RF AppDev 2009 CourseManual Eng

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RF Application Development
Course Manual
Course Software Version 2009
July 2010 Edition
Part Number 324436C-01
Copyright
20082010 National Instruments Corporation. All rights reserved.
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Xerces C++. This product includes software that was developed by the Apache Software Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).
Copyright 1999 The Apache Software Foundation. All rights reserved.
ICU. Copyright 19952009 International Business Machines Corporation and others. All rights reserved.
HDF5. NCSA HDF5 (Hierarchical Data Format 5) Software Library and Utilities
Copyright 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. All rights reserved.
b64. Copyright 20042006, Matthew Wilson and Synesis Software. All Rights Reserved.
Stingray. This software includes Stingray software developed by the Rogue Wave Software division of Quovadx, Inc.
Copyright 19952006, Quovadx, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
STLport. Copyright 19992003 Boris Fomitchev
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Contents
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Student Guide
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Course Description ...............................................................................................vii

What You Need to Get Started .............................................................................vii
Installing the Course Software..............................................................................viii
Course Goals.........................................................................................................viii
Course Conventions ..............................................................................................ix
Lesson 1
Introduction to RF Platform
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
Introduction to RF Platform..................................................................................1-2
RF Hardware.........................................................................................................1-3
RF Drivers and FPGA...........................................................................................1-6
RF Toolkits ...........................................................................................................1-10
Reference Architectures........................................................................................1-14
Third Party IP and Custom Solutions ...................................................................1-17
Applications and Tests APIs..............................................................................1-20
Test Execution and Data Management .................................................................1-23
Lesson 2
Hardware Configuration
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
PXI System Overview ..........................................................................................2-2

PXI Features, Technologies, and Benchmarks .....................................................2-3
Hardware Modules................................................................................................2-5
Configuring the NI PXIe-566E VSA and NI PXIe-5673E VSG..........................2-9
Using Test Panels to Generate and Acquire Signals.............................................2-13
Lesson 3
RF Acquisition and Generation
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
RF Acquisition ......................................................................................................3-2
RF Generation.......................................................................................................3-35
Reference Clocks ..................................................................................................3-69
Triggering .............................................................................................................3-81
List Mode ..............................................................................................................3-100
Lesson 4
Spectral Measurements Toolkit
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Introduction to Spectral Measurements Toolkit ...................................................4-2

Zoom FFT Algorithms..........................................................................................4-6
Spectral Measurements Toolkit VIs .....................................................................4-8
IQ Acquisition vs. Spectrum Acquisition .............................................................4-11
SMT Programming for LabWindows/CVI ...........................................................4-16
National Instruments Corporation
iii
RF Application Development Course Manual
Contents
Lesson 5
Phase Coherent RF Measurement Systems in PXI Express
Introduction to Phase Coherency ..........................................................................5-2
Phase Coherent Clock Sharing Architectures .......................................................5-9
Trigger Synchronization and Phase Alignment ....................................................5-14
Phase Coherency and RF Instrumentation............................................................5-19
NI Phase Coherency Software ..............................................................................5-25
Phase Choherency Performance Variables ...........................................................5-33
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A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Lesson 6
Additional RF Hardware and Measurements
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Why RF Accessories.............................................................................................6-2
Preamplification of RF Signals.............................................................................6-3
Extended Power Control of Generators ................................................................6-11
Power Measurements ............................................................................................6-12
Frequency Controlling ..........................................................................................6-16
RF Switching ........................................................................................................6-19
Lesson 7
RF System Calibration
A.
B.
C.
D.
Introduction to System Calibration.......................................................................7-2

Simple Calibration Using Signal Analyzer...........................................................7-5
Improvement Using Inline Attenuation ................................................................7-8
Advanced RF Calibration Using Power Meter .....................................................7-11
Lesson 8
Record and Playback
A.
B.
C.
D.
Introduction to RF Record and Playback..............................................................8-2

Introduction to Data Streaming.............................................................................8-10
Software Architecture for Data Streaming ...........................................................8-13
Solutions and Methods for RF Data .....................................................................8-16
Lesson 9
RIO,FPGA, and Peer-to-Peer Technology
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Introduction to FPGA Technology .......................................................................9-2

LabVIEW FPGA System......................................................................................9-6
Programming Options for LabVIEW FPGA ........................................................9-10
NI RF RIO Modules .............................................................................................9-16
Peer-to-Peer Technology ......................................................................................9-25
iv
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Contents
Lesson 10
Digital Modulation
Modern Digital Communication Systems.............................................................10-2
Digital Modulation Methods.................................................................................10-6
Digital Modulation and Coding Scheme Identification ........................................10-11
Digital Deodulation and Measurements ...............................................................10-31
Visualization .........................................................................................................10-38
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A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Lesson 11
RF Reference Test Architecture and Best Practices
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
Example to Application ........................................................................................11-2

RF Application Design .........................................................................................11-5
NI RF Test Reference Architecture ......................................................................11-7
Generation.............................................................................................................11-9
Analysis ................................................................................................................11-24
Test Application with Reference Architecture .....................................................11-45
Reference Architectue on the Web .......................................................................11-46
Lesson 12
WLAN Test
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
History of the 802.11Standard ..............................................................................12-2

Introduction to the NI WLAN Toolkit..................................................................12-8
Transmitter Test with the WLAN Toolkit ............................................................12-11
Receiver Test with the WLAN Toolkit.................................................................12-25
802.11n and MIMO ..............................................................................................12-30
Interpreting Results...............................................................................................12-32
Optimizing Test Times .........................................................................................12-34
Lesson 13
GPS/GNSS Receiver Test
A. Introduction to GNSS ...........................................................................................13-2

B. GPS Receiver Test ................................................................................................13-9
C. NI Solutions for GPS Receiver Test .....................................................................13-14
Lesson 14
Introduction to Cellular Test
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Industry and Devices ............................................................................................14-2

Common Wireless Standards for Cellular Applications.......................................14-4
Testing Methods ...................................................................................................14-5
NI Cellular Toolkits: Introduction to GSM/EDGE...............................................14-9
Applications for Cellular Test...............................................................................14-43
Contents
Lesson 15
WiMAX Test
The WiMAX Standard..........................................................................................15-2
WiMAX Technologies..........................................................................................15-6
Introduction to the WiMAX Toolkit.....................................................................15-15
Transmitter Test ....................................................................................................15-18
Receiver Test ........................................................................................................15-28
Software Architecture ...........................................................................................15-30
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A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
Lesson 16
Analog Modulation
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
Where is Analog Modulation Used?.....................................................................16-2

Modulation Toolkit Overview ..............................................................................16-5
Amplitude Modulation..........................................................................................16-7
Frequency Modulation ..........................................................................................16-13
Phase Modulation .................................................................................................16-18
Appendix A
Understanding RF Measurement Hardware
Appendix B
PXI and PXI Express
Appendix C
Configuring Hardware in MAX for the 2.7 GHz RF Suite
Appendix D
Acquisition and Generation Additional Material
Appendix E
Record and Playback Additional Material
Appendix F
Peer-to-Peer API
Appendix G
Additional Information and Resources
vi
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Student Guide
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Thank you for purchasing the RF Application Development course kit. This
course manual and the accompanying software are used in the two-day,
hands-on RF Application Development course.
You can apply the full purchase price of this course kit toward the
corresponding course registration fee if you register within 90 days of
purchasing the kit. Visit ni.com/training to register for a course and to
access course schedules, syllabi, and training center location information.
A. Course Description
The RF Application Development course teaches you to use the NI-PXI RF

(radio frequency) hardware from National Instruments. The course
describes the hardware and software architecture, configuration of hardware
and software, onboard signal processing capabilities, and the different
products available for RF test. This course assumes you have a level of
experience with LabVIEW equivalent to completing the LabVIEW Core 1
and LabVIEW Core 2 course manuals. In addition, you should be familiar
with th RF Measurement Fundamentals course or have equivalent
knowledge of RF design, test, and measurement.
The course is divided into lessons, each covering a topic or a set of topics.
Each lesson consists of the following parts:
An introduction that describes what you will learn.
A discussion of the topics.
A set of exercises that reinforces the topics presented in the discussion.
A summary that outlines important concepts and skills taught in the

lesson.
B. What You Need to Get Started
Before you use this course manual, make sure you have the following items:
Computer running Windows 7/Vista/XP
LabVIEW 2009 or later
NI Advanced Signal Processing Toolkit 9.0 or later

Modulation Toolkit 4.2.1 or later
Spectral Measurements Toolkit 2.5.1 or later
vii
Student Guide
NI-RFSA 2.3.1 or later

NI-RFSG 2.3.1 or later
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TestStand 4.2.1 or later
NI GPS Simulation Toolkit 1.5 or later
NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for Fixed WiMAX 1.0 or later
NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for Mobile WiMAX 1.0 or later
NI Signal Generation Toolkit for Fixed WiMAX 1.0 or later
NI Signal Generation Toolkit for Mobile WiMAX 1.0 or later

NI WLAN Analysis Toolkit 2.0 or later
NI WLAN Generation Toolkit 2.0 or later
NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for GSM/EDGE 1.0 or later

NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for WCDMA 1.0 or later
NI Signal Generation Toolkit for GSM/EDGE 1.0 or later

NI Signal Generation Toolkit for WCMDA 1.0 or later
PXI controller (MXI or embedded)
PXI chassis
NI PXIe-5663E RF Vector Signal Analyzer
NI PXIe-5673E RF Vector Signal Generator
RF Application Development CD, which contains the following files:
Directory
Description
Exercises
Folder containing all the files needed to complete the exercises
Solutions
Folder containing the solutions to all the course exercises
viii
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Student Guide
C. Installing the Course Software

Complete the following steps to install the course software.
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1. Insert the course CD in your computer. The RF Application

Development Course Material Setup dialog box appears.
2. Click Install RF Application Development.
3. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete installation and setup.
Exercise files are located in the <Exercises>\RF Application

Development folder.
Folder names in angle brackets, such as <Exercises>, refer to folders on the root
directory of your computer.
Tip
D. Course Goals
This course presents the following topics:
Understanding the hardware architecture of NI downconverters and

upconverters
Understanding the hardware architecture of NI digitizers and signal

generators
Configuring, automating, and troubleshooting NI RF hardware
Understanding digital downconversion and upconversion
Using the NI-RFSA, NI-RFSG, NI-SWITCH, and NI-5690 APIs
Designing an integrated RF test application with drivers and analysis

software
Solving RF test problems using NI RF products
Using the Modulation Toolkit and the Spectral Measurements Toolkit
This course does not present any of the following topics:
Every RF, Modulation Toolkit, and Spectral Measurements Toolkit

built-in VI, function, or object; refer to the LabVIEW Help for more
information about features not described in this course
Providing integration for a specific project; refer to the NI Example

Finder, available by selecting HelpFind Examples, for example VIs
you can use and incorporate into projects you create
Building custom modulation for different standards such as WiMax or

WiFi; refer to the RF Resources section of Appendix G, Additional
Information and Resources, for more information about different
RF standards.
ix
Student Guide
E. Course Conventions
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The following conventions are used in this course manual:
The symbol leads you through nested menu items and dialog box options
to a final action. The sequence FilePage SetupOptions directs you to pull
down the File menu, select the Page Setup item, and select Options from
the last dialog box.
This icon denotes a tip, which alerts you to advisory information.
This icon denotes a note, which alerts you to important information.
This icon denotes a caution, which advises you of precautions to take to

avoid injury, data loss, or a system crash.
bold
Bold text denotes items that you must select or click in the software, such as
menu items and dialog box options. Bold text also denotes parameter names.
italic
Italic text denotes variables, emphasis, a cross-reference, or an introduction

to a key concept. Italic text also denotes text that is a placeholder for a word
or value that you must supply.
monospace
Text in this font denotes text or characters that you enter from the keyboard,
sections of code, programming examples, and syntax examples. This font
also is used for the proper names of disk drives, paths, directories, programs,
subprograms, subroutines, device names, functions, operations, variables,
filenames, and extensions.
ni.com
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Lesson 1
This lesson introduces the hardware covered in this course.
1-1
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Lesson 1
A. Introduction to RF Platform
Software-defined test with PXI allows multiple-standard devices to be tested with a single
platform. More standards are continually being integrated into a single chip or device.
Standards like WLAN, Bluetooth, FM, GPS, RFID, and WCDMA often can come together
on a single device such as a cellular phone. A single hardware platform to test all of these
standards makes sense for economic reasons. Total system cost is less, cost to own is less
because of reduced power usage and physical space to host system, and finally with reduced
test times for better productivity and therefore lower cost.
This lesson introduces you to the PXI RF platform from National Instruments. Detail of
hardware and software functionality is covered in the following lessons. You will have an
opportunity to test various real-world devices and signals such as FM, custom modulation
(FSK), WCDMA, GPS, and WiMax.
1-2
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Lesson 1
B. RF Hardware
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Lesson 1
Overview of RF VSA,, VSG,, CW,, Switching,

g, and Preamplifier
p
and
USB Power Sensor
RF Signal Generators and Analyzers
National Instruments offer two families of Vector Signal Analyzers (VSA) and Vector
Signal Generators (VSG). The 2.7 GHz family consists of two modules each. These
instruments are superheterodyne and use an IF interface for the digitizer and arbitrary
waveform generators respectively. The 6.6 GHz modules are a new design with a
zero IF or single stage conversion for the analyzer (with IF output) and IQ modulator (direct
baseband to RF) for the generator.
National Instruments also offers low cost CW generators which can be used for simple tone
generation and even simple modulation like FM, FSK and ASK. The performance of these
CW generators is good enough to be used as a synthesizer for other
mixer-based systems.
Preamplifiers and Attenuators
National Instruments offers 3 GHz and 8 GHz preamplifier modules. A preamplifier is

appropriate for signals lower than the noise floor of the VSA products. The new 8 GHz
preamplifier module has such good linearity across the different frequency bands that it can
also be used as a direct amplifier for the VSG products. This allows power output beyond
what the VSGs can provide. Refer to Lesson 6, Additional RF Hardware, for more
information.
information
1-4
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Lesson 1
Power Sensor
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The National Instruments NI 5680 is a USB

USB-based
based power sensor for measuring RF signals
up to 6 GHz. It can acquire RMS power measurements with a power range from 40 dBm to
23 dBm.
RF Switches
Use the National Instruments RF switch modules to expand the channel count or increase the
flexibility of systems with signal bandwidths greater than 10 MHz. Available PXI and SCXI switch
module
d l configurations
fi
ti
iinclude
l d high-density
hi h d it multiplexers,
lti l
dimensionally
di
i ll flexible
fl ibl sparse matrices,
ti
andd
general-purpose relays. Models with both 50 and 75 termination are available.
1-5
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Lesson 1
C. RF Drivers and FGPA
1-6
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Lesson 1
Hardware Used in Class
This class is very hands-on and uses many real-world devices to solidify concepts covered in the
class. The above images show what devices will be used in addition to simple loopback
communication between the RF generator and analyzer. Please note that everything is not to scale
including the chassis and demo boxes. The following sections include a brief summary of equipment
with links to the manufacturers product where available.
Instructor System
Embedded Controller PXIe-8108 2.53 GHz Dual-Core PXI Express Embedded Controller
RF Switch PXI-2596 26.5 GHz Dual 6x1 Multiplexer (SP6T)
VSA PXIe-5663E 6.6 GHz Vector Signal Analyzer with RF List Mode
VSA MIMO NI PXIe-5663/5663E VSA channel extension kit
FlexRIO PXIe-7965R NI FlexRIO FPGA Module for PXI Express
RAID NI 8260 44-Drive,

D i 1 TB IIn-Chassis
Ch i High-Speed
Hi h S d D
Data
t St
Storage M
Module
d l
Power Supply PXI-4110 Triple-Output Programmable DC Power Supply

VSG PXIe-5673E 6.6 GHz Vector Signal Generator with RF List Mode
Amplifier PXI-5691 Programmable 8 GHz RF Amplifier
Power Meter NI 5680 6 GHz True RMS Power Meter with Bus-Powered USB Connectivity
USB Speaker TRITTON Sound Bite, Portable USB Digital Speaker System
FSK DUT ATMEL Wireless BlackBird Transceiver Model ATAB5429-9-WB
1-7
Lesson 1
Student System
Embedded Controller PXIe-8108 2.53 GHz Dual-Core PXI Express Embedded Controller
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VSA PXIe-5663E 6.6 GHz Vector Signal Analyzer with RF List Mode
VSG PXIe-5673E 6.6 GHz Vector Signal Generator with RF List Mode
Power Meter NI 5680 6 GHz True RMS Power Meter with Bus-Powered
USB Connectivity
USB Speaker TRITTON Sound Bite, Portable USB Digital Speaker System
FSK DUT ATMEL Wireless BlackBird Transceiver Model ATAB5429-9-WB
Demo Device Box
GPS DUT Inventek EZ-GPS - USB GPS
WiMax DUT Motorola Full-Mini Nemo Data Card for 2.5 GHz WiMax Model 5129A
Power Amplifier Triquint Semiconductor TQM7M5005 Quad-Band GSM / GPRS / EDGELinear Power Amplifier Module
USB DAQ USB 6008 12-Bit, 10 kS/s Low-Cost Multifunction DAQ
WLAN DUT Digi International MiniCore RCM5600W 802.11 b/g module
1-8
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Lesson 1
RF Drivers and FPGA
National Instruments provides hardware drivers to control the various devices. These are available as
either LabVIEW or C based drivers.
NI-RFSA for Vector Signal Analyzer products
NI-RFSG for Vector Signal Generator products

NI-RFSG for CW Signal Generator products
g
I/O pproducts like IF-RIO
NI-RIO for FPGA Reconfigurable
NI-SWITCH for all RF and DC switching products
NI-5680 for power meter products
NI-5690 for pre-amplifier and attenuator products
LabVIEW FPGA is an add-on module for LabVIEW that allows you to provide the FPGA on the
RF hardware target such as the PXIe-5641R IF-RIO.
1-9
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Lesson 1
D. RF Toolkits
1-10
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Lesson 1
NI RF Standards Toolkits
National Instruments offers several different RF Toolkits with similar architecture. All toolkits are
physical layer-based (PHY layer) toolkits, which means they communicate with the base modulation
and application description according to that standard. The physical layer is the real data content that
carries information such as voice, data, video, and so on. Additional layers, such as Network or
MAC plus others, define how the physical layer content is managed in a network such as mobile-tobase station communication or shared WLAN users in a network. Testing only the physical layer of a
product is a cost effective way to characterize a device. Additional processing and synching or
linking time is not required with physical layer test. Semiconductor chip manufacturers make test
modes available for most devises for physical layer only testing.
National Instruments provides an API in LabVIEW and LabWindows/CVI as well as C.
In some cases a soft front panel is also available, such as with the WiMax Toolkits, to help the end
user quickly configure generation and/or acquisition.
All toolkits
t lkit come with
ith an installer,
i t ll supportt multiple
lti l versions
i
off LabVIEW
L bVIEW andd LabWindows/CVI,
L bWi d
/CVI
plus include interface examples and help utilities to reference specifications used for certain
measurements or waveform creation.
1-11
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Lesson 1
The National Instruments Spectral Measurements Toolkit helps you analyze RF signals and
spectrum. The Spectral Measurements Toolkit provides a set of flexible spectral measurements in
LabVIEW and LabWindows/CVI, including power spectrum, peak power and frequency, in-band
power, adjacent-channel power, and occupied bandwidth, as well as 3D spectrogram capabilities. In
addition, the Spectral Measurements Toolkit contains VIs and functions for performing modulationdomain operations, such as passband (IF) to baseband (I-Q) conversion, I-Q to IF conversion, and
generation/analysis of analog modulated signals.
p
algorithms
g
and the GHz pprocessingg of yyour PC delivers
The combination of these optimized
unmatched measurement throughput.
Modulation Toolkits
National Instruments ships the Modulation Toolkit with every vector signal generator. The
Modulation Toolkit allows all the standard modulation formats to be generated, even custom formats.
This way, the code is already written for the standard formats and you can build on top of these basic
building blocks.
The National
Th
N ti l Instruments
I t
t Modulation
M d l ti Toolkit
T lkit extends
t d the
th built-in
b ilt i analysis
l i capability
bilit
of LabVIEW with functions and tools for signal generation, analysis, visualization,
and processing of standard and custom digital and analog modulation formats.
With this toolkit, you can rapidly develop custom applications for research, design, characterization,
validation, and test of communications systems and components that modulate or demodulate
signals. Applications for the NI Modulation Toolkit include digital modulation formats (AM, FM,
PM, ASK, FSK, MSK, GMSK, PSK, QPSK, PAM, and QAM) that are the foundation of many
digital communication standards found in 802.11a/b/g/n, ZigBee (802.15.4), WiMAX (802.16),
RFID satellite
RFID,
t llit communications,
i ti
and
d commercial
i l broadcast,
b d t among others.
th
1-12
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Lesson 1
WLAN Toolkit
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The WLAN toolkit provides physical layer (PHY) measurements and generation waveforms
according
di tto th
the IEEE 802.11
802 11 specification.
ifi ti Measurements
M
t are mostt common measurementt to
t
validate performance of WLAN devices. Standards supported include 802.11a/b/g/n. Refer to Lesson
12, WLAN Test, for more information.
GPS Toolkit
The GPS toolkit gives the VSG products the ability to generate simulated GPS L1 band signals for
up to 12 satellites with various testing capabilities like individual satellite power adjustment and
custom vector patterns
patterns. Refer to Lesson 13,
13 GPS/GNSS Receiver Test
Test, for more information.
information
Fixed WiMax Toolkit
The Fixed WiMax toolkit provides physical layer measurements and generation waveforms
according to the IEEE 802.16d specification. Measurements are most common measurement to
validate performance of WLAN devices. Refer to Lesson 15, WiMAX Test, for more information.
Mobile WiMax Toolkit
The Mobile WiMax provides physical layer measurements and generation waveforms according to
the IEEE 802.16e specification. Measurements are most common measurement to validate
performance of WLAN devices. Refer to Lesson 15, WiMax Test, for more information.
GSM/EDGE Toolkit
The GSM/EDGE toolkit contains common physical layer measurements to validate GSM and EDGE
devices. This uses tests and waveforms according
g to the 3rd Generation Partnership
p Project
j ((3GPP))
specification. Refer to Lesson 14, Cellular Test, for more information.
WCDMA Toolkit
The WCDMA Toolkit contains common physical layer measurements to validate

WCDMA devices. This uses tests and waveforms according to the 3GPP specification.
Refer to Lesson 14, Cellular Test, for more information.
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Lesson 1
E. Reference Architectures
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Lesson 1
NI RF Test Reference Architecture
The NI RF Test Reference Architecture delivers the concept of a reference design for the
NI RF platform. This architecture is used to validate RF IP created for unique opportunities and
potential future toolkits. The customer is responsible for the maintenance and customization of the
architecture, while the IP within, is supported by NI RF systems engineering. Although this reference
architecture is a fully functional implementation of our recommendations for RF test, it is not a
supported toolkit and has no part number from which you can purchase or request full support from
ni.com.
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Lesson 1
Power Amplifier Test Reference Architecture Example
National Instruments offers a Power Amplifier Reference Architecture for validation or functional
test used in mobile and base station systems.
After a power amplifier has been characterized thoroughly it often needs to be validated in larger
batches. In this case test time becomes critical because of repetitive spectral and modulation
measurements needed for different operating conditions across temperature, power, current,
humidity,
y, and impedance.
p
Common measurements are channel ppower ((CHP),
), adjacent
j
channel
power (ACP), intermodulation (IM3), phase and frequency error (PFER), and error vector magnitude
(EVM). Test times for these measurements can be reduced dramatically by using the PXI platform.
Typical performance improvements can be from 5 to 140 times greater depending on measurements.
Some specific features of the power amplifier test reference architecture example include:
PXIExpress based: VSG, VSA, power supplies, DMM, baseband generator, oscilloscope, and
digital
g
I/O
GSM, EDGE and WCDMA measurements/generation
Servoing (power convergence) example
LabVIEW and TestStand sequence examples

Calibration routines
Third party instrumentation integration
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Lesson 1
F. Third Partyy IP and Custom Solutions
In some cases NI will not have all of the software available to solve particular applications.
In this situation NI either leverages reference architectures or third-party software to solve that
application. The advantage of this model is the rapid response of a smaller company or contributing
group. Custom standards can be created in weeks instead of a year or more.
Reference architectures are available for download at ni.com. Third-party software is available from
NI certified alliance members.
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Lesson 1
Partner Solution: Universal Radio Tester
Here is an example of a third-party solution built around NI hardware and software offered by an NI
alliance partner. Averna is a Select Alliance Partner with NI and has been successfully providing RF
test solutions to their customers for seven years.
The product listed above is Avernas Universal Receiver Tester. Averna provides simulation
software to play various broadcast audio and video standards to test any manufacturers receivers.
Averna also has the capability to record live RF signals over the air, analyze the signals or play them
b k in
back
i the
h lab.
l b Refer
R f to L
Lesson 8,
8 Record
R
d and
d Pl
Playback,
b k for
f more information
i f
i about
b
this
hi technology.
h l
1-18
ni.com
Lesson 1
Avernas URT Solution

URT RF Signal Generator
AM, FM
AM
XM, Sirius (Manufacturing and Software Validation)
HD Radio, RBDS
NTSC, PAL
T-DMB
GPS
TMC
DVB-T/S/H/S2
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URT RF Player
ATSC library
DVB-T & PAL/SECAM libraries
URT RF Record & Playback
Record live RF signals in specific locations and play them back for UUT validation
Complete turnkey solution for mobile tests:
Shielded casing
Pre-amplifier with LNA and AGC
DRX (Dynamic Range Extender) to generate low power signals
Multimedia hardware and software (audio, video, GPS)
Multiple hours of recording
URT Audio Analyzer
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Lesson 1
G. Applications
pp
and Tests API
National Instruments provides several different APIs for automated test. In this class we focus on
LabVIEW but you can use LabWindows/CVI or Visual Studio with Measurement Studio just as
easily to integrate your RF hardware into an automated test solution.
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Lesson 1
NI LabVIEW
LabVIEW is a graphical programming environment used by millions of engineers and scientists to

develop sophisticated measurement, test, and control systems using intuitive graphical icons and
wires that resemble a flowchart. LabVIEW offers unrivaled integration with thousands of hardware
devices and provides hundreds of built-in libraries for advanced analysis and data visualization all
for creating virtual instrumentation. The LabVIEW platform is scalable across multiple targets and
operating systems, and, since its introduction in 1986, it has become an industry leader.
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Lesson 1
LabWindows/CVI
LabWindows/CVI is a proven ANSI C integrated development environment that provides engineers

and scientists with a comprehensive set of programming tools for creating test and control
applications. LabWindows/CVI combines the longevity and reusability of ANSI C with
engineering-specific functionality designed for instrument control, data acquisition, analysis, and
user interface development.
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Lesson 1
H. Test Execution and Data Management

g
In some cases when there are multiple tests that require looping, different decision making for test,
and other general test management you might need a structured test executive. Although it is not
covered in detail in this course you will be introduced to TestStand and how it works with
LabVIEW. Further you will learn about how this application can be used to help acquire and manage
data to a database or something simple like CSV files.
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Lesson 1
NI TestStand
Awarded Test Product of the Year by readers of Test & Measurement World magazine, National
Instruments TestStand is off-the-shelf test management software used by 15 of the top 15 electronics
manufacturers worldwide for rapid test system development and scalability (Electronic Business 300,
2006). NI TestStand delivers a modular test architecture with a graphical sequence editor, an open
language interface for automating tests written in any language, multithreaded sequence execution,
flexible reporting, and robust database connectivity for todays automated prototype, validation, and
manufacturing test systems. Using NI TestStand you immediately eliminate hundreds of hours from
your development time while maintaining complete control over the environment to modify
components to match your exact needs. Through unparalleled integration with the leading test
development languages and innovative technology including autoscheduling and user interface
controls for developing custom operator interfaces in minutes, NI TestStand reduces test system
development effort by 75 percent.
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Lesson 1
Summary
The NI RF and communications platform uses a modular, software-defined approach to RF and

microwave test to solve multiple applications and communication standards.
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Notes
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Lesson 2
This lesson describes how to configure National Instruments RF hardware and covers the following
topics.
A. PXI System Overview
B. PXI Features, Technologies, and Benchmarks

C. Hardware Modules
D. Configuring the NI PXI-5661 and NI PXI-567x VSG

E. Using Test Panels to Generate and Acquire Signals
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Lesson 2
A. PXI System
y
Overview
The chassis provides the rugged and modular packaging for the system and regulates the cooling and
power distribution to each slot. Chassis generally range in size from 4 to 18 slots and are available
with special features, such as DC power supplies and integrated signal conditioning. The chassis
contains the high-performance PXI backplane, which includes the PCI bus and timing and triggering
buses. These timing and triggering buses enable users to develop systems for applications requiring
precise synchronization. For more information about the functionality of the PXI timing and
triggering buses, refer to the PXI Hardware Specification at
www.pxisa.org/Specifications.html.
As defined by the PXI Hardware Specification, all PXI chassis contain a system controller slot
located in the leftmost slot of the chassis (slot 1). Controller options include remote control from a
standard desktop PC or a high-performance embedded control with either a Microsoft operating
system, such as Windows 7/Vista/XP, or a real-time operating system (RTOS), such as LabVIEW
Real-Time. Windows-based controllers have same look and feel as Windows-based desktop PCs.
Th
These
controllers
ll are offered
ff d with
i h high
hi h performance
f
processors, suchh as a Intel
I l Core
C
Duo,
D
andd the
h
entire controller resides embedded in a slot of the PXI chassis. NI also offers a line of controllers that
only operate with the RTOS and use compact flash drives. These controllers are designed for
applications requiring deterministic and reliable performance and are run under headless operation
(that is, no mouse or keyboard).
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Lesson 2
B. PXI/PXIe Features,, Technologies,

g , and Benchmarks
The block diagram above shows the PXI interface specified by PXI-1, which was ratified in 1998 by
PXISA. There are three important parts to the timing and synchronization features.
PXI Trigger Bus is a generic trigger bus which routes TTL triggers across the PXI backplane
between peripheral devices.
System Reference Clock is a 10 MHz clock available for Phase Lock Looping a common clock to
other peripheral device clocks. In slot 2 of the PXI-1042 chassis you can replace this 10 MHz
clock with your own external clock or the peripheral clock of the device. There is typically less
than 1 ns skew in the 10 MHz clock shared across the backplane.
The Star Trigger Bus is a unique bus to route triggers across the backplane with
equal length traces. Hence a trigger from slot 2 will reach slots 3-8 simultaneously to 1 ns
propagation delay. This is ideal for synchronizing a start trigger between devices.
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Lesson 2
PXI Configuration in MAX
Identifying the PXI System

Your PXI system starts in a nonconfigured state. When you expand Devices & Interfaces
in MAX for the first time, you should see your PXI system represented as PXI System
(Unidentified), except on a PXI Express system, where it should be auto-identified.
Identifying a PXI Chassis

MAX supports
t single-chassis
i l h i or multiple-chassis
lti l h i configurations,
fi
ti
andd you mustt identify
id tif eachh chassis
h i
separately.
When using a National Instruments system controller (remote or embedded), all connected
PXI chassis are detected and displayed in the configuration tree under the PXI system node. Some
chassis are in nonconfigured state by default and must be identified, while the
PXI software auto-identifies other chassis (including all PXI Express chassis).
Refer to Measurement & Automation Explorer Help for more information about third-party bridges,
deleting identifications, and other concepts.
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Lesson 2
C. Hardware Modules
The RF hardware modules discussed in this course include the NI PXI-5661 vector signal analyzer
(VSA) and the NI PXI-567x vector signal generator (VSG).
NI PXI-5661 VSA
The NI PXI-5661 RF VSA consists of the following two NI-PXI hardware modules.
NI PXI-56002.7 GHz RF superheterodyne downconverter module with output frequencies

between 5 and 25 MHz.
NI PXI-514214 bit, 100 megasample-per-second (MS/s) digitizer module.
NI PXI-5661 Connections
When interfacing the NI PXI-5600 with the NI PXI-5142, connect the CH0 BNC connector
on the NI PXI-5152 to the IF Output on the NI PXI-5600. Connect the 10 MHz OUT from the NI
PXI-5600 to the CLK IN SMB connector on the NI PXI-5142. These connections require one SMB
to SMA and one BNC to SMA
SMA. Use cables with proper shielding for noise immunity.
immunity
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Lesson 2
NI PXI-5670/1/2 Vector Signal Generator
The NI PXI-567x RF VSG consists of the following PXI hardware modules.
NI PXI-56102.7 GHz RF superheterodyne upconverter module with input frequencies between

15 and 35 MHz.
One of the following arbitrary waveform generator modules.
NI PXI-542116 bit, 100 MS/s AWG module
PXI-544116
5441 16 bit
bit, 100 MS/s AWG module with digital upconversion (DUC) capability
NI PXI
NI PXI-5670/1/2 Connections
When interfacing the NI PXI-5610 with the NI PXI-5421 or the NI PXI-5441:
Connect the CH0 SMB connector on the NI PXI-54xx to the IF Input on the NI PXI-5610.
Connect the 10 MHz OUT from the NI PXI-5610 to the CLK IN on the NI PXI-54xx.
q
SMB to SMA cables with pproper
p shielding
g for noise immunity.
y
These connections require
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Lesson 2
NI PXIe-5663E Vector Signal Analyzer
Installation of the NI 5663E RF vector signal analyzer hardware modules requires three vacant slots.
The NI 5622 IF digitizer module must be installed immediately to the right of the
NI 5601 RF downconverter module, and the NI 5652 must be installed immediately to the
left of the NI 5601 module to allow use of the included coaxial cables.
NI PXIe-5663E Connections
1. Connect RF OUT connector on NI 5652 LO Source front p

panel to the LO IN connector on the
NI 5601 RF downconverter front panel .
2. Connect the IF OUT connector on the NI 5601 front panel to the IF IN connector on the
NI 5622 IF digitizer front panel.
3. Connect REF OUT2 connector on the NI 5652 LO source front panel to the CLK IN connector
on the NI 5622 front panel.
Note Carefully tighten all SMA connectors to 1 Nm using SMA torque wrench. Incorrect
torque at SMA connections can degrade signal fidelity, PLL performance, and insertion
loss.
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Lesson 2
NI PXIe-5673E
Installation of NI 5673E requires four vacant slots two slots for NI 5450/5451 AWG module, one
slot for the NI 5611 I/Q modulator module, and one slot for the NI 5650/5651/5652 LO source
module. All the hardware must be installed in PXI express slot.
NI PXIe-5673E Connections
1. Connect the NI 5450/5451 CH 1/Q, CH 1+/Q+, CH 0/I, CH 0+/I+ front panel connector to
the NI 5611 Q,
Q Q+,
Q+ II, I+ front panel connector respectively
2. Connect the NI 5650/5651/5652 RF OUT front panel connector to the NI 5611 LO IN front
panel connector.
3. Use a flexible cable to connect the NI 5450/5451 CLK IN front panel connector to the
NI 5650/5651/5652 REF OUT 2 front panel connector.
4. Connect the 50 terminator to the NI 5611 LO OUT front panel connector.
Note Carefully tighten all SMA connectors to 1 Nm using SMA torque wrench Incorrect
torque at SMA connections can degrade signal fidelity, PLL performance, and insertion
loss.
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Lesson 2
Note If you are using the NI PXI-5661 VSA and the NI PXI-567x VSG, refer to Appendix
C, Configuring Hardware in MAX for the 2.7 GHz RF Suite for configuration instructions.
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Lesson 2
Renaming Modules
MAX allows you to rename any NI-DAQmx hardware module. Use the MAX name in software
(LabVIEW, LabWindows/CVI, C) to operate the hardware resources for the module. You do not
have to change the module names from the default, but doing so can make programming easier.
Complete the following steps to rename a PXI module.
1. Right-click the device in MAX and select Rename.
2. Enter the name that you want to associate with the module.
3 Click OK.
3.
OK
Note This is a good point to change the name of all your PXI instrument as follows:
NI PXIe-5652 5652_RFSA *
NI PXIe-5601 RFSA
NI PXIe-5622 5662
NI PXIe-5450
PXIe 5450 5450
NI PXIe-5611 RFSG
NI PXIe-5652 5652_RFSG*
NI PXI-4110 4110
* Check the slot number of PXIe-5652 and which module it is connected to before renaming.
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Lesson 2
MAX Configuration of the NI PXIe-5663E
The NI PXI-5661 RF VSA consists of the following three PXIe hardware modules:
NI PXIe-56016.6 GHz RF downconverter
NI PXIe-562216 bit, 150MS/s IF digitizer module

NI PXIe-5652RF signal generator as a LO source
You must create a MAX association between the NI PXIe-5601 downconverter module and the NI
PXIe-5622 IF digitizer module and the NI PXIe-5652 RF signal generator module to control the
hardware modules as a single RF signal analyzer (RFSA).
Complete the following steps to create the association between the modules in MAX.
1. Right-click the NI PXIe-5601 and select Properties.
2. In the Device Properties dialog box, select the NI PXIe-5122 digitizer.
3 Select NI PXIe-5652
3.
PXIe 5652 as a LO that is connected to the NI PXIe
PXIe-5601.
5601 You can verify that by the
slot number of NI PXIe- 5652 LO source.
4. Click OK to configure the devices as an NI PXI-5663E VSA.
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Lesson 2
MAX Configuration of the NI PXIe-5673E
The NI PXIe-5673E RF Vector Signal Generator consists of the following NI-PXI hardware
modules.
NI PXIe-5450 400 MS/s I/Q signal generator
NI PXIe-5611 I/Q vector modulator
NI PXIe-5652 RF signal generator as an LO source
You mustt create

Y
t a MAX association
i ti bbetween
t
th
the NI PXI
PXIe-5611
5611 upconverter
t module
d l and
d the
th NI 5450
AWG and NI 5652 module to control the hardware modules as a single RF signal generator (RFSG).
1. Complete the following steps to create the association between the modules in MAX.
2.
Right-click the NI PXIe-5611 and select Properties.
3.
In the Device Properties dialog box, select the NI PXI-5450 as an AWG module that is
connected to the NI PXIe-5611.
4
4.
Select
S
l t NI PXI
PXIe-5652
5652 as a LO th
thatt iis connected
t d tto th
the NI PXI
PXIe-5611
5611 Y
You can verify
if th
thatt by
b the
th
slot number of NI PXIe-5652 LO source.
5. Click OK to configure the devices as an NI PXI-5673 vector signal generator.
Note The NI PXI-565x RF Signal Generator and NI PXI-5690 Preamplifier are single slot
NI-PXI modules and do not need any configuration in MAX. As long as they appear under
NI-DAQmx Devices in MAX they will operate correctly.
correctly
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Lesson 2
E. Using
g Test Panels to Generate and Acquire
q
Signals
g
Use the test panels in MAX to verify the device configuration.
Acquisition with the NI PXIe-5663
Use the NI-RFSA test panel in MAX to acquire a spectrum using the RF signal analyzer hardware.
The NI-RFSA test panel tests both modules that comprise the NI PXIe-5663 VSA as a single
instrument.
Complete the following steps to test the configuration of the NI-PXIe-5663 VSA.
1. Right-click the NI PXIe-5601 downconverter module and select Test Panels to open the test
panel.
2. In the NI PXIe-5663 tab of the Test Panels dialog box, specify a center frequency, reference
level, span, and resolution bandwidth (RBW).
3 Click
3.
Cli k Start
S
to begin
b i signal
i l acquisition
i i i andd view
i the
h acquired
i d data
d in
i the
h Power Spectrum
S
plot.
l
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Lesson 2
Generation with the NI PXIe-5673
Use the NI-RFSG test panel in MAX to generate a simple signal using the RF signal generator
hardware. The NI-RFSG test panel tests both modules that comprise the NI PXIe-5673 VSG as a
single instrument.
Complete the following steps to test the configuration of the NI PXIe-5673 VSG.
1. Right-click the NI PXIe-5611 upconverter module and select Test Panels to open the
Test Panel.
Panel
2. In the NI PXIe-5673 tab of the Test Panels dialog box, specify a frequency and a power level for
signal generation.
3. Click Start to begin signal generation. During signal generation the ACTIVE LEDs on both NI
5673 hardware modules are activated.
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Lesson 2
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Lesson 2
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Lesson 2
The Calibration tab provides information about the last time the device was calibrated both
internally and externally. After the device is self calibrated, the Self-Calibration information updates
in the Calibration tab.
Self-calibration is available with the NI PXI-5142, 54xx, and 5622. There is no self-calibration
feature with the NI PXI-5600, 5601, 565x, 5690, and 5611.
PXI-5142Corrects for DC gain and offset errors within the digitizer by comparison to a
precision, high-stability internal voltage reference. This is done for all ranges, both input
impedance paths (50 and 1 M), and all filter paths (enabled/disabled). Calibrates trigger level
offset and gain. Calibrates trigger timing, as well as the time-to-digital conversion (TDC) circuitry
to ensure accurate trigger timing and time-stamping. Compensates 1 M input frequency flatness,
then compensates input capacitance so that it is equal regardless of selcted attenuator range.
PXI-5421 and PXI-5441Uses internal 24-bit ADC to perform gain and offset calibration on the
main and direct analog paths. Output impedance, oscillator frequency, and calibration ADC are
j
duringg self-calibration.
not adjusted
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Lesson 2
Calibration Service Levels:
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Traceable Calibration: Traceable calibration service from NI helps you maintain maximum
measurement p
performance and saves the time and costs associated with unscheduled downtime
and quality issues. The service includes verification of measurement performance and adjustment,
if necessary, to ensure the performance you have come to expect from National Instruments. This
service level also helps you meet the requirements of quality programs like ISO 9001.
Traceable Calibration With Data: For customers who want to know exactly how their
instrument is performing, NI offers traceable calibration with data service. This service includes
complete calibration results before and after adjustment that show the measurements for every test
point every time
time. This data can help you characterize the performance of your device and lets you
know precisely what you are measuring.
Compliant Calibration: Compliant calibration service helps you meet the needs of more
advanced quality standards. This service is performed in accordance with guidelines such as
ISO/IEC 17025 and provides detailed measurement data that typically includes the calibration
results and a statement of measurement uncertainty. These features are typically required by more
stringent quality standards and regulations.
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Lesson 2
2-19
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Notes
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Lesson 3
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Lesson 3
A. RF Acquisition
q
RF Downconversion and Upconversion
This lesson covers the RF downconversion and upconversion process in detail. You will learn some
of the technical aspects and concerns of these processes and how the NI RF platform addresses each
of these. This lesson covers some of the strengths of the NI RF platform and also some of the
caveats with the techniques used. You will be introduced not only the hardware used to do both RF
analysis and generation, but also to the LabVIEW driver interface to properly program the hardware
to perform various operations.
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Lesson 3
Whyy Downconvert?
The Nyquist Theorem states that a sampling rate greater than 2B is necessary to accurately capture a
signal with a bandwidth of B. For a typical WLAN signal around 2.4 GHz, this would mean a
maximum sampling rate of at least 4.8 GHz. Digitizers capable of that rate are usually very
expensive, and not as precise as lower-speed digitizers. For more information on sampling, aliasing
and undersampling, Refer to Appendix D, Acquisition and Generation Additional Material.
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Lesson 3
Whyy Downconvert?
For most RF analysis, there is a very small band of interest around some RF center frequency.
WLAN signals, for example, might be located around 2.4 GHz, but each channel is only
20 MHz wide. To digitize a 20 MHz signal only requires a 40 MHz digitizer, but this is only valid if
the signal of interest as at baseband. A downconverter can be used to shift this
higher-frequency content down to baseband for easier digitizing.
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Lesson 3
Shifting
g Frequency
q
y Mixing
g
One of the trigonometric identities states that two sinusoids multiplied with each other creates images
of the two signals at the sum and difference of their frequencies. Therefore, if a signal of interest is
multiplied by a single tone located very close to that signal, the resulting difference term will create
an image of the desired signal very near to DC. With real-world signals, this idea of multiplying sine
waves is called mixing. The process is not as simple as simply mixing one signal with another,
however. Device nonlinearity and interfering signals make the process more complicated, which will
be discussed in further detail
detail.
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Lesson 3
Shifting
g Frequency
q
y Mixing
g
There are two different fundamental types of downconverters. Single-stage downconverters use a
single mixer to convert to baseband (or an intermediate frequency, called IF). The
NI PXIe-5601 downconverter is a single-stage downconverter. Superheterodyne downconverters use
several mixers at different frequencies to improve performance and image rejection. The NI PXI5600 downconverter is a three-stage superheterodyne downconverter.
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Lesson 3
Single-Stage
g
g Downconversion
In single-stage downconversion, a single mixer is used to translate an RF signal to an IF or baseband

signal. Typically, a low-pass filter will be used to eliminate the high-frequency image that results
from the mixing. Single-stage downconverters are typically cheaper to implement, since they only
require one stage.
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Single-Stage
g
g Downconversion
The NI PIXe-5601 downconverter, part of the PXIe-5663 RF Signal Analyzer module, is a singlestage downconverter. It tunes to a maximum frequency of 6.575 GHz. It has a single post-mixing
bandpass filter bank with variable bandwidth and IF, depending on center frequency:
10120 MHz: 10 MHz bandwidth, 187.5 MHz output IF
120330 MHz: 20 MHz bandwidth, 53 MHz IF
330 MHz6.6 GHz: 50 MHz bandwidth,, 187.5 MHz IF
For more information about the 187.5 MHz IF and sampling rates, refer to Appendix D, Acquisition
and Generational Additional Material.
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Lesson 3
PXIe-5601 Filtering
g
The PXIe-5601 downconverter does not have any filtering before the mixer. This means that all
frequency content present in the input signal gets mixed with the LO signal. If the desired signal is
centered around fc, then the LO is centered at fc 187.5 MHz; the resulting signal, then, is centered
around 187.5 MHz. However, if another signal exists at fc (2 * 187.5 MHz), then, according to the
trigonometric identity, it will also mix down to be centered around
187.5 MHz. These two signals will then overlap, making the acquired signal meaningless.
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Lesson 3
Superheterodyne
p
y Downconversion
Superheterodyne downconverters use several mixing stages and filters in the downconversion
process. The first mixer and filter stage usually need to be tunable; the rest of the components operate
at fixed frequencies. The combination of intermediate frequencies and filtering is selected to
minimize not only signal images but also out-of-band signals from mixing in to the desired signal.
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Lesson 3
Superheterodyne
p
y Downconversion
The NI PXI-5600 superheterodyne downconverter supports frequencies up to 2.7 GHz. It is a threestage downconverter with a fixed 20 MHz IF bandwidth. The center frequency of the
IF output is 15 MHz.
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Lesson 3
1. Open RFSG Multitone Arbitrary Spacing.vi.
2. Generate at a center frequency of 4 GHz and an IQ rate of 100 Mhz.

