 6.8 1.00±0.06 0.00±0.03
2 6.6 0.97±0.06 -0.01±0.03
3 6.2 0.91±0.06 -0.04±0.03
4 5.8 0.85±0.06 -0.07±0.03
5 5.2 0.76±0.06 -0.12±0.03
6 5.0 0.74±0.05 -0.13±0.03
7 4.8 0.71±0.05 -0.15±0.03
8 4.4 0.65±0.05 -0.19±0.04

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 Figure 3: Data of experiment 01 part(d) for calculating attenuation constant using CSV
Section number Vout (±0.07 V) Vrel log10 Vrel
1 6.84 1.018±0.006 0.008±0.003
2 6.39 0.951±0.006 -0.022±0.003
3 6.18 0.920±0.006 -0.036±0.003
4 5.79 0.862±0.006 -0.065±0.003
5 5.23 0.778±0.006 -0.109±0.003
6 5.02 0.747±0.006 -0.127±0.003
7 4.67 0.695±0.005 -0.158±0.003
8 4.42 0.658±0.005 -0.182±0.004

Figure 4.5: The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number using WFM

The gradient of the graph=(-0.028± 0.003)

The attenuation in the line(α)=20×log10 (Gradient)=(31.0568±0.930631)dB per section
=(31.1±0.9)dB per section

Figure 4.6: The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number using CSV

The gradient of the graph=(-0.028± 0.002)

The attenuation in the line(α)=20×log10 (Gradient)=(31.0568±0.62042)dB per section
=(31.1±0.6)dB per section

9
4.2 Results of experiment 02
4.2.1 Experiment 02 part(a)

(a) section 01 (b) section 02

(c) section 03 (d) section 04

(e) section 05 (f) section 06

(g) section 07 10 (h) section 08

Figure 4.7: The input end and and corresponding output end pulses when terminated with open circuit
4.2.2 Experiment 02 part(b)

(a) Amplitude of reflected pulse (b) Amplitude of reflected pulse

when open circuited when closed circuited

Figure 4.8: Comparing amplitudes of the first reflected pulse

The amplitude of reflected pulse(open circuit-WFM)=3.4 V ± 0.3 V

The amplitude of reflected pulse(open circuit-CSV)=3.80 V ± 0.07 V
The amplitude of reflected pulse(short circuit-WFM)=(-)807 mV V ± 71 mV
The amplitude of reflected pulse(short circuit-CSV)=(-)0.64 V ± 0.03 V

4.2.3 Experiment 02 part(c)

(a) section 01 (b) section 02

(c) section 03 (d) section 04

11
 (e) section 05 (f) section 06

(g) section 07 (h) section 08

Figure 4.9: The observations on each section when the output end is short circuited

Figure 4.10: The observed pulse at input end when terminated with
characteristic impedance

The characteristic impedance(Zk )=(118±12)Ω

The Vinput for WFM=7.2±0.3

Figure 4: Data of experiment 02 part(c) for calculating attenuation constant using WFM
Section number Vout (±0.3 V) Vrel log10 Vrel
1 7.4 1.03±0.06 0.01±0.03
2 7.2 1.00±0.06 -0.00±0.03
3 6.6 0.92±0.06 -0.04±0.03
4 6.0 0.83±0.05 -0.08±0.03
5 5.8 0.81±0.05 -0.09±0.03
6 5.0 0.69±0.05 -0.16±0.03
7 3.7 0.51±0.05 -0.29±0.04
8 1.5 0.21±0.04 -0.68±0.09

12
The Vinput for CSV=6.96±0.03

Figure 5: Data of experiment 02 part(c) for calculating attenuation constant using CSV
Section number Vout (±0.07 V) Vrel log10 Vrel
1 7.36 1.058±0.006 0.024±0.003
2 7.09 1.019±0.006 0.008±0.003
3 6.61 0.950±0.006 -0.022±0.003
4 6.00 0.862±0.006 -0.066±0.003
5 5.75 0.826±0.006 -0.083±0.003
6 5.09 0.731±0.005 -0.136±0.003
7 3.65 0.524±0.005 -0.280±0.004
8 1.58 0.227±0.004 -0.644±0.009

Figure 4.11: The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number for WFM

The gradient of the graph=(-0.08± 0.05)

The attenuation in the line(α)=20×log10 (Gradient)=(21.998±5.430)dB per section
=(22±5)dB per section

