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Lissajous Fugures Lab Manual

This document provides instructions for observing and analyzing Lissajous figures on an oscilloscope. Lissajous figures are patterns generated by the intersection of two sinusoidal waves with perpendicular axes. They were first studied by French mathematician Jules Lissajous in the 1800s using vibrations and mirrors. Today, they are commonly generated using an oscilloscope by feeding two signals into separate channels - one for the vertical axis and one for the horizontal axis. The relationship between the frequencies, amplitudes, and phase shifts of the two signals can be determined by examining the resulting Lissajous pattern on the oscilloscope screen. The document includes figures of Lissajous' original demonstration and the components of a cathode

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344 views5 pages

Lissajous Fugures Lab Manual

This document provides instructions for observing and analyzing Lissajous figures on an oscilloscope. Lissajous figures are patterns generated by the intersection of two sinusoidal waves with perpendicular axes. They were first studied by French mathematician Jules Lissajous in the 1800s using vibrations and mirrors. Today, they are commonly generated using an oscilloscope by feeding two signals into separate channels - one for the vertical axis and one for the horizontal axis. The relationship between the frequencies, amplitudes, and phase shifts of the two signals can be determined by examining the resulting Lissajous pattern on the oscilloscope screen. The document includes figures of Lissajous' original demonstration and the components of a cathode

Uploaded by

hafsa kamal
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Observation and analysis of Lissajous

Figures on an Oscilloscope

Lab Manual

Compiled By
Dr. Muhammad Asim Rasheed
Introduction

Lissajous figures are patterns generated by the junction of a pair of sinusoidal waves with axes
that are perpendicular to one another. French mathematician Jules-Antoine Lissajous studied
such figures, which he produced in multiple ways. One of his methods involved creating
vibrations in a mirror with sounds of different frequencies, then reflecting light from that mirror
to produce various patterns as shown in Figure 1. More commonly today, Lissajous figures are
generated with an oscilloscope, a type of cathode ray tube that provides a picture of electrical
signals in the form of a graph.

Figure 1: Lissajous original demonstration by using two tuning forks with mirrors attached to
their tines.

Schematic diagram of cathode ray oscilloscope is shown in Figure 2. Lissajous figures are
produced on the oscilloscope screen by means of an electron beam that causes a glow when it
hits the scope’s surface, which is coated in phosphor. Also pictured are horizontal and vertical
deflection plates, which work in tandem to deflect the electron beam (made up of negatively
charged electrons) across the screen. They do this by means of electrostatic deflection. This
happens when a potential difference is created across one pair of plates, bringing about an
electric field through which the electron beam passes. When one of a pair of plates is positive
with respect to its opposing plate, the beam is deflected in that direction. In this manner the beam
can be deflected up, down, right or left in a way that covers the entire grid of the oscilloscope
screen.

Figure 2: Schematic diagram of cathode ray oscilloscope

For oscilloscope display mode known as the XY mode, two signals are fed into separate
channels. One signal is applied to the vertical system as in the usual time domain hookup, and a
second, synchronous signal is fed into a different channel as specified on the scope. Both signals
trace out voltages, one on the X-axis and as if the waveform were turned sideways, the other on
the Y-axis. The resultant image is known as a Lissajous pattern. By examining the Lissajous
pattern, certain information about the relationship between the two signals becomes clear. The
metrics of interest are frequency, ratio, relative amplitude and phase shift.

The simplest Lissajous patterns appear in the oscilloscope display when the frequencies of the
signals are the same, i.e. their ratio is 1:1. When this condition is met and when the phase shift is
0°, the display consists of a straight line sloping upward from the left side of the screen to the
right side. The same Lissajous pattern is displayed when the phase shift is 360°, illustrating that
these two phase shifts are equivalent. In addition to frequencies being same, if phase shift is 90°
then circle will appear on oscilloscope screen.
Further Reading: Pages 29-36, Vibrations and Waves by A.P. French

Procedure

1. Set the oscilloscope to X-Y mode.


2. Apply signals of known frequencies to X and Y inputs using two frequency generators.
3. Keep the frequency of one X-input same and change the frequency of Y-input.
4. Observe and record the resultant figures.

Data
Frequency of Frequency of Observed Lissajous Figure (paste or draw)
function function
generator 1 generator 2

100 Hz

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