3. Create the following tones:
1 MHz @ 10 dBm
10 MHz @ 15 dBm
20 MHz @ 25 dBm.
4 Open the RFSA SFP and tune to 4 GHz and set the bandwidth to 50 Mhz.
4.
Mhz You should see the
stair-step down and to the right of the signal.
5. Draw the spectrum on the markerboard. Include a low-side injected LO. Show how that mixes
down to the IF of interest.
6. Now change the generation VI to generate at 4 GHz (187.5 MHz 2) = 3.625 GHz.
7. Go back to the SFP and see now that it shows up reversed.
8 Add the second spectrum to the board and show how it also mixes down.
8.
down
9. Now go back to the SFP and turn on peak hold, then switch the generation VI center frequency
back to 4 GHz. This should show a symmetrical spectrum.
10. You can also drop down to 2 GHz, where LO is high-side injected, then do generation at
2 GHz and 2.325 GHz.
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Lesson 3
Signal
g Power
In addition to changing the frequency, the downconverter module also adjusts the power of the RF
signal before sending it to the digitizer. NI digitizers are designed for maximum dynamic range with
an input power of 0 dBm. The downconverter module must condition the input signal to get it as
close to that power level as possible for best performance.
This adjustment is accomplished using attenuators and an amplifier in the downconverter.
Fortunately,
y, setting
g the NI-RFSA Reference Level p
property
p y automaticallyy sets the level of all the
attenuators in the signal chain to optimize for the best performance.
In some cases, dynamic range can be improved by adjusting the vertical range of the digitizer.
Because the PXI-5600 attenuators are adjusted in 10 dB steps, you can adjust the digitizers vertical
range to maximize the dynamic range of the input signal.
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Lesson 3
IF Digitization
g
The signal coming out of the downconverter has a much lower frequency, which makes it easier to
digitize. For example, the PXI-5600 digitizer outputs a 20 MHz wide signal centered around 15
MHz, as shown above. However, the goal is to downconvert the signal to baseband, which means
that it is a complex signal with a center frequency of 0 Hz. This is accomplished using digital signal
processing (DSP) in the digitizer.
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Lesson 3
Complex
p Baseband Data
Information in RF signals is often carried in the phase of the signal as well as the amplitude. In order
to more easily analyze both properties of a signal, RF signals are usually analyzed in the complex
domain. The addition of the quadrature term turns each point into a vector instead of a scalar, making
it possible to analyze the phase as well as the amplitude.
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Lesson 3
Complex
p Baseband Data
To quadrature sample a signal, it is split and sent to two different mixers. The LO input of
both mixers is the same LO signal but offset by 90, making it orthogonal. The resulting signals are
called In-phase and Quadrature-phase, or I and Q. These signals are then sampled by two ADCs
simultaneously. Each sampled point now has two values, I and Q, instead of one.
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Lesson 3
Digital
g Downconversion
Analog quadrature sampling is difficult. It requires two ADCs instead of one, increasing cost. It is
also very important that the 0 and 90 LO signals be as identical and orthogonal as possible; errors
here reduce acquisition quality.
Instead, the entire process can be performed digitally. If the IF data is digitized at an adequate sample
rate (as discussed before), the quadrature sampling process can happen in software or device
firmware. The IF signal
g can be mixed by
y ppoint-by-point
yp
multiplying
p y g it with a numericallyy
generated LO signal (a simple sine wave). This also ensures orthogonality between the signals and
produces a high-quality baseband signal.
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Lesson 3
Digital
g Downconversion: Decimation
Because downconversion to baseband happens in DSP, the signal can be acquired at the maximum
rate of the digitizer for maximum quality. However, after it has been downconverted to complex
baseband data, the signal can be decimated to a lower sample rate so it contains only the frequency
content you care about. This way, there is less data to transfer across the bus, process, and/or store.
The decimation (and filtering) process happens after the quadrature downconversion in the OSP of
the digitizer.
g
For more information on OSP,, refer to Appendix
pp
D,, Acquisition
q
and Generation
Additional Material.
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Lesson 3
Bandwidth, IQ Rate, and Data Rate
The DSP on NI digitizers implements filtering to ensure that no out-of-band interferers or images are
present in the acquired signal. These filters dictate that for a desired acquisition bandwidth B, the IQ
rate should be set to at least 1.25B; otherwise, some of the desired band will be filtered out on the
edges of the signal.
Each IQ sample takes up 4 bytes in memory. NI digitizers store data as signed 16-bit integers; for
each sample,
p , a 16-bit I and 16-bit Q value must be stored. Therefore,, each sample
p takes
4 bytes.
This means that the data rate in MB/s will be equal to four times the IQ rate in MS/s, or
five times the signal bandwidth in MHz.
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Lesson 3
NI IF Digitizers
g
The PXI-5142 digitizer is part of the PXI-5661 RF Signal Analyzer. It is a 14-bit, 100 MS/s digitizer
with onboard signal processing. It is capable of digitally downconverting signals
up to 40 MHz, but the 5600 downconverter bandwidth limits it to 20 MHz. It can store up to 512 MB
of acquired data in onboard memory.
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Lesson 3
NI IF Digitizers
g
The PXIe-5622 digitizer is part of the PXIe-5663 RF Signal Analyzer. It features a

16-bit ADC with a maximum sample rate of 150 MS/s with onboard OSP for digital
downconversion. It has up to 256 MB of onboard memory. Its designed for RF use,
so it only has AC coupling.
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Lesson 3
NI-RFSA Driver
NI-RFSA is the software interface to NI RF signal analyzer hardware. NI-RFSA is a

device driver with a native LabVIEW API as well as a C-style interface through a DLL.
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Lesson 3
One Interface, Multiple

p Modules
The PXIe-5663 module is actually composed of three different physical modules. In the
same way, NI-RFSA is a single API that addresses the specific drivers for the individual
modules comprising the 5663. It also handles adjusting settings between drivers, such as
power level.
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Lesson 3

p Modules
For example, a PXI-5663, controlled with NI-RFSA, is composed of a PXIe-5652 (controlled by NIRFSG), a PXIe-5601 (controlled directly by NI-RFSA), and a PXIe-5622 (controlled by NISCOPE). When a driver call is made to NI-RFSA to change a property, the NI-RFSA driver calls the
relevant functions in each of those drivers to configure each module. To configure the reference
level, RFSA calls the Configure Vertical function in NI-SCOPE for the digitizer. When configuring
the center frequency for acquisition, NI-RFSA calls the Configure RF function of the NI-RFSG
driver for the PXIe-5652 local oscillator module.
In most cases, the specific properties of the individual modules can be accessed through RFSA
property nodes.
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One Device, Multiple

p Modes
The RFSA driver operates in two different modes: IQ acquisition, which provides time-domain data,
and spectrum acquisition, which provides frequency-domain data.
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Lesson 3
IQ Acquisition
q
Mode
In IQ acquisition mode, the device acquires and returns time-domain data. The acquisition
is configured with a center frequency and sample rate (IQ rate). As previously described,
the IQ rate controls how much RF bandwidth is acquired around the center frequency.
The RFSA driver returns the acquired data in a complex cluster or waveform, similar to a traditional
DAQ device. The complex cluster or waveform contains the following information:
t0 starting time of the first point in the waveform

t0starting
dttime between samples (inverse of the sample rate)
Yarray of complex data points
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Lesson 3
Spectrum
p
Acquisition
q
Mode
In spectrum mode, the device acquires time-domain data, but the NI-RFSA driver performs a Fast
Fourier Transform (FFT) and unit conversion and returns a frequency-domain power spectrum.
Acquisition can be configured with either a center frequency and span or a start and stop frequency.
The NI-RFSA driver can acquire spectra with wider bandwidths than the real-time bandwidth of the
device by performing multiple acquisitions and stitching together the results. Spectrum mode
acquisitions are always immediately triggered; NI-RFSA triggering functions are not supported in
spectrum
p
acquisition
q
mode.
The driver returns spectral data in a cluster similar to the one returned in IQ acquisition mode. Its
contents are:
f0the starting frequency of the spectrum (the frequency of the leftmost point).
dfthe step frequency of the spectrum.
datathe power spectrum, in dBm.
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Lesson 3
The quickest way to get familiar with the NI-RFSA API is to examine an example program. This is a
simple VI that performs a single spectrum acquisition. It is located in the Example Finder in
Hardware Input and Output Modular InstrumentsNI-RFSASpectrum AcquisitionRFSA
Getting Started Spectrum.vi.
1.
Initialize RFSA: The NI-RFSA Initiate function begins the program. This VI obtains a session
handle for the specified device. A session handle is similar to a phone call; it represents a single
instance of communication to and from a hardware device. Similar to phone calls (sans call
waiting), a hardware device cannot have more than one open session handle at a time. Its
important to close session handles when a program completes so other programs can gain
access to the hardware.
2-6. Configure RFSA: The Configure Reference Clock VI sets a source and rate for the devices
onboard reference clock. The accuracy of the reference clock dictates many of the performance
characteristics of the RFSA, such as phase noise and frequency accuracy. NI RFSAs have a
built-in reference clock, but they also support importing a reference clock from the PXI
backplane or a front-panel terminal on the device. Reference clocks are discussed in detail later
in this lesson.
The NI-RFSA Configure Acquisition Type VI configures the device for either IQ or Spectrum
acquisition mode.
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The RFSA Configure Reference Level VI sets the maximum input power level for the
acquisition. This VI automatically configures the attenuators in the downconverter module as
well as the digitizer vertical range when necessary.
necessary As discussed before,
before it
itss important to set the
reference level of you acquisition as close to your actual input power as possible; this
maximizes available dynamic range and ensures the highest-quality acquired signal.
NI-RFSA Configure Spectrum Frequency sets the RF frequency for the acquisition.
In spectrum mode, this can be specified with a center frequency and span or a start and stop
frequency.
The Set Resolution Bandwidth VI specifies the resolution bandwidth of the FFT performed by
the NI-RFSA driver to obtain the spectral data. The resolution bandwidth, when combined with
the total spectrum bandwidth, determines the size and number of the FFT bins of the spectrum.
This dictates the necessary acquisition sample rate and length.
7.
Read Spectrum: The Read Spectrum VI is a single VI for acquiring data, but it actually
performs several steps
p
p internally.
y It starts hardware acquisition,
q
, fetches the required
q
data,, and
stops acquisition each time it is called. These three functions, called Start, Fetch, and Abort
respectively, can be called individually in IQ acquisition mode. They will be discussed in more
detail in that section. As the data is fetched by the NI-RFSA driver,
it is converted to a power spectrum by performing an FFT in the driver.
Note that if this VI is called in a loop, it will start, acquire, and stop each time it is called, so the
data will NOT be continuous.
8.
Close RFSA: The NI-RFSA Close VI clears all settings, closes the session handle, and makes
the hardware available to other VIs or programs.
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Lesson 3
IQ Acquisition:
q
An Example
p
IQ acquisition enables collection and processing of time-based data. Its more flexible than spectrum
mode. This example, based on an Example Finder VI located at Hardware Input and
OutputModular InstrumentsNI-RFSAIQ AcquisitionRFSA Acquire Continuous IQ.vi,
shows a simple example of acquiring continuous time-domain data. The differences between this VI
and the previous VI will be examined in the following section.
1.
Initialize RFSA: Obtains a session handle to the RFSA instrument.
29. Configure RFSA: Many of the VIs for configuring the RFSA for IQ acquisition mode are the
same VIs used for spectrum acquisition.
Set IQ Carrier Frequency is used to set the center frequency for the IQ acquisition. The
bandwidth of the acquisition (as determined by the IQ rate) will be centered around this
frequency. (Refer to the previous section for an explanation of IQ rate and signal bandwidth.)
NI-RFSA
NI
RFSA Configure
C fi
IQ R
Rate
t sets
t th
the sample
l rate
t off th
the IQ acquisition.
i iti A
As di
discussed
d
previously, the IQ sample rate also limits the bandwidth of the RF acquisition.
The RFSA in IQ acquisition mode acquires, stores, and returns samples in fixed-size chunks,
called records. This model is identical to the storage model of NIs baseband digitizers. By
default, however, the device only acquires one record, which makes the device function more
like a DAQ module, since an arbitrary number of samples can be retrieved from that record for
each fetch.
fetch
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The NI-RFSA Configure Number of Samples VI controls the sample settings for each record (or,
in the default case, for the single record being acquired.) It has two important inputs. The first
input to the VI,
VI a boolean called Number of Samples is Finite,
Finite tells the driver whether to acquire
an infinite or finite number of samples. The second input, Number of Samples per Record, is
used only if Number of Samples is Finite is set to True. This input tells the NI-RFSA driver how
many samples to acquire for a record. By default, the driver will only acquire one record; this
input, then, effectively sets the total number of samples for an acquisition.
NI-RFSA Configure Number of Records controls multi-record acquisitions. Like the previous
VI, it has a boolean input to set finite or infinite acquisition, and a numeric input to specify a
number of records for a finite multi-record acquisition.
IQ acquisition mode supports various start, reference, and advance triggers. The triggering is
configured with the NI-RFSA Configure Trigger VI, which is a polymorphic VI containing all of
the individual triggering configuration VIs.
10. Start Acquisition:

q
NI-RFSA Initiate.vi starts the acquisition
q
pprocess. It begins
g byy committingg
the device settings (loading all of the user-configured properties onto the device). If the device
has not been configured with a start trigger, it will then immediately start acquiring samples and
storing them in its buffer for fetching. If the device is configured with a start trigger, the Initiate
function starts the device, which starts listening for a start trigger; once the trigger is received, it
will start acquiring samples.
11. Fetch Data: The NI-RFSA Fetch VI fetches a record or a group of samples from the devices
onboard buffer. If a specific number of samples is specified as an input to the VI, the VI will
block until it can fetch those samples. If a specific record number is specified, the VI will block
until it can fetch all the samples for that record. If nothing is specified
(as in the picture above), the VI will simply fetch all of the existing samples in the devices
buffer.
The Fetch VI does not start or stop the acquisition; the device continues acquiring samples while
the
h fetch
f h occurs. F
Fetch
h must bbe called
ll d ffrequently
l enoughh to ensure that
h the
h ddevices
i onboard
b d
buffer does not overflow.
12. Abort Acquisition: The Abort VI stops the acquisition process and discards any samples in the
devices buffer. The important difference between the Abort and Close Session VIs is that the
Abort function does not close the hardware session or reset any of the device settings. This
means that acquisition can be restarted using the Initiate VI without changing settings, and the
device will begin to acquire data.
data The Abort function is commonly used to enable changing one
or more parameters of an otherwise continuous acquisition process on the fly.
13. Close RFSA: See the previous slide.
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Lesson 3
Infinite Records and Samples

p
Among the many reasons to do infinite acquisition are recording to disk, inline analysis, interactive
measurements, and so on. One common question regarding infinite acquisition is whether to use
infinite samples in one record or infinite finite-sized records. Infinite sample acquisition is easier for
truly continuous acquisition, such as standard disk streaming. Infinite record acquisition is often used
for infinitely retriggerable acquisition, such as interactive burst processing. For example, if a power
level trigger is used as a reference trigger, bursts can be acquired asynchronously but infinitely, and
the q
quiet time between bursts does not need to be acquired
q
and pprocessed.
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Lesson 3
Generation Hardware Overview
The National Instruments PXI RF generation platform consists of three primary generator families.
The PXI-5670/PXI-5671/PXIe-5672 are vector signal generators (VSGs) that use a combination
of an intermediate frequency (IF) stage and an analog upconverter to translate the digitized
baseband waveform to an RF frequency. The architecture uses an arbitrary waveform generator
(AWG) for the IF stage and a superheterodyne upconverter for the analog portion.
The PXIe-5673/PXIe-5673E are VSGs that use a combination of a dual channel AWG to
generate the digitized baseband waveform, an IQ modulator to translate the baseband data to RF
and an LO module to produce the mixing frequency for the IQ modulator
The PXI-565x/PXIe-565x which are voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) continuous waveform
(CW) modules that can generate an unmodulated RF carrier and several basic analog and
digitally modulated waveforms
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Lesson 3
Whyy Upconvert?
p
Shannons Theorem plays an important part. Generating a signal of bandwidth x at baseband (0 Hz)
requires a sample rate of greater than (x/2) 2 or greater than x.
Generating a signal at carrier frequency y with bandwidth x requires a sample rate of greater than
(y + x/2) 2.
Example: signal bandwidth = 1 MHz, carrier is at 2 GHz. Minimum sample rate at baseband
greater than1MS/s. Minimum sample rate at the carrier is greater than
(2 GHz + 1 MHz/2) 2 = 4.001 GS/s. Therefore you would need a generator capable of
generating 4.001 GS/s to produce this waveform, which is not practical. Upconversion is a much
more practical way to accomplish this task because at a lower carrier frequency the data can be
sampled at a much lower rate.
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Lesson 3
Overview of RF Upconversion
p
RF upconversion is similar to the process of downconversion that was discussed earlier in the lesson,
just essentially in reverse. The complex baseband message signal is mixed with an LO at the desired
carrier frequency to perform the frequency shift or upconversion to RF. You will learn this process
in detail in the following sections of this lesson.
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Lesson 3
Direct IQ Modulation
Direct IQ Modulation occurs in three basic steps:
1. A digital or discrete waveform in generated in software. This signal is divided into separate I
and Q signals.
2. The discrete data is downloaded to an AWG which converts and outputs the two I and Q
waveforms as a differential analog signal
g signals
g
are then fed to and IQ
Q Modulator,, which takes the two signals
g
and
3. The I and Q analog
mixes them with an LO which is operating at the desired carrier frequency. The output is the
desired RF signal
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Lesson 3
Baseband Waveform Generation
As mentioned earlier, in the upconversion process starts with a message signal that is generated at
baseband or centered around 0 Hz. The message signal is split into separate I and Q waveforms
which is discussed in the following section, Direct IQ Modulation. The signal is sampled based on
Shannons Sampling Theorem.
Shannons Sampling Theorem
Shannons Sampling theorem states that a digital waveform must be updated at least twice as fast as
the bandwidth of the signal to be accurately generated. The figure above shows a desired 5 MHz sine
wave generated by a 6 MS/s DAC. The solid line represents the desired waveform, and the arrows
represent the digitized samples that are available to recreate the continuous time 5 MHz sine wave.
The dotted line indicates the signal that would be seen, for example, with an oscilloscope at the
output of a DAC. In this case, the highfrequency sine wave is the desired signal, but was severely
undersampled by only being generated by a
6 MS/s DAC; the actual resulting waveform is a 1 MHz signal.
In systems where you want to generate accurate signals using sampled data, the sampling rate must
be set high enough to prevent aliasing.
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Lesson 3
Direct IQ Modulation
I/Q is a common way to represent message signals in modern communication systems. There are two
fundamental ways (degrees of freedom) to produce a modulated wave from a carrier wave. You can
either perturb its amplitude or its phase. I/Q signaling allows you to simultaneously change both
amplitude and phase. Using both degrees of freedom when modulating a carrier allows greater spectral
efficiency with regard to bits per hertz of channel bandwidth (for a given bits per second transmission
rate) than if using only one degree of freedom.
Begin with the RF message signal represented by the equation:
Plug in the following trigonometric identity:

To yield the following equation:
This simplifies to:
where:
R (t ) cos(c (t ) (t ))
cos( ) cos cos sin sin
R (t )[cos c (t ) cos (t ) sin c (t ) sin (t )]
I (t ) cos(c (t )) Q sin(c (t ))
I (t ) R(t ) cos( (t ))
Q(t ) R(t ) sin( (t ))

2 f
c
fc is the carrier frequency in hertz
The real baseband signals of I(t) and Q(t) are created to contain all the information of message input .
Because the carriers cos(c(t)) and sin(c(t)) are orthogonal functions, we use the terminology of
quadrature modulation, where the signal applied to the cosine mixer is called the in-phase component
(I), and the signal applied to the sine mixer is called the quadrature-phase component (Q). The I and Q
designations are useful because the I(t) baseband signal is applied to the cosine mixer,
mixer and the Q(t)
baseband signal is applied to the sine mixer.
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Lesson 3
IQ Impairments
p
The direct upconversion process is not perfect in practice. Differences in DC offsets on the
separate I and Q channels, different gains applied to the I and Q signals, and an imperfect
mixing process that does not provide completely orthogonal carrier frequencies are
examples of impairments that occur. In some cases, you might want to compensate for
these effects and in other cases it may be desirable to introduce these effects into the signals
being generated to simulate a real world channel. NI-RFSG and the architecture of the NI
VSGs allow
ll you to manipulate
i l eachh off these
h
impairments.
i
i
For more information about IQ impairments, refer to Appendix D, Acquisition and
Generation Additional Material. Appendix D also covers onboard signal processing has
additional information about using the processor to generate impairments.
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Lesson 3
NI PXIe-5673E Direct Upconversion

p
VSG
The NI PXIe-5673 and PXIe-5673E are wide-bandwidth 6.6 GHz RF vector signal generators.
Combined with the appropriate software, an NI PXIe-5673/5673E can generate a variety of signals.
With the NI Modulation Toolkit for LabVIEW, it can generate different waveforms including AM,
FM, CPM, ASK, FSK, MSK, PSK, QAM (4, 16, 64, and 256), multitone signals, arbitrary
waveforms, and many others. In addition, you can combine these vector signal generators with
standard-specific software to generate signals for GPS, GSM/EDGE/WCDMA, WLAN, WiMAX,
DVB-C/H/C, ISDB-T, ZigBee, and others.
Basic Architecture
The NI PXIe-5673 uses direct RF upconversion from differential baseband I and Q signals.
A block diagram of the system is shown in above.
As the block diagram illustrates, the NI PXIe-5673 consists of the NI PXIe-5611

RF upconverter, the NI PXIe
PXIe-5652
5652 RF continuous wave (CW) source, and the NI PXIe-5450
PXIe 5450 dualdual
channel arbitrary waveform generator (AWG). The NI PXIe-5652 CW source uses a voltagecontrolled oscillator (VCO) architecture, enabling frequency tuning times no greater than 6.5 ms. In
addition, the NI PXIe-5450 AWG 16-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC) generates baseband I and
Q signals at data rates of up to 200 MS/s. At this sample rate,
the generator is capable of producing more than 100 MHz of RF bandwidth.
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Lesson 3
PXIe-5450 Differential Arb
The NI PXIe-5450 is a 16-bit, 400 MS/s, dual-channel arbitrary waveform generator optimized for
I/Q communications signals. Each of the differential outputs features 98 dB of close-in spurious-free
dynamic range (SFDR) at 1 MHz (without harmonics), better than -140 dBc/Hz phase noise density
at 10 MHz (1 kHz offset), and less than 25 ps channel-to-channel skew.
The NI PXIe-5450 is the ideal instrument to test devices with I/Q inputs or to serve as the baseband
component of an RF vector signal generator. It also features onboard signal processing (OSP)
functions that include pulse shaping and interpolation filters, gain and
offset control, and a numerically controlled oscillator (NCO) for frequency shifting.
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Lesson 3
PXIe-5611 Modulator
Complex Modulation
Complex modulation is the core function of the NI 5611 module. Complex modulation imparts the
complex baseband information present on the I+, I, Q+, and Q front panel connectors on the NI
5611 module to the LO IN signal to produce the complex-modulated RF OUT signal.
RF Filtering
RF filtering filters the RF OUT signal to reduce harmonic content. RF filtering produces
a spectrally purer RF OUT signal, but if uncorrected on very broadband modulations,
RF filtering may introduce small amounts of amplitude and/or group delay distortion.
NI-RFSG automatically selects the appropriate filter.
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Lesson 3
PXIe-5652 Synthesizer
y
The NI PXIe-5652 is the synthesizer module used to produce the mixing frequency for the modulator
to properly frequency shift the baseband data to the desired RF frequency. The module has a very
low retune time of 2 ms typical and has a 1 ppb frequency tuning resolution. Phase noise
specification for the NI PXIe-5652 is 110 dBc/Hz at a carrier frequency of
1 GHz and a 10 kHz offset.
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Lesson 3
Superheterodyne
p
y Vector Signal
g Generation
Superheterodyne vector signal generation uses multiple stages to shift a discrete baseband signal to
an RF carrier frequency. This is achieved by first using an arbitrary waveform generator to take the
digitized complex waveform and convert it to an analog signal at an intermediate frequency. This
analog signal is then sent to an analog RF upconverter that uses
a superheterodyne architecture to frequency shift from the intermediate frequency to the
RF carrier frequency.
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Lesson 3
Baseband Waveform Generation
Baseband waveform generation for the superheterodyne architecture is identical to the direct
upconversion process:
Discrete signals are generated in software as separate I and Q waveforms
The combined signals of I and Q contain the modulating message signal centered around
0 Hz.
Waveform is sampled high enough to handle bandwidth of signal, based on Shannon

Shannonss Theorem
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Lesson 3
IQ to IF Upconversion
p
The signal going to the arbitrary waveform generator is much lower in frequency which helps
increase throughput from the host controller to the arb. The signal fed to the arb is centered around 0
Hz and the maximum frequency of the signal is half of the bandwidth of the signal, so we can sample
the signal at a lower sample rate. However, the goal is to upconvert the signal to an intermediate
frequency, which for the PXI-5670, PXI-5671 and PXIe-5672 is centered around 25 MHz. This is
upconversion from baseband to IF is accomplished using digital signal processing (or DSP) in the
arb.
arb
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Lesson 3
OSP and Digital

g Upconversion
p
The OSP in the NI PXI-5671, NI PXIe-5672 and NI PXIe-5673 is implemented on the FPGA
in the AWG. The OSP is used to interpolate data to the desired sample rate of the digital to
analog converters in the AWG, filter any aliasing that occurs during the interpolation stage
and mixes the data with an NCO to either produce the IF signal in the superheterodyne
architecture or to generate a carrier frequency offset in the direct upconversion architecture.
Block Diagram of Digital Upconversion Process
The figure above illustrates an overall block diagram of the digital upconversion process.
Data Enters OSP
Data is written to AWG memory as separate I and Q baseband waveforms at a sample rate
that is an integer divisor of 100 MHz. During processing, the I and Q data are pulled from
AWG memory and fed through the OSP to the first stage, which is interpolation.
Interpolation
The I and Q data is interpolated by zero stuffing the waveforms to bring the data up to the
100 MHz sample rate at which the data is generated by the AWG.
Filtering
Interpolation of the I and Q data causes high-frequency images to occur in the data stream.
g
lowpass filter to filter the data and filter out the images.
g This filteringg is
Use a digital
composed of two separate digital filters. A FIR filter with 95 taps to ensure that all signals
outside the filter cutoff are adequately attenuated. A CIC filter delivers a wide range of
interpolation (from 6x to 256x) and applies gain to compensate for the FIR filter response.
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Mixing
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The data is now mixed with a NCO with a frequency of 25 MHz. The I and Q streams are each
mixed with a version of the carrier that is 90 degrees
g
out of pphase with the other. The result of this
mixing process modulates the message data onto the 25 MHz IF carrier. These two separate I and Q
streams are now summed to form the final IF signal. The IF data is then sent to DAC and is
generated by the AWG.
For more information on OSP, refer to Appendix D, Acquisition and Generation Additional
Material.
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Lesson 3
IF Arbitraryy Waveform Generators ((AWGs))
The NI PXI(e)-54xx series of AWGs are single channel generators that can generate data up to 100
MS/s. The AWGs have an internal high-resolution clock that can generate arbitrary rates with
millihertz resolution. The NI PXI(e)-544x series AWGs have an internal OSP to upsample or
convert data from complex baseband to IF. This IF data is delivered to the
NI PXI-5610 to be analog upconverted to RF. The NI PXI-5441 has an OSP with a 6.6 MHz realtime bandwidth and the NI PXIe-5442 has an OSP with a 20 MHz real-time bandwidth. The AWGs
also have external connections for triggering
gg
g and clocking.
g The NI PXI-5441 combined with a NI
PXI-5610 upconverter make the NI PXI-5671 VSG. The NI PXIe-5442 combined with the NI PXI5610 upconverter make the NI PXIe-5672 VSG.
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Lesson 3
Superheterodyne
p
y Upconversion
p
Superheterodyne upconverters use several mixing stages and filters in the upconversion process. The
last mixer and filter stage usually need to be tunable because they determine the carrier frequency at
which the signal will be transmitted; the rest of the components operate at fixed frequencies. The
combination of intermediate frequencies and filtering is selected to minimize not only signal images
but also out-of-band signals from mixing in to the desired signal.
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Lesson 3
PXI-5610 Super
p Heterodyne
y Upconverter
p
The PXI-5610 is the three-stage superheterodyne upconverter that translates the analog IF waveform
generated by the PXIe-5442, PXI-5441 or PXI-5421 AWG. The PXI-5610 shifts the analog signal
from an IF frequency of 25 MHz to an arbitrary RF frequency up to 2.7 GHz using a 3-stage mixing
process to filter spurs and aliasing that occur during the mixing process. The upconverter has a fixed
bandwidth of 20 MHz.
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Lesson 3
CW Generation
The NI PXIe-5652 RF and microwave signal generator is continuous-wave with modulation capability.
In a single 3U PXI slot, the NI PXIe-5652 signal generator provides exceptional phase noise and signal
jitter. The following list shows some of the main features.
500 kHz6.6 GHz frequency range
Less than 2 ms frequency sweep tuning speed typical
ppb frequency
q
y resolution
Less than 1 pp
110 dBc/Hz phase noise at 1 GHz, 10 kHz offset typical
FM, 2-FSK, OOK modulation, and output enabled
Modulating waveforms include sine, triangle, square, 31-order PRBS, and user-defined
1020-bit
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Lesson 3
NI-RFSG Driver
NI-RFSG is the software interface to NI RF signal generator hardware. NI-RFSG is a

device driver with a native LabVIEW API as well as a C-style interface through a DLL.
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Lesson 3
One Interface, Multiple Modules
The PXIe-5673E module is actually composed of three different physical modules. In the
same way, NI-RFSG is a single API that addresses the specific drivers for the individual
modules comprising the PXIe-5673E. It also handles adjusting settings between drivers,
such as power level and frequency.
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Lesson 3

p Modules
For example, a PXIe-5673E, controlled with NI-RFSG, is composed of a PXIe-5652 (controlled by

NI-RFSG), a PXIe-5611 (controlled directly by NI-RFSG), and a PXIe-5450 (controlled by NIFGEN). When a driver call is made to NI-RFSG to change a property, the NI-RFSG driver calls the
relevant functions in each of those drivers to configure each module. To configure the reference
level, NI-RFSG calls the Upconverter Gain function in the
NI-RFSG driver and also calls the Digital Gain function in NI-FGEN for the AWG. When
configuring
g
g the center frequency
q
y for acquisition,
q
, NI-RFSG calls the Configure
g
RF function of the
NI-RFSG driver for the PXIe-5652 local oscillator module and the Frequency Shift call of NI-FGEN.
In most cases, the specific properties of the individual modules can be accessed through RFSA
property nodes.
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One Device, Multiple

p Modes
The RFSG driver operates in three different modes:
CWcan set both the NI CW generators (such as the PXIe-5652) and the vector signal
generators (like the PXIe-5673E) to generate a CW tone
Arb Waveformallows the user to generate single complex modulated waveforms
Scriptallows the user to link together multiple complex waveforms
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Lesson 3
CW Generation Mode
In CW generation mode you need to set NI-RFSG to generate continuous waveform that is a single
tone by setting the niRFSG Configure Generation Mode function to CW. Then you only need to set
the carrier frequency and power level for the single tone by calling the niRFSG Configure RF
function.
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Lesson 3
CW Generation Example
p
Complete the following steps to configure the VSG or CW module to generate a CW signal:
1. niRFSG Initialize VIOpens a session to the device you specify as the resource name
parameter and returns an instrument handle that you use to identify the NI-RFSG device in all
subsequent NI-RFSG VIs.
2. niRFSG Configure RF VIConfigures the frequency and power level of the RF output signal.
The NI 5670/5671/5672 device must be in the Configuration state before you call this VI. The NI
5650/5651/5652/5673/5673E device can be in the Configuration state or Generation state when
you call this VI.
3. niRFSG Configure Generation Mode VIConfigures the NI-RFSG device to generate a
continuous sine tone (CW), apply I/Q (vector) modulation to the RF output signal, or generate
arbitrary waveforms according to scripts.
4. niRFSG Initiate VIInitiates signal generation, causing the NI-RFSG device to leave the
Configuration state or Committed state and enter the Generation state. If settings have not been
committed to the device before you use this VI, they are committed with this VI. The operation
returns when the RF output signal settles.
5. niRFSG Check Generation Status VIChecks the status of the generation. Use this VI to
check for any errors that may occur during signal generation or to check whether the device has
finished generating.
6. niRFSG Close VIAborts any signal generation in progress and destroys the instrument driver
session.
i
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Lesson 3
Arb Waveform Mode
In arb waveform mode, you configure the carrier frequency and power level as in CW mode, but you
then also must download the complex waveform to be generated to the VSG. You do this by calling
the niRFSG Write Arb Waveform function and passing the I and Q data from the complex waveform
to the function. You must also specify the IQ rate by calling the
IQ Rate property.
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Lesson 3
Arb Waveform Generation Example

p
Complete the following steps to configure the VSG to generate an arbitrary waveform:
The NI 5670/5671/5672 device must be in the Configuration state before you call this VI. The NI
5650/5651/5652/5673/5673E device can be in the Configuration state or Generation state when
you call this VI.
4. IQ Rate PropertyThis property specifies the I/Q rate of the arbitrary waveform. The I/Q rate
is coerced to what rates the hardware can achieve.
achieve Read this value back after setting it to see
what the actual I/Q rate is. NI-RFSG internally uses a FIR filter with flat response up to (0.4
IQ rate). Given a desired signal with the maximum frequency content f, sample the signal at an
I/Q rate greater than or equal to (f/0.4).
5. niRFSG Write Arb Waveform VIWrites an arbitrary waveform to the NI-RFSG device.
This VI configures the I and Q vectors of a complex baseband signal. This VI has six
polymorphic instances that take as data input a complex cluster, a waveform datatype (CWDT),
Direct DMA,
DMA Complex DBL,
DBL I16,
I16 and I/Q arrays
arrays.
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committed to the device before you use this VI
VI, they are committed with this VI
VI. The operation
7. niRFSG Check Generation Status VIChecks the status of the generation. Use this VI to
check for any errors that may occur during signal generation or to check whether the device has
finished generating.
session.
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Lesson 3
Script
p Mode
You can link and loop multiple waveforms together in a generation operation using a script.
A script is a series of instructions that indicates how waveforms saved in the onboard memory should
be generated. The script can specify the order in which the waveforms are generated, the number of
times they are generated, and the triggers and markers associated with the generation.
You can create a script to manage waveform generation based on multiple waveforms and triggers.
For example,
p , yyou could download waveforms A,, B,, C,, and D into device memory.
y You could then
write a script that would wait for a trigger to initiate generation and, upon receiving this trigger,
generate waveform A three times starting at sample 16 in the waveform each time and finally
generate waveforms B, C, and D twice (BCDBCD).
Scripts consist of five primary instructions: generate, repeat/endrepeat, wait, if/else/endif,
and clear. Additionally, all instructions in a script are surrounded by the keywords
script<scriptname>/end script. Multiple scripts can exist on the device at one timeyou
can choose which script to execute by referencing the script name programmatically.
NI RF Signal Generators online help has further information on syntax for scripts and some common
use cases. You can launch the NI RF Signal Generators online help by going to StartAll
ProgramsNational InstrumentsNI-RFSGDocumentationNI RF Signal Generators Help.
You can find information on scripting by browsing to NI RF Signal Generators
HelpProgrammingScripting Instructions in the Contents tab of the online help.
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Lesson 3
Script
p Editor
NI-RFSG also ships with a tool to help users easily generate scripts with the correct syntax and
functionality they desire called the Script Editor. The editor is an interactive window that allows the
user to build up a script and either copy it directly to their code as a constant string, or to save it to
file to be loaded programmatically at runtime. Launch the Script Editor by selecting StartAll
ProgramsNational InstrumentsNI-RFSGScript Editor. In addition, the Script Editor has
detailed online help that describes scripting in detail.
After saving a script to file, the user can load the script programmatically by calling the Read From
Text File function in LabVIEW.
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Lesson 3
Arb Waveform Generation Example
Use the following steps to configure the VSG to generate an arbitrary waveform:
The NI 5670/5671/5672 device must be in the Configuration state before you call this VI. The
NI 5650/5651/5652/5673/5673E device can be in the Configuration state or Generation state
when you call this VI.
4. niRFSG Write Arb Waveform VIWrites an arbitrary waveform to the NI-RFSG device.
This VI configures the I and Q vectors of a complex baseband signal. This VI has six
polymorphic instances that take as data input a complex cluster, a waveform datatype (CWDT),
Di t DMA,
Direct
DMA Complex
C
l DBL,
DBL I16,
I16 andd I/Q arrays.
5. niRFSG Write Script VIWrites a script to the device to control waveform generation in
Script mode. The NI-RFSG device must be in the Configuration state before calling the niRFSG
Write Script VI. Refer to Scripting Instructions in the NI RF Signal Generators Help for
information about using scripts.
6. niRFSG Configure Trigger VIConfigures the start and script triggers. The NI-RFSG device
must be in the Configuration state before you call this VI. This VI has six polymorphic
instances.
instances
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committed to the device before you use this VI
VI, they are committed with this VI
VI. The operation
8. niRFSG Check Generation Status VIChecks the status of the generation. Use this VI to check
for any errors that may occur during signal generation or to check whether the device has finished
generating.
9. niRFSG Send Software Edge Trigger VIForces a trigger to occur. The specified trigger is
generated regardless of whether the trigger has been configured as a Software trigger.
10. niRFSG Abort VIStops signal generation.
11. niRFSG Clear All Arb Waveforms VIDeletes all currently defined waveforms and scripts. The
NI-RFSG device must be in the Configuration state before you call this VI.
12. niRFSG Configure Output Enabled VIEnables or disables signal output. You can call this VI in
any software state, and it does not change the current state. Setting the output enabled parameter to
FALSE while in the Generation state stops signal generation although generation continues
i t
internally.
ll
session.
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Lesson 3
C. The Importance
p
of Reference Clocks
In order to be able to communicate over a wireless link, a transmitter and receiver must have channel
frequencies that are as close as possible to one another. For this reason, its important that an RF
device is able to tune to an absolute frequency as accurately as possible. This characteristic is called
frequency accuracy.
Frequency accuracy is especially important for instruments. In order to be able to measure a devices
frequency accuracy, the accuracy of the instrument must be much higher than the device to minimize
the contribution of instrument error to the measurement.
To create an LO signal at a particular frequency, NIs RF instruments use a phase-locked loop (PLL)
to multiply or divide a high-accuracy reference clock signal to the desired frequency. The PLL is
discussed at length in Appendix D, Acquisition and Generation Additional Material.
The reference clock becomes an important

p
ppart of the quality
q
y of the ggenerated signal.
g
Any
y frequency
q
y
offset in the reference clock is multiplied or divided by the PLL, and it creates frequency offset in the
generated signal.
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Frequency
q
y Accuracyy
The primary characteristic of a reference clock that determines its performance for an RF application
is frequency accuracy. This quantity, usually specified in Parts Per Million (ppm) or Parts Per Billion
(PPB), specifies how close an oscillator will be to the advertised frequency. The number is usually
large enough to account for any fixed offsets as well as jitter in the oscillator. For example, a 10
MHz clock with 1 ppm (part per million) stability should, at any given time, have a frequency within
(10e6 / 1e6) = 10 Hz of 10 MHz.
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Lesson 3
Common Types
yp of Reference Clocks
Almost all common reference clocks use a crystal oscillator as a frequency source. Quartz crystals
are piezoelectric, meaning that a voltage applied across the surface of a crystal causes it to vibrate at
a very precise frequency, and conversely, mechanical stress on a crystal causes it to generate a
voltage. If a crystal is placed inside a feedback loop, it is possible to use it to generate a highly
accurate reference clock signal.
There are a few ways

