Glossary
©
National Instruments
G-3
X Series User Manual
ASIC
Application-specific integrated circ
u
it—A proprietary semicond
u
ctor
component designed and man
u
fact
u
red to perform a set of specific
f
u
nctions for a specific c
u
stomer.
asynchrono
u
s
1. Hardware—A property of an event that occ
u
rs at an arbitrary time,
witho
u
t synchronization to a reference clock.
2. Software—A property of a f
u
nction that begins an operation and
ret
u
rns prior to the completion or termination of the operation.
B
b
Bit—One binary digit, either 0 or 1.
B
Byte—Eight related bits of data, an eight-bit binary n
u
mber. Also
u
sed to
denote the amo
u
nt of memory req
u
ired to store one byte of data.
BNC
Bayonet-Neill-Concelman—A type of coaxial connector
u
sed in sit
u
ations
req
u
iring shielded cable for signal connections and/or controlled
impedance applications.
b
u
ffer
1. Temporary storage for acq
u
ired or generated data.
2. A memory device that stores intermediate data between two devices.
b
u
s, b
u
ses
The gro
u
p of electrical cond
u
ctors that interconnect individ
u
al circ
u
itry in
a comp
u
ter. Typically, a b
u
s is the expansion vehicle to which I/O or other
devices are connected. Examples of PC b
u
ses are the PCI, AT(ISA), and
EISA b
u
s.
C
C
Celsi
u
s.
calibration
The process of determining the acc
u
racy of an instr
u
ment. In a formal
sense, calibration establishes the relationship of an instr
u
ment’s
meas
u
rement to the val
u
e provided by a standard. When that relationship is
known, the instr
u
ment may then be adj
u
sted (calibrated) for best acc
u
racy.
calibrator
A precise, traceable signal so
u
rce
u
sed to calibrate instr
u
ments.
cascading
Process of extending the co
u
nting range of a co
u
nter chip by connecting to
the next higher co
u
nter.
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