Spectrum adds six arbitrary waveform generators to PCIe cards
Spectrum Instrumentation has added six arbitrary waveform generators (AWGs) to its M2p.65 xx series of PCIe cards. They extend the product family’s capabilities by boosting the available output range, so that waveforms can be generated with amplitude swings of up to ±12V into 1MOhms or ±6V into 50Ohms.
To achieve the higher output voltage ranges, the cards have been fitted with additional amplification and larger cooling plates. This makes the cards a little wider, so that they occupy two PCIe slots, but they are still just 168mm in length. They are small enough to fit into almost any PC, says Spectrum, to turn it into a powerful waveform generator.
The M2p.65xx series AWGs use 16-bit DACs and feature a fast PCIe x4 interface with up to 700Mbytes per second streaming speed. Output rates can be selected from either 40Msamples per second (M2p.654x series) or 125Msamples per second (M2p.657x series) and models with one, two or four channels per card.
Each channel features its own DAC and output stage. Multi-channel cards share a common clock and trigger to ensure full synchronisation and the output stages incorporate four switchable filter paths to help optimise signal quality. The flexible output stages combine with the high resolution 16-bit DACs to enable the generation of signals with very low distortion, exceptional dynamic range and a high signal-to-noise ratio.
To allow the M2p.65xx series AWGs to generate long and complex waveforms, each card has 512Msamples of on-board memory with a variety of different output modes. For example, the memory can be segmented and waveforms can be created by looping on and switching between different segments. The cards also feature a FIFO streaming capability that enables new waveform data to be read over the fast PCIe bus (at rates of up to 700Mbytes per second) while replaying already transferred information. This allows users to create long, single shot waveforms or constantly changing, burst-type signals such as those found in communications, radar, ultrasound, lidar or sonar systems.
Spectrum’s Star-Hub piggy-back module synchronises up to 16 different M2p class products. The M2p.65xx AWGs match with the M2p.59xx 16-bit digitisers which have one to eight channels with sampling rates between 5Msamples per second and 125Msamples per second. The Star-Hub distributes a common clock and trigger signal to each channel ensuring fully synchronous operation. Star-Hub systems are also suitable for situations where multiple test points or arrays of sensors need to be stimulated by different test signals at the same time.
The cards are programmable and drivers are provided, free of charge, to support the most popular languages (such as C++, VB.NET, C#, J#, Delphi, Java or Python code) as well as third party software tools like LabView and MatLab. Alternatively, users can run Spectrum’s SBench 6 Professional software.