y to improve
p
the quality
q
y of the output
p signal
g from the crystal
y
oscillator.
A Voltage-Controlled Crystal Oscillator, or VCXO, can apply a constant offset voltage to a crystal to
slightly change its resonant frequency. This can be used to more accurately calibrate a crystal to an
absolute reference. A Temperature-Compensated Crystal Oscillator, or TCXO, uses a network of
thermistors to apply an offset voltage to a crystal as a result of a change in temperature. Since a
crystal's resonant frequency is dependent on temperature, this can improve accuracy as well. OvenControlled Crystal Oscillators, or OCXOs, are typically the most accurate of the three. They use a
small oven to keep the crystal at a constant temperature.
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Lesson 3
Routing
g Reference Clocks
RF modules offer a multitude of connection options for routing reference clocks. The important
concept to understand is that a device has a single central Reference Clock. This clock can come
from a variety of sources, such as an onboard oscillator, an external input terminal, or the PXI chassis
backplane. This Reference Clock signal is used for measurements on the device, and it can be
exported to several places as well. Some modules can export their reference clock to the PXI chassis
backplane or front panel connectors.
The PXI-5600, pictured here, has a high-quality onboard OCXO 10 MHz reference. It also has the
capability to import the PXI chassis 10 MHz clock as a reference. It also has an external
10 MHz reference input terminal.
The reference clock, whatever its original source, can be exported to two front panel 10 MHz
Reference Out terminals. In addition, a PXI 10 MHz I/O terminal allows direct access to the PXI
chassis clock for input or output.
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Lesson 3
Routing
g Reference Clocks
The reference clock options on the 5663 are more straightforward on the surface, but keep in mind
that NI-RFSA is handling reference clock sharing between the modules. In particular, note that the
Clk Out terminal of the 5622 is connected to the Clk In terminal of the 5652.
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Lesson 3
Configuring
g
g Reference Clocks
The RFSA and RFSG drivers offer API functions to configure reference clocks. The typical flow is
is follows:
1. Select the source from which the module should import its reference clock. The module will use
its onboard oscillator by default.
2. If desired, output that reference clock wherever it needs to go. That can include front panel
terminals or the PXI backplane.
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Selecting
g a Reference Clock
The Configure Reference Clock VI in NI-RFSA and NI-RFSG specifies the source of the devices
reference clock.
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Lesson 3
Exporting
p
g a Reference Clock
RF devices will automatically export their reference clock to the Ref Out terminal. If an
RF module is in the system timing slot of the PXI chassis (slot 2 for PXI; various slots for PXIe
chassis), it can also use the Configure PXI Clk10 VI to export its reference clock to the PXI
backplane.
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Lesson 3
Sharing
g Reference Clocks
If an RFSA and RFSG are being used together in a test, sharing reference clocks between them
eliminates frequency offsets. This improves measurement quality. Similarly, if a device under test
has the ability to import or export a reference clock, sharing the reference clock with the
measurement equipment eliminates frequency offset between the two, improving measurements as
well.
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Lesson 3
D. Triggering
gg
g
The NI PXIe-5663E and NI PXIe-5673E have multiple triggering and options to synchronize these
devices with other devices in the PXI system and devices external to the PXI chassis. This flexibility
allows the NI RF platform to be used for many different applications that require complex
synchronization schemes. This section will discuss the various options to trigger the NI RF platform.
Note Although this class emphasizes triggering with the NI PXIe-5663 and
NI PXIe-5673 the same concepts apply to the NI PXI-5661, NI PXI-5671 and
NI PXIe-5672.
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Lesson 3
Acquisition
q
Triggering
gg
g
All triggering operations for the PXIe-5663E occur through the NI PXIe-5622 digitizer and include
three basic types: Start, reference, and advance. In addition to these three main types there are four
methods which basically describe the source of the trigger. You will learn about the start, reference,
and advance triggers first and then the four methods.
Note Although this section focuses on triggering with the NI PXIe-5663E, the same
triggering schemes are true for the NI PXIe-5663 and NI PXI-5661.
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Lesson 3
Start Trigger
gg with the NI PXIe-5663E
The start trigger is a digital trigger that can come from the PXI Trigger bus, including the start trigger
line, the two front panel PFI lines on the NI PXIe-5622 or from a software command by calling
niRFSA Send Software Edge Trigger.vi from LabVIEW. You can specify to use either a
rising or falling digital edge as the trigger.
The start trigger issues a command to the hardware to start the acquisition process. After receiving
the start trigger,
gg , the hardware starts to acquire
q
data and fill the onboard memory.
y
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Lesson 3
Reference Trigger
gg with the NI PXIe-5663
The reference trigger is a powerful triggering mechanism that allows you to specify how much data
before and after the trigger occurs to return to software. NI-RFSA uses the onboard memory to
buffer the samples until the trigger occurs. After the trigger occurs, the driver returns the requested
number of pretrigger samples along with the post trigger samples.
This trigger supports software, digital edge, and IQ power edge trigger methods.
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Lesson 3
Trigger
gg Holdoff with the NI PXIe-5663
Trigger holdoff is an adjustable period of time during which the digitizer cannot trigger.
NI high-speed digitizers use trigger holdoff to guarantee a minimum time between two reference
triggers. This is useful if incoming triggers are a known time apart and only a relatively small
window of samples adjacent to the trigger are necessary. In this case, setting the holdoff allows you
to efficiently allocate the onboard memory, and prevents the device from triggering on sections of the
input waveform that are not of interest. Each device uses an onboard counter that is programmed by
software to implement
p
this functionality.
y While the holdoff counter is decrementing,
g, incoming
g
reference triggers are ignored. The device arms itself for the next reference trigger when the holdoff
counter reaches zero. Each device that supports trigger holdoff has a minimum holdoff value, which
is listed in the specifications document for each device.
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Lesson 3
Advance Trigger
gg with the NI PXIe-5663E
The advance trigger triggers individual record transfers when implementing multi-record acquisition
with NI-RFSA. The trigger must either be a digital edge or software trigger.
After each record is transferred from the digitizer to the software, the digitizer waits for the next
trigger to occur before initiating the next record transfer.
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Lesson 3
Immediate Trigger
gg
Immediate triggers occur when the digitizer triggers itself. There is no external signal that triggers
the acquisitionthe acquisition simply begins immediately after being configured by the driver
software. Immediate triggering is the default option on NI high-speed digitizers.
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Lesson 3
Software Trigger
gg Method
Software triggers occur when a software command starts the acquisition of post trigger data. When
you call Initiate Acquisition the digitizer starts acquiring pre-trigger data and continues to do so until
you call Send SW Trigger. The digitizer continues to store post trigger samples after the software
trigger, so you still need to wait for the acquisition to complete after the trigger. You can do this by
setting the timeout parameter in a Fetch function to a positive value. You cannot use a Read function
in conjunction with software triggering; you must use Initiate Acquisition followed by one of the
Fetch functions.
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Lesson 3
Digital
g
Edge
g Trigger
gg Method
A digital trigger occurs on either a rising edge or falling edge of a digital signal. Digital triggering is
possible on the PXI Trigger lines, PFI lines, and the PXI Star Trigger line. Configure the digital
trigger using niRFSA Configure Trigger.vi or the NI-RFSA property node.
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Lesson 3
IQ Power Edge
g Trigger
gg Method
NI-RFSA implements an instantaneous power calculation on the IQ data (I2 + Q2) in the DDC and
uses this calculation as a reference trigger for the digitizer. This calculation occurs after the data has
been downconverted and decimated, thus only power within the band of interest is taken into
account. Note that power triggering is supported on both the NI PXIe-5622 and
NI PXI-5142 and subsequently on the PXIe-5663E and PXI-5661 VSAs.
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Lesson 3
IQ Power Edge
g Trigger
gg
To trigger on data bursts, you can set the device to wait until it detects a minimum quiet time before
arming the trigger. For a rising power edge trigger, the acquired signal must remain below the
specified trigger level for the specified quiet time before the trigger is valid. For a falling power edge
trigger, the acquired signal must remain above the specified trigger level for the specified time before
the trigger is valid.
N t IQ power edge
Note
d triggering
i
i can only
l be
b usedd in
i IQ acquisition
i i i mode
d andd not in
i
spectrum acquisition mode.
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Lesson 3
Generation Triggering
gg g
NI-RFSG supports three different types of triggers including start trigger, script trigger, and marker
events. In addition, there are also four trigger methods that include immediate, digital edge, digital
level, and software. The first part of this section addresses the three main triggers and then covers the
four methods.
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Lesson 3
Start Trigger
gg
A start trigger initiates signal generation. When a start trigger is received, the RF output signal begins
to generate. Received triggers are ignored until the niRFSG Initiate function is called. A start trigger
received after signal generation has started is ignored. Configure the start trigger by making a call to
niRFSG Configure Trigger.vi .
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Lesson 3
Marker Events
A marker is an event that the NI PXIe-5673E device generates in relation to a generated waveform.
The event is configured to occur at the time that a specific location or sample n in the waveform
generates on the AWG CH 0 connector. If the waveform loops multiple times in a segment, the
marker generates each time the waveform loops. The following figure shows a waveform being
generated on the AWG CH 0 connector. The waveform contains a pulse that represents a waveform
sample n that is one sample clock in width. The second pulse, the marker event, represents the pulse
that g
generates when the corresponding
p
g waveform sample
p n outputs
p at the AWG CH 0 connector.
Here, tm1 represents the delay in time of the marker event generated relative to the configured
waveform sample n being generated. tm2 represents the marker event pulse width in time.
A marker is configured first by calling niRFSG Export Signal.vi where you specify which
marker and physical digital line to use. The specific waveform sample is then specified in the script.
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Lesson 3
Immediate Trigger
gg Method
Immediate trigger method is set up by default in NI-RFSG and no configuration is necessary.

Simply call niRFSG Initiate.vi after configuring the NI PXI(e)-567x and the device starts
generating.
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Lesson 3
Digital
g Edge
g Trigger
gg Method
A digital signal has two discrete levels: a high level and a low level. When the signal transitions from
high to low or from low to high, a digital edge is created. There are two types of edges: rising, which
occurs when the signal transitions from low level to high level, and falling, which occurs with a
transition from high level to low level. Triggers configured to act on a rising or falling edge of a
digital signal are called edge triggers.
As the following figure shows, an edge trigger could be configured to occur either at the place
labeled Falling Edge of Signal or at Rising Edge of Signal.
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Lesson 3
Digital
g Level Trigger
gg Method
You can configure a script trigger to act when a signal goes below the defined low level or above the
defined high level. Script triggers configured to act in this way are known as level triggers.
Configuring Level Triggers
To configure a level trigger, first associate the particular script trigger with a digital line and specify
whether it is to be active high or low. In the scripting instructions, use a conditional If/Else statement
to operate based on the condition of the script trigger.
trigger The following script will generate myWfm
when Script Trigger0 is active and generate AllZeros when it is not:
script myScript1
Repeat forever
if scriptTrigger0
Generate myWfm
else
Generate AllZeros
end if
end repeat
end script
Note that a level triggering requires the script to poll the condition of the trigger to act on it.
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Lesson 3
Software Trigger
gg
A software trigger is generated internally by a programmatic call to the niRFSG Send Software
Edge Trigger.vi and can occur at any time, based upon the conditions specified in the program.
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Lesson 3
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Lesson 3
E. What is List Mode?
The newest versions of the RFSA and RFSG drivers support a feature called List Mode.
Traditionally, updating generation or acquisition parameters during a test involves monitoring
incoming data in software, then asynchronously sending a software command to change a parameter.
This is computationally inefficient and subject to software jitter. List mode provides the ability to
preload an RFSA or RFSG with a configuration list, which contains several different hardware
configurations, and switch between them with deterministic hardware triggers or hardware timers.
Once acquisition or generation is started, changing configurations requires no intervention from
software. The diagram above shows the difference in the flow of a test; One software call is used to
configure the hardware, and ensuing configuration changes are controlled by the hardware.
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Lesson 3
The graphs above show an RFSG changing power levels every 500 s. The left graph is
without list mode, using software-timed calls to change hardware configuration; the right
graph is using list mode to perform the power level changes. Note that the performance on
the right graph is more consistent and faster.
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Lesson 3
List Mode Properties:

p
RFSA
RFSA supports changing several properties with list mode. The most common are the IQ Carrier
Frequency (Hz) and Reference Level (dBm). You can change the downconverter center frequency
directly using list mode as well. You can change properties for advancing the list, namely the IQ
Power Edge trigger level and the Timer Event interval, in a configuration list. You also can change
the frequency settling time in a configuration list.
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Lesson 3
List Mode Properties:

p
RFSG
The list of properties for RFSG is similar to the list of RFSA properties. One notable difference is
Phase Offset, which applies a fixed phase offset to the RF output. This can be used to align phasecoherent generation channels.
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Lesson 3
List Mode API
List mode programming flow is very similar for RFSAs and RFSGs. After the standard hardware
configuration, the configuration list is created using the niRFSA/niRFSG Create Configuration List
VI. One input to this VI is an array of enums containing the properties to be changed by the
configuration list. New steps are then created using the Create Configuration List Step VI. Each time
this VI is called, a new step is added to the configuration list, and any changes to properties being
controlled by the configuration list (the ones specified in the Create Configuration List VI) are stored
as pproperties
p
for that step.
p Finally,
y, a multi-record acquisition
q
is started,, since data for each stepp in the
configuration list is acquired as a separate record.
It is also important to consider how to advance from step to step. This is primarily handled by the
devices triggering API. For RFSAs, configuration lists are usually iterated using IQ Power Edge
reference triggers or digital advance triggers from the List Mode timer. For RFSGs, configuration
lists are usually advanced by timer events or marker events in the waveforms themselves.
Both generation and analysis require additional hardware configuration for list mode. For more
information, refer to the example VIs located in Hardware Input and OutputModular
InstrumentsNI-RFSA/NI-RFSGConfiguration List, as well as the respective help files.
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Lesson 3
Measurement Time with List Mode
This table summarizes the results of a frequency sweep performed with RF list mode and the NI
PXIe-5663E and NI PXIe-5673E. Compare these results to the sweep performed with the same
hardware operating without list mode. Both sweeps were performed from 400 MHz to 630 MHz at 0
dBm in 116 steps (2 MHz/step). A 1 MHz acquisition was made with the VSA with a 10 s
acquisition time.
Acquisition and Tuning is the total time required for both devices to tune to a new frequency
frequency, start
generation and acquisition, and acquire 10 microseconds of data into the onboard buffer. This is
considerably faster with list mode, because the reconfiguration does not require an interrupt-driven
software call.
Uploading Data is the time required to transfer acquired data to host memory. Without list mode,
this data must be transferred to the host before reconfiguration for the next step can occur. With list
mode,, this can be pipelined,
pp
, because reconfiguration
g
is happening
pp
g without user intervention. The
pipelining reduces the apparent uploading time.
Signal Processing is the time required to perform measurement analysis, which is the same either
way.
With list mode, the entire test is considerably faster, and the acquisition and tuning per step is the
main source of the gain.
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Lesson 3
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Lesson 4
This Lesson discusses the Spectral Measurements Toolkit.

A. Introduction to Spectral Measurements Toolkit
B. Zoom FFT Algorithms
C. Spectral Measurements Toolkit Vis

D. Spectral Mode vs. IQ Mode
E. SMT Programming for LabWindows/CVI
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Lesson 4
A. Introduction to Spectral
p
Measurements Toolkit
This section includes information about common spectral measurements operations such as peak
search, power in band and adjacent channel power (ACP). Spectral Measurements Toolkit (SMT)
also include analog modulation and demodulation including AM, FM, and PM.
Finally, SMT contains a wide set of efficient algorithms to perform continuous and block FFT and
zoom power spectrum.
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Lesson 4
Spectral Measurements Toolkit Architecture
The Spectral Measurements Toolkit, a measurement-oriented API, makes the configuration,

acquisition, and analysis steps of every application easy to implement, while at the same time
internally optimizing these steps. Because the desired outcome of almost every application is
measurements, the toolkit has several core measurement routines packaged into it allowing modular,
highly customizable solutions to RF measurement applications. The toolkit allows you to specify all
your NI PXI-566x configuration parameters using normal frequency-domain terminology, such as
center frequency,
q
y, frequency
q
y span,
p , and resolution bandwidth. In addition,, these inputs
p ((alongg with the
other configuration parameters) are fed into a single VI or function call, allowing the user to
configure the entire measurement in one step.
You can also use the Spectral Measurements Toolkit with any NI digitizer. You can also use some
DAQ devices with the toolkit. The toolkit contains different configuration functions for these
different hardware use cases.
The
h Spectral
S
l Measurements Toolkit
lki configures
fi
sample
l rates and
d the
h number
b off samples
l to acquire
i
based on your settings for center frequency, span, RBW, window, and so on.
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Lesson 4
Spectral Measurements Toolkit Architecture (continued)

Zoom FFT Algorithms
The Spectral Measurements Toolkit is measurement-oriented, meaning the results of an

NI PXI-566x application are measurements, not raw data. As such, the toolkit has routines to
perform a variety of spectral measurements. Because these measurements are based on frequency
domain data, the algorithms that convert the digitized time-domain data to a frequency-domain
spectrum are critical, as they are used in every measurement. The toolkit addresses this need by
providing highly optimized and efficient zoom FFT algorithms
algorithms. These algorithms come in two
formsblock zoom (normal use case) and continuous zoom. When acquiring data in Spectral
Acquisition mode from NI-RFSA, the driver internally performs the zoom FFT using similar
algorithms. The Spectral Measurement Toolkit zoom FFT algorithms are designed to be used with
IQ time-domain data when in IQ mode with NI-RFSA.
Measurement Routines
After frequency spectrum data has been calculated from the time domain data, use the modular
measurement routines in the toolkit to measure adjacent channel power (ACP), power in band
(channel power), peak power and peak frequency (peak search), and occupied bandwidth.
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Lesson 4
Modular Measurements
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The modular software architecture and virtual instrumentation principles of the NI PXI-5661 provide
performance-enhancing advantages over traditional RF instrumentation. Because the raw time
domain data is transferred to PC memory and available in your chosen ADE, different spectral
measurements, such as channel power and occupied bandwidth, you can run in parallel on the same
data set. This capability is in contrast to traditional instrumentation, which often requires one
acquisition per measurement type. Also, if a specific measurement is not available in the Spectral
Measurements Toolkit, you can create custom measurement blocks to fill this need by accessing the
raw time
i andd ffrequency data.
d
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Lesson 4
Zoom FFT Algorithms
After fetching the digitized data from any digitizer or VSA into host PC memory, the next analysis step
converts this data into a frequency domain spectrum. Standard FFT algorithms calculate the frequency
spectrum beginning at DC (0 Hz) and ending at the Nyquist frequency. However, a standard FFT might
not be efficient if higher frequency resolution is needed over a limited portion of the spectrum.
The toolkit zoom FFT algorithms that perform the transformation from time to frequency domain data are
optimized to exclude unnecessary calculations. Because the zoom FFT avoids unnecessary calculations
that are required by standard FFTs, you can achieve very fine frequency resolution over narrow frequency
spans while eliminating the large amounts of multiplication operations and memory overhead required by a
standard FFT.
The zoom functionality is accelerated with the use of the DDC on devices that have OSP. The DDC shifts
the desired band to be centered at 0 Hz, digitally filters the resulting signal to prevent aliasing, and reduces
the sampling rate of the used device to the minimum rate necessary to encompass the desired span
b d id h (decimation).
bandwidth
(d i i ) Because the
h Nyquist
i bandwidth
b d id h is
i greatly
l reduced,
d d little
li l to no software
f
zooming
is necessary to obtain the benefits of the zoom algorithms. In this case, the DDC does the zooming, and the
software performs normal FFTs.
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Lesson 4
Example
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After ppassing
g through
g the NI PXI-5600 RF downconverter,, a signal
g contains a frequency
q
y component
p
at 23 MHz. After digitizing by the NI PXI-5142, the digital data contains data in the frequency span
of 040 MHz, because the NI PXI-5142 samples at 100 MS/s. A traditional FFT requires the
conversion of the entire spectrum from 0 Hz to the Nyquist frequency (50 MHz). The zoom
algorithms in the toolkit do not have this limitation. The main distinction between a traditional FFT
and an NI zoom FFT is that the zoom FFT does not need to begin its calculation at 0 Hz or end the
calculation at the Nyquist frequency. Calculations begin at 22 MHz and end at 24 MHz, reducing
unnecessary analysis time.
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Lesson 4
C. Spectral
p
Measurement Toolkit VIs
SMT Spectrum Unit ConversionPerforms unit conversion on a power spectrum with units V2rms. Connect
the spectral info output parameter of the VI that computes the power spectrum to the spectral info input
parameter of the Spectrum Unit Conversion VI.
SMT Basic Zoom Power SpectrumComputes the averaged zoom power spectrum of the input timedomain signal by using the center frequency and span parameters. The VI returns a real-value power spectrum
in power spectrum and important properties of the computed spectrum in spectral info.
SMT Config Zoom FFTMaps conventional measurement-oriented settings to advanced analysis-oriented
settings for the block zoom FFT.
SMT Zoom Power SpectrumComputes the zoom power spectrum of the input time-domain signal. The VI
performs averaging on the power spectrum using the settings in averaging parameters.
The SMT Zoom Power Spectrum VI uses settings from the SMT zoom settings cluster of the SMT Config
Zoom FFT VI. The VI returns a real-value power spectrum in power spectrum and properties of the computed
spectrum in spectral info.
SMT Config Cont Zoom FFTMaps conventional measurement-oriented settings to advanced analysisoriented settings for the continuous zoom FFT. Returns the maximum block size that you can enter to the SMT
Cont Zoom FFT VI at one time.
SMT Cont Zoom Power SpectrumComputes the zoom power spectrum of the input signal. The VI
performs averaging on the power spectrum using the settings in averaging parameters. The SMT Cont Zoom
Power Spectrum VI uses settings from the SMT zoom settings cluster of the SMT Config Zoom FFT VI. The
VI returns a real-value
l l power spectrum in
i power spectrum andd properties
i off the
h computedd spectrum in
i
spectral info.
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Lesson 4
Measurement VIs
SMT Power In BandCalculates the power in a specified channel or band. The band specification
parameter defines the band. Enter an unscaled power spectrum with units V2rms in the power
spectrum parameter.
SMT Adjacent Channel PowerCalculates the power in the main channel and the power in the
adjacent channels on the right and left sides of the main channel.
Enter an unscaled power spectrum with units V2rms in the power spectrum parameter. You can use
the channel specification parameter to specify the properties of the main channel and the adjacent
channels.
SMT Occupied BandwidthReturns the bandwidth of the frequency band that contains a specified
percentage of the total power of the full input power spectrum.
For a specified percentage,
percentage the upper
pper (fh) and lower
lo er (fl) limits of the frequency
freq enc band (B) are the
frequencies in between which resides (100 B)/2% of the total power.
SMT Spectrum Peak SearchPerforms peak search on a specified power spectrum. The function
returns the peak frequency, magnitude, and number of peaks in a spectrum processed using the zoom
FFT functions. Peaks lying on the boundary of an examined block of spectrum are not returned.
The peak search setting parameter defines the search criteria.
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Lesson 4
General Programming Flow
NI-RFSA has two modes you can use to acquire and process spectral dataIQ acquisition mode and
Spectral acquisition mode.
IQ Acquisition
Because IQ acquisition returns data in the time domain, you must calculate the FFT or power
spectrum in LabVIEW. In this case, you can call the SMT Basic Zoom Power Spectrum VI for finite
IQ acquisition, or if you are acquiring continuously, call the SMT Config Zoom FFT VI outside the
main acquisition loop and then call the SMT Zoom Power Spectrum VI or the SMT Cont Zoom
Power Spectrum VI inside the loop to calculate the power spectrum each iteration of the loop.
Within the loop, you could also perform some of the toolkit measurements such as power in band
or occupied bandwidth.
Spectrum
p
Acquisition
q
When acquiring spectral data, all the zoom functionality is implemented in NI-RFSA. By specifying
the start and stop frequency or the center frequency and span of the spectrum being acquired,
NI-RFSA automatically zooms in on that portion of the spectrum. Therefore, there is no need to
perform the FFT or power spectrum algorithms in the toolkit. The spectral data acquired from the
toolkit can be sent directly to the measurement VIs or to the SMT Spectrum Peak Search VI.
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Lesson 4
D. IQ Acquisition
q
vs. Spectrum
p
Acquisition
q
The niRFSA Configure Acquisition Type.vi configures whether the session acquires IQ
data or computes a power spectrum over the specified frequency range.
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Lesson 4
Programming Flow of SMT IQ Acquisition
Refer to SMT IQ Spectrum for niRFSA.vi from the NI Example Finder.
Programming flow for using SMT with spectral acquisition:

1.
Open a new RFSA session.
2.
Configure the acquisition type to IQ.
3.
Configure the reference level.
4.
Configure the center frequency.
5.
Configure the IQ rate.
6.
Configure for a continuous acquisition.
7.
Initiate the acquisition.
8.
Fetch IQ Data Complex Cluster.
9
9.
Get IQ components and plot the data.

data
10. Plot the power spectrum.

11. Close the RFSA session.
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Lesson 4
Programming Flow of SMT Spectrum Acquisition
Refer to SMT Power In Band for niRFSA.vi from the NI Example Finder.
Programming flow for using SMT with spectral acquisition:
1.
Open a new RFSA session.
2.
Configure the reference clock source.
3.
Configure the acquisition type for Spectrum.
4.
Configure the reference level.
5.
Configure the center frequency and span.
6.
Configure the resolution bandwidth.
7.
Read Power Spectrum.
8.
Read Spectral info cluster.
9
9.
Calculate Power in the specified band.

band
10. Plot the power spectrum in the specified units.

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Lesson 4
Introduction to Exercise 4-1: Resolution Bandwidth (RBW)
As the RBW is lowered, the resolution in the frequency domain becomes finer, allowing the
individual frequency domain peaks to become visible.
Notice that it also lowers the noise floor of the spectrum.
The trade-off is that lowering the RBW requires a longer acquisition time, meaning more samples,
longer transfer time, longer computation time, and overall lower measurement throughput.
One interesting fact is that because lowering the RBW also lowers the noise floor, this effectively
increases the dynamic range of your system. However, this is only applicable for narrowband
signals, such as sine waves, with bandwidths that fit entirely within a frequency bin. Modulated
signals with signal power that spans several frequency bins will have their peak powers reduced the
same amount as the noise floor, leaving the final dynamic range the same.
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Lesson 4
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Lesson 4
E. SMT Programming
g
g for LabWindows/CVI
The LabWindows/CVI API for Spectral Measurements Toolkit uses the same programming
methodology as LabVIEW. There are single function configuration routines for the NI PXI-566x
VSA as well as digitizer-only applications. Also, power spectrums are computed followed by
spectral measurements. Slight differences exist, but many LabWindows/CVI examples are provided
to help jumpstart a LabWindows/CVI SMT application. You can create DLLs with the toolkit to be
called from C++ or .NET.
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Lesson 4
4-17
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Notes
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Lesson 5
5-1
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Lesson 5
A. Introduction to Phase Coherencyy
Some Phase Coherent RF Applications
Phase coherency and phase coherent measurement systems are becoming more common in todays
communications industry due to several new technologies and standards being developed around
phase coherent systems, including Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output (MIMO), beamforming, direction
finding, and antenna diversity receivers.
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Lesson 5
MIMO Multiple
p Input
p Multiple
p Output
p
MIMO describes RF systems that use multiple transmitters and multiple receivers. Related
configurations are Single-Input-Multiple-Output (SIMO) and Multiple-Input-Single-Output (MISO).
Single-Input-Single-Output (SISO) is the traditional RF system configuration that uses one
transmitter and one receiver.
Common MIMO configurations are 2x2, which means two transmitters and two receivers, and 4x4,
with four transmitters and four receivers.
MIMO technology is used in emerging wireless standards such as 802.11n, WiMAX, and LTE
(3GPP Long Term Evolution: 4G cellular) as a method to increase data throughput and link range
without using additional bandwidth or transmit power. Although this lesson does not cover exactly
how MIMO technology as a whole is able to increase channel, it does cover the fundamental RF
transmitter and receiver hardware architectures required to make it work.
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Lesson 5
Beamforming
g
Beamforming is a signal processing technique used in sensor arrays for directional signal
transmission or reception. This spatial selectivity is achieved by using adaptive or fixed
receive/transmit beampatterns. The improvement compared with an omnidirectional
reception/transmission is known as the receive/transmit gain (or loss).
Beamforming can be used for both radio or sound waves. It has found numerous applications in
radar,, sonar,, seismology,
gy, wireless communications,, radio astronomy,
y, speech,
p
, acoustics,, and
biomedicine.
Beamforming can be computationally intensive. Sonar phased array has a data rate low enough that it
can be processed in real-time in software, which is flexible enough to transmit and/or receive in
several directions at once. In contrast, radar phased array has a data rate so high that it usually
requires dedicated hardware processing, which is hard-wired to transmit and/or receive in only one
direction at a time. However, newer FPGAs are fast enough to handle radar data in real-time, and can
be quickly re-programmed like software.
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Lesson 5
Direction Finding
g
Direction finding, or triangulation, is another application that can be accomplished with a phase
coherent receiver system. If you know the phase relationship of three or more receive channels, and
these phase relationships are constant (phase coherent), you can use this information to perform
direction finding.
The signal being transmitted from an antenna will radiate spherically and travel at the same speed to
reach the three receive antennas. If the topology
p gy and phase
p
relationships
p of the input
p antennae are
fixed, the changes in relative phases of the three input signals provides information about the location
of the transmitter. With three or more input antennas and some simple trigonometry, the location of
the transmit antenna can be triangulated.
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Lesson 5
Phase Coherencyy Definition
The terms MIMO and phase coherent are intertwined, yet are not interchangeable and do not mean
the same thing. MIMO implies a system that is both generating and receiving.
Phase coherent describes the relationship between two or more channels, on one or both of the
transmit/receive sides. Two or more input channels can be phase coherent, just as two or more output
channels can be phase coherent. Input and output channels can also be phase coherent with each
other in the right
g circumstances.
At the most fundamental level, two (or more) signals are phase coherent if their relative phases
remain constant over time. Since signals of different frequency have phases which change at
different rates, a frequency lock between the two signals is usually implied. However, the term can
also be interpreted for signals of different frequency whose relative phase remains at a specific value
every N cycles of one of the waveforms. For example, a signal of 2 Hz will have the same phase as a
signal of 1 Hz once per second.
The following sections cover what it means for systems (as opposed to signals) to be phase coherent.
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Lesson 5
Phase Coherencyy Performance Metrics
This discussion uses two primary metrics in for the performance of phase coherent measurement
systems mean phase offset and phase offset standard deviation.
Mean Phase Offset

The term mean phase offset describes the average phase offset, or skew, of the various channels in a
multi-channel, phase coherent configuration relative to a reference, or master, channel. For example,
in a four channel phase coherent receiver configuration, you would describe channels 1, 2, and 3 (the
slave channels) as having mean phase offsets relative to channel 0 (the master).
Mean phase offset is used to measure the repeatability of the channels relative phase relationships
across multiple iterations of a program being run, or across power cycles of the measuring
equipment. Mean phase offset is also used to measure long-term phase-coherency performance, such
as drift caused by relative temperature changes between the different channels.
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Lesson 5
Phase Offset Standard Deviation
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The term phase offset standard deviation describes the short-term variation of the phase offsets between
the various channels around the mean phase offset
offset. Phase offset standard deviation is a metric that can
show how tightly a channel is locked to the master, or reference, channel in phase.
For example, two slave channels could both have the same mean phase offset relative to the master
channel, but a larger phase offset standard deviation on one channel would be indicative of greater shortterm variation of the instantaneous phase offsets on that channel.
M
Measurement
tC
Convention
ti
To calculate the aforementioned metrics, you can capture time-domain IQ data on the various
channels and convert this IQ data to magnitude vs. time and phase vs. time data. The slave
phase versus time data sets can then be subtracted from the master data to provide individual
sets of phase offset versus time data, resulting in one set per slave channel. When there is a data
set of phase offset versus time for each slave channel, it is straightforward to calculate a mean
and standard deviation for each of the slaves.
slaves
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Lesson 5
B. Phase Coherent Clock-Sharing

g Architectures
Achieving Phase Coherency
What makes a set of multiple input channels and/or multiple output channels phase coherent, as
opposed to using the term phase coherent to describe the signals themselves?
When applied to a generation or acquisition system, the term phase coherent refers to the
relationships of the clocks present within the devices. If the clocks used internally for each channel
of acquisition/generation are phase coherent, then their phase relationship remains fixed and the
system is considered phase coherent.
An RF vector signal generator and RF vector signal analyzer have multiple clocks which have to be
considered. Primarily, there are the LO signals and the baseband clock signals to consider. In some
cases, there are digital processes occurring in firmware on baseband modules which make use of a
Numerically Controlled Oscillator (NCO) to time operations. In this case the NCO would be
considered
id d as well.
ll The
Th nextt few
f slides
lid describe
d
ib two
t approaches
h to
t achieving
hi i phase
h
coherency
h
across
multiple channels of input and/or output.
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Lesson 5
Shared Reference Clock
One approach to implementing a multi-channel, phase coherent generation or acquisition system is to

simply have each channel use a common clock signal as a reference clock. A common reference
clock is imported by each of the channels and used as the input to a phase-locked loop (PLL), which
then synthesizes the necessary clock signals (LO, baseband sample clock, NCO) needed internally by
the channels hardware.
There are two major drawbacks to using a shared reference clock approach to implement a
multichannel phase coherent measurement system. First and most importantly, the clock signals used
i t
internally
ll bby each
h channel
h
l are synthesized
th i d separately
t l bby each
h channel
h
l ffrom th
the reference
f
clock,
l k
which means that each channel contains a unique PLL operating independently from the other
channels PLLs. Ultimately, this results in each PLL output clock signal having unique phase noise
performance. This essentially means that the various channel clock signals will have differences in
instantaneous phase, even if their phase relationship over time remains constant on average.
The second drawback to using a shared reference clock approach is repeatability. Ultimately, the
goal is to have the PLL outputs phase relationships remain constant. The aforementioned presence
of a PLL on each channel also makes repetition of these phase relationships difficult. Each PLL
contains a divider in the feedback path, and if the dividers do not have a way of being reset together
or placed in a common state, different iteration of the phase locking process will result in the output
clocks having different phases, and thus changing the phase relationships between the various
channels. Even if the different PLL clock outputs were not exactly phase aligned at say 0 degrees, if
their output phases were constant they could be accounted for.
A common reference clock frequency used in the test and measurement industry is 10 MHz, with
instrumentation varying across the market as to usable reference clock frequencies.
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Lesson 5
Shared LO/Baseband Sample

p Clocks
A more direct approach to implementing a phase coherent system is to share a single clock across all
channels for each function. A master device generates a clock signal (which can be synthesized from
a PLL using a reference clock input if desired) but instead of sharing the reference clock with other
devices, the clock signal used by the first channel is passed to all ensuing channels and imported
directly.
The difference here is that pphase noise on the shared clock signal
g is common to all channels.
If each channel imports a reference clock, each channels synthesized clocks will have unique phase
noise, as each PLL will operate uniquely and independently . When the phase noise is common to all
channels, it nulls itself out when the channels relative phase differences are compared. Therefore,
sharing a single clock across all channels provides the benefit of improved differential phase noise
performance for the system.
Additionally, any repeatability challenges introduced by PLLs not resetting to a common state are
preempted, making repeatability more a matter of cable lengths and temperature, typically a finer
degree of resolution than potentially large changes from a PLL.
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Lesson 5
Clock Sharing
g Architecture Comparison
p
Building a phase coherent multi-channel system inherently involves the sharing of clocks. Sharing a
common reference clock is a more indirect approach to solving this, with a unique PLL for each
channel creating differential phase noise across channels, and possible repeatability challenges. A
more direct approach is to share clock signals directly when possible, to take advantage of better
differential phase noise performance across channels and to preempt any repeatability issues at the
same time.
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Lesson 5
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Lesson 5
C. Trigger Synchronization and Phase Alignment

Channels Not Synchronized or Aligned
Trigger Synchronization and Phase Alignment
Trigger synchronization and channel phase alignment are two additional

considerations when building a phase coherent measurement system.
Trigger synchronization refers to starting the ADCs/DACs on the same edge of the
various channels baseband sample clocks. When acquiring or generating a set of
samples, being one sample off on a trigger event would cause a channels data to be
shifted by one sample clock period in time. Tight trigger synchronization across
channels is usually quite important in phase coherent systems.
Another consideration that is often important in phase coherent systems is channel

phase alignment. Differences in path lengths can introduce relative phase shifts to
clocks passed between different channels in the system. Some systems have the
ability to introduce a unique, artificial phase shit to each channel, which can be used
to align each channel to a common phase.
The above
Th
b
fi
figure shows
h
an example
l off ttwo phase
h
coherent
h
t di
digitizers
iti
acquiring
i i the
th
same sine wave and exhibiting poor trigger synchronization, as shown by the
different acquisition start times.
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With the same sine wave being acquired by two phase coherent digitizers using equal signal cable
lengths, you also see a phase offset between the acquired signals indicating a phase offset between
the two channels. The channels are not phase-aligned, or rather, their phase offset is not 0 degrees.
Some phase coherent applications require the various channels of acquisition or generation to not
only be phase coherent, but also phase-aligned.
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Lesson 5
Channels Synchronized
y
but not Aligned
g
Here you see an example of two phase coherent digitizers exhibiting good trigger synchronization.
However, with the same sine wave being acquired by two phase coherent digitizers using equal
signal cable lengths, you still see a phase offset between the acquired signals indicating a phase
offset between the two channels. The channels are still not
phase-aligned.
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Lesson 5
Channels Synchronized
y
and Aligned
g
The ability to introduce a unique, artificial phase shift to each channel in a phase coherent system
allows relative phase differences between the channels to be nulled out. This example shows two
phase coherent digitizers exhibiting good trigger synchronization and channel-to-channel phase
alignment.
You learned in the previous three slides that after phase coherency is achieved, preferably with the
use of a common LO and baseband clock,, there are often other considerations that you
y need to
account for when implementing a multi-channel phase coherent acquisition or generation system.
Time synchronization needs to be accounted for, with a solution for having each of the various
channels processes start simultaneously with a common trigger. In addition, some applications
require phase alignment as well as phase coherency, implying the need for a method to adjust the
phase offsets of the various measurement channels.
The NI RF platform makes use of Onboard Signal Processing (OSP) on the baseband components
RF measurement devices. These OSPs are implemented in firmware and take the form of digital
downconverters (DDCs) and digital upconverters (DUCs). One powerful feature of these OSPs is
their ability to digitally manipulate the phase of the baseband IQ data they are either capturing
(acquisition) or producing (generation). The PXIe-5673E
(6.6 GHz VSG) and PXIe-5663E (6.6 GHz VSA) make use of a 16 bit register for storing a user
supplied phase offset, providing 0.0055 of phase adjustment resolution
(360 / 216 = 0.0055).
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Lesson 5
National Instruments T-Clock ((TClk)) Technology

gy
National Instruments has developed a patent-pending method for synchronization whereby another
signal-clock domain is employed to enable alignment of sample clocks and the distribution and
reception of triggers. The objectives of TClk technology are twofold:
TClk aligns the sample clocks that may not be necessarily aligned initially despite being phase
locked to the 10 MHz reference clock.
TClk enables accurate triggering of synchronized devices.
When sharing sample clocks amongst devices, TClk does not attempt to perform any sample clock
alignment. TClk only performs sample clock alignment when a shared reference clock is being
imported by the synchronized devices. In the shared sample clock scenario, TClk is only being used
to trigger the synchronized devices simultaneously.
NI-TClk Implementation
TClk is implemented using two LabVIEW or C function calls to the NI

NI-TClk
TClk software API.
API In
addition, no additional external cabling is needed if the modules being synchronized all reside within
the same PXIe chassis. TClk leverages the PXIe trigger backplane to send signals between modules
and make timing measurements in order to complete its synchronization process. TClk technology
can be used in multiple PXIe chassis configurations as well, with some additional hardware.
An in-depth discussion of how TClk technology works is beyond the scope of this course, but this
topic is covered extensively in the following white paper available on NI Developer Zone:
http://zone ni com/devzone/cda/tut/p/id/3675.
http://zone.ni.com/devzone/cda/tut/p/id/3675
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Lesson 5
D. RF Instrumentation for Phase Coherencyy

Two Phase Coherent Single Stage VSAs
Thus far this lesson has covered phase coherency in general terms. The following discussion now
applies these concepts to RF instrumentation, specifically RF vector signal analyzers (VSAs) and RF
vector signal generators (VSGs). Spectrum analyzers are not covered because they are inherently
magnitude-only devices and cannot acquire phase data. Continuous wave (CW) sine generators are
also not covered, only because a phase coherent VSG system is a more complex superset of a phase
coherent CW system.
Phase Coherent VSAs
The above diagram shows a two channel phase coherent VSA system. Notice that although there are
two channels of RF downconversion and digitization, there is only a single LO source, which is
associated with the master, or reference channel. This single LO clock signal is synthesized by the
master channel (using either an onboard reference clock or externally supplied reference clock) and
passed directly to all channels. Note that all VSA channels in a phase coherent shared-LO system
will necessarily be tuned to the same RF center frequency.
In addition, there also is a shared ADC sample clock signal. The sample clock is synthesized by the
master digitizer (using either an onboard reference clock or externally supplied reference clock) and
passed directly to all subsequent digitizers directly. Note that all
VSA channels in a phase coherent shared-ADC
shared ADC clock system will necessarily sample at
the same rate.
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Lesson 5
Two Phase Coherent Single

g Stage
g VSGs
The above figure shows a diagram of a two channel phase coherent VSG system. Notice that
although there are two channels of baseband generation and RF upconversion, there is only a single
LO source, which is associated with the master, or reference channel. This single
LO clock signal is synthesized by the master channel (using either an onboard reference clock or
externally supplied reference clock) and passed directly to all channels. Note that all
VSG channels in a phase coherent shared-LO system will necessarily be tuned to the same
RF center frequency.
q
y
In addition, there also is a shared DAC sample clock signal. The sample clock is synthesized by the
master baseband generator (using either an onboard reference clock or externally supplied reference
clock) and passed directly to all subsequent baseband generators directly. Note that all VSG
channels in a phase coherent shared-DAC clock system will necessarily sample at the same rate.
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Lesson 5
NI Phase Coherent RF Measurement Systems

y
The National Instruments 6.6 GHz RF measurement platform allows easy configuration into multichannel phase coherent measurement systems.
PXIe-5663E 6.6 GHz RF Vector Signal Analyzer
The PXIe-5663E 6.6 GHz RF Vector Signal Analyzer can acquire instantaneous signal bandwidths
up to 50 MHz wide and is comprised of three separate modules:
PXIe-5652 RF Signal Generatorthis module acts as the LO source for the VSA
VSA.
PXIe-5601 RF Downconverterthis module downconverts the incoming RF signal to be

measured to an intermediate frequency (IF) suitable for digitization.
PXIe-5622 IF Digitizerthis module digitizes the incoming IF signal from the

PXIe-5601, and also uses Onboard Signal Processing (OSP) technology in the form of a Digital
Downconverter (DDC) to digitally downconvert (in firmware) the sampled IF signal to baseband
IQ data centered at 0 Hz, to filter this IQ data, and finally to decimate the IQ data to a lower final
IQ sample rate for processing.
The PXIe-5663E also has the ability to daisy-chain clock signals from one channel of acquisition to
another. This feature reduces potential cabling clutter and increases the ease of use in creating a wellperforming multi-channel phase coherent acquisition system. The
PXIe-5601 downconverter contains a buffered LO OUT terminal in addition to the LO IN terminal,
and the PXIe-5622 digitizer module contains a buffered CLK OUT terminal in addition to the CLK
IN terminal.
t
i l These
Th
additional
dditi l clock
l k signal
i l output
t t tterminals
i l ffacilitate
ilit t clock
l k sharing
h i amongstt multiple
lti l
PXIe-5663E input channels for phase coherent operation.
5-21
Lesson 5
PXIe-5673E 6.6 GHz RF Vector Signal Generator
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The PXIe-5673E 6.6 GHz RF Vector Signal Generator can generate instantaneous signal bandwidths
up to 100 MHz wide and is comprised of three separate modules:
PXIe-5652 RF Signal Generatorthis module acts as the LO source for the VSG.
PXIe-5450 IQ Signal Generatorthis module is a dual channel, differential arbitrary waveform

generator. The PXIe-5450 generates (differential) analog I and Q waveforms that feed the PXIe5611 RF vector modulator.
p
the LO signal
g from the
PXIe-5611 RF Vector Modulatorthis module imports
PXIe-5652, as well as the analog I and Q signals from the PXIe-5450, and performs quadrature
modulation and direct RF upconversion from baseband.
Although the PXIe-5673E is a powerful VSG in its own right, it also has the ability to daisy-chain
clock signals from one channel of generation to another. This feature reduces potential cabling clutter
and increases the ease of use in creating a well-performing multi-channel phase coherent generation
system. The PXIe-5611 modulaator contains a buffered LO OUT terminal in addition to the LO IN
terminal, and the PXIe-5450 IQ generation module contains a buffered CLK OUT terminal in
addition to the CLK IN terminal. These additional clock signal output terminals facilitate clock
sharing amongst multiple PXIe-5673E output channels for phase coherent operation.
Note The PXIe-5663E and PXIe-5673E use different RF signal chain architectures and
different ADC/DAC sample clock rates. This precludes the use of the same LO signal and
the same sample clock signal between a PXIe-5663E and PXIe-5673E
PXIe-5673E. In other words
words, you
can share LO and sample clock signals between multiple input channels and/or multiple
output channels, but you cannot share the LO and sample clock between an analyzer and
generator channel.
Phase Coherency and the NI 2.7 GHz RF Platform
National
N
ti l Instruments
I t
t also
l offers
ff a 22.7
7 GH
GHz RF platform
l tf
consisting
i ti off th
the PXI
PXI-5661
5661 RF VSA and
d th
the
PXIe-5672 VSG. Both devices have instantaneous bandwidths of up to 20 MHz. One key difference
between the 2.7 GHz platform and the 6.6 GHz platform is the 2.7 GHz devices do not have a
mechanism in place for daisy-chaining LO and sample clock signals. The LO signals for each device
in the 2.7 GHz platform is generated internally by each device and cannot be exported, leaving a
shared reference clock configuration as the best solution for creating a phase coherent system using
the 2.7 GHz products.
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Lesson 5
NI Four Channel Phase Coherent Acquisition

q
System
y
The above figure shows a four channel, phase coherent acquisition system that includes a single
complete PXIe-5663E (the master, in PXIe chassis slots 2-5) and three additional channels of PXIe5663E with no LO modules.
The additional channels extend to the right of the master channel and use semi-rigid cables to
connect the LO OUT terminal of one PXIe-5601 RF downconverter module to the ensuing PXIe5601 module. Semi-rigid
Semi rigid cables help reduce any perturbations that can be introduced to the LO
signal chain by jostling the cables on the front panel of the PXIe chassis. They are of fixed length
and therefore their usage helps dictate slot placement of additional phase coherent acquisition
channels.
The sample clock signal is daisy-chained from the master PXIe-5622 to the ensuing digitizer
modules via the CLK OUT and CLK IN terminals.
Note More than two channels of phase coherent signal acquisition can be configured with
the PXIe-5663E.
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Lesson 5
NI Two Channel Phase Coherent Generation System

y
This figure shows a two channel, phase coherent generation system that includes a single complete
PXIe-5667E (the master, in PXIe chassis slots 15-18) and one additional channel of PXIe-5673E
with no LO modules.
The additional channels extend to the left of the master channel and use semi-rigid cables to connect
the LO OUT terminal of one PXIe-5611 RF modulator module to the ensuing
PXIe-5611
PXIe
5611 module. Semi-rigid
Semi rigid cables help reduce any perturbations that can be introduced to the LO
signal chain by jostling the cables on the front panel of the PXIe chassis. They are of fixed length
and therefore their usage helps dictate slot placement of additional phase coherent acquisition
channels.
The sample clock signal is daisy-chained from the master PXIe-5450 to the ensuing IQ signal
generator modules via the CLK OUT and CLK IN terminals.
Note More than two channels of phase coherent signal generation can be configured with
the PXIe-5673E.
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Lesson 5
E. NI Phase Coherencyy Software
Phase Coherency Configuration in MAX
The NI-RFSA and NI-RFSG instrument drivers for the NI PXIe-5663E and
NI PXIe-5673E use a single resource name to reference the instruments in software.
However, each instrument is comprised of multiple modules, so you must configure the
hardware in MAX so that the driver software knows which modules are associated with
each other.
5-25
Lesson 5
NI PXIe-5663E Master
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The followingg figure

g
shows the MAX Configuration
g
Tree for all the modules present
p
in a
2 2 MIMO configuration, which consists of two NI PXIe-5673E devices and two
NI PXIe-5663E devices in a phase-coherent configuration.
The following devices comprise the master NI PXIe-5663E:

