pico Technology PicoScope 6000 Series User manual

Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.
User's Guide
ps6000abcd.en r3
PC Oscilloscopes (A,B,C,D models)
PicoScope®6000 Series

IPicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
Contents
1 Welcome .................................................................................................................................... 1
2 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 2
1 Safety information .............................................................................................................................. 2
1 Symbols .................................................................................................................................. 2
2 Maximum input ranges ............................................................................................................ 2
3 Grounding .............................................................................................................................. 3
4 External connections ............................................................................................................... 4
5 Environment ........................................................................................................................... 4
6 Care of the product ................................................................................................................. 4
2 Conformance ...................................................................................................................................... 5
1 FCC notice .............................................................................................................................. 5
2 CE notice ................................................................................................................................ 5
3 Software license conditions ................................................................................................................. 5
4 Returns and upgrades ......................................................................................................................... 6
5 Trademarks ........................................................................................................................................ 6
6 Warranty ........................................................................................................................................... 6
3 Product information ................................................................................................................... 7
1 Package contents ................................................................................................................................ 7
2 Minimum PC requirements ................................................................................................................. 7
3 Installation instructions ....................................................................................................................... 8
4 Connections ....................................................................................................................................... 9
4 Glossary .................................................................................................................................... 11
Index ........................................................................................................................................... 13

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 1
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
1 Welcome
Thank you for buying a PicoScope 6000 Series
oscilloscope from Pico Technology!
The PicoScope 6000 Series scopes have comparable
features and specifications to traditional bench-top
oscilloscopes, but are more economical and take up only a
fraction of the space.
Current PicoScope models
Model
Connectivity
Bandwidth
Buffer size
Signal generator
6402C
USB 3.0
250 MHz
256 MS
Function generator
6402D
USB 3.0
250 MHz
512 MS
AWG
6403C
USB 3.0
350 MHz
512 MS
Function generator
6403D
USB 3.0
350 MHz
1 GS
AWG
6404C
USB 3.0
500 MHz
1 GS
Function generator
6404D
USB 3.0
500 MHz
2 GS
AWG
Discontinued PicoScope models
Model
Connectivity
Bandwidth
Buffer size
Signal generator
6402A
USB 2.0
250 MHz
128 MS
Function generator
6402B
USB 2.0
250 MHz
256 MS
AWG
6403A
USB 2.0
350 MHz
256 MS
Function generator
6403B
USB 2.0
350 MHz
512 MS
AWG
6404A
USB 2.0
500 MHz
512 MS
Function generator
6404B
USB 2.0
500 MHz
1 GS
AWG
These are just some of the benefits provided by your new PicoScope 6000 Series
oscilloscope:
·Portability: Take the unit with you and plug it in to any Windows PC. All scopes in
this series can be connected to USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 ports.
·Performance: Up to 5 GS/s sampling, 500 MHz bandwidth and 2 GS buffer.
·Flexibility: Use it as an oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer, serial decoder, or
high-speed data acquisition interface.
·Programmability: The PicoScope 6000 Series SDK lets you write your own
programs, in your chosen programming language, to control all the features of the
scope.
·Long-term support: Software upgrades are available to download from our
website. You can also call Pico technical specialists for support. Both of these
services are available free of charge for the lifetime of the product.
·Value for money: You don't have to pay twice for all of the features already
available in your PC, as the PicoScope 6000 Series scope contains the dedicated
hardware you need and nothing more.
·Convenience: The software makes full use of the full-sized display, disk storage,
user interface and networking built in to your PC.
·Five-year warranty: Your oscilloscope is covered for five years from the day of
purchase against manufacturing faults. We don't charge a penny extra for this
benefit.

