K

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The Tektronix Type K is a 30 MHz amplifier plug-in for 500-series scopes.

Type 53K/54K was designed by John Kobbe, and introduced in March 1955 along with the 541/545. In August of 1955, just five months after introduction, it was renamed Type 53/54K, and in 1959, when the 541A/545A mainframes came out, it got its final name, Type K. It was dropped after 1970, with Type L replacing it.

The name was deliberately chosen to be halfway into the alphabet. Slow plug-ins would use A-J and fast ones L-Z. This idea never went anywhere.

Key Specifications

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Max sensitivity is 50 mV/div, and bandwidth in a 545 is 30 MHz.

At the time of introduction, it was the only plug-in that could utilize more than half of the new mainframes' speed − the Type A, Type B, and Type C upgrades weren't ready until August 1956.

Types K, L, and T are tied for longest production life, at 16 years. B, D, and G are next at 15 years.

Type K was the fastest of the single-channel plug-ins, and the first plug-in to use T-coils. Tek did not equal it until Type L in 1957, and did not exceed it until Type 1A1 in 1964.

Earlier single-channel plug-ins had two inputs and a switch to select between them, making it convenient to probe two test points at once. The Type K design could not tolerate the extra stray capacitance, and the feature was dropped, never to return. (Exception: the 7A16P, which has two input connectors and provides the ability to select which one is fed to the amplifier.)

Late versions had a BNC connector instead of a UHF connector.

Types K and G are the only letter-series plug-ins where the Gain vernier is not concentric with the step attenuator.

Pictures

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  schematic

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  53/54K

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  bottom view

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  late style