NI PXI-5662: 5663_LO
NI PXIe-5601: 5601_1
NI PXIe-5622: 5622_1
The following devices comprise the slave NI PXIe-5663E:

NI PXIe-5601: 5601_2
NI PXIe-5622: 5622_2
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Lesson 5
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When using the NI PXIe-5663E, each NI PXIe-5601 has an LO source and a baseband
digitizer module associated with it. To configure the module association, complete the
f ll i steps:
following
t
1. Right-click the master NI PXIe-5601 module and choose Properties.
2. Specify the module names shown in the MAX Configuration Tree for the LO and digitizer you
want to associate with the master NI PXIe-5673E from the dialog box that appears. An example
of this dialog box is shown the following figure.
NI PXIe-5663E Slave
The configuration of the slave NI PXIe-5663E devices is the same as the master with one
key difference. You must select External as the LO source for each slave device because the
LO signal is being shared by all NI PXIe-5663E devices. This dialog box is shown in the
following figure.
5-27
Lesson 5
NI PXIe-5673E Master
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The followingg figure

g
shows all the modules present
p
in a 2 2 MIMO setup,
p which can
consist of two NI PXIe-5673E devices and two NI PXIe-5663E devices in a phase-coherent
configuration.
The following devices compose the master NI PXIe-5673E:

NI PXI-5662: 5673_LO
NI PXI3-5611: 5611_1
NI PXIe-5450: 5450_1
The following devices compose the slave NI PXIe-5673E:
NI PXIe-5611: 5611_2
NI PXIe-5450: 5450_2
5-28
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Lesson 5
When using the NI PXIe-5673E, each NI PXIe-5611 must have an LO source and an AWG
associated with it. To configure the module association, complete the following steps:
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1. Right-click the master NI PXIe-5611 module and choose Properties.
2. Specify the module names shown in the MAX Configuration Tree for the LO and AWG you
want to associate with the master NI PXIe-5673E from the dialog box that appears. An example
of this dialog box is shown the following figure.
NI PXIe-5673E Slave
The configuration of the slave NI PXIe-5673Es is the same as the master with one key
difference. You must select External as the LO source for each slave device because the
LO signal is being shared by all NI PXIe-5673E devices. An example of this dialog box is
shown the following figure.
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Lesson 5
NI Phase Coherencyy Software Overview
The normal NI-RFSA (PXIe-5663E VSA) and NI-RFSG (PXIe-5673E VSG) instrument
drivers are used to configure the instruments into a phase coherent mode of operation. The
aforementioned configuration performed in MAX allows these instrument drivers to know
which modules are paired with each other, as well as which device in the master, but the
actual software application must still program the devices correctly to achieve best possible
phase coherency performance.
Clock Sharing
The most important part of programming the devices to operate phase coherently is to make
sure the LO and sample clock signals are routed properly. The PXIe-5673E VSG must be
programmed to export the LO signal to its LO OUT terminal or else the LO will not be
present for the downstream channel to import. The PXIe-5663E VSA always enables its LO
OUT terminal, eliminating the need for a NI-RFSA software call to enable it. Finally, the
master channel must be programmed to export the sample clock to downstream channels,
with the downstream channels programmed to import a sample clock directly.
5-30
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Lesson 5
Use NI-TClk Synchronization
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NI-TClk should be used in phase coherent applications in order to leverage the technologys
abilityy to pprovide tightly
g y synchronized
y
start triggers
gg to each channel.
Dither Optimization
The PXIe-5663E VSA applies dither to the input signal in a region outside of the analyzers
input passband. Phase coherency performance can be slightly degraded by this out-of-band
noise, so for IQ rates 50 MSPS, a recommended optimization is to disable dither (via NIRFSA) on the analyzer input channels.
channels
This optimization is applicable only for analyzers as the NI VSGs do not use dither.
Master/Slave Configuration
When programming multiple channels of acquisition or generation to start together, it is

important to ensure all slave devices are configured and waiting for a trigger prior to the
master actually receiving the trigger and initiating the slaves. This may seem obvious, but
race conditions in LabVIEW and LabVIEWs inherent parallel nature can cause a master to
send a trigger event to a slave prior to the slave being ready to receive the trigger if not
programmed correctly.
Reference Software
Reference software for programming multiple phase coherent PXIe-5663Es and/or PXIe5673Es in LabVIEW is available on National Instruments Developer Zone. It demonstrates
all the items discussed here with block diagram notations describing what is being
configured. This reference software should act as a starting point for developing any phase
coherent application using the NIs 6.6 GHz RF Platform.
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Lesson 5
5-32
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Lesson 5
F. Phase Coherencyy Performance Variables
Several factors influence the performance of a phase coherent measurement system. We will discuss
some of these qualitatively to aid us in developing some best practices for operating a multi-channel
phase coherent measurement system. When discussing performance, we refer to the relative channelto-channel phase offset standard deviation unless otherwise noted.
Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR)
SNR is the defining figure of merit when trying to optimize the performance of a phase coherent
system. We will find that some the other variables listed affect phase coherency performance
indirectly via their effect on SNR.
SNR affects phase coherency performance through the contribution of unique thermal noise to each
channel. Multiple channels of the same device with comparable thermal noise levels will still have
unique thermal noise contributions, and as signal levels are reduced (or thermal noise levels
increased), the thermal noise becomes larger relative to the signal and has a greater impact on the
instantaneous phase performance of a channel. Since the thermal noise is unique on each channel, it
does not null itself out across channels.
5-33
Lesson 5
Sample Rate / Input Bandwidth
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Acquisition or generation sample rates often influence phase coherency performance via their affect
on the channels analog bandwidth. In digital systems, the sample rate is often configurable and can
increase or decrease the input/output bandwidth directly proportionately with the sample rate. Since
thermal noise exists at all frequencies, its contribution to overall system noise magnitude is
dependent on the channel bandwidth. Therefore, increasing the sample rate, and therefore the
channel bandwidth, adds additional thermal noise to the channel and reduces SNR, assuming the
signal level remains constant. In summary, increasing the sample rate can often raise the noise floor.
RF Frequency
RF carrier frequency can effect phase noise performance through reduced SNRs compared to lower
RF carrier frequencies, all other settings held constant. This is due to instruments, and the
components used to build them, typically suffering from higher noise densities at higher operating
frequencies. With higher noise densities, a given channel will have greater noise power for the same
amount of channel bandwidth and have a diminished SNR and phase coherency performance.
Temperature
Thermal noise density is, by definition, tied to temperature. Higher temperatures create higher
thermal noise densities and additional noise power, reducing the channel SNR via the higher noise
floor.
Another effect temperature has on phase coherency performance is in the channel-to-channel mean
phase offset over longer periods of time. As temperatures within the channels change relative within
each other, the components comprising the measurement channel will expand and contract to some
degree, possibly effecting clock or signal path lengths, and ultimately, the average phase offset
between channels.
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Lesson 5
Phase Coherencyy Performance Plots VSAs
This plot shows the performance of two phase coherent PXIe-5663 VSAs, plotting the
standard deviation of the phase delta (offset) between the two channels as a function of IQ
sample rate (both channels vary their IQ rates together). The IQ sample rate determines the
input bandwidth of the channels, and the increasing thermal noise from the wider
bandwidths reduces the SNR and slightly degrades phase coherency performance.
This test
Thi
t t usedd a split
lit sine
i wave as the
th input
i
t to
t the
th ttwo channels,
h
l with
ith bboth
th channels
h
l iinputs
t
at a full scale level of 0 dBm, the reference level setting used by the analyzers. One second
records of raw IQ data were acquired, with the differences between the two channels phase
versus time data analyzed.
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Lesson 5
Phase Coherencyy Performance Plots VSAs
This plot shows the performance of two phase coherent PXIe-5663 VSAs, plotting the
standard deviation of the phase delta (offset) between the two channels as a function of
input signal level (both channels vary their input levels together). The phase coherency
performance degrades as the signal level, and therefore the SNR, decreases
This test used a split sine wave as the input to the two channels, with the CW source varying
i amplitude,
its
li d andd thus,
h the
h signal
i l level
l l seen by
b the
h analyzers.
l
The
h reference
f
level
l l off both
b h
channels was held constant, keeping the instruments thermal noise floors constant.
One second records of raw IQ data were acquired, with the differences between the two
channels phase versus time data analyzed. A fixed IQ sample rate of 10 kSPS (8 kHz input
bandwidth) was used for both channels.
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Lesson 5
Demonstration 5-2: 2xPXIe-5663E Phase Alignment

g
Goal: Understand how to align two PXIe-5663E channels in phase

1.
Connect the common terminal of the SMA splitter to the output of the
PXIe-5673E. This will be the RF output of the PXIe-5611 module.
2.
Using two equal length (i.e. phase-matched) SMA cables, connect the
two splitter outputs to the two PXIe-5663E RF inputs.
3.
Open the VI titled RFSG Reference Clock.vi.
4.
In RFSG Reference clock.vi, enter the name of the PXIe-5673E into the Resource
Name control.
5.
The default settings will generate a 1 GHz, +6 dBm output from the PXIe-5673E into
the splitter. Run the RFSG Reference clock.vi.
6.
Open the VI titled PXIe-5663 Phase Coherent Signal Acquisition with

NI-TClk Example - Phase Display.vi.
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Lesson 5
7. Enter the appropriate settings into the Channel Settings Array control. This control is
an array of clusters, with each cluster element containing settings for the individual
channels of phase coherent acquisition. This demo uses two channels of acquisition so
there will be two elements.
Element 0 of the Channel Settings Array control corresponds to the master

PXIe-5663E, which is the device physically connected to the PXIe-5652 module as the LO
device. Enter the NI-RFSA Resource Name of the master PXIe-5663E. Also change the
Reference Level (dBm) control to 0.00 dBm.
Element 1 of the Channel Settings Array control corresponds to the slave

PXIe-5663E, which is the device receiving its LO and sample clock signals via the prior
PXIe-5663E. Enter the NI-RFSA Resource Name of the slave PXIe-5663E. Also change
g
the Reference Level (dBm) control to 0.00 dBm.
8. Change the Carrier Frequency (Hz) control to 1 GHz, to match the frequency of the signal
being generated by the PXIe-5673E.
9. Run the VI
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Lesson 5
10.
The graph on the VI front panel displays the phase offset, or phase delta, between the signals
acquired by the two PXIe-5663E channels as a function of time. Both channels are acquiring
the same sine wave, and because both cables from the splitter to the
PXIe-5663E inputs are the same length (i.e. phase matched), the sine waves are phase aligned
at the PXIe-5663E inputs. Therefore, the phase offset displayed on the graph is due to the
propagation delay of the LO signal from the master PXIe-5663E to the slave PXIe-5663E and
can be nulled out.
11.
There are three array indicators under the graph:
Phase Offset ArrayThis control is where a unique, artificial phase offset can be
applied in firmware to each analyzers OSP. The elements in this array are ordered in the
same order as the elements in the Channel Settings Array control, so element 0 is the
master, element 1 is the first slave, etc It doesnt make sense to apply an offset to the
master, since it is the reference channel, so element 0 of this array should either be empty
(if no offsets are being applied) or 00.00
00 degrees
degrees.
Mean Phase Delta ArrayThis indicator shows the numeric value of the mean phase
offset between the various slave channels and the master channel. In this scenario, there is
one master and one slave, so there will be one value contained in the array the difference
between the slave and the master. If there were three channels (one master, two slaves),
there would be two elements in this array corresponding to the two offsets of the slaves
relative to the master.
5-39
Lesson 5
Phase Delta Std Dev ArrayThis indicator shows the numeric value of the standard
deviation of the phase offset between the various slave channels and the master channel.
This quantifies how much the phase offset varies around the mean value shown in the
mean offset indicator. In this scenario, there is one master and one slave, so there will be
one value contained in the array the standard deviation of the difference between the
slave and the master. If there were three channels (one master, two slaves), there would be
two elements in this array corresponding to the two standard deviations of the slaves
offsets relative to the master.
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12.
Click the Auto Adjust Boolean control on the front panel. This takes the values in the Mean
Phase DeltaArray indicator and automatically applies them as offsets in the appropriate
channel OSP.
OSP
13.
Note the following:
The graph now shows a steady phase offset vs. time trace centered at 0 degrees, instead of
the previous non-zero value.
The initial phase offset value shown in the Mean Phase Delta Array indicator is now
shown as the offset being applied to the slave channel in the slave devices OSP.
The Mean Phase DeltaArray indicator now shows a value of 0 degrees.
This alignment procedure only affects the mean phase offset. It has no affect on the phase
offset standard deviation. Phase offset standard deviation is affected by the variables
discussed previously. You can increase the standard deviation by lowering the output
power of the signal generator.
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Lesson 5
5-41
Lesson 5
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Notes
5-42
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Lesson 6
This lesson describes some of the additional National Instruments RF hardware and important
RF Measurements.
6-1
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Lesson 6
A. Whyy RF Accessories?
The following are examples of why a simple signal analyzer or signal generator cannot solve all of
the RF measurements:
Lower Noise Floor of analyzer or generator is not sufficient. The noise floor required to measure a
GPS signal with best dynamic range with the PXI-566x analyzers requires a preamplifier. In order to
generate a signal this small, some attenuation is also needed.
Better Dynamic Range If the power level of the signal changes based on varying signal strength
such as moving proximity to radio towers, a programmable preamplifier or attenuator can help adjust
the power input and output parameters beyond the programmable attenuation of the VSA or VSG.
Output Higher Power In some cases the generator, such as the PXIe-5673, cannot drive enough
power for typical cellular or other high power standard tests. Or it may be necessary to drive the
drive into compression as part of a test routine to measure linearity.
Multiplex Signals to generator or analyzer when multiple antennas are required or if you are trying
to test multiple DUTs at the same time
time.
Better RF Precision may not be good enough with a conventional analyzer. Sometimes better power
resolution and frequency resolution are needed. In this case a power meter is used for more precise
power measurements and a frequency counter for more precise frequency measurements.
6-2
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Lesson 6
B. Preamplification
p
of RF Signals
g
What is an RF Preamplifier?
Sometimes you must measure very low-level signals that are below the noise floor of the instrument.
To achieve the sensitivity required for such a measurement, you can insert a preamplifier before the
measurement equipment. The preamplifier raises the level of all signals within the bandwidth of the
preamplifier. At the front end of the RF measurement equipment, the signals can now be detected in
relation to the other signals in band. In software, it is important to calibrate out the preamplification
to achieve
hi
the
h correct results.
l For
F example,
l if you want to measure a signal
i l at 150
150 dBm
dB and
d the
h
sensitivity of your measurement equipment is limited to 135 dBm, you can insert a 30 dB amplifier
at the front end. This raises the signal to a power level of 120 dBm. In software, you must also
adjust for the preamplification and subtract 30 dB to achieve the correct results.
Note Preamplification is typically used in spectral monitoring and other applications
dealing
g in low power
p
signals
g
from a transmitter source. As an amplifier
p
the PXI-5691 can
also be used to boost the power of the PXI-565x generators to +21 dBm because of its good
linearity performance. The PXI-5690 does not achieve as good linearity at higher power
levels and is often not recommended for generator amplification.
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Lesson 6
NI PXI-5690 and PXI-5691 RF Preamplifier
The PXI-5691 is a 50 MHz to 8 GHz, two-channel programmable amplifier with one fixed gain path
and one programmable gain path. The combined paths can provide up to 55 dB of total signal gain at
2.5 GHz when the two channels are cascaded. Channel 0 functions as a fixed gain preamplifier with
a typical gain of more than 26 dB across all frequencies. This channel offers a low noise figure and a
flat frequency response. Channel 1 functions as a programmable preamplifier containing two userselectable paths. The main path consists of fixed gain amplification preceded by a step attenuator that
is adjustable
j
byy software in 0.5 dB nominal steps.
p The direct path
p gives
g
yyou the option
p
of bypassing
yp
g
the attenuator-amplifier circuitry.
Why Use a PXI Based Preamplifier?
A PXI based preamplifier has the following advantages over an off-the-shelf amplifier.
An off-the-shelf amplifier is typically just set for a certain amplification level, whereas the PXI
solution is programmable and can be set to a direct path for zero amplification with minimal
added noise. This programmability is useful when you have a mix of tests which have different
power levels.
The NI preamplifier noise performance and amplification is very competitive compared to other
off-the-shelf amplifiers.
If you combine the output from Channel 0 to Channel 1 and go to the NI PXI-5661, you can
obtain up to 55 dB of gain, which other off-the-shelf products cannot provide.
The integration is much easier. You do not need to add additional circuitry with the
NI preamplifier
lifi andd you can set it
i up using
i the
h API in
i LabVIEW
L bVIEW or LabWindows/CVI.
L bWi d
/CVI
Most important the amplification is calibrated to a reference and guaranteed level over a period
of calibration time.
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Lesson 6
RF Analyzer and Preamplifier Integration
The NI PXI-5690/1 are analog devices that amplify or attenuate the input signal according to the
specified path and gain settings. It has gain and noise figure characteristics that optimize dynamic
range and sensitivity in National Instruments RF vector signal analyzers. When used with the
NI PXI-566x analyzer, the NI PXI-5690/1 extends the testing and monitoring capability of the
NI PXI-566x down to 165 dBm/Hz. The NI PXI-5690/1 can also programmatically bypass the
internal programmable parts by switching to a direct path. Use a direct path connection when you
want zero amplification
p
in order to reduce noise incurred byy the main ppath circuit. This functionality
y
enhances the testing and monitoring performance of the NI PXI-566x by adding the previously
unattainable capability to shift the dynamic range to easily monitor very weak and very strong
signals.
The NI PXI-5690/1 is designed to be connected to the front-end of RF vector signal analyzers such
as the NI PXI-566x. Connect the input RF signal to the IN signal of the NI PXI-5690/1 and connect
the OUT signal of the NI PXI-5690/1 to the RF INPUT of the NI PXI-566x.
6-5
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Lesson 6
RF Preamplifier 30dB Noise Floor Improvement
The two graphs in the figure above depict the noise floor of the NI PXI-566x RF vector signal
analyzer with and without preamplification. In the graph on the left, the noise floor of typical
NI PXI-566x devices is between 135 dBm and 145 dBm. When the preamplifier is connected to
the front-end, the effective noise floor drops to between 165 dBm and 173 dBm. Notice that the
noise floor of the RF analyzer does not change. The preamplifier raises the level of the input signals
within range. When you account for the preamplification in software, the resulting effective noise
floor is achieved.
Note The theoretical noise floor limit is 174 dBm.
The settings on the analyzers are such that the front-end attenuators are bypassed by using a
30 dBm reference level, and the resolution bandwidth is set to 1 Hz. If you use larger resolution
bandwidths or use attenuation on the front-end,, the noise floor increases pproportionally.
p
y The noise
will roughly change 10 dB for every 10 dB of attenuation and 10 dB for every factor of 10 increase
in resolution bandwidth.
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Lesson 6
RF Preamplifier Shifting Dynamic Range
The dynamic range of an instrument is a function of its internal circuitry. It cannot be increased
externally; however, using a preamplifier with gain bypass allows shifting of the dynamic range. The
NI PXI-5690 has programmable gain with a bypass on channel 1 allowing you to amplify signals
from 10 dB to 20 dB or bypass gain altogether.
As an example, assume you have a signal with a 110 dBm component and a 25 dBm component.
A dynamic range of 80 dB would limit you to just seeing the 25 dBm signal by setting the input
reference level correctly.
correctly By applying a gain of 20 dB from the preamplifier,
preamplifier you would then be able
to detect the signal at 110 dBm. This allows you to detect two signals separated by 85 dB.
One of the pitfalls of this technique is that it can be possible to over-drive the input mixer on the
NI PXI-566x devices if care is not taken. This situation would cause distortion to your input.
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Lesson 6
Programming
g
g Spectrum
p
Analysis
y with NI PXI-5690/1/5
The LabVIEW block diagram in the figure above shows the programming flow for a spectral measurement
using the PXI-5690/1 preamplifier or the PXI-5695 attenuator alongside the NI PXI-566x RF vector signal
analyzer. There is no need to leave the reference open in your LabVIEW application. Initialize, set, get
gain/attenuation, and close to configure new settings. If you are trying to reduce reconfiguration time the
references can be left open to modify on the fly.
NI-5690 palette is available from the Instrument I/O palette and the Modular Instruments palette. Use the
NI PXI-5690 VIs to control the NI PXI-5690/1 preamplifiers. Use the NI PXI-5690 VIs to control the
PXI-5695.
ni5690 InitializeCreates a new instrument driver session and opens the session to the device you
specify as resource name.
ni5690 Configure GainConfigures the gain (in dB) of a channel. Upon initialization, all configurable
channels are set to their maximum gain.
ni5690 Get Actual GainReturns the actual gain in dB applied to the input signal for the channel and
frequency you specify.
ni5690 Configure PathSpecifies the path through which the channel 1 (CH 1) signal is routed. The
main path allows you to configure gain using the ni5690 Configure Gain VI. The direct path routes the
input signal directly to the output of the RF preamplifier. Refer to the Using CH 1 topic of the NI 5690 RF
Preamplifier Help for more information.
ni5690 Get TemperatureReturns the current temperature of the NI PXI-5690 hardware module in
degrees Celsius. If you go outside of the calibrated range of 15 to 35 C you should use this VI to help
correct for its actual gain setting. Depending on whether you go above/below the calibrated temperature
range add/subtract 0.03
range,
0 03 dB/C to your power settings
settings.
ni5690 CloseTerminates the instrument I/O session, destroys the instrument driver session and any set
attributes, and deallocates any memory resources used by the NI 5690 hardware and software.
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Lesson 6
Complete the following steps to run the demo. Note: This demonstration is available only for the
6 GHz course using the PXIe-5663 analyzer , PXIe-5673 generator and PXI-5691 preamplifier.
1. Open Two Tone Signal Generation (solution).vi from the Solutions\
RF Application Development\Exercise 3-4\ directory.
2. Set the parameters as shown in the following figure.
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3. Open Spectrum with Preamp.vi from the Exercises\RF Application

D
Development\Demonstrations\
l
t\D
t ti
\ directory.
di t
V
Verify
if th
thatt th
the settings
tti
match
t h the
th following
f ll i
figure.
4. Verify that the output of the NI PXIe-5673 is connected to the input of the NI PXIe-5663.
g
Generation (solution).vi and then Run Spectrum
p
with
Run Two Tone Signal
Preamp.vi. Acquire some data with the preamp bypassed. You should see only one peak in the
spectrum at about 100.001 MHz.
5. Enable the preamp by switching the bypass off and notice how the noise floor drops, exposing
the second peak at about 100.3 MHz. The Preamp bypass switch on the front panel engages the
bypass relay in the NI PXI-5691, bypassing the preamp circuit when enabled.
Note You could also set the RBW smaller in the acquisition code to lower the noise floor. In
this case, the RBW remains larger to raise the noise floor of the acquisition above the noise
floor of the NI PXIe-5673 to illustrate how you can lower the noise floor and shift the
dynamic range of the NI PXIe-5663 using the NI PXI-5691.
End of Demonstration
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Lesson 6
C. Extended Power Control for Generators

NI PXI-5695 RF Programmable Attenuator
The PXI-5695 is a 50 MHz to 8 GHz, two-channel RF programmable attenuator with one fixed
attenuation path and one programmable attenuation path. The combined paths can provide up to
70 dB of total attenuation at 2.5 GHz when cascaded. Channel 0 functions as a fixed attenuator with
more than 27.5 dB of attenuation across all frequencies. Channel 1 functions as a programmable
attenuator with up to 42 dB of attenuation across all frequencies. You can control this attenuator
programmaticall in software
programmatically
soft are with
ith 0.5
0 5 dB resolution.
resol tion
PXI-5691 Programmable Preamplifier
PXI-5691 offers up to 28 dB of gain and a 1 dB compression point of +21 dBm. Using this module,
you can extend the upper power range of your vector signal generator. Typical maximum output
power of the PXIe-5670/1/2 is at +10 dBm without starting to compress the signal. Typical
maximum output power of the PXIe-5673 generator is also +10 dBm but this is only for a CW
signal. Recommended maximum output power of a modulated signal is +6 dBm before the effects of
compression. The PXI-5691 extends the output power range of both generators.
Programming the PXI-5695 and PXI-5691
There is no current example available for the PXI-5695 attenuator nor PXI-5691 preamp used with a
generator but it follows the same format. You simply need to add it to prior to your call to the RFSG
and it will hold the amplification or attenuation settings on the hardware until you call the NI-5690
driver again.
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Lesson 6
D. Power Measurements
Besides the PXI-566x VSA hardware that was described in Lesson 3 you can also use power meters
and/or power sensors for power measurements. Since the VSA is designed for general purpose
measurements it cant achieve power accuracies like a power meter. The diagram above shows an
example power meter architecture. The NI 5680 power meter is actually a USB power sensor.
A power meter is typically a standalone device similar to a DMM which uses a variety of power
sensors attachments to perform its power measurements. The NI-5680 USB power sensor integrates
the ADC into the same sensor device to consolidate the design. This obviously works well for
portability, size, power consumption and cost. The disadvantage to this design is that it limits some
of the functionality like power ranges, accuracy and measurement speed.
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Lesson 6
USB Power Sensor NI 5680
The NI 5680 is a USB power sensor that works similar to a traditional power meter. It is a very
accurate, standalone instrument that communicates with a PC via USB. The power measurement
capability of the 5680 is intended to mimic that of a traditional thermal (thermo-electric) power
sensor with a wider dynamic range. It is ideal for measuring average power of CW, modulated RF
waveforms such as 3G, 4G, OFDM, and multi-tone signals. Hence it can measure true RMS power
regardless of the type of the input signal. The presence of a micro-controller along with signal
conditioning
g circuitry,
y, ADC,, and power
p
supply
pp y in the sensor makes it a complete
p
miniature ppower
meter. The data display, acquisition and post processing occurs in the PC. An architecture of the
power sensor is shown below.
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Lesson 6
Programming NI 5680 Power Sensor
The above example is a shipping example for the ni5680 that does averaged power measurement.
It takes into account units, offset, and frequency for the power sensor. Zeroing can be done prior to acquiring
your signal.
NI-5680 palette is available from the Instrument I/O palette and the Modular Instruments palette. Use the
NI PXI-5680 VIs to control the NI PXI-5680 power sensor.
ni5680 InitializeCreates a new instrument driver session and opens the session to the device you
specify as resource name.
ni5680 Configure Configuration Frequency
Frequency This VI specifies the input frequency in Hertz
Hertz. The
instrument uses this value to provide a correction factor for the instrument.
ni5680 Configure Averaging CountSets the number of samples the instrument takes before the
measurement is complete
ni5680 Configure OffsetSets the offset to be made to the acquired measurement in units
of dB
ni5680 ZeroPerforms a zero correction on the selected channel
ni5680 ReadHigh
g level VI that initiates a session to the instrument,, waits until the ppower meter has
returned to an idle state and returns the result of the measurement
ni5680 CloseTerminates the instrument I/O session, destroys the instrument driver session and any set
attributes, and deallocates any memory resources used by the NI 5680 hardware and software.
ni5680 Property NodeCalls any VI in the form of a property node
ni5680 Low Level VIsPerforms the same measurement calls as the ni5680 Read but it breaks these
down for faster execution of measurements
Refer to the NI 5680 RF Preamplifier Help for more information.
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Lesson 6
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Lesson 6
E. Frequency
q
y Counting
g
Frequency counting can be important for different test scenarios in RF. Calibration may be necessary
for validation or even for manufacturing test. Validation may be needed for the local oscillator and
more accuracy is required than a simple peak frequency measurement.
The PXI-566x vector signal analyzers can measure frequency two different ways. The first method is
to use the Peak Detection VI that is part of the Spectral Measurements Toolkit. This provides a rough
order of magnitude of the frequency of the desired peak. The second method can zoom into the
signal bby using
sing a phase meas
measurement
rement method of the signal
signal. B
By meas
measuring
ring phase you
o can meas
measure
re
within the period of the desired RF signal and hence can achieve a sub Hertz resolution. The
disadvantage of the second method is that you need an approximation of your desired frequency for
this to work. In other words to measure an arbitrary frequency you will need to do this in two steps.
First use the peak search to find the primary carrier frequency and then once found use this frequency
with the phase measurement method.
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Lesson 6
Frequency
q
y Counting
g with PXI-566x
1. Connect an SMA cable between the PXIe-5663E and PXIe-5673E.
2. Launch MAX and generate a 1 GHz signal with 20 dBm output power. Use the Test Panel
feature for the PXIe-5673E. GE
3. Open SMT Peak Search for niRFSA from the Exercises directory. Run the VI. You
should see something similar to the following figure.
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4. Pay attention to the frequency and notice the accuracy of the frequency. To what level of
accuracy does
d
it reportt frequency?
f
?H
Hz?? 100 Hz?
H ?
5. Close this VI but leave running the session in MAX.
6. Open and run the MT niRFSA Frequency Counter PLL example located in the Exercises
directory. You should see something similar to the following figure.
7. Notice the difference in the accuracy. Even though you are using the same hardware you are
using two different methods of calculating frequency. The first method is FFT based and is
intended for general peak search. The second method uses the PLL method to find phase (and
not jjust frequency)
q
y) in order to better interpret
p the frequency.
q
y The accuracy
y can be further
improved if you reference a better clock source like an OCXO since the PXIe-5663E uses a
VCO based clock. NI provides different OCXO boards such as the PXI-6672 and PXIe-6672.
8. When you are finished stop the session in MAX and close it. You should also stop the VI and
close it.
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Lesson 6
F. RF Switching
g
RF switching can be very practical when you are trying to work with multiple RF signals and the
cost or size of the RF hardware is prohibitive. Switching can offer also a more organized way to
integrated antennas, interfaces and cabling into a single system. The disadvantage is that it can
add complexity to the system. This section talks about RF switching options offered by
National Instruments.
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Lesson 6
Switch Selection Affects Performance
There are many characteristics of an RF switch that affect its performance and application. The
following characteristics are key considerations in RF switching.
Characteristic impedance is based on the physical properties of a transmission line (any signal
path such as cabling or switching). Matching the impedance of the system results in maximum
power transfer from source to load.
Insertion Loss is the power put into one side of a switch that never makes it to the other side.
VSWR / Return Loss is a scalar characteristic that is a measure of how well the characteristic
impedance of a switch is matched to the source and load terminations.
Crosstalk is when an unwanted signal is coupled from one circuit to another.
Isolation is the ability to keep a signal on an unused channel from appearing on an active,
terminated channel.
Propagation Delay is how long it takes an incident wave to propagate through a switch.
Relay Lifetime is the number of times a switch can be used before performance may not meet
published specifications.
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Lesson 6
RF Switches
The National Instruments RF switch modules are ideal for expanding the channel count or increasing
the flexibility of systems with signal bandwidths greater than 10 MHz. Available PXI and SCXI
NI switch module configurations include high-density multiplexers, dimensionally flexible sparse
matrices, and general-purpose relays. NI has optimized each of these modules for minimal insertion
loss, reflection, and crosstalk, and maximum isolation between channels.
A sparse matrix is different than a true matrix in that you can only make one row-column connection
at a time.
time
Refer to ni.com/switches for a complete guide to National Instruments RF switches.
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Lesson 6
Microwave Switches
There are four main microwave RF switches which are rated to 26.5 GHz. Each of these switches
uses Radiall cans.
All RF and microwave switches have an EERPOM which tracks the number of switch contacts for
the electromechanical switches. This can accessed programatically in the NI-SWITCH API. This
helps the user track the useful life of the RF switch before needing to replace the relay components.
Since the EERPOM tracks this the switch will carry this information from system to system.
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Lesson 6
Configuration and Debugging in MAX
MAX provides configuration and interactive debug panels for all National Instruments switches.
Right-click the switch under Devices and Interfaces to open the Switch Soft Front Panel for the
switch.
The debug utility allows you to easily make and break relay connections for multiplexers, matrices,
and general purpose switch modules.
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Lesson 6
Programming Immediate Mode Switching
The LabVIEW block diagram in the figure above shows the programming flow for a immediate
mode switching for multiplexer switches. All RF switches are electromechanical and use immediate
mode switching in this same fashion.
Programming with the NI-SWITCH API
Use the NI-SWITCH VIs in the figure above to control NI switches in immediate mode. Immediate
mode is set up without loading a scanning list into the switch onboard memory. Immediate mode is
i
intended
d d for
f spontaneous switch
i h connections.
i
Use the NI-SWITCH VIs in the following order while using immediate mode.
niSwitch Initialize With TopologyReturns a session handle used to identify the switch
module in all subsequent NI-SWITCH calls and sets the topology of the switch module.
niSwitch Connect ChannelsCreates a path between channel 1 and channel 2.
niSwitch Disconnect ChannelsBreaks the path between two channels created with niSwitch
C
Connect
Ch
Channels
l or niSwitch
iS i h Set
S P
Path.
h
niSwitch CloseCloses the session to NI-SWITCH.
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Lesson 6
Complete the following steps to run the demo.
1. Open Filter Frequency Response.vi from the Exercises\RF Application

Development\Demonstrations\ directory.
2. Make sure the parameters on the front panel match the following figure.
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3. This example uses the NI PXI-2596 26.5 GHz switch to switch the VSG between two different
filters (highpass and lowpass). Ensure that the highpass filter is connected between channel 6 of
both the A and B banks of the switch and that the lowpass filter is connected between channel 3
of the A and B banks. ComA should be connected to the output of the VSG and ComB should be
connected to the input of the VSA.
4. Run the demo. For the first few seconds, the system runs through a calibration procedure to
remove any insertion loss due to the switch. After the calibration procedure is complete, the VI
plots the response for the highpass filter and then the lowpass filter.
5. Open the block diagram and show the students how the switch API controls the NI PXI-2596
during the test process.
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Lesson 6
Summaryy
Preamplification increases the sensitivity of RF analyzers. This sensitivity enables analyzers to

measure signals that are below the instruments noise floor. Refer to ni.com/rf for more
information on the NI PXI-5690 and PXI-5691.
Power can further controlled with the generators by using either a preamplifier like the PXI-5691 or
an attenuator like the PXI-5695.
Power measurements are extremely important for RF test. Although the PXI-566x can perform
power measurements in some cases you need a power meter to get better accuracy. The trade off is
speed and measurement of low power level signals (less than -50 dB).
Frequency counting can be achieved with the PXI-5661 by using some new VIs for frequency
counting. The advantage of this method for measurements is speed and accuracy.
Switching delivers the ability to connect a very high number of channels to a few test instruments,
thereby reducing the cost of building an automated test system. Use switching for sharing instrument
ports testing multiple units
ports,
units, or simply automating the testing process
process. Refer to ni.com/switches
for more information on switches.
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Lesson 6
NI Switch Executive Automated Test Platform
National Instruments Switch Executive (NISE) is an intelligent switch management and

routing application that simplifies switch system configuration and increases test
performance, ultimately lowering cost to test. The main components of NI Switch Executive
are the engine, the virtual devices in MAX, an IVI-C compliant switch driver such as
NI-SWITCH, and an API to control and automate configuration and switching.
NISE Virtual Devices contain all necessary switch configurations for a system. These
configurations include routes
routes, route groups
groups, and RF calibration constants on a per route or
per route group basis, as well as connection information. This information allows you to
programmatically switch RF paths and obtain the predetermined path loss of that path.
The NISE Engine is responsible for creating the NISE Virtual Device configurations. It
exposes the editor used in MAX and exports the NISE API giving access to an NISE Virtual
Device and control of IVI switches.
Because all the necessary switch configurations are self-contained in a virtual device located
in MAX, it is easy to maintain the switch system. Because you can access this configuration
in MAX using a high-level system API, you can make your test programming reusable by
modifying the switch configuration through the NISE MAX interface without changing your
test module programming.
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Lesson 6
NI Switch Executive Reusability, Simple Maintenance, and System Flexibility
NI Switch Executive offers many benefits in switch system development. The following list provides
an overview of some of the high-level features.
Rapid switch system development
Channel naming (aliasing)
Visual route editor
Automatic channel routing
Validation and Reporting for system verification
Reusability by abstracting low-level switch programming details
All switch configurations are developed in NI Switch Executive
System-level application programming interface for test modules
Integration into test software framework for pre- and post-test module switching (test
modules
d l contain
t i no switch
it h programming)
i )
Simple maintenance by allowing low-level switch system reconfiguration while maintaining

high-level switch system programming interface
All switch configuration occurs in NI Switch Executive; not the test module
System flexibility by using a common test platform in design and manufacturing
Subset of validation tests performed in manufacturing
Multiple product families and models tested
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Lesson 6
NI Switch Executive Routing Editor
The NI Switch Executive routing editor allows you to create and configure routes and route groups.
These routes and route groups can be called from any programming language or test executive such
as TestStand. You can store RF parameters and calibration constants on a per route or per route
group basis. You also have programmatic access to these values for measurement calculations. The
visual routing editor helps you create a path from input to output in complex systems, matrices or
sparse matrices in RF applications. The routing editor also gives you path validation to confirm a
pproper
p route and to also make sure that path
p pparameters are verified and valid for the type
yp of input
p
signal.
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Lesson 7
This lesson describes how to calibrate a full RF system using National Instruments RF hardware and
covers the following topics.
A. Introduction to System Calibration
B. Simple Approach Using Signal Analyzer
C. Improved Approach using Inline Attenuator
D. Advanced RF System Calibration Procedure
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Lesson 7
A. Introduction to System
y
Calibration
In an environment where convergence has increased, the testing coverage needed for an individual
RF device during characterization, verification, validation and manufacturing test, both test speed
and measurement accuracy are being pushed to achieve better results across larger numbers of test
stations over longer periods of time.
Test speed and measurement accuracy are normally conflicting goals. This is certainly the case when
making RF power measurements. Better power measurement accuracy and repeatability typically
req ires longer test times due
requires
d e to differing instrumentation
instr mentation (that is,
is use
se of a power
po er meter vs.
s a signal
analyzer) or measurement settings (that is, averaging), and test times are often reduced at the expense
of power measurement accuracy to increase throughput.
It is assumed that all measurement instruments that are used have been calibrated with their
manufacturer or according to their standards. However, every time we add anything external to the
instrument such as cables, attenuators, amplifiers, switches, etc. We are changing the RF system
environment. In order to achieve accurate measurements, a system calibration is performed.
This calibration (also referred as characterization) compensates for any loss in any of the parts that
compose the system.
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For example, if there is a 10 dB attenuator before the analyzer, all our measurements will be off by
10 dB. However, the attenuator and cables that connect to the analyzer are not perfect and they do
not have the same loss across all frequencies
frequencies. The system calibration procedure helps to measure the
precise offsets at different frequencies to compensate correctly the measurements.
The goal of this lesson is to provide the procedure you will use to perform system calibration and
therefore improve overall system accuracy.
The calibration procedure uses minimal hardware and therefore it can be easily implemented
in multiple measurement benches or stations across manufacturing or verification laboratories. It has
also been automated for fastest results.
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Lesson 7
Initial Test Setup

p Scenario
For the context of this lesson, we assume to have an RF signal generator directly connected to a
UUT using a high quality cable with small loss. The output of the UUT is connected to the RF signal
analyzer also using a small loss cable. This type of setups is typical for stimulus response type of
UUT.
Even if the cable loss is small, it is normal to measure this loss to make sure the measurements are
correct. There are several methods to do this and we will talk about them on the following sections.
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Lesson 7
B. Simple
p Calibration Using
g Signal
g Analyzer
y
In this setup, the user directly connects the RF signal generator to the unit under tests RF port. An
expensive, low-loss coaxial cable is often used, but there is still a loss associated with the cable that
is a function of frequency, Lc(f). In order to present a consistent signal level over frequency to the
unit under tests RF port, Prx, the output signal level of the RF signal generator, Psg, is programmed
as Psg = Prx + Lc(f).
Although an ideal situation with minimal RF connections, there are many pitfalls associated with this
setup.
set
p A considerable source
so rce of error comes from the RF signal generators ooutput
tp t uncertainty,
ncertaint
especially at low RF signal levels.
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Lesson 7
Simple
p Calibration Drawbacks
There are some limitations associated with the generators ability to meet stated performance. Many
generators data sheets specify ambient temperature ranges that the generator must be operating
within to achieve stated accuracy performance. These ranges are typically a small window of
temperature deviations from room temperature (25 C). Given typical manufacturing environment
with poor HVAC systems and seasonal temperature changes, it is plausible for the temperature to
vary +10o C.
The direct connection was made using either the transmit cable or the receive cable and therefore one
of the cable losses is not considered.
Another inherent problem with the setup is matching of all the impedances present in the system.
Mismatch errors are always an important source of error in RF power measurements, and typically
are the largest contributor of error. The following discussion of mismatch errors makes the following
assumptions:
Return loss of cables and adapters is insignificant (that is, only the VSWR of RF signal
generator and UUT will be considered).
The mismatch error of the power measurement to the power head is ignored since power sensors
normally have return loss better than 25 dB. This overall contribution will be very small
compared to the mismatch error between the RF generator and the UUT.
The reflection coefficient specified for the Rhode & Schwarz SMIQ for f > 2.0 GHz is less than
2.0 while the National Instruments PXIe-5673 is specified as 1.9 for output levels < 10 dBm.
For this discussion
discussion, a reflection coefficient of 11.9
9 is used
used.
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Lesson 7
Impedance
p
Mismatch Example
p
UUTs often have poor VSWR. For this example, assume a UUT VSWR of 2.5. In calculating the
mismatch error, refer to Figure 3. Using the prior assumptions, the mismatch uncertainties between
reference planes A0 (VSWR = 1.9) and B0 (VSWR = 2.5).
Therefore, the uncertainty due to poor impedance matching is on the order of +1.1 dB.
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Lesson 7
C. Improvement
p
Using
g Inline Attenuation
Now consider the setup which adds an attenuator with a frequency dependent loss La(f) to the signal
chain. The attenuation is often located near or directly attached to the UUTs RF port to reduce the
return loss.
The following discussion of mismatch errors makes the following assumptions:
A good quality SMA attenuator is used with a return loss of 30 dB.
The mismatch error of the p