Figure 4.12: The graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number for CSV

The gradient of the graph=(-0.08± 0.05)

The attenuation in the line(α)=20×log10 (Gradient)=(22.256±5.346)dB per section
=(22±5)dB per section

13
4.2.4 Experiment 02 part(d)

(a) At input end(ρυ1 ) (b) At half way down the

(c) At output end(ρυ3 )
line(ρυ2 )

Figure 4.13: Voltage of the first reflected pulse when short circuited

−667mV
ρυ1 = VVout
in
= 7440mV = −0.09 ± 0.04
−728mV
ρυ2 = VVout
in
= 7440mV = −0.10 ± 0.04
Vout −798mV
ρυ3 = Vin = 7440mV = −0.11 ± 0.04

4.3 Results of experiment 03

4.3.1 Experiment 03 part(a)

(a) At input end (b) At half way down the line (c) At output end

Figure 4.14: Observed pulses at different positions of the line at 500Hz frequency

(a) At input end (b) At half way down the line (c) At output end

Figure 4.15: Observed pulses at different positions of the line at 1000Hz frequency

14
 Figure 6: Data of experiment 03 part(a)
Frequency log10 (f )(±0.002) Voltage(WFM) Voltage(CSV)
0.5 -0.301 5.4±0.3 5.41±0.03
0.6 -0.222 5.2±0.3 5.23±0.03
0.7 -0.155 5.3±0.3 5.33±0.03
0.8 -0.097 5.4±0.3 5.37±0.03
0.9 -0.046 5.4±0.3 5.37±0.03
1.0 0.000 5.4±0.3 5.40±0.03
1.1 0.041 5.3±0.3 5.33±0.03
2 0.301 5.4±0.3 5.37±0.03
4 0.602 5.3±0.1 5.30±0.01
6 0.778 5.4±0.1 5.40±0.01
10 1.00 5.3±0.1 5.31±0.01
15 1.176 5.3±0.1 5.25±0.01
20 1.301 5.2±0.1 5.17±0.01
30 1.477 5.0±0.1 5.00±0.01
55 1.740 4.6±0.1 4.62±0.01
130 2.114 4.4±0.1 4.43±0.01
150 2.176 3.6±0.1 3.62±0.01
170 2.230 2.8±0.1 2.81±0.01
200 2.301 2.2±0.1 2.24±0.01
220 2.342 1.6±0.1 1.56±0.01
230 2.362 1.4±0.1 1.37±0.01
240 2.380 1.1±0.1 1.08±0.01
250 2.398 0.8±0.1 0.81±0.01
290 2.462 0.3±0.1 0.26±0.01
300 2.477 0.2±0.1 0.16±0.01

Figure 4.16: The Graph of voltage vs. log10 f for

WFM

The red line represent the 3 dB down line.

x coordinate=2.122=log10 fc
Cut-off frequency(fc )= 10x =102.122 =(132.434±0.6098) kHz
=(132.4±0.6) kHz

15
 Figure 4.17: The Graph of voltage vs. log10 f for
CSV

x coordinate=2.124=log10 fc
Cut-off frequency(fc )= 10x =102.124 =(133.045±0.6127) kHz
=(133.0±0.6) kHz

4.3.2 Experiment 03 part(b)

The characteristic impedance(Zk )=(118±12)Ω
Zk
Solving equation(5) and equation(6) following was obtained, Capacitance(C)= πZ1k fc and Inductance(L)= πfc

Capacitance calculated using WFM data= πZ1k fc

1
= 3.14×118×132.4×10 3

=20.37 nF± 2.07=20 nF± 2 nF

Capacitance calculated using CSV data= πZ1k fc
1
= 3.14×118×133.0×10 3

=20.28 nF±2.06=20 nF± 2 nF

Zk
Inductance calculated using WFM data= πf c
118
= 3.14×132.4×10 3

=283.69 µH± 28.88µH=284 µH± 29µH

Zk
Inductance calculated using CSV data= πfc
118
= 3.14×133.0×10 3

√ =282.41√ µH± 28.75µH=282 µH± 29µH

The transit time using WFM data(τ )= LC= 283.69µH × 20.37nF
√ =(2.3932
√ ± 0.1710)µs=(2.4 ± 0.2)µs
The transit time using CSV data(τ )= LC= 282.41µH × 20.28nF
=(2.4039 ± 0.1724)µs=(2.4 ± 0.2)µs

