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The specifications of the multi meter state +/- 0.8% + 2. I will take that into consideration when I calculate the tolerance. But when I was recording values from the multimeter, I saw fluctuating values. For example, a value kept fluctuating from 12.2, 12.3 to 12.4. Should I assume that the actual value is 12.3 += 0.1 and then include the "+/- 0.8% + 2" tolerance? Or is the "+/- 0.8% + 2" already taken into account in the fluctuating readings that I'm seeing?

Davide Andrea
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phys_birthdaycake
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    Are the fluctuations dues to what you are measuring or the multimeter? – Barry Oct 02 '21 at 21:21
  • @Barry They are due to what I'm measuring, I'm basically measuring the voltage of a laser hitting a photodiode – phys_birthdaycake Oct 02 '21 at 22:07
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    You are conflating the variability of the quantity being measured (the laser pulse, the photodiode, and the amplifier) with the measurement (the multimeter). They are different. Do not consider them to be the same. – Davide Andrea Oct 02 '21 at 22:45

1 Answers1

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Should I assume that the actual value is 12.3 += 0.1 and then include the "+/- 0.8% + 2" tolerance?

Yes. The actual value is 12.3 +/- 0.8% and +/- 0.2. That is, between 11.976 and 12.624.

Or is the "+/- 0.8% + 2" already taken into account in the fluctuating readings that I'm seeing?

No.

Davide Andrea
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