power measurement to the ppower head is ignored
g
since ppower sensors
normally have return loss better than 26 dB. The overall contribution will be very small
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Lesson 7
Reduced Mismatch Uncertaintyy Using

g Padding
g
The attenuator improves the VSWR seen from A1 as much as the VSWR of the attenuator itself.
Using two port analysis for the generator and attenuator circuit and applying Masons gain rule:
A1,dB = S22 + (S12S21 A0)/(1-S11 A0)
p
,
Makingg the followingg assumptions,
S11 A0 << 1
S22 << S12S21 A0
S12 = S21 = Attenuation
The
h equation
i basically
b i ll reduces
d
the
h reflected
fl
d waveform
f
by
b the
h attenuation
i level
l l two times:
i
A1,dB = Attenuation + Attenuation + SG,dB
Using an attenuator of 6 dB (VSWRatt = 1.05), the VSWRSG = 1.92 becomes VSWReq = 1.23.
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Lesson 7
Reduced Mismatch Uncertaintyy ((continued))
The graph shows how the mismatch uncertainty is reduced by using different attenuators and
different load VSWRs.
The more attenuation is added, the less uncertainty is in the measurement. However, some
application require generating at high power levels and therefore cannot afford that much
attenuation.
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Lesson 7
D. Advanced Calibration Using

g Power Meter
Having shown the reduction of measurement uncertainty provided by adding an attenuator to the signal chain,
we turn our attention to the measurement instrumentation. Power meters have better power measurement
accuracy than signal or spectrum analyzers, but typically do not have measurement ranges that extend below
40 dBm. Signal analyzers have the ability to measure much lower power signals
(< 100 dBm), but usually suffer from degraded accuracy at these low levels.
The implications of these facts are that if an RF measurement system is needed to generate and measure both
low and high power signals and responses, a user is placed in a quandary. For example, assume the UUT has
power level test points of 30 dBm and 100 dBm. A user can calibrate out the amplitude uncertainty of the
generator and the cable loss using a power meter attached to the generator output via the signal cable, with a
test point of 40 dBm. This effectively transfers the accuracy of the power meter to the signal generator,
assuming the generator configuration stays the same (i.e. same power level, same frequency, no attenuator
switches, and so on.) The accuracy and cable loss error can be compensated for in the signal generator output,
and a 60 dBm attenuator placed at the UUT input, which would provide a calibrated signal stimulus of 100
dBm at the UUT input.
However to generate 30
However,
30 dBm at the UUT input would require the signal generator to output roughly +30
dBm, a level not typically achievable without external amplification, adding more complexity to the system
and system uncertainty. The limited ability of power meters to measure low power signals creates dynamic
range challenges for systems that need accurate power generation and measurement at low and high power
levels, assuming a large fixed attenuator is used inline.
Before detailing an advanced calibration procedure which will allow users to transfer a power meters
accuracy to both a signal generator and signal analyzer across a wide dynamic range using small attenuation
values, we begin with an analysis of power meter measurement uncertainty as a foundation for future
assertions.
i
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Lesson 7
Power Meter Measurement Uncertainty
Critical to any calibration process involving a power meter is the understanding of the total
measurement uncertainty of the power meter reading. This section discusses the variables that
comprise power meter measurement uncertainty, highlighting those of most import. For example
purposes, a National Instruments USB-5680 power meter will be highlighted, though the concepts
discussed extend to other power meters as well. For a complete analysis of
NI USB-5680 uncertainty, as well as a link to a software tool for calculating USB-5680
measurement uncertainty
y refer to the USB-5680 uncertaintyy calculator at ni.com.
The first step in calculating the total USB-5680 measurement uncertainty will be to calculate
uncertainties of the individual sources of measurement error. The figures above shows the various
sources of measurement error for the NI USB-5680 at a frequency of 1 GHz at two different power
levels of 0 dBm and 35 dBm.
The three largest sources of error impedance mismatch, linearity, and calibration factor, with
mismatch typically the largest overall contributor. At lower levels within the power meters range,
noise
i andd zero errors become
b
a larger
l
relative
l ti contributor
t ib t to
t overall
ll measurementt uncertainty.
t i t In
I
addition, power meters themselves are typically calibrated at 0 dBm, so 0 dBm is a typical level used
during an RF system calibration.
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Lesson 7
Calculating
g Total Uncertaintyy
The important concept here is to normalize all uncertainties into their standard deviations.
To do this, we need to know what type of probability distribution function each uncertainty has. The
table below summarizes each uncertainty, the type of probability distribution the uncertainty follows,
and the divisor that can be used to convert the uncertainty to one variance.
Error
Distribution
Divisor
Linearity
Rectangular
Calibration factor
Normal (2)
Noise
Normal (2)
Zero set
Rectangular
Zero drift
Normal (2)
Temperature compensation
Rectangular
Effect of digital modulation
Rectangular
Mismatch
U Shape
The combined standard uncertainty is then calculated by taking the square root of the sum of all the
variances.
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Lesson 7
For example, using the USB-5680 uncertainty calculator (available online at ni.com) and PXIe5673 VSWR of 1.9 at 0 dBm and 1 GHz we find that the total uncertainty is:
S
Sensor
Li
Linearity
i = 00.075
075 dB
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Calibration Factor = 0.030 dB
Noise = 0.001 dB
Zero Drift = 0.001 dB
Mismatch = 0.090 dB
Combined Standard Uncertainty

y = 0.12 dB
The combined standard uncertainty calculated above represents + one standard deviation of the
measurement uncertainty. To complete the uncertainty analysis, the expanded uncertainty is then
calculated by simply multiplying that with the desired coverage factor k.
The value k defines the desired confidence interval of the measurement. A normal distribution with a
value k = 1 defines a confidence value of 68%, which is the confidence interval for the initial
combined standard uncertainty calculation. A value k = 2 defines a 95% confidence interval within
the normal distribution
distribution. Using a value of k = 2 would provide an expanded measurement uncertainty
value within which the power meters reading would fall 95% of the time.
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Lesson 7
Advanced System
y
Calibration Procedure
The following discussion uses the National Instruments PXIe-5673 RF Vector Signal Generator,
PXIe-5663 RF Vector Signal Analyzer, and USB-5680 RF power meter as the instrumentation used
in the setup. We make the following assumptions:
Good quality SMA attenuators are used with return losses of 23 dB.
The mismatch error of the power measurement to the power head is ignored since power sensors
normally have return loss better than 25 dB. The overall contribution will be very small
Return loss of cables and adapters is insignificant (i.e. only the VSWR of RF signal generator
and UUT will be considered).
This is a summary of the calibration procedure. The following sections cover detailed descriptions of
each step.
1. Calibrate generator at a single level with power meter.
Transfers power meter reference to generator @ one level.
2. Calibrate analyzer at multiple levels using generator.
Transfers reference from generator to analyzer @ multiple levels.
Leverages relative accuracy of AWG DAC and NI-RFSG Attn Hold feature.
3. Calibrate generator at multiple levels using calibrated analyzer.
Transfers
a s e s reference
e e e ce from
o aanalyzer
a y e to generator
ge e ato @ multiple
u t p e levels.
eve s.
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Lesson 7
Step 1 Calibrate Generator at a Single Level with Power Meter
The purpose of this step is to essentially transfer the power meter accuracy to the signal generator
over a range of frequencies and at a single power level. In place of the UUT, an SMA female SMA
female barrel adapter is attached to one end of the signal generators signal cable after the attenuator,
which would normally be attached directly to the UUT. The power meter is connected to the other
end of the SMA adapter. We assume an ideal adapter with no impedance mismatch or insertion loss.
We use a power level of 0 dBm for this step since the USB-5680 is itself calibrated at 0 dBm. This is
essentially the same process described at the beginning of this discussion
discussion, except the spectrum/signal
analyzer has been replaced with a USB-5680 power meter.
This setup will be familiar to many RF instrumentation users who use a power meter to calibrate
their signal generator. The difference is many of these users do not need to generate a wide range of
power levels and can expect to operate their generator in a power range that is also within the range
of the power meter, in which case the power meter can be used as the measurement device at all
times. These users can simply perform this cal procedure at each desired frequency and power test
point
i t in
i their
th i test
t t plan.
l The
Th procedure
d
described
d
ib d here
h transfers
t
f the
th power meter
t accuracy to
t the
th signal
i l
generator at a single power level, and ensuing steps describe the procedure for transferring this
accuracy back to the signal analyzer at differing power levels. Again, the motivation for this
procedure is to develop a method of obtaining power accuracy on par with a power meter across a
wide range of the signal generator and signal analyzer.
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Lesson 7
Step
p 2 Calibrate Analyzer
y at Multiple
p Levels with Generator
The next step in the procedure is to transfer the reference that has been effectively mapped from the
power meter to the signal generator back to the signal analyzer. This is the unique portion of this
procedure as it makes use of the linearity performance of the baseband arbitrary waveform
generators (AWG) DAC to reliably transfer the measured reference to the signal analyzer.
The PXIe-5450 dual channel AWG is the baseband generator that comprises one part of the overall
PXIe-5673 vector signal generator (other components are the PXIe-5611 IQ vector modulator and
PXI 5652 RF signal generator
PXI-5652
generator, which acts as the LO source).
source)
Step 1 provided us a reference power measurement of the PXIe-5673 at a specific power level of 0
dBm. The measured power levels and associated offsets at each frequency capture the signal
generator uncertainty at a particular frequency and output level. An intuitive approach in this step
would simply program the PXIe-5673 to sweep across the same frequency range but also across a set
of desired power level test points. However, programming the PXIe-5673 to output different power
levels and simply reusing the same compensation values at these different power levels ignores
additional
dditi l uncertainty
t i t iintroduced
t d d by
b nonlinearities
li
iti off the
th signal
i l generator
t output
t t andd uncertainty
t i t
from potentially different attenuator states.
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Because the DAC linearity of the PXIe-5450 is better than the linearity of the PXIe-5673 RF output
stage, we can make use of this, in conjunction with the PXIe-5673 attenuator hold feature, to
perform a very linear output power sweep with the PXIe
PXIe-5673
5673 by manipulating the output power
digitally at the baseband stage, rather than at the RF stage via attenuators and RF amplifiers. The
PXIe-5673 keeps all attenuators fixed in the same state at which the power meter reference
measurement was obtained in step 1, and sweeps the power output downward simply by
manipulating the PXIe-5450 DAC. At each of these, steps, the signal analyzer is programmed with a
new reference level setting, so that the reference measurement obtained captures the current state of
PXIe-5663 attenuator settings, as well as the effects of the analyzer attenuator and analyzer signal
cable path loss.
The result of this step effectively transfers the power meter reference obtained by the signal
generator to the signal analyzer at multiple analyzer reference level / attenuation settings. At the
conclusion of this step, we have a signal analyzer calibrated at various signal levels and a signal
generator calibrated at a single power level.
Usually, RF front end linearity is the limiting factor in linearity. Intermodulation specifications for
the PXIe-5673 are higher than specification for the PXIe-5450 proving this statement.
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Lesson 7
Step
p 3 Transfer Reference from Signal
g Analyzer
y to Signal
g Generator
The final step in the procedure leaves the setup intact from Step 2. Step three involves calibrating the
signal generator across multiple power levels using the signal analyzer we calibrated at various
reference levels in step two.
The reason for this step is that we have calibrated the signal generator at a single output setting in
Step 1, and step 2 calibrated the analyzer by varying the signal generator output digitally via the
DAC. However, we have yet to calibrate the signal generator when the signal generator is
programmed to output different power levels and the RF attenuators are allowed to change state
state.
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Lesson 7
Considerations
An important consideration in all calibration situations is temperature drift. As temperature changes,

this change will have physical effects upon the entire system by changing cable and PWB trace
lengths, increasing or decreasing thermal noise contributions, as well as others. Ideally, the system
would operate in an environment whose temperature is exactly the same as the temperature when the
system was calibrated. This section looks at the potential uncertainty added to our example test
system using the National Instruments 6.6 GHz RF platform and the USB-5680 power meter.
The PXIe
PXIe-5673
5673 has a thermal drift of < 0.2
0 2 dB /10 C.
C
The USB-5680 power meter has a thermal drift of < 0.06 dB / 50 C.
The PXIe-5663 has a thermal drift of <0.2 dB /10 C.
Due to the small nature of these values, temperature drift can be safely ignored, depending on the
application, provided the operating environment stays reasonably close (+ 2 degrees) to the
calibration temperature.
A th consideration
Another
id ti with
ith respectt tto ttemperature
t
iis settling
ttli ti
time. E
Every DUT andd instrument
i t
t will
ill
have thermal settling time for the device. The picture above shows how the measured power changes
over time. The calibration procedure we have discussed performs multiple measurements until the
difference between two consecutive readings is below a threshold , which set to 0.05 dB by default.
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Lesson 7
Results
The proposed method improves accuracy since the test setup has been characterized. For the
frequencies and power levels that it was characterized, the test system has the following
experimental results.
If we look at the histogram before system calibration, we see that the mean is about 1.5 dB (average
cable loss). The standard deviation is 0.25 dB and the range is about 1.23 dB.
Looking at the after calibration histogram, we notice that it has a mean at 0.008 dB an standard
deviation of 0.01 dB and a range
g of 0.145 dB.
The presented data is the measured (composite) error of all the other variables which have different
distributions. This model can be used to track what error is affecting the uncertainty the most and
identify problems with the different setups.
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Lesson 7
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Lesson 7
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Lesson 7
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Lesson 8
8-1
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Lesson 8
A. Introduction to RF Record and Playback

y
Recording data is a key feature to PC based automation. This data can be recorded in many different
ways. In this lesson you will learn all of the aspects of recording and playing back data. After the
data has been recorded, it can easily be played back as an RF signal.
The top figure shows the process of recording data. The PXI-5661 or PXIe-5663 captures
RF data, which is first downconverted to IF, digitized and then further digitally downconverted to
baseband IQ data. This data can be captured as different file formats, which can then go to storage
media ssuch
ch as your
o r hard dri
drive.
e
The bottom figure shows the reverse process. Data from the hard drive is pulled from a directory and
passed into the PXI-567x signal generator as baseband IQ data. The PXI-5671 first digitally
upconverts the baseband data to IF and then upconverts it to RF. The PXIe-5673 digitialy upconverts
the baseband data and then directly converts it to RF with the IQ modulator.
Acquisition and Generation Hardware
The best National Instruments RF products for radiated RF record and playback are the PXI-5661
PXI 5661
and the PXI-5671 or PXIe-5672. The PXI-5661 has direct IQ retrieval and playback. This is
important because data recorded from the digitizer is saved at the same center frequency IF that
comes from the downconverter. This can be from 15 MHz to as high as 70 MHz or more. If data is
saved with this center frequency it carries all of the time domain information from where it was
saved. When playing back the recorded data from IF, the regenerated data must be upconverted from
the same frequency, otherwise, the different time domain information adds image offsets in the
played back data
data.
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Lesson 8
Calculating your Required Data Rate
The first thing you should do when starting on a high channel count streaming system is to determine
the required data rate. This helps you determine what type of streaming hardware you will need to
meet the requirements.
The equation for the data rate is:
number of channels data size sampling rate = data rate
Remember that the data size in this case is not just the number of bits of your acquisition device, but
the size of the data that you are streaming to disk.
The sampling rate for RF or IF signal can be calculated as bandwidth divided by 0.8.
The value of 0.8 is derived from aliased filter needed by OSP. Hence a bandwidth of 5 MHz
translates to an IQ rate of 6.25 MSamples/sec.
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Lesson 8
Storage Media
There are many formats of off-the-shelf memory. Random access memory (RAM) is the most
common type of memory. RAM is memory that is available only when powered. It does not retain
information after it is powered down.
CompactFlash has emerged as a possible next generation of affordable storage for portable systems.
So far the limitation with CompactFlash is the size of storage available in these units. However there
are several on-going projects to create larger CF based systems.
P ll l Advanced
Parallel
Ad
d Technology
T h l
Attachment
Att h
t also
l known
k
as Parallel
P ll l ATA hhas bbeen the
h preferred
f
d
storage medium for PCs. It has an IDE interface to the PC which allows it to store large (multi-GB)
amounts of data.
Serial Advanced Technology Attachment or Serial ATA has started to gain wider acceptance as a
disk storage medium for PCs. SATA has thinner cables for more efficient air cooling, faster
transfers, ability to remove or add devices while operating, known as hot swapping, and a more
reliable operation with tighter data integrity checks than the older Parallel ATA interface.
Redundant Array of Inexpensive Drives is an extension of the PATA and SATA technology but
adds multiple disks in operation to provide faster and larger file I/O.
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Lesson 8
Acquiring Data from Memory of NI PXI-5142 or NI PXIe-5622
When using higher memory digitizers, you cannot pull data into LabVIEW or another API all at once
because of processing limitations. To work around this problem, pull in the data piece by piece as
fast as the processor and memory can keep up with the data. It helps to have more RAM in your
controller or PC to deal with more data.
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Lesson 8
Fetching Large Data Sets
Complete the following steps to fetch data from the VSA and stream to disk.
1. Create or replace a binary IQ data file.
2. Open a new RFSA session.
3. Configure the acquisition type to IQ.

4. Configure the reference level.
5 Configure
5.
C fi
th
the carrier
i frequency.
f
6. Configure the IQ rate.
7. Configure for a continuous acquisition.

8. Initiate the acquisition.
9. Perform thermal correction.

10. Fetch Binary IQ Data.
11. Write xIncrement, offset, and gain to the file.

12. Write the binary IQ data to the file.
13. Calculate remaining number of samples to fetch.

15. Close the binary IQ data file.
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Lesson 8
Introduction to RAID
RAID or Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks is a technology dating back to 1978 when it was
invented by Norman Ken Ouchi. RAID combines physical hard disks into a single logical unit either
by using special hardware or software. There are three main concepts in RAID: mirroring, the
copying of data to more than one disk; striping, the splitting of data across more than one disk; and
error correction, where redundant data is stored to allow problems to be detected and possibly fixed
also known as fault tolerance.
RAID-0 is a striped set with a minimum of two disks without parity.

parity Using this configuration,
configuration data is
equally divided into fragments across a number of disks. Ideally, RAID-0 systems multiply the read
and write speed by the number of hard drives present in the system. RAID-0 hard drive
configurations are most popular because they provide the most dramatic increase in effective disk
rate. However, for long term storage, they do have disadvantages. Most notably, because there is no
parity between individual disks, the entire data set is lost if only one drive fails.
The figure above illustrates a four-drive system is capable of improved disk speeds by sharing the
read and write load across four individual drives
drives. Moreover
Moreover, because four sets of data can be written
to disk simultaneously, the typical speedup for a 4-drive RAID-0 configuration is close to 4x.
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RAID-1 is a mirrored set (minimum two disks) without parity. With this configuration, each data set
is written as a duplicate on each hard drive in the system. The primary benefit of RAID-1
configurations is reliability, since data can be recovered as long as one drive is operational. When
writing
i i ddata to file,
fil disk
di k write
i speeds
d are actually
ll ddecreased
d iin RAID
RAID-1
1 configurations
fi
i
(compared
(
d to
a single) disk because the same set of data must be written twicethough in parallel. On the other
hand, disk read speeds are increased in RAID-1 configurations. Because reading from disk requires
some mechanism of searching for the desired data set, this search time decreases when multiple disks
can be searched in parallel.
RAID-2: Striped Data at Bit Level
I th
In
the RAID-2
RAID 2 configuration,
fi
ti disks
di k are synchronized
h i d by
b the
th controller
t ll to
t spin
i in
i perfect
f t tandem,
t d
which enables extremely high data transfer rates. This is the only original level of RAID that is not
currently used. Using error correction codes, RAID-2 systems are capable of error correction if one
of the drives fails. However, this system is difficult to implement because of the challenges of
synchronizing multiple hard disks. Moreover, the improvements in disk speeds that result can be
achieved in more practical ways. As a result, RAID-2 is not typically used in RF stream-to-disk
systems.
RAID-3 and RAID-4 is

i a striped
i d set ((minimum
i i
three
h di
disks)
k ) with
i h ddedicated
di
d parity.
i Bothh RAID-3 and
d
RAID-4 systems are similar in function to RAID-0, but with one distinct difference. In these
systems, a dedicated hard-drive is used for bit parity to increase fault tolerance. If one drive fails,
data can typically be recovered as long as the parity drive does not fail. Thus, RAID-3 and RAID-4
systems are able to achieve the increased disk speeds utilizing multiple disks in parallel while
maintaining lower risk of losing data to disk failure. The only distinction between the two systems is
that RAID-3 uses bit-level parity and RAID-4 uses block-level parity.
RAID-5 is a striped set (minimum three disks) with distributed parity. This system is similar to
RAID 3 and RAID 4, but with one distinction. In RAID-5 systems, parity is rotated between all disks
in the system. Thus, the entire data set can be reconstructed even if one disk fails. Overall the
performance increase is slightly less than with RAID-0 (no parity), but RAID-5 systems are much
more fault-tolerant. As a result, RAID-5 is provides both a high-performance and a high-redundancy
mechanism for waveform storage.
Choosing the Best RAID Configuration
While the discussion above provides a high-level overview of tradeoffs when configuring a RAID
system, this level of technical detail is typically transparent to the user. Typically, a RAID system is
configured once and most RAID drivers offer RAID-0 or RAID-5 options. After configuration, the
operating system enables the user to use the entire RAID system as a single hard drive. Once
configured as a logical drive, the RAID driver can be accessed using file read and write commands in
LabVIEW. Thus, when configuring the RAID system (upon installation), RAID-0 or RAID-5 should
be chosen according to the requirements for throughput and redundancy
redundancy. As an example
example, typical PXI
Express RAID-0 configurations are able to achieve 600+ MB/s of sustained disk read and write
speeds.
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Lesson 8
Effect of Recording Over Time
Transfer rates from hard drives can vary for a number of reasons. For example, where the data is
physically stored on the hard drive and how much data is stored can affect transfer rates. Storing
your waveform files on a fairly empty, defragmented hard drive may help increase performance.
In the figures above the performance is 62 MB/s for a file at the beginning of the disk (outer rim) and
falls off to 36 MB/s at the inner rim.
If you are recording data to the same hard drive where Windows is installed, then you need to
remember
b that
h Wi
Windows
d
allocates
ll
fil
files on the
h outer rim
i and
d moves iinward.
d Y
You can use specific
ifi file
fil
utilities to force Windows to install on the inner rim of the hard drive. You can also force other files
to locate to the inner rim, thereby giving maximum throughput to the recorded data.
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Lesson 8
B. Introduction to Data Streaming

g
Data streaming is typically defined as a continuous movement of data to and from a device. The data
can come from different sources but most often it is from a memory device or hard drive. PC-based
data streaming can happen over several different buses including PCI, PCIExpress, USB, GPIB,
Ethernet, Firewire and more. The bus that you choose affects throughput of your data stream.
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Lesson 8
Data Streaming vs. Finite Acquisition
What are the major differences between finite acquisition and data streaming? Finite acquisition has
been available for several decades with GPIB and other bus technology to record data from
instrumentation. This has traditionally been limited by the bus interface and the amount of memory
available on that instrument.
Data streaming is unique because the barriers of bus speed have been eliminated with the advent of
PCI, low cost RAM, microprocessors, FPGAs, and now low cost disk media, which is useful with
RAID This allows the raw IQ data to be stored continuously to disk
RAID.
disk. To make this happen several
technologies have come into play including the ones mentioned here as well as software
advancements that you will learn about in this lesson.
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Lesson 8
Why record and playback your RF data?
The advent of the made it possible to record, view, or play back data for a very low cost compared to
customized hardware. This allows you to record data while performing experiments in the field for
later playback in a lab. You save money by not being required to go back into the field every time
you make a product change. You can simply play back your recorded data and test your device under
test (DUT) under the same field conditions. Or you might have unexpected problems with your DUT
when operating over extended periods of time. By recording data you can learn the cause of these
problems to help
p
p you
y design
g a better pproduct. Finally
y you
y mayy need to subject
j your
y
product
p
to
different signal interference which is common in RF applications for the ISM band. This helps create
a more robust product.
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Lesson 8
C. Software Architecture for Data Streaming

g
Leveraging Multi-Core Technology
The latest processors from Intel and AMD are multi-core based. In order to continue with Moores
law of processing power, the heat generated from the increase in clock speeds was not sustainable (at
least not economically). The cost to build more sophisticated cooling systems was too high, so multi
processor technology emerged in this case on the same core processor. Today PXI has several
multi-core processors such as the PXIe-8133, which is a 2.66 GHz Intel Quadcore i7 dual-core
processor.
LabVIEW has a feature to assign tasks to different cores on a processor or processors. Hence if you
design your VI into two parallel loops, as shown in the slide, it can use a different core for each
process. In this case you retrieve the data from the PXI-566x and use the LabVIEW Queue VIs to
move the data to an adjacent loop. This adjacent loop then continuously stores the data to disk.
LabVIEW Queue VIs manage the memory of this whole process, thereby freeing up time on the
processor and ensuring continuous data streaming. The top loop acquires data and enqueues it. The
bottom loop dequeues data and writes to disk.
+ Excellent performance
+ Easy to understand
+ Good for buffering multiple arrays

Queue overhead
y of arrayy allocations
Uncertainty
Error handling is trickier
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Lesson 8
Recommended LabVIEW Architecture
Traditionally, the most common way to record data is to use a single While Lloop with the fetch
action of the device going to the file I/O function. This is handled in a queued fashion where the data
needs to be managed by processor to move it to the file I/O one array at a time. If there are
interruptions with the process it can flood the memory of the system or cause a buffer overflow.
LabVIEW provides a way to make the operations parallel in an application. The above diagram
shows a producer/consumer architecture that leverages the queue functions in LabVIEW. This is a
recommended architecture for data streaming
streaming.
In addition to the parallel architecture, it is recommended to save the data as binary or some
compressed format.
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Lesson 8
File Buffering
g
During each file I/O operation, LabVIEW calls the operating system (OS) and requests a data transfer to and
from a file on a disk. Sending data to or receiving data from a disk may take a few milliseconds to complete.
These milliseconds can accumulate because LabVIEW must call the OS each time you write a line to a file or
request to read a file. To avoid these time consuming repetitions, most OS file systems provide a buffer to
temporarily hold each piece of data waiting to be read or written to a file. When the buffer is full, the OS
performs a single file I/O operation. This technique is known as buffering and LabVIEW enables it by
default. Buffering reduces the number of times the OS must access the disk and expend processing time.
Sometimes,
i
you can achieve
hi
faster
f
data
d streaming
i rates if you disable
di bl buffering.
b ff i
For example,
l Iff you are
accessing a RAID with buffering enabled, LabVIEW can take more time to copy data to the OS than the OS
takes to actually write the data to the disk. You can disable buffering with the disable buffering input of the
Open/Create/Replace File function to avoid these data copies and force the OS to send data directly to disk.
If you disable buffering, you must make sure the following conditions are true.
You must make the size of the data in the file a multiple of the sector size, indicated in bytes, of the disk that
contains or may eventually contain the file. A sector is a subdivision of disk space that stores a fixed amount
of data
data, typically 512 bytes.
bytes Use the sector size (bytes) output of the Get Volume Info function to determine
the sector size of the disk. For LabVIEW to save data to a disk, the data can span multiple sectors but must fill
each sector completely. A 512-byte sector requires 512 bytes of data. If the data is not a multiple of the sector
size, you must pad the data with filler data and delete the filler data before LabVIEW reads back the file.
The data in the file must be aligned to a multiple of the alignment the disk requires. LabVIEW aligns the data,
and you cannot change that alignment. If the data does not meet the alignment requirement, LabVIEW returns
an error and you must enable buffering and reopen the file.
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Lesson 8
D. Solutions and Methods for RF Data
There are many different ways to stream data to disk or play it back from disk. The following
paragraphs discuss some common data streaming methods.
Device memory streaming has high rates from the ADC or digitizer portion to its own memory. The
drawback is that this memory is limited to the device.
PC controller memory streaming eliminates the limitation of the hardware memory.
However, the actual throughput of the data is still limited by the PCI or PCIe bus.
Controller hard drives such as Serial ATA or Parallel ATA have larger capacities but are limited to
the hard drive writing capacity. Higher end drives can currently write at up to
70 MB/s. This number will increase but at a much slower rate compared to other technology.
Finally, direct-to-disk and RAID controllers provide the highest throughput for continuously
acquiring data. The direct-to-disk solution uses DMA transfer across the PCI or PCIe bus to move
data from the instrument to its drive configuration. The RAID solution also moves data across the
PCI or PCIe bus but goes through the processor to send the data to its target hard drives.
drives Both
solutions use an array of hard drives as defined by RAID.
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Lesson 8
Streaming to/from RAID Hard Drives
The Processor Bus / Frontside Bus is the highest-level bus that the chipset uses to send information
to and from the processor. The frontside bus connects the CPU to main memory on the motherboard.
I/O buses, which connect the CPU with the systems other components, branch off of the system bus.
The Northbridge, also known as the memory controller hub (MCH), is traditionally one of the two
chips in the core logic chipset on a PC motherboard. The other is the Southbridge.
The Northbridge typically handles communications between the CPU, RAM, AGP or PCI Express,
andd the
h S
Southbridge.
hb id S
Some Northbridges
N hb id
also
l contain
i integrated
i
d video
id controllers,
ll
which
hi h are also
l
known as a Graphics and Memory Controller Hub (GMCH).
The Southbridge, also known as the I/O controller hub (ICH), is a chip that implements the slower.
The Southbridge can usually be distinguished from the Northbridge because it is not directly
connected to the CPU. The Northbridge ties the Southbridge to the CPU. Because the Southbridge is
further removed from the CPU, it is responsibile for the slower devices on a typical microcomputer.
The names northbridge

g and southbridge
g are derived from drawing
g the architecture in the fashion of a
map. The CPU would be at the top of the map at due north. The CPU would be connected to the
chipset through a fast bridge (the Northbridge) located north of other system devices as drawn. The
Northbridge would then be connected to the rest of the chipset through a slow bridge (the
Southbridge) located south of other system devices as drawn.
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Record and Playback
The memory bus is a second-level system bus that connects the memory subsystem to the chipset and
the processor. In some systems the processor and memory buses are basically the same thing.
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In computer hardware, serial ATA is a computer bus technology primarily designed for transfer of
data to and from a hard disk
disk. It is the successor to the legacy Advanced Technology Attachment
standard .
The peripheral component interconnect (PCI) standard specifies a computer bus for attaching
peripheral devices to a computer motherboard. The PCI specification covers the physical size of the
bus (including wire spacing), electrical characteristics, bus timing, and protocols. The specification
can be purchased from the PCI Special Interest Group (PCISIG).
33.33 MHz clock with synchronous transfers.
peak transfer rate of 133 MB per second for 32-bit bus width.
(33.33 MHz 32 bits 1 byte/8 bits = 133 MB/s)
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Lesson 8
PXI RAID Configurations
Current off the shelf RAID configurations that are available from National Instruments:
PXI system with a MXI-Express connection to a desktop PC. The PC has RAID built into it. The
data would stream through PXI into MXI-Express, into the CPU of the PC and finally over to the
RAID inside the PC. This connection is limited to the PXI bus speed of 110 MB/s. The MXIExpress is limited by the PCI bus bandwidth.
PXI-8353 is a 1U rack mount industrial PC controller with an option for a 2 disk RAID array.
Thi also
This
l uses MXI
MXI-Express
E
to link
li k to a PXI chassis
h i with
i h the
h RF hardware.
h d
Similar
Si il to the
h first
fi
solution but with a rack mounted computer. This connection is limited to the PXI bus speed of
110 MB/s. The MXI-Express is limited by the PCI bus bandwidth.
The PXI embedded controllers including the PXI-8196, PXI-8105, PXI-8106,

PXIe-8106, PXIe-8130 and PXIe-8133 all have an ExpressCard slot. You can use off the shelf
ExpressCard based RAID controllers from Addonics or other manufacturers to link to the PXI
embedded controller. This allows direct data migration from the embedded controller to RAID.
This is the fastest PXI RAID solution. Although it is a PCI Express technology it still works with
PXI products by using PCIe to PCI bridges in the embedded controller. This connection is x1 or
250 MB/s.
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Lesson 8
PXI Express
p
Data Streaming
g
The PXI Express form factor takes advantage of the PCI Express bus which offers several times
more throughput than standard PCI. To achieve maximum throughput, the following considerations
must be taken into account:
Several PXIe slots may share a single switch to a single PCIe x4 connectionhigher throughput
modules should be placed such that they have their own dedicated link if possible. Refer to your
chassis documentation or consult an NI representative for more information.
A PXIe controller should be chosen that has enough PCIe x4 lanes to support each required link
from the chassis. For example, the PXIe-8133 has 4 dedicated x4 lanes, but the
PXIe-8106 only has a single lane. For help selecting an appropriate embedded controller it is a
good idea to consult an NI representative.
Each PCIe x4 lane has up to 1 GB/s of dedicated bandwidth. Additional overhead is required when
switching between multiple slotsthat is, two modules sharing a lane might not necessarily achieve
the same rate as a faster module with its own dedicated lane. For this reason, it is typically desired to
have modules which require more bandwidth (such as a RAID array) in a slot with a dedicated PCIe
x4 link.
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Lesson 8
PXI Express Data Streaming Interfaces
The next generation of data streaming uses PXI Express, which uses the PCI Express bus to offer
more throughput than PCI.
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Lesson 8
Exercise 8-1: Continuous Record and Playback

y
of FM Signal
g
Goal: Learn how to stream RF data to IDE disk on PXI controller and then play back streaming
data.
Instructor Information: If the students do not have good reception of FM radio signals, you will need
to generate data for them to record. To do this, open RFSG Playback from Disk.vi from the
<Exercises>\RF Application Development\Demonstrations\ directory.
directory This is the
same generation code the students will be using to regenerate the signal they record from the
instructor machine.
For the IQ file path to generate, point the VI to the RAID drive which will show up as CERAID0 in
Windows Explorer. The file to generate is Austin_radio.dat. This file contains binary IQ data
recorded at 25 MS/s (20 MHz realtime bandwidth) at a center frequency of
97.9 MHz. Set the VI to generate this data file with a power level of +15 dBm and a center frequency
of 915 MH
MHz (the center frequency
freq enc of 26 MHz
MH ISM band).
band) Run
R n the file continuously
contin o sl for the students
st dents
to record onto their machines.
Once the students have recorded the file, set up the small Sony FM radio to receive at a center
frequency of the students choice to verify that they can successfully record and playback the signals.
Note that the Sony radio can tune even tenths of a MHz and stations are always broadcasted on odd
tenths of a MHz, so the even tenths are good for the students to broadcast on because there will be no
other station transmitting at that frequency.
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Lesson 8
Summaryy
In this lesson you learned the important parts of a record and playback system. It is recommended to
use OSP based hardware like the PXI-5661 and PXIe-5672 for your record and playback system.
This has direct baseband conversion in hardware for recording or playing back IQ data.
Depending on your needs for storage you can record simply to memory or a hard disk for finite
acquisition. Data streaming requires more space and throughput. RAID systems are an inexpensive
way to record and play back RF data.
As part of a data streaming solution it is important to follow some recommended architecture

guidelines. Examples are available in LabVIEW for data streaming using a producer/consumer
architecture. This leverages the new dual-core controllers for PXI and PCs. This works equally well
for PXI and PXI Express data streaming systems.
Finally it is important to understand what kind of application you have for record and playback. Do
you have very small RF signals? Does the power level of your signal vary a lot because you are
traveling with your record and playback system? What about sensitivity needed for your system?
You need to be consider all of these when setting up a record and playback system. Refer to
Appendix E, Record and Playback Additional Material for more information. Additionally you can
download the latest examples and get the latest benchmarks from ni.com/streaming/rf.
8-23
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Notes
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RIO, FPGA, and Peer-to-Peer Technology
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Lesson 9
This lesson is an introduction to the hardware covered in this course.

A. Introduction to RF Platform
B. Overview of RF Measurement and Communications Software

C. Solving Application-Specific Requirements
D. NI RF RIO Modules
E. Peer-to-Peer Technology
F Peer-to-Peer
F.
Peer to Peer Configurations
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Lesson 9
A. Introduction to FPGA Technology

gy
Field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) are silicon chips with unconnected logic gates. FPGAs are
found in applications that require reconfiguration in the field. You can define the functionality of the
FPGA by using software to configure the FPGA gates, making them very flexible. FPGAs can
execute specific tasks very efficiently within silicon. FPGA execution is controlled by the
programmable interconnects, users can implement truly parallel tasks within the FPGA that will
execute simultaneously and independent of one another. Since applications are actually implemented
in hardware without any software involved such as an operating system, FPGAs provide the ultimate
in execution reliability.
An ASIC is an application specific integrated circuit. It is a proprietary semiconductor component
designed and manufactured to perform a set of specific functions for a specific customer.
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Lesson 9
Benefits of FPGA
FlexibilityReconfigurable software. Create a chip that is reconfigurable with changes in

software, creating new hardware anytime
Parallel ProcessingYou can achieve true, simultaneous, parallel processing. There is no

operating system on the module that must divide CPU time between several tasks.
PerformanceIn general, execution in hardware is faster than execution in software.
Because FPGA is a hardware solution, implementing algorithms on FPGA has higher

performance
f
than
h iimplementing
l
i same algorithm
l i h in
i S
SW. With
i h FPGA
GA you can create logic
l i that
h
can execute in one clock cycle. Note, though, that ASICs generally have higher performance
than FPGA, but development cost and flexibility are the tradeoffs.
ReliabilityAfter the FPGA is programmed, it becomes a hardware chip with all of the
associated reliability and is highly deterministic.
Offload processingFPGAs can also be used to off-load computationally intensive processing

so to free
ee up tthee C
CPU
U for
o ot
other
e tas
tasks.
s.
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Lesson 9
Decision Making in Software
Many test and control systems perform calculations in software. When executing in software the
calculation must be performed after multiple software calls through the application software, driver
API, and operating system before actually interfacing with the unit under test (UUT). Even when
using an RTOS and optimized algorithms, the fastest response rate you can typically achieve in
software is around 25 s. Additionally, there is added vulnerability within a software-based system
because a crash can occur at multiple levels that interfere with the response of the system.
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Lesson 9
Decision Making in Hardware
When executing calculations in hardware, as with LabVIEW FPGA, you can remove software from
the required response to the UUT. Under this configuration, LabVIEW FPGA can respond to digital
signals within a single clock cycle. With a default clock rate of 40 MHz, LabVIEW FPGA can
respond to a digital signal within 25 ns. You can compile LabVIEW FPGA code at higher rates in
some cases if using a 80 MHz or 120 MHz clock.
Performing calculations in hardware provides the highest reliability possible because any crash at any
software layer will not affect the execution of your code.
code
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Lesson 9
B. LabVIEW FPGA System
The LabVIEW FPGA Module allows LabVIEW to target FPGAs on NI Reconfigurable I/O
hardware so scientists and engineers can take advantage of the performance and flexibility of
FPGAs without needing to learn the low-level design tools. Therefore, the basic components of a
LabVIEW FPGA system are:
1. The LabVIEW FPGA Add-on module
2. The NI-RIO driver
3 A National
3.
i l Instruments Reconfigurable
fi
bl I/O
/O module
d l also
l known
k
as a RIO
O target. S
Such
h as the
h
NI PXIe-5641R IF Transceiver Module, or the NI PXIe-7965R FlexRIO.
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Lesson 9
LabVIEW FPGA Module
The NI LabVIEW FPGA Module is an add-on module for LabVIEW. The National Instruments
LabVIEW FPGA Module uses LabVIEW embedded technology to extend LabVIEW graphical
development and target field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) on NI reconfigurable I/O (RIO)
hardware. LabVIEW is distinctly suited for FPGA programming because it clearly represents
parallelism and data flow. With the LabVIEW FPGA Module, you can create custom measurement
and control hardware without low-level hardware description languages or board-level design. You
can use this custom hardware for unique
q timing
g and triggering
gg
g routines,, ultrahigh-speed
g p
control,,
interfacing to digital protocols, digital signal processing (DSP), RF and communications, and many
other applications requiring high-speed hardware reliability and tight determinism.
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Lesson 9
LabVIEW FPGA: How Does it Work?
The LabVIEW FPGA module compiles your LabVIEW application to FPGA hardware through a compile
process. Behind the scenes, your graphical code is translated to text-based VHDL code. Then, industry
standard Xilinx ISE compiler tools are invoked and the VHDL code is optimized and synthesized into a
hardware circuit realization of your LabVIEW design. This process also applies timing constraints to the
design and tries to achieve an efficient use of FPGA resources (sometimes called fabric).
A great deal of optimization is performed during the FPGA compilation process to reduce digital logic and
create an optimal implementation of the LabVIEW application. Then the design is synthesized into a highly
optimized silicon implementation that provides true parallel processing capabilities with the performance and
reliability of dedicated hardware.
The end result is a bitstream that contains the programming instructions LabVIEW downloads to the FPGA
target. When you run the application, the bit stream is loaded into the FPGA chip and used to reconfigure the
gate array logic. The bit stream can also be loaded into nonvolatile Flash memory and loaded instantaneously
when power is applied to the FPGA target. There is no operating system on the FPGA chip, but you can
control the FPGA chip through a host application.
1 Graphical LabVIEW FPGA code is translated to text-based
1.
text based VHDL code
Applies timing constraints on the circuit design
By default, the FPGA clock runs at 40 MHz
2. Xilinx ISE compiler tools are invoked

VHDL code is optimized
Logic is reduced
Gate array configuration is synthesized
3. Bit stream is loaded into the FPGA
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Lesson 9
Benefits of LabVIEW FPGA System

y
Besides all the benefits noted earlier of using FPGA, LabVIEW FPGA provides the following
additional benefits:
Use LabVIEW to develop your FPGA custom hardware without VHDL coding or board design.
Through the LV block diagram you have direct access to the hardware terminals.
LabVIEW has extensive library of built-in functions (FFT, Filters, signal generation, and so on).
There are tools to integrate with 3rd party IP.
Use the LabVIEW environment and LabVIEW VIs to communicate with, monitor, and control the
FPGA from a host PC or a real-time controller. Furthermore, LabVIEW FPGA handles many
operations that are not natively handled on FPGAs such as DMA transfers to processor, Ethernet
communication for CompactRIO, data storage with special CompactRIO modules, and user interface
interaction
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Lesson 9
C. Programming
g
g Options
p
for LabVIEW FPGA
There are several ways to use LabVIEW FPGA for communications test. Below is a brief summary
that will be covered in the next section.
LabVIEW FPGA is core development environment which can use a base library of VIs for
development in the FPGA environment.
NI IPNet is a collection of higher level examples to use a basis for LabVIEW FPGA. Examples
such as PSK modulation.
LabVIEW FPGA RF Communications Library is a shipping set of libraries that comes with
LabVIEW FPGA. Example is the FFT VIs.
LabVIEW FPGA IP Integration Node is a low level node that calls existing VHDL code
Existing HDL (CLiP Node) is a more flexible method of calling existing VHDL code. It allows
VHDL and LabVIEW FPGA to coexist within the same FPGA fabric
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Lesson 9
IPNet LabVIEW FPGA Functions and Example IP
The NI LabVIEW FPGA IPNet is a resource for browsing, understanding, and downloading
LabVIEW FPGA functions or IP (intellectual property). There is a collection of FPGA IP and
examples gathered from the LabVIEW FPGA function palette, internal National Instruments
developers, and the LabVIEW FPGA community. You should use this resource to acquire IP that
you need for your application, download examples to help learn programming techniques, and
explore the depth of IP offered by the LabVIEW FPGA platform. In addition to exploring what is
offered here,, you
y can also share your
y
LabVIEW FPGA IP or submit an update
p
to existingg IP for the
LabVIEW community by clicking the link below.
Concerning LV FPGA IP and Modulation Toolkit, while NI will have periodic releases of LabVIEW
FPGA RF Communication Library (available on ni.com/labs) as functions are completed and
available for customer use, they will be posted to NI Labs. NI will not delay access to new functions
waiting for the next release of the new version of the library.
Although some examples may be for previous releases of LabVIEW there are no restrictions to using
older version examples with newer LabVIEW FPGA software.
software An example is having
8.5 software while using LabVIEW 2009.
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Lesson 9
LabVIEW FPGA RF Communications Libraryy
The LabVIEW FPGA RF Communications Library provides a set of fixed-point RF