4.3.3 Experiment 03 part(c)

The capacitance,inductance and resistance measured using LCR meter.
The measured capacitance=(32.8±0.2)nF
The measured inductance=(638.6±0.1)µH
The measured resistance=(108.72±0.01)Ω

The transit time using measured delay times in experiment 01 part(d),

The transit time using WFM data(τ )=(7.5 ± 0.1)µs
The transit time using CSV data(τ )=(7.0 ± 0.1)µs

16
5 Error Analysis
Error in any measurement obtained from oscilloscope,
Error (Vertical/Horizontal)= V alue per10
division
All the amplitude and time measurements were
done by getting a difference.So
p the error of such measurement should be,
R=A-B =⇒ δR = (δA)2 + (δB)2
And for√ any amplitude or time measurement the error become,
δR = 2 × δA where δA = δB

5.1 Error in Pulse repetition Frequency(f)

δT = 1µs and T = 80µs The pulse repetition frequency(f)= T1
1µs
So, δf = ±f × δT
T = ±12.5kHz × 80µs = 0.2kHz

5.2 Error in Group velocity(Vg )

L
Vg = Gwhere L= 3.50 cm ± 0.05 cm and gradient of the graph(G)=(1.03± 0.09)µs per section
q q
δVg = ±Vg ( δL ) 2 + ( δG )2 δV = ±3.4146 × 104 ms−1 ( 0.05 )2 + ( 0.09 )2 = ±2979ms−1
L G g 3.50 1.03

5.3 Error in Relative voltage(Vrel )

q
δVrel = ±Vrel ( δV in 2 δVout 2
Vin ) + ( Vout )
Since Vin = Vout p
δVrel = ± δV
Vin ×
in 2
1 + Vrel

5.4 Error in log value of Relative voltage(log(Vrel ))

R = log Vrel
δVrel
δR = ± ln110 × Vrel

5.5 Error in Attenuation coefficient (α)

α = 20 × log(G) where G is gradient of the graph.
The gradient of the graph=(-0.028± 0.003)
δα = ± ln2010 × δG
G
δα = ± ln2010 × 0.003
0.028 = ±0.930631dB per section

5.6 Error in Reflection coefficient (ρ)

q
δρ = ±ρ ( δV in 2 δVout 2
Vin ) + ( Vout )
q
0.3 2 1 2
δρ = ±0.11 ( 7.44 ) + ( 789 ) =0.04

5.7 Error in Cut-off frequency(fc )

x = log(fc ) and fc = 10x
So, δfc = ± ln(10) × fc × δx
x coordinate=2.122 ± 0.002 and Cut-off frequency(fc )=(132.434) kHz
Then , δfc = ± ln(10) × 132.434 × 0.002 = ±0.6098

17
5.8 Error in Capacitance (C)
Capacitance(C)= πZ1k fc
q
δfc 2
δC = ±C ( δZ k 2
Zk ) + ( fc )
The characteristic impedance(Zk )=(118±12)Ω
Cut-off frequency(fc )= (132.4±0.6) kHz
Capacitance(C)=20.37
q nF
12 2 0.6 2
δC = ±20.37 ( 118 ) + ( 132.4 ) = ±2.07nF

5.9 Error in Inductance (L)

Zk
Inductance(L)= πf
q c
δfc 2
δL = ±L ( δZ k 2
Zk ) + ( fc )
The characteristic impedance(Zk )=(118±12)Ω
Cut-off frequency(fc )= (132.4±0.6) kHz
Inductance(L)=238.69
q µH
12 2 0.6 2
δC = ±238.69 ( 118 ) + ( 132.4 ) = ±28.88µH

5.10 Error in transit time (τ )

√
τ = LC q
δτ = ± τ2 ( δL 2 δC 2
L ) +( C )
Capacitance(C)=20.37 nF± 2.07 nF
Inductance(L)=238.69 µH ± 28.88 µ H
Transit time(τq
)=2.3932 µ s± 0.1710µ s
δτ = ± 2.3932
2
28.88 2
( 238.69 2.07 2
) + ( 20.37 ) = 0.170µs

