A New Method in the Analysis of Complex Electric Waves
Walter E. Rogers · Review of Scientific Instruments · 1948
Accurate, direct measurements of the phase positions of the harmonic components of complex electric waves are now possible. The familiar laboratory technique of potential measurement by potentiometer comparison is extended to wave analysis. A known complex wave form, having a periodic relationship to the wave under analysis, becomes the standard or reference wave. A tunable, frequency-selective detector replaces the conventional galvanometer or dynamometer. The reference wave, variable in amplitude and in phase position with respect to the wave under analysis, furnishes, by comparison, the phase positions of the harmonic components as well as their amplitudes. This potentiometer method of wave analysis reduces the labor and enhances the accuracy as compared to graphical analysis.