Communications IPs for LV FPGA. It contains examples on how to use the IP along with National
Instruments PCI-5640Rand PXIe-5641R. The IP can also be used with other National Instruments RSeries hardware.
Refer to NI Labs at ni.com/labs for the LabVIEW FPGA RF Communications Library and
examples.
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Lesson 9
IP Integration Node with Xilinx CoreGen
The LabVIEW FPGA IP Integration Node provides cycle accurate simulation within the LabVIEW
execution environment for third party IP. In addition, the node provides a wizard interface that
simply requires selecting VHDL files or a Xilinx Coregen *.xco file. The node does not require
creating wrapper code. The IP used in the IP Integration Node must use a single clock and must not
have falling edge flip flops on the interface for correct co-simulation with the rest of the LabVIEW
diagram.
The add
add-on
on feature is available at NI Labs,
Labs http://decibel.ni.com/content/docs/
http://decibel ni com/content/docs/
DOC-5907.
The example shown instantiates a FIR filter created with the Xilinx Coregen utility.
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Lesson 9
Component Level IP (CLIP)
The CLIP Node is a framework for importing existing FPGA IP into LabVIEW FPGA hardware and
communicating to it through the LabVIEW FPGA diagram. The IP can be in the form of direct
VHDL or intermediate files like EDIF netlists.
User-defined CLIP Enables VHDL code to communicate directly with an FPGA VI.
Socketed CLIP Enables VHDL code to communicate directly with an FPGA VI and FPGA pins
that are not exposed to the LabVIEW FPGA Module. Some FPGA targets define a fixed CLIP socket
in the FPGA where you can insert socketed CLIP.
In general, the CLIP Node targets users with some digital design experience, general knowledge of
VHDL, and a working understanding of XML
CLIP Node features:
Run VHDL code in parallel with LabVIEW code
Execute VHDL code in multiple clock domains
Include constraints in the compilation
Communicate directly to I/O pins on some hardware
CLIP Node Files:
IP source code (HDL, netlists, coregen)
Constraints file (optional)
XML file
Describes the interface between the CLIP and LabVIEW
Identifies path to source code
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Lesson 9
Using the CLIP Node
Five Steps for Integrating IP with CLIP

1. Create or acquire the IP
2. Define the interface to the IP using a declaration XML file (Try the CLIP XML Wizard )
3. Declare CLIP in the properties of an FPGA target
4. Add a CLIP item to a LabVIEW Project
5. Pass data between CLIP and an FPGA VI
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Lesson 9
D. NI RF RIO Modules
NI PXIe-5641R RIO IF Transceiver
The NI PXIe-5641R is a dual-input, dual-output intermediate frequency (IF) transceivers for

applications such as radio-frequency identification (RFID) test, spectral monitoring, real-time
spectrum analysis, RF dynamic test, and software-defined radio (SDR). It features two 14-bit, 100
MS/s analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) with built-in 20 MHz bandwidth digital downconverters
(DDCs) and two 14-bit, 200 MS/s digital-to-analog converters (DACs) with built-in 20 MHz
b d idth di
bandwidth
digital
it l upconverters
t (DUCs).
(DUC ) This
Thi module
d l also
l includes
i l d a Xilinx
Xili Virtex-5
Vi t 5 SX95T fi
fieldld
programmable gate array (FPGA) that you can program using the NI LabVIEW FPGA Module. The
SX95T FPGA offers 640 multipliers, more than 14,000 slices, and nearly 100,000 logic cells. With
these features, the module can easily handle complex and high-speed signal processing, analysis, and
modulation tasks. When paired with the
NI PXI-5600 downconverter and NI PXI-5610 upconverter, the NI PXIe-5641R enables
user-programmable FPGA-based radio frequency (RF) applications at frequencies up to 2.7 GHz and
real time bandwidths up to 20 MHz.
real-time
MHz
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Lesson 9
PXIe-5641R Block Diagram
In addition to the 2 ADC and DAC lines there is an external reference clock which can be used
instead of the PXIe-5641R. There is also external trigger lines and 7 digital lines. The digital lines
can customized in the FPGA to perform triggering, clocking or markers for different applications.
The backside of the PXIe-5641R is linked to the PXI Express bus through the STC2 chip interface
and a conversion chip. Because of the conversion chip and the filters on the ADC/DAC the
bandwidth is limited to 20 MHz or 100 Mbytes/sec for the PXIe-5641R.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe-5614R IF Transceiver Programming

Programming
There are two methods for programming an NI IF transceiver device. The first method is to use the
LabVIEW FPGA Module to program the FPGA in the NI IF transceiver to fit your needs. The
second method is to use the NI-5640R instrument driver to generate or acquire data with the
LabVIEW application programming interface (API). Run the NI-5640R examples to demonstrate the
functionality of your device. More information about each of these methods is provided in the
following sections
sections.
LabVIEW FPGA Module
Using the LabVIEW FPGA module, you can program the FPGA in the NI IF transceiver to match
the requirements of your system. The behavior of this module is fully user defined and can be
implemented as a VI, creating an application-specific I/O device. However, the programming time
required to create an application using the LabVIEW FPGA module is greater than using the NI5640R instrument driver and more advanced programming skills are required.
NI-5640R Instrument Driver
The NI-5640R API features a set of operations and attributes that exercise all the functionality
of the device, including configuration, control, and other device-specific functions. With the
NI-5640R API you program the NI IF transceiver with its default personalitytwo synchronized
input and two synchronized output channels.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe-5641R at RF Frequencies
Combine the NI PXIe-5641R RIO IF transceiver with the NI PXI-5600 downconverter and
NI 8260 high-speed data storage module, you can create a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)enabled spectral monitoring or signal intelligence system on the PXI platform covering frequencies
from 250 kHz to 2.7 GHz with 20 MHz of real-time bandwidth. The
NI PXIe-5641R features two independent 14-bit, 100 MS/s analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) with
built-in 20 MHz bandwidth digital downconverters. This architecture efficiently delivers I/Q data to
the Virtex-5 SX95T FPGA on the module for analysis,
y , demodulation,, and signal
g pprocessing
g tasks
using the NI LabVIEW FPGA Module. For continuous logging, you can stream 20 MHz of RF
bandwidth (100 MB/s) per FPGA module to a RAID-based hard disk such as the NI 8260 for several
hours
The NI PXI-5600 is a modular, broadband RF to IF downconverter. The NI PXI-5610 is a modular,
broadband IF to RF upconverter. The modules are in a compact, 3U PXI package. The NI PXI-5600
and NI PXI-5610 feature a wide real-time bandwidth and a highly stable timebase, accurate to within
50
50 ppb. The modules provide excellent integration with the
NI PXIe-5641R modular digitizers for RF analysis applications.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe-5641R Connections
There are two types of connector used on the NI PXI-5641R; female SMA connectors and male
SMB connectors.
Signal I/O
ADC0 - IF input (SMA)

ADC1 - IF input (SMA)
DAC0 IF Output (SMA)
DAC1 IF Output (SMA)
Timing and Synchronization I/O
CLK IN - External clock or External 10 MHz reference input (SMB)

TRIG terminal for device trigger signals (SMB)
DIO (AUX I/O)* - Input or output terminal for device digital I/O (DIO) channels (total of 7
channels).
h
l ) DIO lines
li
are direction-configurable
di ti
fi
bl by
b pin
i as input
i
t or output.
t t Figure
Fi
5 andd Table
T bl 3
provide the detailed pinout for this connector.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe-5641R + NI PXI-5600 Connections
When interfacing the NI PXIe-5641R IF Transceiver with the NI PXI-5600 RF Downconverter,

following connections are required:
The OUTPUT SMA connector on the NI PXI-5600 must be connected to ADC0 (or ADC1,
depending on application) SMA connector on the NI PXIe-5641R.
In addition, the NI PXIe-5641R CLK IN SMB connector must be connected to the 10 MHz
OUT SMA connector on the NI PXI-5600. This connection enables the NI PXIe-5641R to
f
frequency
llockk its
it S
Sample
l Cl
Clockk timebase
ti b
t the
to
th more accurate
t NI PXI-5600s
PXI 5600 10 MH
MHz
reference clock.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe-5641R + NI PXI-5610 Connections
When interfacing the NI PXIe-5641R IF Transceiver with the NI PXI-5610 RF Upconverter, the
following connections are required:
The NI PXIe-5641R DAC0 (or DAC1, depending on application) SMA connector must be
connected to the NI PXI-5610 INPUT SMA connector.
In addition, the NI PXIe-5641R CLK IN SMB connector must be connected to the 10 MHz OUT
SMA connector on the NI PXI-5600. This connection enables the NI PXIe-5641R to frequency
l k its
lock
it S
Sample
l Cl
Clockk timebase
ti b
t the
to
th more accurate
t NI PXI
PXI-5610s
5610 10 MH
MHz reference
f
clock.
l k
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Lesson 9
PXIe-5641R for 6.6 GHz front ends
The PXIe-5641R does not work well with the 6.6 GHz front ends. The PXIe-5601 has an
IF output of 187.5 MHz whereas the maximum IF of the PXIe-5641R is 40 MHz (no aliasing).
The PXIe-5611 also does not work well because it is expecting a baseband input whereas the
PXIe-5641R only can output IF. Remember that the output runs through a DUC hence an
IF only output.
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Lesson 9
NI PXIe FlexRIO FPGA Modules
The NI PXIe FlexRIO FPGA modules feature Xilinx Virtex-5 SXT FPGAs. These include the
SX95T and SX50T versions. The module has a x4 PCI Express connection supporting data rate
transfers up to 800 MBytes/s. The module has 512 MB of onboard DRAM in two banks of
256 MB with access speeds of 1.6GBytes/s.
The NI PXIe FlexRIO supports P2P Streaming making it a great target for co-processing. There are
16 DMA channels which provides for extreme flexibility, especially when using multiple
NI PXIe FlexRIO
Fle RIO for co
co-processing
processing applications
applications.
The VIRTEX-5 SX95T has the following features:
Slices: 14,720
Logic Cells: 94,208
CLB Flip-Flops: 58,880
Distributed RAM (Kbits): 1,520
Block RAM/FIFO with ECC (36 Kbits ea.): 244

Total Block RAM (Kbits): 8,784
Digital Clock Managers (DCM): 12

Phase Locked Loops (PLL): 6
DSP48E Slices: 640
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Lesson 9
E. Peer to Peer ((P2P)) Technology

gy
The peer-to-peer data streaming architecture is a method of transferring data between hardware
devices. A peer-to-peer stream acts like a single, unidirectional pipe from which data can flow
directly from one device to another. Using the peer-to-peer data streaming architecture, two or more
devices can transfer data directly to each other without first going through the host processor.
The peer-to-peer data streaming architecture defines the topology and data exchange policies of the
data transfer. Therefore, you can use this architecture as a common communication protocol between
m ltiple de
multiple
devices
ices on different platforms.
platforms For eexample,
ample you
o can transfer data from multiple,
m ltiple
synchronized digitizers to a single FPGA device to perform correlated signal analysis across the
acquired data streams.
The peer-to-peer data streaming architecture is also useful in applications with distributed processing
requirements. These types of applications exchange data between multiple devices in the system to
complete a particular analysis or control operation. In addition, the application might have
throughput or processing needs that require a device running parallel to the host processor in the
system to perform
f
the
h analysis
l i while
hil the
h host
h performs
f
other
h tasks.
k IIn these
h
cases, you can use the
h
peer-to-peer data streaming architecture to ease the burden on the communication bus of the system
and minimize the impact on other devices on the same bus.
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Lesson 9
P2P Streaming Architecture
From a system-level perspective, three components work together to ensure proper operation of a
peer-to-peer data stream: the writer, the reader, and the host.
Writers and Readers
The writer and reader are the origin and terminus of the unidirectional data stream, respectively. The
writer is the device resource that writes data to the stream. The reader is the device resource that
reads data from the stream. Hardware devices that are capable of peer-to-peer data streaming can
participate
ti i t in
i multiple
lti l streams
t
by
b using
i different
diff
t resources as the
th writer
it andd reader.
d Because
B
the
th
peer-to-peer data streaming architecture is unidirectional, each device resource can either write data
to a stream or read data from the stream, but the same device resource cannot be both a writer and
reader. Only hardware resource availability limits the number of streams that a device resource can
support.
Hosts and Host Applications
A ppeer-to-peer
p data stream cannot exist without the presence
p
of a host computer,
p
, such as a PXI
system, running a host application. The host links the writer and reader together and maintains the
stream. The host must continue to run the host application to maintain the stream, but the host
processor does not participate in the actual transfer of data between the writer and reader.
In addition, the host does not have access to data in the stream, the writer, or the reader.
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You can write host applications to handle errors or faults that occur in the writer or reader. For
example, the host application can manipulate the state of the reader while the stream is actively
transmitting data to prevent the reader from receiving stream data if the writer encounters a problem.
problem
In this situation, the host application can shut down the stream attached to the reader in a safe and
controlled way.
Streaming Data between Different Platforms
The peer-to-peer data streaming architecture uses hardware resources to connect the writer directly to
the reader. Therefore, you can implement the writer and reader on different platforms, even though
different hardware platforms use different interfaces to send and receive data and driver software
varies
i ffrom device
d i to device.
d i For example,
l you can implement
i l
the
h writer
i on a digitizer
di i i using
i the
h NISCOPE instrument driver and implement the reader on a FlexRIO device using LabVIEW with the
LabVIEW FPGA Module.
To create a peer-to-peer application you must use the platform-specific hardware API to configure
the I/O and processing algorithms for the device. After you implement the writer and reader using the
platform-specific API, you use the Peer To Peer Streaming VIs on the host to create and control the
stream.
The hardware API is usually similar between devices on the same platform. Refer to the hardware
API documentation for information about writing or reading data using the peer-to-peer data
streaming architecture.
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Lesson 9
RF P2P Streaming
g Instruments
NI PXIe-5663(E) Vector Signal Generator
The NI PXIe-5663 and NI PXIe-5663E modules are single-stage wide-bandwidth 6.6 GHz
RF Vector Signal Analyzers (VSA). The NI PXIe-5663 is composed of three modules, the
NI PXIe-5601 RF downconverter, the NI PXIe-5622 IF Digitizer, and the NI PXI(e)e 565x
continuous wave (CW) source. The NI PXI(e)-565x is the local oscillator (LO) source for the NI
PXIe-5663 VSA. The NI PXIe-5601 RF downconverter module downconverts an RF signal to an
intermediate frequency
freq enc (IF).
(IF) The NI PXIe-5622,
PXIe 5622 which
hich is used
sed as an IF digiti
digitizer,
er feat
features
res a 16-bit,
16 bit
150 MS/s analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The NI PXIe-5622 is based on a common
synchronization architecture found in many NI PXI modular instruments. Thus, you can share timing
and trigger signals between the NI PXIe-5663 and other PXI modular instruments.
NI PXIe-5673(E) Vector Signal Generator
The NI PXIe-5673 and PXIe-5673E modules are wide-bandwidth 6.6 GHz RF Vector Signal
Generators (VSG). The NI PXIe-5673(E) is composed of three modules, the NI PXIe-5611
RF IQ Modulator, the NI PXIe-5450 dual-channel arbitrary waveform generator (AWG), the
NI PXI-5652 RF CW source. The NI PXI(e)-565x is the local oscillator (LO) source for the
NI PXIe-5673 VSG. The NI PXIe-5450 AWG 16-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC) generates
baseband I and Q signals at data rates of up to 200 MS/s. At this sample rate, the generator is capable
of producing more than 100 MHz of RF bandwidth. The NI PXIe-5611 modulator upconverts an
analog complex signal to a RF frequency.
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Lesson 9
P2P Single VSG, Single FPGA
The figure shows peer-to-peer topology using an NI PXIe-5663 Vector Signal Analyzer and
an FPGA device (such as the NI PXIe-7965R FlexRIO) in a single peer-to-peer stream. The
NI PXIe-5622 IF Digitizer module (the digitizer module for the NI PXIe-5663) contains a writer to
the stream, and the FPGA device contains a reader.
You can use this type of topology to offload intensive data processing from the VSA to the FPGA on
the FlexRIO device without using resources on the host processor.
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Lesson 9
P2P Single VSA, Single VSG
The figure shows peer-to-peer topology using the NI PXIe-5663 Vector Signal Analyzer and
the NI PXIe-5673 Vector Signal Generator in a single peer-to-peer stream. The NI PXIe-5622
IF Digitizer module (the digitizer module for the NI PXIe-5663) contains a writer to the stream, and
the NI PXIe-5450 Signal Generator (the AWG module for the NI PXIe-5673) contains a reader.
This is an example application of using the VSA and the VSG in a transponder application that shifts
a signal from one frequency to another frequency in real-time.
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Lesson 9
P2P Single VSA, Single FPGA, Single VSG
The figure shows a peer-to-peer pipelining topology using multiple peer-to-peer streams with
the NI PXIe-5663 Vector Signal Analyzer, an FPGA device (such as a FlexRIO device), and the NI
PXIe-5673 Vector Signal Generator. The NI PXIe-5622 IF Digitizer module (the digitizer module
for the NI PXIe-5663) contains a writer to the stream, the FPGA device contains a reader for the
VSA stream and a writer to the VSG stream, and the NI PXIe-5450 Signal Generator (the AWG
module for the NI PXIe-5673) contains a reader.
This is an example application of using the VSA and the VSG in an application that processes a
signal inline, such as a channel simulator application.
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Lesson 9
P2P Dual VSA, Single FPGA
The figure shows a peer-to-peer topology using multiple peer-to-peer streams with multiple
NI PXIe-5663 Vector Signal Analyzers, and an FPGA device (such as a FlexRIO device). The NI
PXIe-5622 IF Digitizer modules (the digitizer module for the NI PXIe-5663) each contain a writer to
a stream, and the FPGA device contains a separate reader for each of the two streams.
You can use this type of topology to offload intensive data processing from the digitizers to the
FPGA on the FlexRIO device without using resources on the host processor.
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Lesson 9
PXI Express Chassis and P2P Streaming

P2P Data Routing and Streaming Bandwidth
This is a diagram of the NI PXIe-1075 chassis.
With NI P2P technology, data streaming rates of more than 800 MB/s are possible. Maximum
throughput is dependent on the streaming modules, chassis, and the controller. The slot placement of
modules becomes critical in ensuring that the overall application will be able to support every P2P
Stream from module to module. There are three main PXIe system components, as well as the PXIe
chassis
h i backplane
b k l
architecture
hit t
to
t take
t k into
i t account.
t
The PCIe links between slots are mainly x4 (red) lanes that support up to a max bandwidth of 800
MB/s. In the case of multiple P2P Streams using a PXIe link, the aggregate max link bandwidth
remains 800 MBytes/s. The x1 lanes (orange) have a max bandwidth of
200 MB/s.
The PCIe Switches (green) are routers which, for a single P2P Stream, can support up to
800 MB/s from any
y pport to another pport. Same as for the PCIe links,, multiple
p P2P Streams using
g the
same port, the PCIe link bandwidth is the limiting factor.
The various released controllers have varying architectures in how they link to the PXIe chassis. In
some cases, the there is a single x4 link from the processor to a PCIe switch within the controller,
and from that point, to the 4 PXIe links in the chassis. The newer controllers will support the highest
rates for P2P Streaming.
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Lesson 9
Single P2P Stream Same PCIe Switch
All data must pass through a chassis to stream from one module to another, so the chassis plays a
critical role in determining bandwidth. The PCI Express switches on the chassis backplane route data
through the chassis and provide the high-bandwidth point-to-point connections that enable peer-topeer data streaming. When modules are in chassis slots that are directly connected to the same PCI
Express switch the bandwidth is dependent on the switch.
The following table shows the maximum bandwidths of the PCI Express switches in a given chassis.
This bandwidth is achievable through any two slots connected to the same switch,
switch and multiple
connections per switch are supported at the given rate.
Chassis
Slots
Maximum Peer-to-Peer Rate
NI PXIe-1075
All
>800 MB/s
NI PXIe-1082Q
All
>800 MB/s
NI PXIe-1065
PXI 1065
7 8
7,
D
Dependent
d on controller
ll
NI PXIe-1065
9-14
Just under 800 MB/s
NI PXIe-1062Q
3-5
Dependent on controller
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Lesson 9
Dual P2P Stream Different PCIe Switch
When modules in a P2P streaming system are not both connected to the same PCI Express switch on
a chassis backplane, then data must pass through the host controllers onboard switch or chipset, but
not through its CPU or memory. Maximum streaming rate will depend on the links within the
specific chassis and the specific controller being used.
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Lesson 9
Dual P2P Stream Same PCIe Switch
Here is a more complex example that shows operation of P2P with multiple devices. Notice that the
bus is broken down into its own bridges and hence segments can run at their own maximum 800
Mbytes/sec. This is ideal for P2P when running through individual PCIe switches. In the case of
spanning bridges this will slow down data rates. Further different PXI controllers manage this data at
different rates. See next slide on embedded controller benchmarks.
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Lesson 9
Embedded Controller Peer-to-Peer Rates
The table lists the maximum bandwidths of PCI Express switches or chipsets for a given controller.
Note that this number represents the aggregate bandwidth through a certain segment into and out of
the controller. If multiple peer-to-peer streams exist over these same segments, they must share
bandwidth.
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Lesson 9
This demo highlights the use of P2P streaming to extend LabVIEW FPGA support to Vector Signal
Analyzer devices. For this demo, an RF signal is being generated from the NI 5673 Vector Signal
Generator. The RF signal is Teed off to both the NI 5663 Vector Signal Analyzers configured in a
MIMO configuration for acquisition. The RF signal is acquired by the two NI 5663s and is P2P
streamed over to a PXIe-7965R device. This FlexRIO is being too used to implement a hardware
timed processing of Window, FFT, scaling, and phase difference between the two VSAs. A FPGA
implemented peak detect circuit compares every processed FFT. Snapshots of the current FFT and
current state of the peak detect are DMAed to the host computer for display.
While the processing can be implemented on the host computer, only sets of data can be acquired and
sent up the host, losing data for the peak detect. Using an FPGA to process all of the data will allow
you ensure that you process every sample acquired for as long as the test lasts.
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Lesson 9
Summary
The NI RF and communications platform uses a modular, software-defined approach to

RF and microwave test to solve multiple applications and communication standards.
National Instruments RIO modules use FPGAs to enable custom applications the flexibility,
performance, and reliability of custom designed hardware solutions.
National Instruments LabVIEW FPGA Module extends graphical development to target fieldprogrammable gate arrays (FPGAs) on NI reconfigurable I/O (RIO) hardware.
M lti l methods
Multiple
th d off importing
i
ti existing
i ti IP into
i t LabVIEW
L bVIEW FPGA:
FPGA CLIP
CLIP, NI IIntegration
t
ti N
Node
d
NI PXIe-5641R IF Transceiver and NI PXIe-7965R FlexRIO support FPGA based processing of

signals
P2P Streaming enables direct module to module streaming of data providing the ability to create
large hardware based RF processing systems
P2P streaming maximum streaming rates are dependent on the modules, chassiss, controllers and
configurations used in the system
system.
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Lesson 9
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Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
Digital modulation is an essential building block of most modern communication systems. When
compared to analog modulation (FM, AM, PM), many advantages arise including channel capacity
and robustness in the presence of channel impairments. National Instruments has a large library of
low level signal processing functions available for building IP to generate and analyze digitally
modulated signals, but also has a higher level API called the Modulation Toolkit to aid in this
development.
After reviewing some of the basics of digital modulation, we will review the programming
methodology of Modulation Toolkit and implement a full Rx and Tx test of a test UUT.
10-1
Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
A. Modern Digital
g Communication Systems
y
Within a digital communications system, information must be digitized, coded and modulated so
that can be transmitted through the communications channel and then recovered on the receiving
side. The modulation toolkit provides building blocks to take your digitized information and
prepare it for that transmission. The blocks highlighted are those that take place before sending
data to the RFSG driver and after receiving IQ data from RFSA; which is where Modulation
Toolkit will be utilized.
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Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
Digital Modulation Process
During the digital modulation process the bit-stream of the information is translated to symbols
that are used to modulate the carrier. The symbols are 2n-ary. In other words, the symbols are
made up of n bits which give 2n unique symbols. The symbol values modulate the carrier in
various ways that are dependent on the type of modulation used. In very basic modulation
schemes, the discrete symbols are applied directly to the waveform given the modulation method
being used. For example, in 4-FSK, each symbol represents 2 bits. The binary data is converted to
four different p
possible symbol
y
values. The four symbol
y
values are then mapped
pp to four different
frequency offsets from the carrier and the carrier is modulated based on the symbol values and
their associated frequency offsets.
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Lesson 10
Digital Modulation Review
Digital Modulation takes a binary bit-stream represented as discrete symbol values that are used to
modulate a carrier in various ways.
Common methods to modulate the carrier include changing the carriers amplitude, frequency or
phase, or sometimes a combination of these different properties. The most common modulation
methods are analogous to the three common types of analog modulation. These common digital
modulation methods include Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK), Frequency Shift Keying (FSK), and
Phase Shift Keying (PSK).
(PSK) ASK is analogous to AM analog modulation,
modulation FSK is analogous to FM
analog modulation and PSK is analogous to PM analog modulation.
Another popular digital modulation scheme is Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) which is
a combination of both ASK and PSK where both the amplitude and phase of the carrier are
modified based on the symbols that make up the bit-stream.
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Lesson 10
1. Open MAIN - Analog vs Digital Modulation.vi from the <Demonstrations>\RF

Application Development\Analog vs Digital Modulation\ directory.
2. Run the VI and show the differences and similarities between the basic digital modulation
formats and their analog modulation counterparts.
3. Change between digital and analog signal types to see how the IQ data and the modulated RF
waveform change for a given modulation method.
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Lesson 10
B. Digital Modulation Methods
Amplitude-shift keying (ASK) refers to a type of amplitude modulation which assigns bit values to
discrete amplitude levels. The carrier signal is then modulated among the members of a set of
discrete values to transmit information.
Frequency-shift keying (FSK) refers to a type of frequency modulation which assigns bit values to
discrete frequency levels. In non-coherent forms of FSK, the instantaneous frequency is shifted
between two discrete values termed the mark and space frequencies. Coherent forms of FSK
exist in which there is no phase discontinuity in the output signal. FSK modulation formats
generate
t modulated
d l t d waveforms
f
that
th t are strictly
t i tl real-values,
l l
andd thus
th tend
t d nott to
t share
h common
features with Quadrature Modulation schemes.
Phase-shift keying (PSK) in a digital transmission refers to a type of angle modulation in which the
phase of the carrier is discretely variedeither in relation to a reference phase or to the phase of
the immediately preceding signal elementto represent data being transmitted.
For example, when encoding bits, the phase shift could be 0 for encoding a 0, and 180 for
encoding a 1, or the phase shift could be 90 for 0 and +90 for a 1, thus making the
representations for 0 and 1 a total of 180
180 apart.
apart In PSK systems designed so that the carrier can
assume only two different phase angles, each change of phase carries one bit of information, that
is, the bit rate equals the modulation rate.
Examples of these modulation and demodulation methods as well as others can respectively be
found under:
<LabVIEW>\examples\Modulation\RFSG examples\
<LabVIEW>\examples\Modulation\niRFSA examples\
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Lesson 10
Quadrature-Amplitude Modulation (QAM)
Quadrature-amplitude modulation (QAM) is a form of quadrature modulation in which the two

carriers are both amplitude-modulated.
Quadrature modulation (QM) refers to any modulation scheme that uses two carrier waves out of
phase by 90 that are modulated by separate information signals.
Use MT Modulate QAM.vi to generate an QAM modulated baseband waveform and
MT Demodulate QAM.vi to analyze a QAM modulated baseband waveform.
The shipping examples for QAM modulation and demodulation can be found at <LabVIEW>\
examples\Modulation\RFSG examples\MT RFSG Generate QAM.vi and
<LabVIEW>\examples\Modulation\niRFSA examples\MT niRFSA QAM Demod.vi
respectively.
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Lesson 10
Other Modulation Types
Minimum shift keying (MSK) modulation is a subtype of FSK modulation. MSK uses a half-cycle
sinusoidal pulse, making the phase change linear and keeping side lobes low to control adjacentchannel interference. Use MT Modulate MSK.vi to generate an MSK modulated baseband
waveform and MT Demodulate MSK.vi to analyze a MSK modulated baseband waveform.
Continuous Phase Modulation (CPM) is a constant-amplitude modulation scheme that can

be considered to be a generalization of Continuous Phase Frequency Shift Keying (CPFSK)
or Minimum Shift Keying (MSK).
(MSK) The lack of phase discontinuities results in reduced high
frequency spectral content making CPM a highly spectrally efficient scheme. Use
MT Modulate CPM.vi to generate an CPM modulated baseband waveform and
MT Demodulate CPM.vi to analyze a CPM modulated baseband waveform.
Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM) uses pulses of varying amplitudes to encode the symbols. The
carrier amplitude is pulsed relative to the data. Use MT Modulate PAM.vi to generate an CPM
modulated baseband waveform and MT Demodulate PAM.vi to analyze a PAM modulated
baseband waveform.
waveform
The shipping examples for ASK modulation and demodulation can be found at <LabVIEW>\
examples\Modulation\RFSG examples\MT RFSG Generate ASK.vi and
<LabVIEW>\examples\MT niRFSA ASK Demod.vi respectively.
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Lesson 10
The Modulation Toolkit supports seven different standard modulation methods.

Modulation Applications
ASK Optical Fiber, Morse Code
FSK Caller ID, Telecom
PSK RFID
BPSK Satellite, 802.11b
QAM Cable Modem,

Modem WiMAX
PAM T-1000, Gigabit Ethernet
MSK GSM (3G)
CPM Wireless Modems
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Lesson 10
Digital Modulation Toolkit
The NI Modulation Toolkit includes functions and tools for signal generation, analysis,
visualization, and processing of standard and custom modulation formats. With this toolkit, you
can rapidly develop custom applications for research, design, characterization, validation, and test
of communications systems and components that modulate or demodulate signals.
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Lesson 10
C. Modulation and Coding

g Scheme Identification
Identification of key parameters is one of the first steps in building a test system that will
communicate with a digitally modulated device. These key parameters can be classified as the
Modulation and Coding Scheme. Before any communications code is written, these parameters
must first be found. However, finding these may be difficult as they are not always within the same
document or outlined clearly. In some cases we may even needs to look into microprocessor code
or use best judgment. We will indicate where these parameters are needed in the digital modulation
chain and similarly used within modulation toolkit, and for the purpose of this course, identify
these parameters for an evaluation FSK test board from Atmel Corporation.
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Lesson 10
Modulation System
y
Parameters
Each modulation method may have its own unique System Parameters, but most are common.
These common items include:
Samples Per Symbol
Modulation Order (M-ary)
Symbol Mapping Information (deviation, offset, and so on.)
Within the modulation toolkit there is a polymorphic VI that helps us define this for a particular
method of modulation, MT Generate System Parameters.vi.
For our unique device in this course, we will utilize a continuous phase, 2-FSK modulation with a
deviation of 17.25 kHz. The samples per symbol is not something that will be identified in any
documentation, but rather we must balance this between signal quality and size of waveform to be
created. The more samples per symbol, the higher the IQ rate and larger the waveform.
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Lesson 10
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Lesson 10
Data Formatting
Most all digital communications have some way of formatting their data in a unique way, but
regardless of how it is formatted, it must be understood so that the message can be formatted
properly for reception or disassembled correctly for retrieval of the original message. This
information includes but is not limited to:
Bit Order (MSB LSB)
Packet/Burst/Frame length
Distribution of Information in the Bitstream
Definition of Synchronization/Header/Guard Bits
Within the modulation toolkit, MT UnPack Bits.vi can help you in translating an array of
assembled data into the binary bit stream to be modulated, but some manual assembly and byte
level processing may be needed as well. LabVIEW has a deep library of functions for byte/bit
level manipulation.
For our unique

F
i
device
d i in
i this
hi course, a burst
b
off data
d is
i 128 bits
bi llong, 40 hheader
d bi
bits, ffollowed
ll
d by
b 16
bits representing the count, followed by 56 static bits, followed by 16 bits of a cyclic redundancy
check. This data is transmitted MSB first.
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Lesson 10
Channel Coding
Channel coding can add bits to the data, which increases the message size. Added or redundant bits
ensure that the original message can better withstand the effects of any channel impairments,
including noise and fading, for proper decoding to obtain the original transmitted message. Many
channel-coding algorithms balance the need to correctly encode and transmit data while
minimizing message size. Among the most popular error-correcting schemes are block and
convolutional coding.
Within the Modulation Toolkit

Toolkit, there are a collection of the most commonly used channel coders
including BCH, Golay, Reed Solomon and Convolutional.
For our unique device in this course, our data is coded using an inverse Manchester code which
spreads the data by a factor of 2 with a spreading code of [1,0]. This translates into:
0 > 1,0
1 > 0,1
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Lesson 10
Pulse Shape Filtering
Recall that when modulating the data in the case of FSK modulation, the symbol values are
mapped to frequency offsets. The carrier then is frequency shifted at the symbol rate of the data for
each symbol value. Because the symbols are discrete value, we instantaneously switch the carrier
from frequency to the next as we modulate the carrier with the symbol data. The instantaneous
switch can cause a discontinuity in the carrier waveform, resulting in high frequency content that is
introduced into the generated waveform. This high frequency content is spectrally inefficient. To
minimize this effect,, yyou can apply
pp y filteringg to the symbol
y
data before modulatingg the carrier.
Within the Modulation Toolkit, pulse shape filter coefficients and their match can be created using
the MT Generate Filter Coefficients VI. These coefficients are supplied to the modulator and demodulator respectively. The modulation type and samples per symbol must match the system
parameters to ensure proper operation. The available types are: None, Gaussian, Raised Cosine and
Root Raised Cosine Other filter considerations are detailed in depth in the Modulation VI
Reference Help. If your specific filter type is not included, you would develop your own code to
supply the pulse shaping and matched filter coefficients to the modulator and demodulator.
For the unique device in this course, no filtering of the data is required.
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Lesson 10

1. Open IF Waveform Creator.vi from the <Exercises>\ RF Application
Development\Pulse Demonstrations\Shape Filtering directory. This
VI demonstrates various elements related to QAM signal generation.
2. Show the spectral effects of utilizing a pulse shape filter vs not
3. Highlight that although the constellation becomes less discreet, the symbol locations are at the
same place.
4. Run the VI and set the pulse shaping filter control to None. Notice how the modulated
waveform has discrete transitions from one symbol to the next and how this produces high
frequency content that shows up in the spectrum. These additional frequencies require
additional power from the transmitter to transmit the waveform.
5. Now switch the pulse shaping filter control to Raised Cosine. Note how the bandwidth of the
generated spectrum narrows and requires less power from the transmitter.
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Lesson 10
Synchronization Parameters
In order to properly align the modulated data in phase and symbol location, extra synchronization
bits are added to the data. Typically these extra bits are added to the beginning but sometimes are
placed at an offset within the data stream. Regardless of where the data is located or what the
definition of the data is, (pseudorandom, n number of null bits, and so on), identifying its
parameters is necessary.
Within the Modulation Toolkit, a polymorphic VI exists to help in defining these parameters for a
particular method of modulation
modulation, MT Generate Synchronization Parameters
Parameters.vi.
vi
By supplying this VI with a bit-stream and leaving the remaining parameters alone, upon
demodulation, it will search for that bit-stream, assume it is at the beginning of the dataset and
return the remaining bits. During modulation, it is necessary for the user to add those needed bits
during the process of data formatting.
For our unique device in this course, we can take advantage of the 40 header bits, or the
56 static bits that exist at an offset of 56 within the data stream. Utilizing the static 56 bits may be
our best solution so that we do not need to worry about not finding the synchronization because of
the realistic possibility of our first bit being corrupted.
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Lesson 10
Continuous Data Versus Burst
Identification of the type of signal you will be generating or receiving plays a somewhat smaller
role in overall modulation of your signal but may require some modification or additions to the
data you pass to the modulator/demodulator. Depending on your unique situation, data may be
transmitted continuously through the transmission process or be sent in packets with specific
timing intervals. Each type has its own things to consider.
Burst:
R
Ramp
up-down
d
time:
i
Extra
E
bi
bits added
dd d to eachh endd off data
d andd smoothing
hi functions
f
i
applied.
li d
Idle time: Make idle time part of waveform to be generated, or make separate waveform and
use RFSG Waveform Scripting to join data together.
Continuous:
Phase continuity: If you will have RFSG re-generate the same waveform continuously, you
need to ensure that the data is phase continuous so that there are no major transients in the
waveform as you go from the last point generated to the first point generated again.
again
Within the Modulation Toolkit, there are no direct functions to help you with this process, but the
deep signal processing library within LabVIEW has the functionality needed to handle these
concerns.
For our unique device in this course, the 128 bits of data are burst out in packets as defined
previously and can not be received more than 3 times per second. No ramp-up or down
considerations are required.
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Lesson 10
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Lesson 10
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Lesson 10
Modulation Impairments
p
All transmission media (including wireless, fiber optic, and copper) introduce some form of
distortion to the original signal. Communications systems require accurate transitions in phase,
amplitude, and frequency of a modulated RF signal. In fact, errors due to DC offset, phase noise,
quadrature skew, or gain imbalance each impair the accuracy of the signal generated. Accuracy of
each signal transition determines factors such as bit error rate (BER) and order of modulation
scheme (4-QAM versus 256-QAM) and has a direct affect on the potential system throughput.
These inaccuracies in the system are known as impairments. Since these impairments are part of
real-world communication, it is often desirable to model them in a laboratory environment.
Programmatically controlling various impairments can help the communications engineer improve
system immunity to these adverse effects.
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Lesson 10
Palette Organization
Apply IQ ImpairmentsApplies various IQ impairments, such as DC offset (both I & Q), IQ

gain imbalance, quadrature skew, and frequency offset to the complex baseband modulated
waveform.
Add AWGNGenerates zero-mean complex additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) with
uniform power spectral density and adds it to the complex baseband modulated waveform,
returning a signalplusnoise waveform having a user-specified Eb/N0.
Eb represents
t the
th energy per bit,
bit andd N0 represents
t the
th noise
i variance.
i
Add Phase NoiseModels and applies common sources of phase noise present in
communications systems components. This VI creates phase noise by first generating white
noise and then applying a 1/f (inverse f) filter to specify the noise shape. The output of the filter
is scaled such that the generated noise density is equal to the specified offset frequency. The
phase component of the input signal is then modulated by the filtered noise.
Add MultitoneGenerates a multitone and adds it to the complex

p baseband modulated
waveform, returning a signal-plus-tones waveform. The tones-added signal can be used to test
transmitter interference rejection.
10-23
Lesson 10
Generate Fading ProfileGenerates a user-specified Rayleigh or Rician fading profile to the

complex baseband waveform. Call the Apply Fading Profile VI to apply the generated profile to
a baseband
b b d IQ waveform.
f
Y
You can use thi
this VI for
f modeling
d li Rayleigh
R l i h andd Rician
Ri i fading
f di profile
fil
distributions used for characterizing a flat-fading channel. Fading profiles can be characterized
as multiplicative models which attenuate the magnitude and phase of the transmitted modulated
IQ baseband signal. The faded waveform can be used to test receiver immunity to fading
channels.
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Digital Modulation
Apply Fading ProfileApplies a user-defined profile to fade the complex baseband modulated
waveform. The faded waveform can be used to test receiver immunity to fading channels.
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Lesson 10
Modulation Impairments IQ Impairments
Because of slight component mismatches, I and Q signal paths of a physical communications

system where I and Q are handled in the analog domain invariably have some mismatch in skew,
gain, and DC offset. To model this effect, the Modulation Toolset has IQ gain imbalance, DC
offset and quadrature skew parameters that can be applied to the waveform data. This capability is
particularly useful during the prototyping and verification stages of product development to
evaluate receiver sensitivity/immunity to impairments.
To see the effects of I/Q gain imbalance on a digitally modulated signal,

signal consider a 16-QAM
signal. The ideal symbol coordinates of a 16-QAM signal would be evenly spaced with four
symbols in each of the four quadrants when plotted as a constellation diagram in the I/Q domain.
When I/Q gain imbalance is applied, the symbol constellation distorts vertically or horizontally.
DC offset is a complex signal impairment that shifts the locus of the ideal symbol coordinates off
center in the I/Q plane. A DC offset can be added to the I component, the Q component, or both.
The DC offset can be either positive or negative, with the sign indicating direction of the shift.
To add quadrature skew, also called quadrature error, to a quadrature-modulated signal, the phase
of the I and Q data can be independently adjusted. Quadrature skew describes a complex signal
impairment where the I and Q components are not perfectly orthogonal and the signal appears as a
twisting in the IQ domain constellation diagram.
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Lesson 10

1. Open QAM Simulator.vi from the <Exercises>\RF Application
Development\Demonstrations directory.
2. Run the VI.

3. Adjust the controls for the various impairments that the Modulation Toolkit adds to the
baseband waveform. See how the introduction of these impairments effects the I and Q
baseband waveform, the spectrum and the constellation plot.
4. Close the VI.
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Lesson 10
Low Level Modulation Tools
Occasionally the high level of abstraction that the Modulation Toolkit provides either does not
provide the needed flexibility or parameters. In these cases, there are some advanced tools with the
Modulation Toolkit that provide this functionality.
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Lesson 10
Sample Rate Considerations
Compatible IQ rates for different measurements, standards and hardware are not always
achievable, therefore it sometimes becomes necessary in software to resample the waveform
acquired or the one to be generated. The Modulation Toolkit provides a resampling routine so that
you can achieve the sample rate necessary for your application and system.
Caution Refer to the Modulation VI Reference Help before using this VI to prevent data
corruption
i due
d to fil
filter priming.
i i
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Lesson 10
Symbol Mapping
If your modulation scheme is non-standard and you need to translate your input bit-stream in to a
Modulation Toolkit compatible array of symbols, utilize MT Generate Symbol Map and MT Map
Symbols to Bits. These functions are also useful for creating sync and guard bits if specified.
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Lesson 10
Interleaving and Equalization
The Modulation Toolkit employs an adaptive feed-forward equalizer, which implies that the
equalizer taps continuously adapts its coefficients to compensate for the action of the channel
filter. The adaptive feed-forward equalizer uses a feed-forward adaptive least-mean-squared
(LMS) algorithm to adjust the equalizer taps. At the start of the equalization process, you must
supply training bits to train the equalizer. After training, the equalizer switches to decision-directed
feedback mode, where the equalizer trains itself based on its own decisions.
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Lesson 10
D. Digital
g Modulation Measurements
Use digital modulation measurements to evaluate how well transmitted data was received.
By performing theses measurements, we can model the communications channel and help
determine where the digital modulation system short comings are located. This information can
help the developer improve on an existing design and make the communication more robust
between the transmitter and receiver. Common metrics for evaluating digital modulation include
bit error rate, modulation error ratio, and error vector magnitude.
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Process of Demodulation
Using the modulation and coding scheme information assembled previously, we can start to put
together the code for the process of demodulation. Other than the other VIs needed to configure
the hardware these will allow us to process the acquired IQ waveform and extrapolate the message
and measurements.
When demodulating, keep in mind that the acquired data sent to the demodulator should not
contain any unmodulated data. In other words, only acquire data as it is being modulated or be sure
to parse the waveform before demodulating.
demodulating
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Modulation Measurements with the Demodulation VIs
The demodulation VIs also have built-in measurements that are performed automatically during
the demodulation process. This data is outputted in a cluster indicator called Measurements. Here
is a list of the measurements returned by each of the demodulators:
QAM, ASK, PAM, PSK demodulators: Frequency Offset, Frequency Drift, Phase Offset
FSK demodulator: Frequency Offset, Frequency Drift, Deviation Error, FSK Error
MSK demodulator: Frequency Offset, Frequency Drift
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Modulation Measurements with the Modulation Toolkit
MT Calculate BER After TriggerCalculates the average bit error rate against a PN
sequence or user-specified reference bit pattern. Bit error rate is the ratio of erroneous bits to
total bits transmitted, received, or processed over some stipulated period. Transmission BER
expresses the number of erroneous bits received divided by the total number of bits
transmitted. Information BER expresses the number of erroneous decoded (corrected) bits
divided by the total number of decoded (corrected) bits.
MT Measure Quadrature ImpairmentsMeasures and reports quadrature impairments

over a single user-specified window for each of the supported modulation types (PSK, QAM,
MSK, PAM, and ASK).
MT Measure Burst TimingLocates a burst within the input complex waveform with
peaks correlating to the input ideal power curve. For burst signals, burst timing refers to the
location of the burst, obtained by its correlation against an ideal power curve. In addition, an
upper and lower mask are used for testing whether the burst signal satisfies mask
specifications.
specifications
MT Measure RhoCalculates rho () given an and ideal waveform. is a measure of

correlation between the measured complex waveform and the ideal complex waveform.
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Lesson 10
E. Visualization
Use the following VIs to visualize modulation. When you add a modulation graph to the front
panel, the corresponding VIs are automatically added to the block diagram.
MT IQ to XY GraphFormats IQ data for plotting on a LabVIEW XY graph. It extracts the

