Wavelink probe achieves 25GHz of bandwidth

This probe expands the recently introduced 13-20GHz Wavelink probe line and is said to be well matched to Lecroy's Wavemaster 8Zi oscilloscope product line, which includes bandwidths up to 30GHz.

Engineers that find it insufficient to use SMA cables to input signals directly into their oscilloscope can use a Lecroy Wavelink D2505 differential probe and a Wavemaster 825Zi oscilloscope to achieve 25GHz of scope and probe bandwidth.

This latest Wavelink high-bandwidth differential solder-in probe offers rise-time performance of 17.5ps for a 25GHz probe used with a 25GHz oscilloscope, the same as the oscilloscope-only rise time.

In addition, baseline electrical noise in the probe product line has been lowered to 3.1mVrms at 25GHz, and 1.6mVrms at 13GHz.

The probes are also said to exhibit superior AC loading in the mid-band and high-frequency range with 350 ohms at 7GHz, 575 ohms at 13GHz, 325 ohms at 16GHz, 160 ohms at 20GHz and 120 ohms at 25GHz.

This combination can be used for accurately characterising next-generation serial data signals.

The 25GHz high-bandwidth Wavelink probes are of a transmission line design with an attenuating tip followed by an amplifier output to a differential transmission line connecting to the oscilloscope with a platform/cable assembly.

The minimum AC loading (Zmin) of the new Wavelink probe at high frequency is 13GHz to 20GHz.

Lecroy has also improved on the design of its damping resistors on the solder-in tip field replaceable so that an engineer, faced with a damaged tip, can simply solder a new damping resistor to the tip and quickly resume work.

Each solder-in probe comes standard with 10 spare damping resistors, while more can be ordered as required.