18
6 Discussion
The behavior of ”artificial transmission line” or ”delay line” was analyzed using the given delay line.
The delay line was consisted of series of low pass filters.A low pass filter is basically a electrical circuit
that reject all unwanted high frequencies and pass low frequencies between 0Hz to its cut-off frequency.
Few apparatuses were used in the whole practical. A delay line, DSO(Digital Storage Oscilloscope), AF
oscillator(function generator),a pulse generator with 9V DC power supply and a resistor box was used
in the experiments.The DSO was used to store the output of each experiment in WFM file type to
analyze the data further and to take measurements easily. The WFM viewer was used as the software
to view those files. This method of measurement taking save lot of time spent on measuring the values
using DSO. The pulse generator was a 555 timer IC in its astable mode which trigger it self to produce
stream of square pulses.
In the first experiment, the output of the pulse generator was observed initially. And some char-
acteristic measurements such as amplitude, pulse width and pulse repetition frequency was measured
to get an idea about the input signal which going to be used in the delay line experiments. A square
pulse with an overshoot was observed as the output of the pulse generator. Since the square pulse is a
combination of pulses with different frequencies, high frequency terms need more time to stabilize the
square pulse which gave a overshoot on the pulse as shown in figure 4.1. This effect can be reduced by
using a zener diode. When the delay line was terminated by a open circuit, at the input end of the delay
line there were some more attenuated pulses other than the input square pulse.[Figure 4.2]Those pulses
were due to the reflection of input pulse at the output and due to the discontinuity in impedance. The
signal attenuates when it travel through each filter section due to the resistance and the impedance
mismatch. Since there are capacitors on each section the attenuated pulses are more broader. Because
capacitor discharges slowly, it needs more time to output the pulse. Since the input pulse reaches to
the output end before the first reflected pulse reach the input end, the pulses at the output end appear
mid way between those at the input.[figure 4.3] A graph of delay time vs. section number was plot
to obtain the group velocity of the delay line. The values obtained was (3.4146 ± 0.2979) × 104 ms−1
and (3.7293 ± 0.3514) × 104 ms−1 . And a graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number was plot to find
the attenuation of the delay line. And the attenuation were found as (31.1 ± 0.9) dB per section and
(31.1 ± 0.6) dB per section for each measurements made through WFM and CSV.
In part (a) of experiment 02, the forward traveling pulse and the second pulse was observed for each
section and observed that both pulses get closer to each other. This happens because the delay time of
forward traveling pulse increases and the delay time of second pulse decreases. The delay time depends
on the amount of distance each pulse has traveled, and when moving to each successive section the
distance traveled by forward traveling pulse increases and for the second pulse distance decreases. So
both pulses get closer to each other and the forward traveling pulse reduces its amplitude because the
distance it travel increases, and the second pulse get more amplitude due to the decrease of distance
traveled. As shown in figure 4.7, at section six both pulses have nearly the same amplitude and they
get coincide with each other and constructive interference occurs as seen in the last section since both
pulses have same polarity.
Part (b) of the experiment 02 was based on the equation of reflection coefficient. The output end
of the delay line was short circuited and the amplitude of the first reflected pulse was measured and
compared with the amplitude of the corresponding pulse when the delay line is terminated with open
circuit.[figure 4.8]The amplitude of the first reflected pulse when short circuited was having the opposite
polarity compared to input pulse. This behavior can be clearly explained using the equation (4),[sec-
tion(2.5)] The theoretical explanation on polarity as mentioned in section 2.5 can be experimentally
observed, but the magnitude should be the same for both pulses(when closed or short circuited) which
was not tallying with the observed situation.[figure 4.8] This deviation from the theoretically expected
results may due to the attenuation of the signal and the assumption of Z→0 or Z→ ∞ may be not the
actual impedance the delay line may have at the output end.
The part (c) of experiment 02 was to observe the same forward traveling pulse and the second pulse
when the delay line is short circuited. The same explanation done at part(a) experiment 02 is valid in
this case also. The only difference was that the second pulse is having the opposite polarity compared
to the forward traveling pulse. Both pulses come closer to each other and their amplitudes become
nearly equal and opposite in direction. So destructive interference occur in this case which vanishes the
pulses at the output end of the delay line.[figure 4.9] Then a resistor box was connected to the far end