I and Q data into two arrays (X and Y), which are bundled into the I vs. Q graph output.
MT Format ConstellationPrepares a signal for presentation on a graph showing the

detected symbol locations and the transitions between those symbols. The VI inputs a
complex-valued waveform and displays a constellation plot of the waveform contents.
Although this VI performs no demodulation or frequency correction, you can use this VI to
examine the output of many of the digital demodulation VIs. In cases where the demodulator
can recover symbol timing, the output complex waveform parameter of the digital
demodulation VIs contains a frequency-corrected signal appropriate for plotting with this VI.
MT Format Eye DiagramInputs a complex- or real-valued waveform, divides it into

segments, and displays those segments as plots on a waveform graph. It determines the
segment length based on the symbol rate and eye length input parameters. This VI displays
either the I or Q component of the input signal, depending on the selection you make on the
I/Q input parameter. The I and Q components can also be examined simultaneously over time
on a 3D graph using the MT Display 3D Eye VI.
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MT Format Trellis DiagramInputs a complex-valued waveform, divides it into segments of

(trellis length / symbol rate), and displays those segments as a trellis diagram on a standard
LabVIEW waveform graph referenced by the trellis reference input.
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Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
Constellations
An I/Q plot plots Q vs. I. In a digital modulated signal, if you sample this I/Q plot appropriately,
you will capture only the I/Q pairs that represent the symbols and discard the data that represent
transitions between the symbols. This sampled I/Q plot that shows only the symbols is called a
constellation plot.
In the figure above, the continuous red lines are the I/Q pairs digitized at a higher rate than symbol
rate. The typical oversampling rate is 4X or higher. The white dots represent the constellation plot.
Th sampling
The
li points
i are determined
d
i d through
h
h an algorithm
l i h on the
h receiver
i
side.
id First,
Fi the
h exact
symbol rate clock is determined from the nominal values provided by the user to the
communication receiver and signal processing, called symbol clock recovery. Next, the exact
phase or alignment of this clock with the received data is determined through signal processing
called symbol clock phase recovery.
The constellation plot is similar to an eye diagram for binary digital communications because
it represents the quality of the symbols (sets of bits) that are being communicated. The
constellation plot indicates the quality of modulation for standard compliance testing. The
constellation plot is also useful in design and development because you can diagnose common
impairments in the transmitter/receiver by analyzing the I/Q and constellation plots.
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Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
Eye Diagrams
In telecommunications, an eye diagram is a graphical display in which a digital data signal from a
receiver is repetitively sampled and displayed on the graph. It is called an eye diagram because for
several types of coding, the pattern looks like a series of eyes between a pair of rails.
You can derive several system performance measures by analyzing the display. If the signals are
too long, too short, poorly synchronized with the system clock, too high, too low, too noisy, too
slow to change, or have too much undershoot or overshoot, the eye diagram shows these
characteristics An open eye pattern corresponds to minimal signal distortion.
characteristics.
distortion Distortion of the
signal waveform due to intersymbol interference and noise appears as closure of the eye pattern. 1,2
You can make the following evaluations from analyzing the eye diagram:
1. Eye opening (height, peak to peak) measures the additive noise in the signal.
2. Eye overshoot/undershoot measures the peak distortion.
3 Eye
3.
E width
id h measures timing
i i synchronization
h i i andd jitter
ji
effects.
ff
1.
Christopher M. Miller "High-Speed Digital Transmitter Characterization Using Eye Diagram Analysis". 1266 Hewlett-Packard Journal 45(1994)
Aug., No,4, pp. 29-37
2.
John G Proakis, Digital Communications 3rd ed, 2001
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Lesson 10
Trellis Diagram
Inputs a complex-valued waveform, divides it into segments of (trellis length / symbol rate), and
displays those segments as a trellis diagram on a standard LabVIEW waveform graph referenced
by the trellis reference input.
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Digital Modulation
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Lesson 10
1. Open MT QAM 3D Eye.vi from the <LabVIEW>\examples\Modulation\

simulation examples\Interactive\ directory.
2. Set the parameters to show a 4-QAM signal like the image below:
3. Autoscale the graphs and then rotate the 3D Eye Diagram to show both the 2D eye along the
time axis and then the constellation plot along the I & Q axes.
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Lesson 10
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RF Test Reference Architecture and Best Practices
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Lesson 11
With the need to meet multiple RF communication standards on one device and shorten
software development cycles, RF test engineers must adopt a well-defined and scalable
software architecture. This chapter provides an introduction to the NI RF Communications
Reference Architecture developed by NI RF systems engineers to rapidly deliver
RF generation and analysis capabilities to customers and partners.
The core premise behind a reference architecture is not to provide end users a toolkit or
product but rather a demonstrated implementation they can adopt and modify or use as is.
R f
Reference
ddesigns
i
or architectures
hit t
are application-oriented
li ti
i t d examples
l from
f
NI systems
t
engineers based on proofs of concept created for NI customers. Unlike shipping examples
that demonstrate product features, reference designs demonstrate how to design and
integrate systems. NI publishes these examples to share its application recommendations
with the user community.
The NI RF Communications Reference Architecture offers a protocol-agnostic software

structure an open architecture,
structure,
architecture and a partitioning of responsibilities between hardware and
protocol IP code. The primary target application for this architecture is production test,
where stability, simplicity, and determinism take priority.
By the end of this chapter you should be familiar with the core generation and analysis
components of the architecture and be able to debug and partially customize the code for a
custom DUT.
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Lesson 11
Example
p to Application
pp
Examples that ship with LabVIEW, RF Hardware Drivers and the RF Toolkits provide a
significant amount of IP that can assist in developing an RF application. These examples
cover a wide variety of modulation schemes, hardware configurations and advanced signal
processing. While these example programs are extremely useful in getting started, a good
deal of code development is needed to take an example to an application.
p shown here highlights
g g multiple
p reasons whyy this example
p would not be used
The example
within a test application without a significant re-write.
Usage of Property Node
Not possible to call property nodes directly from test executives
Usage of Shipping Example SubVI
Incomplete Error Handling
Example SubVIs not necessarily present in future product releases.

Requirement for stable application
All parameters set at once
Difficult to create efficient application where only one parameter needs to change
(power level).
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Lesson 11
Provides immediate access to lower level configuration

Likely that for specific application things like symbol rate and filter definitions will
not need to change
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Difficult to translate into discrete test executive sequence
Too many lines of data linking all the nodes would make passing data in TE
difficult. Not all logic is contained within code modules and would bloat the TE with
logic that should be contained within the modules. Flow of the program and the
contained IP are tightly coupled making abstraction difficult
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Lesson 11
Example
p to Application
pp
A fully developed RF Application Architecture takes many of those things into

consideration and provides the end user a concise high level API, well structured code base
and a well defined path to system level automation. At the application level, functionality is
modular and abstracted. Without a proper level of abstraction and structure the code
becomes laden with wires running everywhere, difficult to follow and even more difficult to
customize for your particular application without negatively affecting other parts of the
code.
Within this example you can see how a simple direct mapping from a LabVIEW only
implementation maps directly into a production grade test executive software package. Each
function of the API has a minimal number of inputs and abstract many of the lower level
details into the functions themselves therefore simplifying the process of automation.
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Lesson 11
B. RF Application
pp
Design
g
The top considerations to the RF application designer are
Code Reuse
Speed
Flexibility
Skill of those interacting with code
A consistent
i
architecture
hi
Ability to interface to a variety of hardware
At the heart of each RF test application is the signal processing IP that creates waveforms and
processes acquired data. Having a defined architecture can be critical to taking this IP and having it
functional in an application in minimal time.
Luckily, sometimes someone else bears the burden of these considerations and makes a reference for
the rest of us to work from.
from
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Lesson 11
What is a Reference Architecture/Design?

g
For example, reference designs are very common within the graphics card industry. A GPU
(Graphics Processing Unit) manufacturer (NVIDIA, ATI) will design a chip with myriad functions.
Along with that chip (IP), they will design a reference board that demonstrates those functions.
Third-party graphics card manufacturers (BFG, Diamond, EVGA) sometimes take this reference
design, as is, and produce an end product. They may add some features to the product (custom heat
sinks, included software) but do not necessarily modify the reference design board.
While other g
graphics
p
card manufacturers,, for a variety
y of reasons,, will either take that reference
design and slightly modify it or sometimes even throw it out the window and start designing a new
board from scratch. These reasons are typically to improve graphics performance, change form
factor, reduce power consumption or even add new functionality to the GPU. In all these situations,
the GPU (IP) stays the same but the architecture hosting that IP is different.
The end product of the reference design is a platform that can take a single piece of IP and
demonstrate its abilities, deliver a functional end product or open the door to the 3rd party
manufactures to change,
change improve and re
re-design
design that platform to suit their own unique considerations.
considerations
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Lesson 11
The NI RF Test Reference Architecture takes the concept of a reference design and delivers it for the
NI RF platform. This architecture is utilized to validate RF IP created for unique opportunities and
potentially future toolkits. The customer is responsible for the maintenance and customization of the
architecture, while the IP within, is supported by NI RF systems engineering. While this reference
architecture is a fully functional implementation of our recommendations for RF test, it is not a
supported toolkit and has no part number from which you can purchase or request full support from
ni.com.
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Lesson 11
For any implementation of a communications protocol, the reference architecture maintains the same
basic symmetric structure.
For signal generation there are a variety of any number of message types.
Within each message there are 2 primary components
ExportsTop level API calls able to be invoked from a variety of Application Development
(
)
Environments (ADEs)
Generation IPProtected calls that are unique for each protocol message that have a well
defined prototype
Separate from each message there is a System directory which contains common code for all
message types and an Application Example which gives an interactive example to act as a single
point interface to all message types.
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Lesson 11
Generation
This is an example program of Signal Generation within the niBasic implementation.
Each of these top level VIs are called Exports and reside within the directory of the same name
within both the niSystem and specific protocols directory (niBasic). In this example, there are 4
primary sections of interest in this code.
1. Configure Hardware
2. Waveform Parameters
3. Create Waveform
4. Start Generation
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Lesson 11
Generation
Due to the consistent nature of the architecture, this basic structure and key components are the same
for any protocol.
1. Configure HardwareCalls which do not have a direct impact on the definition of the message
signal to be generated.
2. Waveform ParametersType Definitions which directly define the message of the protocol
p
synthesis
y
of the waveform based upon
p the parameters
p
and
3. Create WaveformImplements
performs a other pre-defined architecture level tasks and uploads the waveform to the ARB
memory
4. Start GenerationInitiates script based RF generation of the previously uploaded waveforms
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Lesson 11
Signal
g Generation Implementation
p
There are three primary levels of skill associated with working within the architecture
UsageBasic understanding of what the blocks are and how to use them, as is, within your
program.
DebugWhen problems arise, knowing where to look in the code for a specific type of problem
and identifying the cause
y g the existingg code to changing

g g needs or buildingg new functionality
y
CustomizeModifying
altogether
When implementing signal generation, these skill levels require different knowledge for each of the
three primary blocks (Configure, Create/Upload, Initiate)
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Hardware
For signal generation, most of the hardware configuration export VIs are common system
components found in the <user.lib>\niRF\niSystem\SG\Exports directory. Regardless of the protocol,
these calls will always be needed in the top level application.
The primary exports are
Initialize HW
q
y
Center Frequency
Output Level
External Attenuation
Output Enabled
Secondary common parameters are
Trigger
F
Frequency
R
Reference
f
In most cases, these exports can be called at any point in your application to modify their respective
settings, but may require an abort generation if the driver requires it.
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Lesson 11
Create/Upload
p
Waveform
Once the hardware is configured to its needed settings, the next step is to synthesize one or more
waveform and upload them to the hardware. A Create Waveform VI is called for each separate
waveform to be generated in a generation session. Any waveform-specific settings are passed to the
VI in a cluster. Any needed impairments to the waveform are applied at this point. The architecture
utilizes script mode generation for all protocols, therefore this call also requires that you pass it a
string identifier for the waveform that will be used later when we initiate generation with a full script.
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Lesson 11
Initiate Generation
After all needed waveforms have been downloaded, we initiate the generation by passing a script that
calls the uploaded waveforms. For simple protocols this script will typically be just a generate
forever loop. Along with the script, we pass this export the External Attenuation and Level as
well. The level settings will typically be the same as the direct calls to just set output level
Note The ability to upload many waveforms and switch scripts is a key NI RF advantage.
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Hardware
Once we have put together our application using the protocol specific and niSystem exports it will be
necessary to debug any problems or errors encountered.
The code of the Configure Hardware exports is typically a direct call to the RFSG driver with some
basic calculations as well. The reason to wrap a driver call is to keep the top level API consistent.
This has a variety of benefits, but most of all, it allows this API to be easily exported to a variety of
applications that might not be able to directly call the driver easily; including TestStand, .NET and
DLLs.
DLLs
In some cases, such as configuring triggers, an indirect map to the driver is needed to abstract some
of the complexity from the top level controls.
In both mapping cases, the process of debug is to determine if the setting that we are sending to the
driver is valid for the current hardware.
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Lesson 11
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Lesson 11
Create/Upload Waveform
If there is a problem with the signal being generated and it is not associated with the hardware,
investigating the creation and uploaded waveform is appropriate. There are 5 primary parts to each
create/upload export.
Create Waveform DataPrimary IP for generation. Takes in the waveform configuration info
and outputs IQ data.
Apply HeadroomHeadroom allows the user to control the generation of multiple waveforms at
diff
different
t power llevels
l or to
t avoid
id clipping
li i any waveform
f
with
ith a large
l
peak-to-average
kt
ratio
ti
(PAR). By default, headroom is calculated to optimize the dynamic range of the generator.
Apply IQ perturbationsThe next step is to apply any perturbations to the signal. This VI is a
generic wrapper of the Modulation Toolkit VI that helps to quickly add perturbations to a signal.
Write Waveform The waveform is then written to hardware memory
Save Waveform InfoThe waveform properties are also stored in the Waveform Database VI,
which is used later to configure hardware settings based on all of the waveforms that have been
loaded on the hardware.
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Lesson 11
Initiate Generation
Once all waveforms are successfully uploaded to the ARB, a specified script is initiated. If there are
any problems with the script, or conflict between waveforms that are being referred to within, this is
where the debug would be needed.
The Start Generation VI reads I/Q rate and headroom parameters from all of the waveforms in the
aforementioned waveform database and configures the sample rate and power level of the generator.
This VI also reads and applies the RFSG script, and saves it in a Script Database VI for later use if
necessary Finally,
necessary.
Finally the Start Generation VI calls niRFSG Initiate.vi,
Initiate vi which starts hardware
generation.
This VI returns a warning if the headroom of all the waveforms is not the same and returns an error if
the I/Q rates are different. It is assumed that the user is familiar with this terminology in case any
change of functionality is needed.
The reference architecture assumes that all waveforms needed for a specific test are loaded into the
hardware at the beginning. After that, using different scripts, you can generate each waveform. This
reduces measurement time.
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Hardware
As mentioned earlier, the hardware is configured directly or indirectly through mostly niSystem level
exports. However some protocols warrant having unique and custom hardware configuration exports.
In this example, the protocol does not get tested by specific frequencies, but rather by channel
number. To customize the hardware configuration exports create the code that translates your
protocol specific input to what is needed by the driver.
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Lesson 11
Create Waveform Data
The Create and Upload export is mostly defined by the architecture and should not need
customization beyond the replacement of the create waveform. This VI takes in the waveform
parameters and generates the raw IQ data. The generation code that was created in the previous
chapter will go here for our own custom implementation of the reference architecture.
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Lesson 11
Initiate Generation
For protocols that have particularly complex schemas, making a unique Initiate Generation might
be appropriate. For this example, an arbitrary number of packets need to be created, uploaded and
then interleaved with idle packets.
In this example the Initiate has been modified to build the full script from the waveform names
input into it. This has the advantage of code abstraction and modularization.
Without the modification, the code that would build the script and interleave idle timeslots with
unique, would be visible at this level and contribute to code bloat and minimize re-use.
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Lesson 11
Overview: Generation
Although there are many ways to work within the reference architecture, the structure for generation
remains the same, regardless of protocol.
Configure Hardware
Create/Upload Waveforms
Start Scripted Generation
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Lesson 11
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Lesson 11
Analysis
y
This is an example of a spectral based signal analysis. It has 4 primary sections
Configure Hardware
Configure Measurement
Perform Acquisition and Measurement
Return Data
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Lesson 11
Analysis
y
Just as with the architecture of signal generation, this architecture is common across all
measurements, regardless of the type of measurement or protocol.
Configure HardwareConfigure the RFSA session with parameters not directly associated
with calculating the measurement.
Configure MeasurementSetting of parameters to be used in the calculation of the

measurement
Perform MeasurementCommit to hardware the settings needed based on measurement

configuration, acquire data and process results.
Return DataExtract needed results from measurement
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Lesson 11
Signal
g Analysis
y Implementation
p
There are three primary levels of skill associated with working within the architecture
Usage Basic understanding of what the blocks are and how to use them, as is, within your
program.
Debug When problems arise, knowing where to look in the code for a specific type of problem
and identifying the cause
y g the existingg code to changing

g g needs or buildingg new functionality
y
CustomizeModifying
altogether
When implementing signal generation, these skill levels require different knowledge for each of the
three primary blocks (Configure HW, Configure Measurement, Acquire/Measure)
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Hardware
For signal analysis, most of the hardware configuration export VIs are common system components
found in the <user.lib>\niRF\niSystem\SA\Exports directory.
Regardless of the protocol, these calls will always be needed in the top level application.
The primary exports are
Initialize HW
q
y
Center Frequency
Max Input Power
External Attenuation
Secondary common parameters are
Trigger
Frequency Reference
IIn most cases, these

h
exports can be
b called
ll d at any point
i in
i your application
li i to modify
dif their
h i respective
i
settings, but may require an abort acquisition if the driver requires it.
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Measurement
The exports VIs associated with the configuration of the measurement are shown in the lower portion
of the example block diagram. Each of these parameters affect the acquisition (number of records, IQ
rate) and the measurement algorithm (FFT Window). These configuration parameters are stored in a
reference based structure that allows you to change any one of them dynamically without needing to
pass the new value into the actual Measure VI. All of the Configure Measurement export calls
will be unique to the specific measurement you are calculating (Spectrum, Modulation Accuracy,
PVT).
) When assembling
g an application
pp
using
g this architecture,, all that is required
q
is that yyou
initialize the reference and as needed, set the non-default parameters.
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Lesson 11
Perform Measurement
The final, and most important, block of utilizing the signal analysis (SA) portion of the reference
architecture is the Perform Measurement block. This block utilizes the measurement configuration
parameters previously set, does a final configuration of the hardware, acquires the data and then
processes the IQ samples. The output is a cluster of results and an optional choice of exported traces
that is selected by an enumerated input.
To continually make a measurement, assuming no change in configuration, this is the only
call that needs to be made.
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Hardware
Just as with the signal generation portion of the architecture, debug of the signal analysis (SA)
Configure Hardware section just requires knowledge of the hardware settings that are either
directly or indirectly mapped. Settings that are not valid on that version hardware are the typical
cause of debug at this layer.
Q: Why we wrap RFSA drivers in new VIs?
A:
1. Make easier the automation. We can call them sequentially from test executive.
2. Give a instrument GPIB consistent view.
3. Nothing stops you to use RFSA or to change these VIs.
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Lesson 11
Configure
g Measurement
The measurement configuration VIs do no processing. They simply set the updated parameter within
the reference based storage mechanism. These parameters must be set sequentially and not in
parallel. Debugging these VIs will only be required if a value of the configuration is not being set as
expected.
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Lesson 11
Measure VI
The most involved portion of the signal analysis is the Measure VI. Within this VI is
four distinct sections. Auto-Configure, Configure RFSA, Acquire IQ data and Process Measurement.
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Lesson 11
Measure VI
These sections are the same for all protocols. The Auto Configure and Process Measurement sections
contain most of the IP within a protocol. Debugging the Measure VI requires a good understanding
of each of these blocks and their functions.
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Lesson 11
Autoconfigure
g
The Auto-Configure VI is a measurement-specific VI that converts the requested settings for a

particular measurement into recommended settings for hardware. For example, the waveform
measurement allows for configuration of the RBW filter type and waveform averaging settings.
These settings translate into the number of records, acquisition sampling rate, and acquisition time.
The output of this VI is a cluster of recommended settings. The hardware is expected to accept these
settings. If not, the user has to make sure these settings are correct before feeding the data into the
Measurement Component.
p
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Lesson 11
Configure
g RFSA
After running the Autoconfigure VI, you need to apply the recommended settings to the hardware.
The examples from NI take all of the recommended settings from the Autoconfigure VI and
configure the hardware accordingly.
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Lesson 11
Acquire
q
IQ Data
Once the hardware has been configured, data acquisition is started with the niRFSA Initiate VI. Once
acquisition has begun, I/Q data is retrieved from the RFSA onboard memory using niRFSA Fetch
one record at a time, depending on the number of requested averages. This improves measurement
time for multiple averages and reduces the complexity of conducting the average later in the process.
The measure VI assumes t0 to be exactly at the trigger location; therefore, it is overridden by the
Auto-Configure post-trigger delay output.
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Lesson 11
Measure
Once you have acquired I/Q data, you pass it to the component-level Measure VI. This VI takes in
the measurement configuration cluster as well as I/Q data and returns measurement values. Data is
returned in two forms: a LabVIEW cluster of common measurement data as well as an array of
traces. Each trace is a 1D array of DLLs with a different measurement result, and the traces are
combined into a 2D array in the order defined in the measurement-specific Measurement Trace Type
enum. This allows for easy access to the data in NI TestStand and other ADEs.
The Measure VI assumes that the I/Q data has the properties requested by the Autoconfigure VI.
VI
This is true by default with the 6.6 GHz NI hardware family, with which this reference architecture is
meant to be used.
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Configure
g Hardware
Customizing the hardware configuration calls is typically an abstraction process to make the inputs to
the hardware protocol centric.
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Configure
g Measurement
If the configuration of the measurement needs to be customized, the developer would change the
contents of the State Element type definition and create a new Configure Measurement export to
pass that new value to the configuration storage and be utilized by the measure-VI.
In this example, adding NEW INPUT to the state element is shown along with the contents of the
new export that would be created.
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Perform Measurement Auto-Configure

g
Because the RFSA Configure and Acquire sections of the Measure VI are defined by the
architecture, the first step in customizing this VI is to change the Auto-Configure according to your
protocols configuration. This VI takes your custom configuration in, and outputs a common
configuration used to finalize the RFSA configuration (IQ Rate, Pre-trigger samples, and so on). The
defined flow of this VI is as follows
Configure Sample Rate
Configure Timing
Configure Acquisition
Update Measurement Parameters
Each of these steps takes the configured values in the State Element and updates the pre-defined
output accordingly.
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Lesson 11
Instructor Notes:
Show each one of the cases within the Auto-Configure
Highlight the components of a measurement configuration that affect the Recommended IQ

Acquisition Settings and also auto configure the State Element
Ex:
Filter Length > Pre-Trigger samples

Averages > # of Records
Bandwidth > Sampling Rate
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Example
p Typical
yp
Measure
The final part of customizing the Measure VI is to process the IQ based upon the parameters in the
State Element and output the result. Typically most measurements follow this basic flow
Filter the raw IQ data
Synchronize and Parse the data
Demodulate
Calculate
The customization of this step will be directly linked to your own processing IP. The basic
input/output of the VI remains the same
Input: IQ data , State Element
Output: Results
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Lesson 11
F. Test Application
pp
with Reference Architecture
The instructor should demonstrate the replicated functionality of the examples in a production grade
test executive. The instructor should show the 1:1 comparison between this and the example and
highlight why utilizing the architecture makes this step easy.
This demonstration will execute in loop-back mode.
It will initiate a waveform generation and analyze the results.
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Lesson 11
G. Reference Architecture on the Web
Direct the students if possible to the web to download the niRF-niBasic package and show where it
installs to.
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Lesson 12
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Lesson 12
A. Historyy of the 802.11 Standard
The IEEE standard for wireless local area networking (WLAN) was originally released in 1997.
Later revisions of that specification have produced several different commercially accepted physical
layer specifications for wireless networking. 802.11a and 802.11b helped establish the wireless
networking market. 802.11g became an almost universally accepted standard for wireless networking
soon after its release. With the addition of MIMO, 802.11n is becoming competitive with some wired
networking protocols.
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802.11 Variations
Several variations of 802.11 are in common use today. Almost all of them use Orthogonal
Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM), as the physical layer modulation. 802.11b is the notable
outlier, as it uses direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS).
802.11a and b were the first to be released. 802.11a provided the increased performance that is
common with OFDM in the less-crowded 5.8 GHz band, and 802.11b used more interferencetolerant DSSS to provide WLAN service in the common (and therefore cheaper) 2.4 GHz band.
Improvements in radio quality meant that 802.11g

802 11g could combine the physical layer performance of
OFDM in 802.11a in the more common 2.4 GHz band.
802.11n takes further advantage of OFDM to provide increased data rates in the 2.4 and
5.8 GHz bands. 802.11n also provides channel bonding, or combining two adjacent 20 MHz
channels, to create 40 MHz channels with even higher throughput. The use of multiple simultaneous
data streams (MIMO), increases throughput even more.
The 802.11p standard is designed for in-vehicle communications, and is still in work. 802.11j is
essentially 802.11a in the 4.9 GHz band for Japan.
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Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM)
WLAN 802.11a/g/n uses OFDM to maximize spectral efficiency.
A QPSK or QAM modulated signal with no pulse shaping has a unique shape in the frequency
domain; most of the power of the signal is distributed around the center frequency, but the harsh
transitions between symbols create side lobes that extend far out to either side. The shape of the lobes
creates peaks and valleys at various multiples of the signal bandwidth, as shown above.
Traditionally, a QAM signal has a pulse shaping filter that flattens and dramatically reduces the
power of these side lobes
lobes, and adjacent channels will be spaced far enough apart that the adjacent
channel power is very low. However, if the pulses are left unfiltered, a channel can be placed with its
center frequency at one of the valleys of the first signal, and cross-channel interference is minimized;
the two channels are essentially orthogonal. This can be extended to add dozens or more subcarriers
to a channel, as long as the symbol rates and subcarrier spacing are chosen appropriately. The nulls
of the sidelobes of each subcarrier fall directly on the center frequencies of the adjacent subcarriers.
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Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM)
This is the spectrum of an actual OFDM signal. The flat top contains the OFDM subcarriers, and the
side lobes extend outwards.
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Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum Modulation (DSSS)
Direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) modulation is a way to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of
a signal by spreading its energy out over a wider bandwidth.
To perform DSSS modulation, the original message signal is multiplied by a fixed pseudorandom
sequence, called a spreading code, that is changing at a much higher rate than the message. This rate
is called the chip rate. This spreading code is repeated for each symbol in the message. The result is a
signal containing the original message but with a much wider bandwidth.
The receiver then correlates the received signal with the same pseudorandom pattern to extract the
original message in a process called despreading. Because the correlation process is somewhat
analog and tolerant of error, the acquired signal can have considerable interference but still be
despreaded successfully.
This is especially useful in the notoriously noisy 2.4 GHz band.
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802.11 Modulation Types: DSSS
The spreading process creates the spectrum shape shown above. The nulls are a result of a zeroaveraged spreading code and the chip rate.
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B. Introduction to the NI WLAN Toolkit

NI WLAN Measurement Suite
The NI WLAN measurement suite combined with a PXI Express chassis, embedded controller, and
5673 and 5663 modules provides a complete production test solution for 802.11a/b/g/n transceivers.
The WLAN toolkit provides standards-compliant measurements for spectral, power, and
demodulated measurements, such as EVM, spectral mask, burst power, carrier leakage, and more.
The PXI Express architecture and processing power of the embedded controller enable measurement
pperformance five to ten times faster than traditional instruments.
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PHY Layer versus MAC Layer
The WLAN Toolkit performs measurements at the PHY layer. The Analysis toolkit does not provide
access to the demodulated bits of the packet, and the toolkits do not support deterministic two-way
communication with a device. The generation toolkit allows for user-defined bits in the data payload,
but it does not support sending packets to a specific MAC address. Toolkits from partners, such as
Seasolve, do offer MAC-layer processing and testing.
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2.7 GHz vs. 6 GHz Hardware
The WLAN toolkit can be used with NI 2.7 GHz RF hardware, but the toolkit has been optimized to
work with the 6.6 GHz hardware line. Because the 6.6 GHz hardware is built on PXI Express, data
transfers to and from the host are faster, resulting in improved measurement times.
The 6.6 GHz hardware uses an external LO module. This means the LO can be shared between
multiple analyzers or generators, which enables accurate MIMO generation and analysis. The
WLAN Toolkit supports MIMO measurements with 802.11n. For more information, see the MIMO
lesson.
And, of course, the 5.x GHz band of 802.11a cannot be tested with the 2.7 GHz platform.
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Lesson 12
C. Transmitter Test With the WLAN Toolkit

Understanding the Signal
In order to properly measure a WLAN burst, it is important to understand the different parts of the
burst. Here is an OFDM (802.11a/g/n) burst over time.
The burst starts with a preamble. This preamble is always modulated the same way. It is followed by
the data portion of the burst, which can be modulated in several different ways.
The preamble has two sections
Training Sequencethis is a short sequence, repeated twice, that allows the receiver to
synchronize with the transmitter.
Channel Estimationthis is a longer known sequence that the receiver can use to estimate the
fading in the RF channel. Because 802.11 a/g/n signals are usually 20 MHz, channel fading can
vary widely across the bandwidth of the channel, and the channel estimation sequence is used to
characterize that fading.
DSSS (802.11b)
(802 11b) bursts are similar
similar, with a fixed-modulation
fixed modulation preamble followed by the data.
data
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Three Types of Measurements
The WLAN Toolkit supports three fundamentally different types of measurements:
Power
Demodulation
Spectrum
Each measurement type requires a specific type of acquisition, and each type performs a
fundamentally different calculation on the received data.
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Gated Power Measurements
The gated power measurement mode captures a bursted signal and analyzes the power of the
received IQ waveform on a point-by-point basis. The gated power measurement mode typically uses
a power edge trigger to ensure that the burst is captured accurately. Once the burst has been acquired,
the power of each time-domain IQ point is calculated. The gated power measurement is designed to
be as fast as possible; it does not offer any intermediate results, such as specific peak/average power
for specific parts of the burst.
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Gated Power Measurements
The gated power measurement can return a trace of the burst power vs. time if enabled.
It returns the peak power and average power of the burst as measurement results.
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Spectral Measurements
The spectral measurement type returns a variety of information about the signal in the frequency
domain. You can acquire data for spectral measurements one of two ways. If the device is put into a
continuous generation mode (no quiet time between bursts), you can use the niRFSA Read Spectrum
VI to acquire the spectral data. This VI acquires a time-domain signal and performs a FFT to obtain
the power spectrum. You cannot use niRFSA Read Spectrum with a bursted signal, because it does
not support triggering.
If the device is transmitting
g a bursted signal,
g , it can be acquired
q
usingg the Read Gated Spectrum
p
VI
from the WLAN Toolkit v 2.0. This VI allows for a power-triggered spectral acquisition.
In both cases, measurement time will be affected by the spectrum width with respect to the
instrument bandwidth. In the case of channel-bonded 802.11n, a full spectrum measurement might be
120 MHz; using a PXIe-5663E analyzer with a real-time bandwidth of 50 MHz means that three
bursts must actually be acquired to get a full-bandwidth spectrum.
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Spectrum Measurements
The spectral measurements type returns a trace with two waveforms. The first waveform represents
the spectral mask according to the selected standard. (The mask is a different shape for DSSS versus
OFDM signals.) The second waveform contains the power spectral density (PSD) trace of the
acquired signal.
The measurement returns several results. The maximum spectral density represents the point in the
waveform with the highest power. The spectral mask margin represents the difference between the
mask limit and the signal
g ppower at the worst point
p
(detailed
(
in the next slide).
)
In addition, the spectral mask measurement returns the occupied bandwidth of the signal, defined as
the 99% power bandwidth. It also returns the low and high frequencies of the occupied bandwidth.
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Understanding SEM Results
WLAN Toolkit 2.0 adds a spectral mask vector result. This result returns a set of spectral mask
margin resultsone for each section of the mask. Each value represents the mask limit minus the
highest power point in that section. For a good signal, the mask will be higher than the signal, so the
number will be positive. For a failing section, the power of the signal will be higher than the mask, so
the result will be negative. The highest power point in the center portion of the spectrum is used to
set the reference level for the mask, so the result for the center section will always be zero.
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Demodulation Measurements
The demodulation measurement (demod) goes through the entire process of demodulating the signal.
It requires a bursted acquisition, like the gated power measurement. When the signal has been
demodulated, the WLAN toolkit compares the demodulated symbols with ideal symbol locations for
the appropriate modulation type and returns an EVM result.
Part of the demodulation process involves estimating and correcting for signal impairments, such as
frequency offset, IQ gain imbalance, and more. These estimations are also returned as results of the
demod measurement.
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The demodulation measurement returns several traces. The most common one is the constellation
plot, shown on the previous slide. The measurement can also return an EVM per Symbol trace,
which shows performance in the time domain across the duration of the burst. For OFDM
measurements, EVM per subcarrier and EVM per symbol per subcarrier traces are also available.
These measurements can give you insight into the performance of the device across the OFDM
channel width.
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Because the toolkit goes through the entire process of demodulating the signal, the demod
measurement returns a variety of results. Peak and RMS EVM can be returned for individual
channels and streams in MIMO. The measurement also returns peak and average gated power for the
acquired burst. And since the packet header has to be parsed for demodulation, the information in the
header is returned as well. In addition, several signal impairments are detected as part of the
demodulation process, and those values are returned as well. To see more information about all of the
results from the demod measurement, look at the Results section inside the OFDM Demod section of
a WLAN Analysis property node in LabVIEW.
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Lesson 12
Software Architecture: Analysis API
The Analysis API enables dynamic and automated configuration and execution of the measurements
demonstrated by the Soft Front Panel. Much like hardware resources are controlled with session
handles, the WLAN toolkit uses a WLAN session handle to keep track of configuration,
measurement, and results. This session is opened and closed just like a hardware session.
Regardless of measurement, the flow of the software follows a common pattern. Understanding this
pattern is important; All of NIs example Vis follow this pattern, and the example Vis provide a good
startingg ppoint for developing
p g customized measurements. Performingg a measurement comprises
p
six
steps:
1. Configure Measurement
2. Enable Measurement Types

3. Autoconfigure Hardware
4. Acquire Data
5 Perform Measurements
5.
6. Get Measurement Results
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Analysis
y API
Configure MeasurementThe first step is configuring the measurement. Here, standard properties are set,
such as carrier frequency and reference power level. It is also important to set the appropriate standard for the
WLAN session so the measurements are correct. Note that properties closely associated with hardware settings
(such as center frequency and power level) are actually set in the WLAN session as opposed to the NI-RFSA
driver; this is to aid in autoconfiguration later. The necessary settings change from measurement to
measurement; the example programs included with the toolkit provide a good reference for what should be
configured for each measurement type.
Enable Measurement TypeAfter

Type After acquisition is configured,
configured measurements must be enabled in the WLAN
toolkit. This can be done using dedicated VIs (Set OFDM DemodEnabled.vi, etc) or using properties in a
property node. The WLAN toolkit supports multiple measurements from a single generation as long as both
measurements use identical source data (time- vs. frequency-domain).
By default, the WLAN toolkit does not enable fetching of trace data, since it affects performance.
To fetch traces, make sure to explicitly enable the desired traces using a VI or property node.
Autoconfigure HardwareThe Autoconfigure function evaluates the measurement settings and determines
optimum hardware settings for the RFSA device
device. The VI itself receives the WLAN handle as well as the
RFSA handle. It configures acquisition mode based on the selected measurement type(s), and it sets default
functionality for properties that have not been explicitly set. Its possible to change RFSA settings after the
Autoconfigure, but its important to understand what implications, if any, hardware changes will have on
measurements. Reference clock source, for example, shouldnt affect the measurement algorithms; however,
changing RFSA center frequency or power level can cause incorrect measurements.
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Acquire DataThe next step is to acquire data. Demod and gated power measurements require
time-domain data; spectral measurements require frequency-domain data. There are three types of
acquisition to understand for WLAN:
NI-RFSA Start and NI-RFSA Fetch IQThis is the primary mechanism for acquiring timedomain data. By separating the hardware start and the fetch, acquisition of multiple data sets is
much faster, since the hardware can asynchronously acquire new data sets. This mode is
typically used with IQ Power Edge triggering to align the start of a burst to a known location
within the waveform.
NI-RFSA Read SpectrumThis VI starts hardware acquisition, collects a set of time-domain

data (with no triggering), retunes to a different frequency and acquires again if necessary, then
stops acquisition. The Read Spectrum function makes it easy from a programming standpoint to
acquire spectral data wider than the real-time bandwidth of the signal analyzer, since the function
handles the retuning and multiple acquisitions. However, since all of the acquisitions are
instantaneous, the transmitting device must be in continuous generation mode to ensure valid
results. The function itself does support averaging, however, and the WLAN toolkit can take
advantage of this in the case of an averaged spectrum measurement.
NI-WLAN Read Gated SpectrumThis VI, added in WLAN 2.0, provides all the
functionality of the NI-RFSA Read Spectrum with the addition of power level triggering support.
The Read Gated Spectrum function can still automatically retune and acquire multiple bursts for
wide spectrum acquisition, but it can trigger on the rising power edge of a bursted signal. This
means the device can stay in the same transmit mode for spectral and EVM measurements,
saving measurement time; however, since the spectral measurements function requires
frequency-domain data, the spectral and EVM measurements cannot be performed on the same
burst.
Perform MeasurementsOnce the data has been acquired, it is passed into the WLAN Measure
VI. The same VI is used regardless of what measurements have been enabled. There are separate
polymorphic instances for IQ and Waveform data. The WLAN Measure VI does not itself return any
results; instead, it simply collects data and processes it behind the scenes. If a measurement is using
averaging, the data sets are passed into this VI as they are acquired, and the VI will return a
measurement complete? boolean as True when all of the required data has been collected.
Get Measurement ResultsOnce the measurements have been performed, the desired results can
be retrieved from dedicated Vis or property nodes. In many cases, a measurement can apply to
multiple parts of a signal; in this case, the Active Channel is used to specify the desired results. For
example, in a 4x4 MIMO setup, channel and stream EVM results come from the same VI or property
node; the Active Channel input determines what value is returned, such as stream0, channel2, or
stream3, and so on.
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D. Receiver Test with the WLAN Toolkit

Testing WLAN Receivers
In transmitter test, the device performs the simple job of repeatedly transmitting a single burst, and
the measurement equipment performs the complex job of receiving, measuring, and sometimes
demodulating the signal. In receiver test, the roles are reversed; the test equipment simply generates a
repeated single burst, and the receiver receives and demodulates the signal.
The most common receiver tests in production are bit/packet error rate (BER/PER), which measures
the demodulating and error-correcting accuracy of the receiver,
receiver and receiver sensitivity
sensitivity, which
measures a receivers ability to receive and demodulate a low-power signal. Both of these tests
require the measurement equipment to simply generate a repeated, bursted packet. In the case of
BER/PER, the measurement is performed by comparing the receivers demodulated bit stream with
the reference bit stream from the generator. For receiver sensitivity, the measurement equipment just
needs a signal from the device indicating whether or not it received a packet.
Both of these tests, then, require communication with the device under test to fully perform the
measurement This section is primarily dedicated to demonstrating how to generate the high-quality
measurement.
high quality
stimulus signals needed for those tests.
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Generation API
Like the Measurements API, the Generation API enables automated configuration and generation of
WiMAX test signals. The WiMAX toolkits use a WiMAX Generation session handle similar to the
Analysis toolkit. Generation is performed in six steps:
1. Configure Generation Settings
2. Configure Generated Signal
4. Create and Load Waveform

