Dictionary · Instruments
Detector
A device or substance that indicates the presence of a phenomenon, body, or substance when a threshold of an associated quantity is exceeded — presence, not magnitude.
Related terms
More from Instruments
Resolution of a displaying device
The smallest difference between displayed indications that can be meaningfully distinguished — for a digital display, one count of the least significant digit.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 4.15
Step response time
The duration between the instant an input quantity is subjected to an abrupt change between two specified constant values and the instant the indication settles within specified limits of its final steady value.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 4.23
Stability of a measuring instrument
The property of an instrument whereby its metrological properties remain constant in time — quantified by the time taken to drift a stated amount, or the change over a stated time.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 4.19
Measuring transducer
A device, used in measurement, that provides an output quantity having a specified relation to the input quantity — a thermocouple, a load cell, a pressure-to-current converter.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 3.7
Range of a nominal indication interval
The absolute difference between the extreme values of a nominal indication interval — 200 V for the −100 V to +100 V setting.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 4.5
Instrumental drift
A continuous or incremental change of an indication over time, due neither to a change in the quantity being measured nor to a recognized influence quantity — a key input to calibration-interval decisions.
VIM (JCGM 200:2012) 4.21