19
of the delay line and the resistance was increased starting from 0Ω and simultaneously the signal at
the input and was observed using channel 01 of DSO. A matching impedance was found when the first
reflected pulse on the input end vanished.Characteristic impedance (Zk ) was found as (118 ± 12)Ω.
The pulse observed at the output and had a weaker amplitude when the delay line was open circuited
compared to the amplitude of pulse when the delay line was terminated by the matching impedance.
This observation may due to the reason that when the pulse travel it attenuates, for the matched
impedance case the reflection is nearly zero.So the pulse only get attenuated due to the distance it
traveled. But when the output end is open circuited, the reflection coefficient is nearly one, so the pulse
get attenuated due to reflection and traveled distance. So the amplitude of the pulse become much
weaker in the open circuit situation. Since the pulse with matching impedance distorted only by the
attenuation of the delay line the attenuation occur in this situation is more accurate compared to the
previous obtained attenuation coefficient. So a graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number was plot to find
the attenuation of the delay line more accurately. And the attenuation values were found as (22 ± 5)
dB per section and (22 ± 5) dB per section. The attenuation gave a similar value for both WFM
and CSV data. The error of the result were larger, but its more accurate experimentally.In part(d) of
experiment 02, the traces at the input end, half way between the line and output end was observed and
the reflection coefficients were analyzed. As mentioned in the results, the polarity of the first reflected
pulse is negative compared to the input pulse.
In experiment 03, a function generator was used to input a square pulse with preferred frequency.
The delay line was terminated by its matching impedance through out the experiment. The frequency
of the pulses were adjusted to 500 Hz and 1000 Hz to observe the attenuation changes in the pulses.
But there were no significance difference between the input and output pulses at those frequencies.
[figure 4.14]. The frequency of the signal generator was varied from 0.5kHz to 300kHz with a constant
input amplitude and a graph of voltage vs. log10 f was plot to obtain the cut-off frequency of the delay
line. The plot was drawn using the smooth spline method in MATLAB to obtain a smooth curve for
the obtained data. The cut-off frequency was (132.4 ± 0.6) kHz and (133 ± 0.6) kHz for WFM and
CSV data
Then the experimentally obtained cut-off frequency and the characteristic impedance was used
to estimate values for the capacitance and inductance of the delay line. The obtained vales were,
(284±29)µH ,(282±29)µHand (20±2)nF for inductance and capacitance respectively.The a LCR meter
was used to take measurements of inductance,capacitance and resistance of the delay line. Those
measured values were,(638.6 ± 0.1)µH,(32.8 ± 0.2) nF and 108.72±0.01)Ω. Both experimental and
measured values were in the same order but there were some deviations due to experimental errors.
The transit time of the delay line was calculated using measured inductance and capacitance value.
And the calculated transit time was, (2.4 ± 0.2)µs. But the transit time according to the experiment
01 part (a) was, (7.5 ± 0.1)µs. Which was also in the same order with some deviations.
The parameters obtained in this practical was really important when designing delay lines. Delay
lines are widely used in all fast rate data acquisition systems to obtain accurate data for analysis.

20
7 Conclusions
The practical on delay line was carried out to identify the characteristics and the important parameters
of delay line and how to control the behavior of the delay line. The transit time, group velocity,
attenuation of the line,cut-off frequency and characteristic impedance of the delay line was obtained
and those values plays a major role when designing delay lines.

21
8 References
1. 1, L. (2017). Back to Basics: Impedance Matching (Part 1). [online] Electronic Design. Available
at: http://www.electronicdesign.com/communications/back-basics-impedance-matching-part-1 [Ac-
cessed 10 Aug. 2017].
2. Basic Electronics Tutorials. (2017). 555 Timer Tutorial - The Monostable Multivibrator. [online]
Available at: http://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/waveforms/555-timer.html [Accessed 23 Jul.
2017].

3. In.mathworks.com. (2017). Smoothing Splines-MATLAB & Simulink-MathWorks United King-

dom. [online] Available at: https://in.mathworks.com/help/curvefit/smoothing-splines.html [Ac-
cessed 18 Aug. 2017].
4. Shahoei, H. and Yao, J. (2014). Delay Lines. Wiley Encyclopedia of Electrical and Electronics
Engineering, pp.1-15.

5. Basic Electronics Tutorials. (2017). Low Pass Filter - Passive RC Filter Tutorial. [online] Available
at: http://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/filter/filter-2.html [Accessed 26 Jul. 2017].