Introduction2
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
2 Introduction
2.1 Safety information
To prevent possible electrical shock, fire, personal injury, or damage to the product,
carefully read this safety information before attempting to install or use the product.
In addition, follow all generally accepted safety practices and procedures for working
with and around electricity.
The product has been designed and tested in accordance with the European standard
publication EN 61010-1: 2010, and left the factory in a safe condition.
The following safety descriptions are found throughout this guide:
A WARNING identifies conditions or practices that could result in injury or death.
A CAUTION identifies conditions or practices that could result in damage to the
product or equipment to which it is connected.
2.1.1 Symbols
These safety and electrical symbols may appear on the product or in this guide:
Symbol
Description
Chassis terminal
Possibility of electric shock
Caution
Appearance on the product
indicates a need to read this safety
and operation instruction.
Do not dispose of this product as
unsorted municipal waste.
2.1.2 Maximum input ranges
Observe all terminal ratings and warnings marked on the product.
WARNING
PicoScope 6000 Series PC oscilloscopes are designed to measure signals within
the range ±20 V when set to 1 MΩ impedance (±5 V when set to 50 Ω
impedance). To prevent electric shock, do not measure voltages outside of this
range.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 3
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
WARNING
To prevent electric shock, take all necessary safety precautions when working
on equipment where voltages above ±20 V may be present. Although the
front-panel BNC inputs of the oscilloscope are designed to withstand accidental
overloads up to ±100 V when set to 1 MΩ impedance (5.5 V RMS when set to
50 Ω impedance), contact with voltages outside of the specified measuring
range of ±20 V presents a risk of electric shock. The rear panel BNCs are
protected against accidental overloads up to ±5 V.
WARNING
To prevent injury or death, the oscilloscope must not be directly connected to
the mains (line power). To measure mains voltages, use a differential isolating
probe specifically rated for mains use, such as the TA041 listed on the Pico
website.
CAUTION
Exceeding the overload protection range on any connector can cause
permanent damage to the oscilloscope and other connected equipment.
2.1.3 Grounding
WARNING
The oscilloscope's ground connection through the USB cable is for
measurement purposes only. The oscilloscope does not have a protective
safety ground.
WARNING
Never connect the ground input (chassis) to any electrical power source. To
prevent personal injury or death, use a voltmeter to check that there is no
significant AC or DC voltage between the oscilloscope ground and the point to
which you intend to connect it.
CAUTION
Applying a voltage to the ground input is likely to cause permanent damage to
the oscilloscope, the attached computer, and other equipment.
CAUTION
To prevent measurement errors caused by poor grounding, always use the
high-quality USB cable supplied with the oscilloscope.

Introduction4
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
2.1.4 External connections
WARNING
To prevent injury or death, only use the power cord and adaptor supplied with
the product. These are approved for the voltage and plug configuration in your
country.
2.1.5 Environment
WARNING
To prevent injury or death, do not use in wet or damp conditions, or near
explosive gas or vapor.
CAUTION
To prevent damage, always use and store your oscilloscope in appropriate
environments.
Storage
Operating
Temperature
–20 °C to +60 °C
0 °C to +40 °C
(+20 to +30 °C for quoted accuracy)
Humidity
5% to 95% RH
(non-condensing)
5 % to 85% RH
(non-condensing)
2.1.6 Care of the product
The product contains no user-serviceable parts. Repair, servicing and calibration
require specialized test equipment and must only be performed by Pico Technology or
an approved service provider. There may be a charge for these services unless covered
by the Pico five year warranty.
WARNING
To prevent injury or death, do not use the product if it appears to be damaged
in any way, and stop use immediately if you are concerned by any abnormal
operations.
CAUTION
Do not tamper with or disassemble the oscilloscope, connectors or accessories.
Internal damage will affect performance.
CAUTION
Do not block the air vents at the back or front of the instrument as overheating
will damage the oscilloscope.
CAUTION
When cleaning the product, use a soft cloth and a solution of mild soap or
detergent in water. Do not allow water to enter the oscilloscope casing, as this
will cause damage to the electronics inside.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 5
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
2.2 Conformance
2.2.1 FCC notice
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A
digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to
provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is
operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can
radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the
instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications.
Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference
in which case the user will be required to correct the interference at his or her own
expense.
For safety and maintenance information see the safety warning.
2.2.2 CE notice
The product meets the intent of the EMC directive 2014/30/EU and has been tested
to EN61326-1:2006 Class A Emissions and Basic Immunity.
The product also meets the intent of the Low Voltage Directive and has been
designed to meet BS EN 61010-1:2010 Safety requirements for electrical
equipment for measurement, control, and laboratory use.
2.3 Software license conditions
The material contained in this software release is licensed, not sold. Pico Technology
Limited ("Pico") grants a license to the person who installs this software, subject to
the conditions below.
Access. The licensee agrees to allow access to this software only to persons who have
been informed of and agree to abide by these conditions.
Usage. The software in this release is for use only with Pico Technology products or
with data collected using Pico products.
Copyright. Pico claims the copyright of and reserves the rights to all material
(software, documents etc.) contained in this release.
Liability. Pico and its agents shall not be liable for any loss, damage or injury,
howsoever caused, related to the use of Pico equipment or software, unless excluded
by statute.
Fitness for purpose. No two applications are the same, so Pico cannot guarantee
that its equipment or software is suitable for a given application. It is therefore the
user's responsibility to ensure that the product is suitable for the user's application.
Mission-critical applications. Because the software runs on a computer that may be
running other software products, and may be subject to interference from these other
products, this license specifically excludes usage in 'mission-critical' applications, for
example life-support systems.
Viruses. This software was continuously monitored for viruses during production.
However, the user is responsible for virus checking the software once it is installed.
Support. No software is ever error-free, but if you are dissatisfied with the
performance of this software, please contact our technical support staff.

