Delay Measurements

The propagation delay is the interval between when a sample is generated on the output of your measurement device and when the corresponding sample is acquired on the input side. Quantifying the signal propagation delay is important in many applications involving stimulus and response testing.

Propagation delay can be expressed either in terms of samples or time.

The two main sources of propagation delay are signal propagation from the measurement device to and from the device under test (DUT) and the measurement device itself. In electrical systems, propagation delay caused by signal propagation from the measurement device to and from the DUT is often negligible, unless you are testing at very high frequencies. However, the delay is often significant in mechanical or acoustical tests. For example, if the DUT is a speaker, it is important to consider the time for sound to travel from the speaker to the microphone.

Determining the propagation delay of the measurement system allows you measure and evaluate additional delay from the DUT.