22
9 Appendix
9.1 Exercise 01

clc ;
clear a l l ;
close a l l ;
secNo =[1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ] ;
dT = [ 0 . 7 0 2 1 . 6 4 9 2 . 8 0 7 3 . 8 2 5 4 . 7 1 9 5 . 8 2 5 7 . 2 9 8 7 . 5 4 4 ] ;
dT c = [ 0 . 1 2 1 . 0 4 1 . 8 8 2 . 9 3 3 . 9 2 4 . 4 4 5 . 4 4 7 . 0 ] ;

e =[0.141 0.141 0.141 0.141 0.141 0.141 0.141 0 . 1 4 1 ] ;

e r r o r b a r ( secNo , dT , e , ’ r ∗ ’ )
hold on
e r r o r b a r ( secNo , dT c , e , ’ k ∗ ’ )
p=p o l y f i t ( secNo , dT , 1 ) ;
p1=p o l y f i t ( secNo , dT c , 1 ) ;
v=p o l y v a l ( p , secNo ) ;
v1=p o l y v a l ( p1 , secNo ) ;
t i t l e ( ’ D e l a y t i m e ( u s ) v s . S e c t i o n number ’ )
x l a b e l ( ’ S e c t i o n Number ’ )
y l a b e l ( ’ time d e l a y ( us ) ’ )
hold on
p l o t ( secNo , v , ’ r ’ )
hold on
p l o t ( secNo , v1 , ’ k ’ )
hold o f f
MATLAB code for the graph of Delay time(µs) vs. section number
clc ;
clear a l l ;
close a l l ;
Vin = 6 . 8 ;
secNo =[1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ] ;
Vout = [ 6 . 8 6 . 6 6 . 2 5 . 8 5 . 2 5 . 0 4 . 8 4 . 4 ] ;
V r e l=Vout / Vin ;
Log V=log10 ( V r e l ) ;
e v r e l = ( 0 . 3 / 6 . 8 ) ∗ s q r t (1+( V r e l . ˆ 2 ) ) ;
e=e v r e l . / ( V r e l . ∗ l o g ( 1 0 ) ) ;
e r r o r b a r ( secNo , Log V , e , ’ r ∗ ’ )
p=p o l y f i t ( secNo , Log V , 1 ) ;
v=p o l y v a l ( p , secNo ) ;
t i t l e ( ’ l o g 1 0 ( V r e l ) v s . S e c t i o n number ’ )
x l a b e l ( ’ S e c t i o n Number ’ )
ylabel ( ’ log10 ( Vrel ) ’ )
hold on
p l o t ( secNo , v )
hold o f f
MATLAB code for the graph of log10 Vrel vs. section number
9.2 Exercise 03

clc ;
clear a l l ;
f = [ 0 . 5 0 . 6 0 . 7 0 . 8 0 . 9 1 1 . 1 2 4 6 10 15 20 30 55 130 150 170 200 220 230 240 250 290
V= [ 5 . 4 5 . 2 5 . 3 5 . 4 5 . 4 5 . 4 5 . 3 5 . 4 5 . 3 5 . 4 5 . 3 5 . 3 5 . 2 5 4 . 6 4 . 4 3 . 6 2 . 8 2 . 2 1 . 6 1 . 4 1

1
e =[0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.28 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.14 0.1
f o r i =1: l e n g t h ( f )
l o g F ( i )= log10 ( f ( i ) ) ;
end
hold on
e r r o r b a r ( l o g F ,V , e , ’ x ’ )
x i =−0.3010 : 0 . 0 0 0 1 : 3;
% y i=i n t e r p 1 ( l o g F ,V , xi , ’ spline ’) ;
[ sp , v a l u e s ]= s p a p s ( l o g F ,V , 0 . 1 ) ;
y i=v a l u e s ;

plot ( logF , y i )
t i t l e ( ’ Output V o l t a g e v s l o g ( f ) ’ ) ;
xlabel ( ’ log ( f ) ’ ) ;
y l a b e l ( ’ Output V o l t a g e (V) ’ ) ;
y l i n e=max(V) / s q r t ( 2 ) ;
h l i n e= r e f l i n e ( [ 0 y l i n e ] ) ;
set ( hlin e , ’ c o l o r ’ , ’ r ’ ) ;
hold o f f
MATLAB code for the Graph of voltage vs. log10 f