Introduction6
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
2.4 Returns and upgrades
Returns. If you are dissatisfied with this product, please return it to your supplier
within fourteen days of purchase for a full refund.
Upgrades. We provide upgrades, free of charge, from our website at
www.picotech.com. We reserve the right to charge for updates or replacements sent
out on physical media.
2.5 Trademarks
Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other
countries. Pico Technology and PicoScope are internationally registered trademarks of
Pico Technology Ltd. Pico Technology and PicoScope are trademarks of Pico Technology
Limited, registered in the United Kingdom and other countries. PicoScope and Pico
Technology are registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
2.6 Warranty
Pico Technology warrants upon delivery, and for a period of five years from the date
of delivery, that the Goods will be free from defects in material and workmanship.
Pico Technology shall not be liable for a breach of the warranty if the defect has been
caused by fair wear and tear, willful damage, negligence, abnormal working conditions
or failure to follow Pico Technology's spoken or written advice on the storage,
installation, commissioning, use or maintenance of the Goods or (if no advice has been
given) good trade practice, or if the Customer alters or repairs such Goods without the
written consent of Pico Technology.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 7
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
3Product information
3.1 Package contents
Order
code
Description
Package information
-
PicoScope 6000 Series oscilloscope
TA150
Factory-compensated probes x10 350 MHz
x4, 6402 and 6403 models
TA133
Factory-compensated probes x10 500 MHz
x4, 6404 models
MI106
USB 2.0 cable
A/B models (discontinued)
TA155
USB 3.0 cable
C/D models (current)
PS010
Universal mains AC power supply
MI247
UK mains lead (other types supplied according to region)
DO115
Installation guide
DI025
PicoScope software and reference CD
MI272
Carry case
3.2 Minimum PC requirements
To ensure that your PicoScope 6000 Series oscilloscope operates correctly, you must
have a computer with at least the minimum system requirements to run one of the
supported operating systems, as shown in the following table. The performance of the
software will increase with more powerful PCs, such as those with multi-core
processors.
Item
Specification
Operating
system
Windows 7, 8 or 10
32 bit and 64 bit versions supported*
Processor
As required by Windows
Memory
Free disk space
Ports
USB 2.0 compliant port**
USB 1.1 compliant port (absolute minimum)***
* While the driver will run on a 64-bit operating system, the driver itself is 32-bit
and will run as 32-bit.
** USB 3.0 recommended for 6000C/D Series.
*** The oscilloscope will run slowly on a USB 1.1 port. This configuration is not
recommended.

Product information8
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
3.3 Installation instructions
IMPORTANT
Always install the PicoScope software before connecting your
PicoScope 6000 Series oscilloscope to the PC. This ensures
that Windows will correctly recognize the oscilloscope.
Procedure
·Follow the instructions in the USB Oscilloscope Installation Guide included with your
product package.
·Connect the AC adaptor (supplied) to a power socket using the appropriate cable
(also supplied).
·Connect the DC output of the AC adaptor to the DC power socket on the back of the
oscilloscope.
·Connect the oscilloscope to the PC using the USB cable supplied.
Checking the installation
Once you have installed the software and connected the oscilloscope to the PC, start
the PicoScope software. PicoScope should now display any signal connected to the
scope inputs. If a probe is connected to your oscilloscope, you should see a small noise
signal in the oscilloscope window when you touch the probe tip with your finger.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 9
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
3.4 Connections
Standard oscilloscope connectors
The PicoScope 6000 Series oscilloscopes have standard BNC input and output
connectors. The channel inputs have switchable impedances of 50 Ωor 1 MΩ. In
high-impedance mode, they are compatible with all standard scope probes including
10:1 attenuated types. To ensure that you obtain the rated bandwidth from the scope,
we recommend that you use the compensated high-frequency probes supplied with it.
In 50 Ω mode, you can connect a signal from a 50 Ω source using a 50 Ω BNC cable
without the need for an external terminator. This creates an impedance-matched
connection for minimal reflections, losses and distortion.
CAUTION
The input voltage range is reduced to 5.5 V RMS when using 50 Ω input
mode.
Connector diagrams
Front panel: A and B models
Front panel: C and D models
A. Input channel A
B. Input channel B
C. Input channel C
D. Input channel D
E. Probe compensation output
F. LED to indicate when the oscilloscope is sampling data

Product information10
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
Rear panel: A and B models
Rear panel: C and D models
G. DC power socket, for use with the AC adaptor supplied with the unit.
H. USB 3.0/2.0 port, providing connectivity to your PC using the high-quality USB
cable supplied.
I. SIGNAL OUT connector, carrying the output of the signal generator and arbitrary
waveform generator (where available).
J. AUX IN connector, carrying the auxiliary (AUX) trigger and reference clock inputs.
K. Air vents (present on the front and back of the scope).
CAUTION
To prevent overheating and other damage, do not block the air vents or
insert any objects through them.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 11
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
4 Glossary
AWG. Arbitrary waveform generator. A signal generator that can play back a
waveform of any shape defined by the user.
Bandwidth. The input frequency at which the measured signal amplitude is 3 decibels
below the true signal amplitude.
Buffer size. The size of the oscilloscope buffer memory measured in samples. The
buffer allows the oscilloscope to sample data faster than it can transfer it to the
computer.
ETS. Equivalent time sampling. A sampling mode that increases the effective sampling
rate of the oscilloscope by capturing multiple cycles of a signal and combining them.
This technique works only with repetitive, stable signals such as pulse trains.
Function generator. A signal generator that produces standard waveforms such as
sine and square waves.
GS. Gigasamples (approximately 1 billion samples).
Maximum sampling rate. A figure indicating the maximum number of samples the
oscilloscope can acquire per second. The higher the sampling rate of the oscilloscope,
the more accurate the representation of the high-frequency details in a fast signal.
MS. Megasamples (approximately 1 million samples).
PC Oscilloscope. A virtual instrument formed by connecting a PicoScope oscilloscope
to a computer running the PicoScope software.
PicoScope software. A software product that accompanies all PicoScope
oscilloscopes. It turns your PC into an oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer and multimeter.
Signal generator. Generates a waveform which can be used to drive a test signal
through a BNC cable into an external circuit or into one of the oscilloscope's input
channels. The PicoScope software allows the generator to output standard waveforms,
such as sine and square waves or, if the hardware allows, arbitrary waveforms defined
by the user.
Timebase. The timebase controls the time interval that each horizontal division of a
scope view represents. There are ten divisions across the scope view, so the total time
across the view is ten times the timebase per division.
USB 1.1. Universal Serial Bus (USB) is a standard port that enables you to connect
external devices to PCs. A USB 1.1 port uses signaling speeds of up to 12 megabits per
second, much faster than an RS-232 port.
USB 2.0. The second generation of USB interface. The port supports a data transfer
rate of up to 480 megabits per second.
USB 3.0. A USB 3.0 port uses signaling speeds of up to 5 gigabits per second and is
backwards-compatible with USB 2.0 and USB 1.1.
Vertical resolution. A value, in bits, indicating the number of voltage levels that the
oscilloscope can distinguish.

Glossary12
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved.ps6000abcd.en r3
Voltage range. The range of input voltages that the oscilloscope can measure. For
example, a voltage range of ±100 mV means that the oscilloscope can measure
voltages between –100 mV and +100 mV. Input voltages outside this range will not
damage the instrument as long as they remain within the protection limits stated in
the Safety warnings.

PicoScope 6000 Series (A,B,C,D models) User's Guide 13
Copyright © 2012-2016 Pico Technology Ltd. All rights reserved. ps6000abcd.en r3
Index
B
BNC connector 9
C
Cable, USB 7
Carry case 7
CD, software and reference 7
CE notice 5
Compensation output 9
Connections 9
E
EMC Directive 5
External trigger 9
F
FCC notice 5
G
Grounding 2
I
Installation 8
L
LED 9
Low Voltage Directive (LVD) 5
M
Mains voltages 2
O
Oscilloscope probe 9
P
PC requirements 7
PicoScope 6000 Series 1
PicoScope software 8
Power socket 9
Probes 7
R
Returns 6
S
Safety
warning 2
Scope probe 9
Signal generator
output 9
Software license conditions 5
T
Trademarks 6
Trigger
external 9
U
Upgrades 6
USB 7
cable 7
changing ports 8
W
Warranty 6