5. Start Generation
6. Wait for Generation Complete
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Generation API
Configure Generation SettingsThe first step for generation is configuring common generation
settings. Like the analysis toolkit, common properties such as center frequency and power level are
set in the WLAN handle, not the NI-RFSG handle, since they will be used later for
autoconfiguration. In addition, its important to set the generation type (OFDM/DSSS) at this stage,
since the toolkit will be using that value to create waveforms.
Configure Generated SignalThe WLAN toolkit enables fine-grained configuration of the signal
being generated; however, in many instances, the default values are fine. The most straightforward
way to configure the generated signal is to use all of the properties in the Payload section of the
WLAN Generation property node, shown above. By default, the toolkit generates a 1024-bit PN
sequence.
Create WaveformOne important first step is to verify that the configuration set in the WLAN
toolkit session is valid for the intended hardware; this is accomplished using the niWLAN Configure
Waveform VI. This VI ensures that the IQ rate and number of samples to be generated conform to
the requirements of the hardware
hardware. Once the waveform has been configured,
configured it can be created using
the WLAN Create Waveform VI. In order to keep memory requirements reasonable, this VI returns a
single packet for each call. For a multiple-packet generation, this VI should be called in a loop.
Autoconfigure/Load/StartThe Autoconfigure function sets low-level properties of the generation
hardware based on the requested settings in the WLAN handle. The Load function is used to load
created waveforms into RFSG memory. The Start function starts the generation process. If no
triggering is configured, generation will start immediately; if a start trigger is configured, the Start
function arms the device
device, which then waits to receive a start trigger.
trigger
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Wait for Generation CompleteOnce generation is started, it is an asynchronous process. If the

generation is configured to loop, it will do so indefinitely with no intervention from the user. For
most applications,
applications it is sufficient to periodically check the status of the hardware to ensure there are
no errors, then stop once the test is done.
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802.11n and MIMO
MIMO stands
d for
f M
Multiple
l i l IInput, M
Multiple
l i l Output.
O
Lesson
L
XX covers MIMO concepts iin more
detail. In the context of this lesson, MIMO enhances signal bandwidth by using spatial diversity.
Spatial diversity is a technique by which multiple data streams can be transmitted in the same
frequency channel by multiple transmitter antennas, and those signals can be received and decoded
by multiple receive antennas.
In most cases, the number of spatial streams is equal to the number of transmit and receive antennas.
These spatial streams are transmitted in different proportions by the different transmit antennas. The
pp g of spatial
p
streams to transmit channels is called spatial
p
mapping.
pp g As shown above,, all the
mapping
receive antennas receive all of the transmitted signals, but since the receive antennas have different
real-world positions, they receive different amounts of each transmit channel by comparison. The
receiver then uses DSP to estimate the channel matrix and extract the original streams from the
received signals.
WLAN Toolkit 2.0 supports MIMO measurements for 802.11n. In addition to performing the
standard measurements on all the MIMO channels, the toolkit can perform additional MIMO-specific
measurements, such as channel and stream EVM and cross power. Stream EVM represents the
performance of a particular spatial stream of the data,
data which encompasses the antenna performance
as well as the spatial mapping and channel estimation process. Channel EVM represents the quality
of the transmitted signal from a particular antenna, which does NOT include spatial mapping or
channel estimation.
Cross power represents the combined power of all the other channels present in a specific channel.
For example, in a 4x4 MIMO setup, the cross power measurement of channel 1 represents the
combined powers of channels 2, 3, and 4 present in channel 1. In measurements where the test
equipment is directly cabled to the transmit antennas, this number should be very low (i.e. noise); in
radiated measurements, it will be much higher.
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Lesson 12
802.11n MIMO: Programming
WLAN Toolkit 2.0 can be used for MIMO measurements on transmitters and receivers. In most
cases, the only change necessary to the measurement code is to perform the configuration and
measurement on multiple channels instead of a single channel. This can easily be accomplished in a
scalable way through the use of arrays.
Likewise, the Active Channel string can be used to retrieve channel-based as well as stream-based
EVM values.
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Lesson 12
F. Interpreting
p
g Results
There are two possible sources for error in a measurementthe device being tested and the
instrument doing the testing.
Two sources of instrument error usually dominate measurements. When a high-power signal is being
measured, instrument linearity can often cause problems. As an input signal starts to reach the
maximum power of the instrument, the attenuators and amplifiers in the instrument tend to compress
the signal. For a constellation plot, this can tend to pull the farther-out symbols inwards. In addition,
intermodulation distortion begins to increase, which adds error to the measurement.
At low power levels, instrument noise becomes a factor. The noise signal present in any instrument
will usually decrease as attenuation is added, but at constant attenuation, the noise power will stay
constant. This means that if the reference level is not being set properly and the input signal is not
maximizing the dynamic range of the instrument, noise power will be a greater percentage of the
overall signal. As dynamic range decreases, that percentage of noise power increases, and the signal
appears noisier in the instrument.
Device
D
i error is
i usually
ll due
d to impairments
i
i
in
i the
h devices
d i modulator
d l
or power amplifiers.
lifi
Amplifier
A lifi
compression is a common issue with transmitter quality. LO phase noise can add radial jitter to a
constellation plot. IQ gain imbalance can give an otherwise-square constellation a rectangular
appearance. DC offset can move the constellation plot on the X or Y axis. All of these can contribute
to device error.
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Lesson 12
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Lesson 12
G. Optimizing
p
g Test Times
One of the biggest advantages of the NI WLAN test platform is measurement speed. There are
several important considerations for minimizing test times. The most important are increasing CPU
power, performing composite measurements, and reducing averaging.
In addition, reducing the instruments acquired bandwidth can reduce test time. In some cases, an
EVM measurement can be performed over a partial burst, saving some time.
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Lesson 12
Increasing CPU Power
All of the WLAN measurements are performed using software algorithms on raw data; even the
creation of the spectrum itself happens in software using time-domain data. One of the easiest ways
to improve measurement performance, then, is to simply use a faster CPU.
This graph shows the measurement time of an EVM measurement on a WLAN 802.11g burst of
varying data rates. Much of the measurement time is dictated by the time needed to acquire the
packet itself; however, there is a marked difference in performance between the slower AMD Turion
and the faster Intel Core 2 Duo chips.
p Measurement time is almost cut in half by
y switchingg from the
Athlon to the Intel CPU.
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Lesson 12
Performing Composite Measurements
Another way to save time is to perform multiple measurements at once. Many instruments must fetch
a new burst for each measurement; because of the NI modular approach to measurement, it is
possible to perform multiple measurements (such as software algorithms) on a single set of captured
data.
The above chart shows the difference between sequential and parallel measurement times for EVM
and gated power on two different WLAN bursts. It does not reduce the measurement time by half,
but there is a definite increase in performance.
p
One limitation here is that the measurements must require the same input data; at this time it is not
possible to combine the spectral measurements with anything else.
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Lesson 12
Reducing Averaging
Reducing averaging is another way to save significant time. Performing n averages on a

measurement effectively means the measurement must be performed n times, with a corresponding
~n multiplier of execution time.
Averaging can be important for a measurement; while it does not cancel out static impairments in a
signal, it can reduce the impact of spurious responses on measurement values. The tradeoff here is
measurement quality vs. execution time; the correct answer usually ends up somewhere in the
middle.
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Lesson 12
Reducing Averaging
This is an example of measurement quality and time versus number of averages. With more
averages, measurement time obviously increases, but the repeatability of the measurement increases
as well.
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Lesson 12
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Notes
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Lesson 13
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Lesson 13
Introduction to GNSS
The potential of satellite-based navigation systems was first seen by scientists from the Applied
Physics Lab at John Hopkins University as they observed the Doppler shift of the transmitted
carrier of the Soviets Sputnik spacecraft. In the early 1960s, this observation was put into use in
the U.S. Navys Transit Satellite System. Naval ships would use the doppler shift of the satellites
signals along with knowledge of the satellites orbits to calculate their position. Accuracy was on
the order of a couple hundred meters and satellites appeared about every 90 minutes, which was
adequate for naval navigation on the open seas.
GNSS stands for Global Navigation Satellite System and these systems are constellations or
groups of satellites designed to facilitate precise timing and position information. Currently, the
most widely used and operation GNNS is the Global Positioning System or GPS, largely
developed by the United States Department of Defense.
GPS and GLONASS
In the mid to late 1960s, the U.S. Department of Defense and the United States Air Force took
interest in a globally available navigation system with improved accuracy, global coverage, and
resistance to interference.
interference Through the 1970
1970ss and 1980s
1980 s the U
U.S.
S and the Soviet Union
developed and deployed their respective GNSS constellations named the Global Positioning
System (GPS) and the Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS). By 1973, the U.S. GPS
emerged as the first truly global satellite-based navigation system. Continuous investment has
allowed for a fully operational GNSS since deployment. The Soviet satellite deployments
continued through the 1980s reaching a constellation of 12 satellites in 1990. Additional
investment delivered a fully operational GLONASS constellation of 24 satellites by 1996.
Although this investment was not continued from 1996 to 2001 and the number of satellites fell to
7 additional efforts have been made to bring this system into full operation again by 2011
7,
2011.
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Lesson 13
GALILEO
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The European Union decided to launch their own GNSS named GALILEO in 1998 designed
specifically for civilian use.
use One of the key features of the GALILEO system is full interinter
operabilty with the GPS signals in terms of carrier frequency, signal structure, time reference
system, and geodetic coordinate reference frame. A constellation of 30 satellites is planned to be
complete by 2014.
COMPASS
Also known as Beidou-2, is a GNSS constellation being developed and deployed by China. A
fully operational constellation of 30 satellites is planned with the first three having launched as of
January 2010.
2010
The GNSS Market
Current GNSS business is on the order of $20 billion with overall market growth at a steady 20%25%. Since GNSS is a one-way transmit technology (similar to broadcast radio) the number of
receivers that the system can support is unlimited. Additional GNSS constellations create
opportunity for dual system receivers and improved position and timing accuracy. Future market
estimates run as high as $331 billion by 2020; which is reasonable considering the integration of
GNSS chipsets and technology into everything from personal car navigation systems,
systems cellphones,
cellphones
and laptops to use in asset tracking, robotics, and precision agriculture.
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Lesson 13
Global Positioning system (GPS) Signals
The original GPS signal consisted of a course acquistion signal available for the public as well as a
precision signal reserved for military applications. Both signals use a code division multiple
access spreading technique known as direct-sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) to allow for
multiple satellite signals to be broadcast on the same frequency and be distinguished from one
another. This spread spectrum technique also results in a robust signal that is resistant to
interference.
Each GPS satellite broadcasts on two frequencies: L1 (1575.42 MHz) and L2 (1227.60 MHz).
Each satellite generates a short-code referred to as the course acquistion or C/A code as well as a
long code referred to as the precision code or P(Y) or P-code. Additional signals are being added
to improve availability and precision as part of the GPS Modernization effort but are beyond the
scope of this chapter. The transmitted data provides navigation data (satellite telemetry,
synchronization information, satellite clock and ephemeris parameters, almanacs, ionospheric
delay models) that enables a GPS receiver to calculate and solve for a position solution when
combined with the GPS data from additional GPS satellites in the constellation. The GPS data is
modulated by the C/A code and upconverted to 1575.42 MHz and separately modulated by the Pcode and then upconverted to 1575.42
1575 42 MHz and 1227.60
1227 60 MHz.
MHz
The C/A code is a 1023 bit long pseudorandom noise (PRN) sequence that is used as the chipping
code to spread the C/A code in CDMA fashion. This occurs at the rate of 1.023 Mchips/s and
therefore repeats every millisecond. Each satellite has a unique PRN that was chosen due to its
high orthogonality to the other PRN sequences to make the various satellite signals easy to
distinguish one from another.
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The P-code is also a PRN sequence, but is 6.1871 x 1012 bits long and is transmitted at 10.23
Mchips/s to repeat only once a week. The code is so long and complex that the system was
g
with the intention that pprecision receivers would first lock onto the C/A code and then
designed
synchronize with the P-code. Where each satellite uses a unique PRN for the C/A codes, the Pcode PRN is actually a small segment of an even larger master P-code and each satellite transmits
a selected portion of that code. In addition to this complexity, the P-code is also encrypted to
prevent spoofing (malicious interference) by modulating it with the W-code, resulting in the Ycode usually referred to as the P(Y) code or just the P-code.
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Lesson 13
GPS Position Calculation Basics

GPS and
d GLONASS Constellations
C t ll ti
Each GNSS is optimized for best coverage over the owning nation or group of nations. For the
U.S. GPS constellation, this translates to 24 -32 satellites arranged in 6 orbital planes inclined at 55
degrees relative to the earths equator with a minimum of 4 satellites in each plane or orbit. With
an orbital atlitude of 20,200 km, the satellites orbit the earth every 12 hours making two complete
orbits and repeating the same ground track twice each day. A fully functional Soviet GLONASS
constellation consists of 24 satellites arranged in 3 orbital planes at about 65 degrees of inclination
(to accommodate the higher latitudes) with 8 satellites occupying each plane.
Basic Position Calculation Overview
The basic idea behind the GPS system is that there are a number of GPS satellites orbiting the
earth and each of those satellites is transmitting a signal that the GPS receivers can pick up and use
to calculate the receivers position. The GPS receiver goes through a series of steps to accurately
calculate its position. First, the receiver must be sensitive enough to receive a very low power
signal at around -130 dBm for C/A signals and as low as -136 dBm for the P-code signals. Then
the receiver cycles
y
through
g all ppossible C/A codes looking
g for a strongly
g y correlated signal.
g
Once
the GPS receiver knows which satellite it is receiving data from, it can accurately calculate the
pseudorange or distance from the satellite to the receiver. The equation at the bottom of the slide
shows a simplified version of this calculation where the speed of light is simply multiplied by the
amount of time the signal took to travel from the satellite to the receiver. This information is used
to calculate the pseudoranges from at least four different satellites and using the transmitted
locations of those satellites, and then calculate a position solution through trilateration.
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Lesson 13
Augmentations to GPS
Augmentations to GPS are implemented to enhance the stand-alone performance. A number

of systems are in place and can be categorized as ground based augmentation systems
(GBAS) and space based augmentation systems (SBAS). Two common SBAS are the Wide
Area Augmentation System (WAAS) and the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay
Service (EGNOS).
WAAS and EGNOS
Both WAAS and EGNOS consist of a small group of geostationary satellites positioned over
the U.S. and Europe respectively. They utilize a technique referred to as differential GPS
(DGPS) to improve position and timing accuracy by using reference stations spread
throughout the serviced area to provide accuracy enhancement information via the
geostationary satellites. Error introduced through ionospheric disturbances, satellite orbit
errors, and clock drift are all greatly reduced through these techniques and in some cases,
depending on the application, can deliver millimeter accuracy.
Assisted GPS
Assisted GPS (A-GPS) is used to improve the time-to-first-fix (TTFF) of a GPS receiver by
providing navigation data (ephemeris, almanac, precise time) to the GPS receiver through a
means other than GPS. A common implementation is on cell phones, where TTFF is greatly
reduced by transmitting this information to the receiver through the cellular connection at
which point the GPS receiver has much of the needed information to calculate a position
solution.
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Lesson 13
Sensor Integration
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Inertial sensor, motion encoders, magnetic compasses, and other sensors can be integrated into a
navigation system to improve positions in low signal quality areas and to facilitate dead reckoning
techniques. These sensors are generally integrated by the use of a Kalman filter and have found
their way into applications ranging from simple vehicle navigation to autonomous systems and
robotics.
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Lesson 13
GPS Receiver Test
IIn calculating
l l ti a position
iti solution,
l ti there
th are a number
b off opportunities
t iti for
f errors to
t be
b introduced.
i t d d
GPS receiver designs are constantly revised and improved in order to better handle these errors and
improve position and timing calculations. To evaluate receiver performance under a variety of
signal impairments, there are three common used to quantify performance: sensitivity, time to first
fix, and position/tracking accuracy.
All of these tests can be performed using a GPS Simulator or GPS Record and Playback system.
You are able to introduce impairments to simulate real world conditions, and a GPS simulator
allows you to introduce these impairments separately and in a controlled manner in order to isolate
any issues that need troubleshooting during the design phase. With a GPS Record and Playback
system you are able to faithfully reproduce the real-world environment in the lab from multi-path
and atmospheric effects to satellite drop-outs and low signal power levels.
While significant testing is done during verification and research and development, during the
production phase, sensitivity or TTFF measurements are generally the only tests necessary.
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Lesson 13
Sensitivity Measurements
S iti it is
Sensitivity
i one off the
th mostt important
i
t t measurements
t off a GPS receivers
i capability
bilit andd is
i often
ft
the only RF measurement performed in production test. At a high level, the sensitivity
measurement defines the lowest satellite power level at which a receiver is still able to track and
achieve a position fix on satellites overhead. As you might expect, GPS receivers are required to
apply significant gain through several cascaded LNAs to amplify the signal to the appropriate
power level. Unfortunately, while an LNA increases signal power, it degrades SNR. Thus, as the
RF power levels of a GPS signal increase, SNR decreases and eventually the receiver is no longer
able to track the satellite.
Many GPS receivers actually specify two sensitivity values: acquisition sensitivity and signal
tracking sensitivity. As the names suggest, acquisition sensitivity represents the lowest power level
at which a receiver is able to achieve a position fix. By contrast, signal tracking sensitivity is the
lowest power level at which a receiver is able to track an individual satellite.
In theory, you can measure sensitivity with either a single-satellite or multisatellite test stimulus. In
practice, this measurement is performed most commonly with single-satellite test because RF
power can be more easily and more reliably determined. By definition, sensitivity is the lowest
power level
l l att which
hi h a receiver
i
returns
t
a desired
d i d minimum
i i
C/N ratio.
ti
Mathematically, you can relate sensitivity to the noise figure of the receiver according to the
equation shown at the bottom of the slide. This equation shows how you can express sensitivity as
a function of both C/N ratio and noise figure. As an example, if your minimum C/N required for
position tracking is 32 dB-Hz, a receiver with a noise figure of 2 dB has a sensitivity of -140 dBm
(-174 + 32 + 2).
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Lesson 13
Time to First Fix (TTFF) Measurements
F a receiver
For
i
tto obtain
bt i a position
iti fix,
fi it mustt download
d
l d the
th almanac
l
andd ephemeris
h
i information
i f
ti
from the satellite through a navigation message. Because it takes up to 30 seconds for a receiver to
download an entire GPS frame, a cold start TTFF condition can take anywhere from 30 to 60
seconds. Many receivers specify several TTFF conditions. The most common are the following:
Cold StartThe receiver must download almanac and ephemeris information to achieve a
position fix. Because at least one GPS frame must be downloaded from each of the satellites, most
modern receivers achieve a position fix from a cold start condition in 30 to 60 seconds.
Warm StartThe
W
St t Th receiver
i
has
h some almanac
l
information
i f
ti th
thatt iis less
l than
th one weekk old
ld but
b t does
d
not have any ephemeris information. Typically, the receiver knows the time to within 20 seconds
and the position to within 100 km. Most modern GPS receivers achieve a position fix from a warm
condition in less than 60 seconds but can sometimes achieve a position fix in much less time.
Hot StartA hot start occurs when a receiver has up-to-date almanac and ephemeris
information. In this scenario, the receiver needs to obtain only timing information from each
satellite to return its position fix location. Most modern GPS receivers return a position fix from a
hot start condition within 0.5 to 20 seconds.
In most cases, TTFF is specified at a specific power level. It is valuable to verify the accuracy of
both of these specifications under a variety of circumstances. Because GPS satellites circle the
earth every 12 hours, the range of available satellites varies substantially even throughout the
course of one day to ensure that your receiver returns the appropriate result under a broad range of
conditions.
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Lesson 13
Position and Tracking Accuracy
By llogging
B
i ddata
t ffrom th
the receiver
i
and
d comparing
i th
the position
iti solutions
l ti
off the
th receiver
i
to
t the
th
simulated solution, you can verify position (stationary) and tracking (mobile) accuracy. A
simplified version of this calculation is shown, however, there are a number of additional factors to
consider and well-documented methods to consider when calculating position errors. The great
circle distance formula is an example of one such method.
The factors that affect the position solution is commonly represented by something referred to as
Dilution of precision (DOP). DOP is a mathematical representation for the quality of the GPS
position solution and is calculated by the receiver. The main factors affecting DOP are the number
of satellites being tracked and where these satellites are positioned in the sky. This is generally
broken down further:
HDOP (Horizontal Dilution Of Precision) is a measure of how well the positions of the satellites,
used to generate the Latitude and Longitude solutions, are arranged. Higher HDOP values can be
caused if the satellites are at high elevations.
VDOP (Vertical Dilution Of Precision) is a measure of how well the positions of the satellites,
generate the vertical component
p
of a solution,, are arranged.
g Higher
g
VDOP values mean
used to g
less certainty in the solutions and can be caused if the satellites are at low elevations.
GDOP = SQRT(TDOP2 + HDOP2 + VDOP2).
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Lesson 13
TDOP (Time Dilution Of Precision) is a measure of how the satellite geometry is

affecting the ability of the GPS receiver to determine time.
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PDOP (Positional
(P iti l Dil
Dilution
ti OF P
Precision)
i i ) iis a measure off overall
ll uncertainty
t i t iin a GPS
position solution with TDOP not included in the estimated uncertainty. The best PDOP
(lowest value) would occur with one satellite directly overhead and three others evenly
spaced about the horizon. PDOP = SQRT(HDOP2 + VDOP2).
GDOP (Geometric Dilution Of Precision) is a measure of the overall uncertainty in a GPS

position solution.
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Lesson 13
NI Solutions for GPS Receiver Test
National
N
ti l Instruments
I t
t offers
ff two
t preconfigured
fi
d test
t t systems
t
to
t facilitate
f ilit t accurate
t andd flexible
fl ibl GPS
receiver test.
NI GPS Simulator
Combining a vector signal generator with the GPS Simulation Toolkit, you are able to simulate 12
satellite signals for up to 24 hours. You can also create custom motion profiles for mobile receiver
testing as well as adjust satellite power levels for scenario specific tests such as satellite drop-out.
With the GPS Simulator, you are able to introduce controlled and isolated signal impairments for
t
targeted
t d testing.
t ti
NI RF Record and Playback System
Using a vector signal analyzer, you can record up to 25 hours of live GPS signals and then play
them back to the receiver later using the vector signal generator. This is a very effective option to
reproduce all signal artifacts present in real world GPS signals including atmospheric effects and
multi-path fading. With a record and playback system you can avoid the high costs of repeated
drive tests.
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Lesson 13
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Lesson 13
Test Setup with the NI GPS Simulator
Th GPS Simulation
The
Si l ti Toolkit
T lkit iis iinstalled
t ll d on a PXI Controller
C t ll andd coupled
l d with
ith a vector
t signal
i l
generator. The GPS waveform can then be passed through the RF output of the vector signal
generator to the GPS Receiver. A USB or serial connection back to the PXI controller provides
the perceived location and motion of the receiver allowing closed loop testing to evaluate the GPS
receivers performance. Also shown in the PXI chassis is an optional second vector signal
generator that could be used to introduce interference or a jamming signal to the receiver if
desired.
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Lesson 13
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Lesson 13
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Lesson 13
13-19
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Notes
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Lesson 14
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Lesson 14
A. Industryy
The mobile phone market is now 4 billion mobile phone subscribers worldwide. Depending on
country users of phones can replace them as many 2-3 times per year. Further as of 2010 there is an
estimated 45% market penetration of users worldwide and by 2014 this will increase to 53%. This all
accounts to more demand for mobile phone production especially in developing countries.
Test of mobile phones is common for several reasons. Most important are government regulations of
wireless device operation. Is this device transmitting in the correct licensed spectrum? Is the device
transmitting at the right power level? And finally is the device interfering with other wireless
devices? It is also important for the manufacturers to test their phones to maintain a good name
brand. If phones fail on a regular basis then consumers will use a competitors phone. And finally the
cost of replacing bad phones can be high if yield is low enough. This reduces margins at companies.
Because mobile phones are growing and testing is very important, manufacturers look for the best
way to address this while maintaining good margins. There is always the push to lower the cost of
the test system
y
as well as speed
p
up
p the test itself. By
y speeding
p
g upp test yyou also reduce the cost of the
phone and the overall factory operation.
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Lesson 14
Devices
What needs to be tested in a cellular device? There are several components that are typically tested as
a unit before being integrated into a device and then tested again.
Mobile handsets (MTS or Mobile Transceiver Stations) have several components that need to
be tested including power amplifiers for phone transmission, low noise amplifiers for phone
reception, switches for different cellular bands and standards into main processor unit, plus the
RF transceiver front ends as well as baseband interfaces and other I/O within the phone like
audio,
di bbattery, speakers,
k
etc.
Base stations (BTS or Base Transceiver Station) have an even larger number of components but
are generated in much lower volumes than mobile handsets. Typically BTS will have power
amplifiers at higher power levels plus its own high end processing as well as mixers,
synthesizers, modulators and other components. Many of these parts are integrated into silicon
for mobile but high power levels make this more challenging for BTS. Further BTS will often
use a multi-antenna array to broadcast out and with newer technologies like WiMax and LTE it
uses MIMO technology.
Smart meters are a newer technology that primarily use custom modulation or ZigBee.
However some devices will use low cost cellular networks like GPRS or have a master
transmission station use cellular to move the data back to the utility company.
Finally cellular devices can be found in a lot of peripheral applications like netbooks (Kindle,
iPad), automotive (GlobalStar), and part of a tracking network using Assisted GPS.
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Lesson 14
B. Common Wireless Standards for Cellular Applications

pp
ITU-R (International Telecommunications Union - Radio Communications), charter organization of

the United Nations, ratifies and approves the standards developed by different groups.
GSM is the most popular cellular protocol in the world and is managed by 3GPP
(3rd generation Partnership Project). 3GPP also manages derivatives from GSM such UMTS and
LTE. Although UMTS is based on CDMA technology it is not to be confused with CDMA2000
since this is managed by 3GPP Project 2. 3GPP Project 2 manages CDMA technologies starting with
IS-95 or CDMA 1x and through CDMA2000. The latest standard that evolved is 1xEV/DO for data.
GSM networks have been upgraded to UMTS (WCDMA, HSPA, HSDPA+) over the years. The
3GPP vision is for LTE to be adopted by all cellular carriers because it provides higher data rates
than their current UMTS technology.
There are other standards adopted by other countries and this image is highlighting the most used
ones to illustrate how the market is diversified. Most popular by volume is TD-SCDMA which is a
CDMA dderivative
i ti iin Chi
China. Oth
Other standards
t d d displayed
di l d in
i this
thi diagram
di
is
i WiMAX which
hi h has
h had
h d
minor cellular popularity and higher broadband wireless services applications.
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Lesson 14
C. Testing
g Methods
The testing methods depends on the piece of the product that its in test. There are several layers of
components that builds a complete cellular device. The following slides talks about each of the layers
in more detail.
The goal for many of the manufactures is to reduce these number of layers as much as possible and
therefore reduce production costs.
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Lesson 14
Testing Methods for Cellular Semiconductors
Cellular semiconductors require rigorous and extensive testing since they will become the building
blocks. There could be several power amplifiers (PA), switches, mixers and other components in a
single cell phone which means that these semiconductors are produced and tested faster than any
other cellular component.
Testing a semiconductor correctly requires a good methodology and usually several pieces of
equipment. This equipment can easily fill up a rack.
National Instrument PXI products are ideal for these environments since their footprint is small and
the cost is greatly reduced.
The semiconductors would require at least a very stable power supply such as a battery emulator.
Most of the RF test methods for semiconductors require the RF generator to create a stimulus signal
for the IC. The RF analyzer will capture the response of this signal at the output of the IC and will
perform the different measurements to comply with the standard.
Other common instruments to use in testing IC include source measurement units (SMU), arbitrary
waveform generator (AWG), oscilloscope or high speed digitizer among others. This section is not
intended to go over IC testing but simply to the RF testing portion of the IC.
The control of the IC is usually a set of digital lines or a simple digital protocol like SPI. To
coordinate all these instruments, a PC is required and a test executive capable to interact with all the
different pieces of the test.
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Lesson 14
Testing Methods for Transceivers and PCB
Transceivers are the hearth of the RF portion of a cellular device. As these transceivers evolve, they
start to come up with more and more integrated features. This means that the testing is becoming
more challenging.
The testing methods for these embedded devices vary from product to product. The designer usually
gives access to certain test modes and features that can enable or disable test scenarios. Customers
work constantly with suppliers to get the specific test modes they need in order to further reduce test
cost.
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Lesson 14
Testing Methods for Mobile Handsets (and Base Stations)
There are three main methods of testing the integrated cellular device. These devices are either a
mobile transceiver stations or MTS (also referred to as MS or UE) or base transceiver stations or
BTS (also referred as BS).
Signaling ModeAlso called call processing, is the highest method where a full phone
connection is implemented. The tester emulates a BS/MS and performs a full connection before
doing any measurement.
Although this method is the closest to a full functional test, for the goal of RF testing this is an
expensive test since is very slow. Lowering cost of test for cellular devices has been a research
point for several years. This is why more advanced methods are more and more used in the
industry.
Non-signaling ModeAlso referred as single ended, is a simplified method to test MS/BS by

controlling the unit using a PC. Usually a serial (USB, parallel, etc) cable is connected to the unit
and the software tools lets them set it up in multiple testing modes that do not require any phone
connection. This greatly reduces test time but requires libraries to control the device. The
measurements taken in this method are the same as the first method.
CW Test This is a simplified version of the non-signaling mode case when the CW signal is
used to test the receiver and a CW is generated by the device. This method will not perform any
standard measurements but is used to make sure that the connection to the antenna was made
correctly.
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Lesson 14
D. NI Cellular Toolkits
Introduction to GSM and EDGE
This section gives a brief overview of the GSM and EDGE standard and covers the use of the NI
toolkit for testing GSM and EDGE cellular devices.
Global System for Mobile (GSM) communications is the most popular standard in the world with
about 80% of the market. Enhanced Data-rate for GSM Evolution (EDGE) uses all the infrastructure
of the GSM network to transmit more data over the air.
This lesson covers only the physical layer test, which means the instrument is not emulating the base
station and therefore call processing is not feasible.
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Lesson 14
Frequency
q
y Domain Multiple
p Access vs Time Domain Multiple
p Access
GSM is a protocol where all the users share the same channel but different time slots. This is known
as Time Domain Multiple Access (TDMA). However, the up-link band is different than the downlink
band Frequency Domain Duplexing (FDD).
It is important to understand the difference between the standards in terms of how they share the
spectrum. This helps you understand which measurements you should perform on the signal. For
example, GSM has a time measurement to ensure that the device operate scorrectly with other
devices.
This lesson covers Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA). The most common
version of WCDMA is Frequency Domain Multiple Access (FDMA).
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Overview Frame Structure
Both the GSM and the EDGE cellular standard use the same frame structure to orderly pass
information between a base station and a mobile station. Each frame is made up of eight timeslots
that are time multiplexed to allow up to eight users share a given frequency. Each timeslot, also
known as a burst period, lasts approximately 573 s.
To assist receivers in synchronization, a data burst in a given timeslot has a training sequence in the
middle known as a midamble. Each timeslot has its own unique training sequence that are predefined
b the
by
h standard
d d to assist
i a receiver
i
in
i identifying
id if i which
hi h timeslot
i
l is
i which.
hi h
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Overview Modulation
GSMThe GSM standard uses Gaussian Minimum Shift Keying (GMSK) to modulate the bits
in each burst. One of the prime benefits of this modulation scheme is the fact that the power
remains roughly constant from symbol to symbol since the transition from one symbol to another
symbol stay on a circle in the I/Q domain. However, because this modulation scheme uses
Gaussian pulse shaping, there will be some ISI even under perfect conditions. [mention the
constant envelope benefits]
EDGE Th EDGE standard

EDGEThe
d d iincludes
l d a form
f
off channel
h
l adaptation
d
i where
h the
h modulation
d l i
scheme used to communicate between a base station and mobile will change based upon the
quality of the channel. For testing, the modulation scheme is fixed at offset 3/8 8-PSK by
convention. In this modulation scheme, the constellation rotates by 3/8 every symbol, avoiding
any zero crossing. When the constellation of an acquired signal is observed, it will look very
similar to a 16-PSK constellation.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Generation Payload Control
When writing a GSM burst to a vector signal generator, you can configure what training sequence
and what data is sent by altering the values in the Payload Control cluster. You use the TSC field to
select the training sequence associated with a particular burst. The following three modes are used to
specify the bits to be sent:
PNThis mode configures the system to generate a pseudorandom series of bits. You can
change the order and the seed of the function used to generate these random bits by altering the
PN O
Order
d and
dS
Seed
d fi
fields
ld respectively.
i l
PatternThis mode configures the system to generate a fixed pattern of bits repeatedly. You
can select the pattern to be generated from one of five patterns in the Pattern field.
UserThis mode configures the system to generate a user-defined set of bits. These bits are
defined in the User Bits field.
Note A normal burst contains a total of 116 payload bits, and if number of user bits is less
than this, the data will be repeated until there are 116 bits.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Generation I/Q Perturbations
In a real communication system, the received signal is affected by generator distortions and noise.
To model these effects, you can add I/Q Perturbations digitally to the generated waveform. The
effects of the Gain Imbalance, Quadrature Skew, I Offset, and Q Offset fields are identical to their
respective impairments in the MT Apply IQ Impairments. Refer to Lesson 10, Digital Modulation,
for more information about impairments.
Use the Frequency Offset field to digitally shift the generated waveform in frequency to simulate a
f
frequency
offset.
ff
In
I order
d ffor the
h received
i d waveform
f
to hhave the
h precise
i ffrequency offset
ff relative
l i to
the receiver, the generator and receiver must share a common reference clock.
Use the Eb/N0 field to digitally add noise to the waveform until the generated waveform has the
specified signal to noise ratio.
Note When the Eb/N0 is set to a large value, thermal noise will dominate and the signal to
noise ratio at the receiver will be lower than specified.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Generation Burst Types
Normal Burst (NB)This burst transmits voice or data packets between a base station and a
mobile station. Normal bursts are used for the vast majority of GSM and EDGE tests.
Access Burst (AB)This burst is sent when a mobile station attempts to access a base station in
the network. Access bursts can be used for certain tests of the receiver of a base station.
Dummy Burst (DB)This burst has the same structure as a normal burst, but does not contain
anyy information. Theyy are used to fill timeslots to ensure a continuous flow of data.
Frequency Burst (FB)Also known as a frequency correction burst, this burst is sent from a
base station to a mobile station to allow the mobile to match its frequency to the base station.
Frequency bursts can be used for certain mobile receiver tests.
Synchronization Burst (SB)This burst is sent by a base station to allow mobile stations to
time synchronization with the base station. This burst can be used for certain mobile receiver
tests.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Measurements
The following section describes the measurements performed for GSM and EDGE devices:
Transmit Power (TXP)performs a power measurement in a specific channel. Power Versus

Time is a superset of this measurement and therefore it will be described in more detail.
Power Versus Time (PVT)measures the timing mask to comply with the standard and make
sure that is only transmitting on its own slot. Applies for both GSM and EDGE.
Output
O
t t RF Spectrum
S t
(ORFS)measures
(ORFS)
h muchh leakage
how
l k
there
th is,
i in
i the
th spectrum,
t
to
t other
th
channels. Applies for both GSM and EDGE.
Error Vector Magnitude (EVM)measures the quality of the transmitter by comparing the
detected signal with the ideal transmitted signal. Applies only to EDGE.
Phase and Frequency Error (PFER)measures the quality of the modulator. This is
equivalent to EVM but because GSM is GMSK, the information is purely on the phase.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE Power Versus Time (PVT)
As each frame is time multiplexed into eight independent data streams, it is very important for a
given burst to stay within its assigned timeslot. One measurement that helps determine if a burst fits
into its timeslot is the PVT measurement. A temporal mask can be configured, and the PVT
measurement will compare the RF envelope of the burst to this mask and test if the burst meets the
specification. If no mask is defined, the measurement will use the mask delineated in the GSM
standard. In addition to testing if a burst fits within a mask, the measurement will also measure burst
power and average power.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE PVT
Common GSM/EDGE Settings:
Set Resolution Bandwidth FilterSets the filter to be applied to the signal before measuring its
power. The default is a Gaussian filter with a 500kHz bandwidth.
Set Burst SyncSpecifies the method used to determine where in a received waveform a
GSM/EDGE burst resides. The toolkit can use either the training sequence or the RF amplitude.
Set TSCIf the measurement is configured to use the training sequence [TSC] to synchronize
the acquisition, this VI sets which training sequence to look for. One option is to select Auto,
which will automatically detect the training sequence for a given burst.
Set UUT and ARFCNThe Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number determines for a given
band, channel number, and UUT the appropriate center frequency and sets the vector signal
analyzer to that frequency.
PVT Settings:
Set AveragingSpecifies the number and the type of averaging the measurement will perform
before performing calculations.
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Lesson 14
Offset RF Spectrum
p
(ORFS)
(
)
For GSM and EDGE signals, the traditional way to measure how well a burst stays within its
assigned frequency slot is to take an ORFS measurement. This measurement calculates the power at
various frequencies offset from the carrier frequency to determine how much the burst leaks into
other frequency bands. The power at each offset is reference back to the carrier power and is reported
in terms of dBc.
There are two types of ORFS measurements. The modulation ORFS measurement examines the
frequency content of the center of a burst, while the switching ORFS measurement measures the
frequency content of the ramp up and ramp down portions of a burst. In general, the switching ORFS
will report higher values at a given frequency that the modulation ORFS.
With the GSM toolkit, one has the ability to select which offset frequencies to take a ORFS
measurement. The default frequency offsets are given below:
Modulation: +/200kHz, +/250kHz, +/400kHz, +/600kHz, +/1.2MHz, +/1.8MHz
Switching: +/400kHz, +/600kHz, +/1.2MHz, +/1.8MHz
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE ORFS Measurement Diagram
When performing an ORFS measurement, you must carefully select filter bandwidths to ensure
measurements remain consistent from one measurement to another. To measure the power at the
carrier frequency and each of the frequency offsets, the signal is first passed through a series of
resolution bandwidth (RBW) filters to focus the signal at the frequencies of interest. Next, the signal
in each path is filtered by a predefined filter known as a video bandwidth filter (VBW) to provide
smoothing. Finally, the average power of the time waveform is taken to provide a concrete
measurement of the power at a given frequency.
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Lesson 14
GSM/EDGE ORFS
Set Measurement Typespecifies if the measurement reports the ORFS on the modulation part
of the burst, the switching part of the burst, or both.
Set Measurement Modedetermines if the measurement reports the power at a single offset
frequency or multiple offset frequencies.
Set Modulation RBWsets the bandwidth of the resolution bandwidth filters used when
g the ORFS of the modulation ppart of the burst. This VI allows yyou to specify
p ya
measuring
separate filter bandwidth for measuring the carrier (Carrier RBW), offset frequencies less than
1800 kHz (Close Offset RBW), and offset frequencies greater than 1800 kHz (Far Offset RBW).
Set Switching RBWsets the bandwidth of the resolution bandwidth filters used when
measuring the ORFS of the switching part of the burst.
Note The default RBW filter bandwidths differ from the equivalent modulation RBW
filters in order to match the GSM specifications.
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Lesson 14
Phase and Frequency

q
y Error ((PFER))
One of the most common measurements for signal quality in GSM bursts is the PFER measurement.
Since the information in each burst is entirely encoded in the phase, measurement of the phase error
can act as very good figure of merit for modulation quality. Distortion such as frequency error, origin
offset, and IQ imbalance are both measured and corrected within the PFER measurement in the GSM
toolkit, isolating the true phase error.
The RMS phase error gives the RMS average of the phase error across an entire burst, while the peak
phase error gives the worst measured phase error in the burst. In addition, when the measurement is
taken across multiple bursts, the mean and maximum are reported for every distortion measurement
in the result cluster.
One additional measure of the PFER measurement is to report the symbol with the peak phase error.
When using a predefined bit pattern, this information can help identify a precise sequence of bits that
can cause the DUT to give suboptimal performance, which can be very useful in verification and
validation.
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Lesson 14
EDGE Error Vector Magnitude (EVM)
The error vector for a received symbol is defined in the I/Q plane as the vector between a received
symbol and the ideal symbol location. To calculate the EVM, the ratio is taken between the
magnitude of the error vector and the magnitude of the expected constellation point. For the EDGE
standard, this ratio is often reported as a percentage.
The EVM measurement shares many similarities with the PFER measurement, and many of the
results are analogous to results of the PFER measurement. One thing the EVM measurement adds is
the
h ability
bili to measure andd correct for
f amplitude
li d droop
d
in
i the
h passband.
b d
If it is desired that the EVM measurement takes the amplitude droop into its calculation, the droop
compensation can be disabled.
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Lesson 14
NI Cellular Toolkits Introduction to WCDMA
This section gives a brief overview of the Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA)
standard and covers the use of the NI toolkit for testing WCDMA cellular devices.
WCDMA is the most popular radio technologies for the Universal Mobile Telecommunication
System (UMTS). Because this is a very extensive topic, the main goal of this section is to cover the
different settings in the WCDMA toolkit for the most common measurements.
yp of testingg covered in this section is only
y the pphysical
y
layer
y test,, which means that the
The type
instrument is not emulating the base station and therefore call processing is not feasible.
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Lesson 14
Frame Structure in WCDMA
There are two main duplexing modes in WCDMA: Timed Domain Duplexing (TDD) and Frequency
Domain Duplexing (FDD). TDD transmits at the same frequency but at different time periods,
similar to GSM. FDD divides the allocated frequency spectrum into dedicated channels and is
allowed to continuously transmit. This is why FDD is more popular with cell phone companies. This
lesson covers only Wideband CDMA or WCDMA-FDD. The lesson introduces the physical level
specification and then explains each of the measurements defined by the standard.
C d Domain
Code
D
i Multiple
M l i l Access
A
(CDMA) iis used
d iin multiple
l i l standards.
d d In
I WCDMA,
WCDMA the
h basic
b i
concept is to use unique codes for each user. The digital data for this user is then spread (each
digital 1 becomes the code and each digital 0 becomes the negated version of the code) and these bits
are then IQ modulated and called chips.
All WCDMA channels are 5 MHz wide. Each frame last 10 ms and its composed of 15 time slots.
During this time, 38,400 chips are transmitted. The chip rate of a WCDMA signal is therefore 3.84
Mcps.
WCDMA signals can either go from a user equipment (UE) to the base station (BS), which is called
up-link signal (UL) or reverse link. The signal that travels from the BS to the UE is called down-link
(DL) or forward link. These concepts are important when you are configuring your device under test
DUT.
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Lesson 14
How Does Spreading Work?
The purpose of WCDMA is to spread the data symbols across a wide spectrum with different unique
codes so that multiple users can transmit at the same time and same frequency and yet be able to
differentiate the user data.
The process is called spreading because each of the data symbols is being replaced by a long code
sequence. Because the chip rate is much larger than the data rate, the chip spectrum bandwidth is
larger than the symbol spectrum bandwidth. The ratio of the two is called spreading gain.
This lesson is not intended to explain in detail every technical aspect of the standard, but to provide
an overview of the challenges when testing. There are several CDMA documents at ni.com for the
readers reference and many textbooks that go into every detail on the technique.
The bits are modulated usually in BPSK mode. In some combination of channels, the signal will look
as QPSK mode (two BPSK signals at the same time). A recent update to the standard adds High
Packet Data Rate (HSPA) for both the downlink (called HSDPA) and uplink (HSUPA). These
schemes change their modulation to 16 QAM in some cases
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Lesson 14
Code Division Multiple

p Access
The main benefit of CDMA is the ability for multiple signals to use the same spectrum at the same
time but with different spreading codes. These codes are general orthogonal properties and have poor
correlation between each other, which makes them appear as noise to the other codes and as a strong
signal with the correct code.
In WCDMA, there are multiple types of channels and the way to differentiate them is by using
spreading codes.
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Lesson 14
Orthogonal Variable Spreading Factors (OVSF)
The spreading codes are all orthogonal for WCDMA and are generated using the Hadamard matrix.
Because the codes are orthogonal, there will no be code interference in an ideal application because
each code is independent.
In WCDMA, the codes are of varying length and called Orthogonal Variable Spreading Factors
(OVSF) For FDD mode, the Up Link (UL) specification SF can be between 2 and 256 and the Down
Link SF can be between 2 and 512.
Notice on the generation tree above that if one code is used, there are other codes that are not
allowed anymore because they would be generated with the same parent code. For example,
if Cch,2,0 is selected, Cch,4,0 and Cch,4,1 cannot be used anymore.
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Lesson 14
Spreading and Combination of Channels
A WCDMA signal has multiple dedicated channels. For example, the Data Packet Control Channel
(DPCCH) or the Data Packet Data Channel (DPDCH). You can define each of these channels
depending on the test condition you want to replicate. The test equipment should turn these on or off
and specify the spreading parameters (code, SF, or data rate).
If the data rate is provided, simply divide WCDMA data rate (3.84 Mcps) by the given data rate to
get the spreading factor. For example, if the data rate is 60 kbps, then the SF = 3.84 Mcps / 60 kbps =
64.
64
Each of the WCDMA channels in the UL is mapped to either the I branch or the Q branch. If the
signal has multiple channels, they should alternate branches to reduce the peak-to-average ratio of
the signal.
For each of the dedicated physical channels the spreading is applied before they are all combined.
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Lesson 14
Slot Construction
All the channels are being generated at the same time but with different orthogonal codes and/or
branch. When the signal is received we would be able to get the data back with the same code they
were coded on the first place.
This is important to remember when creating a waveform, because each channel description is set
initially and the waveform is not be fully created until all the channels have been defined.
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Lesson 14
WCDMA Toolkit Waveform Generation
The toolkit helps you quickly create any waveform by making a valid combination of channels. It
also has the waveforms that the standard dictates as test signals to avoid errors in the configuration.
Dedicated physical channel (DPCH)
On the uplink and downlink, a DPCH can carry multiple dedicated physical data channel (DPDCH)
that is used to carry the data (voice). The dedicated physical control channel (DPCCH) carries all the
control data for the DPCH. The receiver uses the control channel as a reference channel and this is
why it is always transmitted using a 256 spreading factor.
Physical random access channel (PRACH)
This channel is used on the uplink to carry the random access channel (RANCH) for initial access to
the radio interface. There are three parts for this channel: RACH preamble part, RACH message part
and RACH control part. Each of these parts can be transmitted multiple times.
High speed DPCCH (HS-DPCCH)
Used for higher data rates using a different constellation mapping.
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Lesson 14
Enhanced DPCCH (E-DPCCH) and enhanced DPDCH (E-DPDCH)

Similar to DPCH, the waveform can have zero or multiple E-DPDCH and only
one E-DPCCH. This channel cannot be transmitted unless the DPCCH channel is transmitted.
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Primary common control physical channel (P-CCPCH)
This is used to carry the broadcast channel (BCH) transport channel. This is common system
information that needs to be broadcasted to the entire cell.
Common Pilot Channel (CPICH)
This channel us used on the downlink to specify overall coverage of the cell. Does not carry any
information for higher
g
layers.
y
Secondary common control physical channel (S-CCPCH)
On the downlink, this channel transmit both paging information channel (PCH) for the entire cell and
the fordward access channel (FACH) for unidirectional information to the cell or to an specific UE.
Paging indication channel (PICH)
Any messages currently pending on the S-CCPCH are announced on this channel.
Acquisition indicator channel (AICH)
This channel has a fixed rate of SF = 256 and is used to acquire the acquisition indicators (AI).
Acquisition Indicator AIs correspond to signature s on the PRACH.
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Lesson 14
Channel Configuration and Definition
The desired configuration can be achieved by knowing the type of channel that will be added:
Up-Link
DPCCHthis channel must have a SF = 256 and Code = 0, therefore these parameters cannot be
changed.
DPDCH
HS-DPCCHspreading code is defined as 256 and therefore cannot be changed.
E DPCCH spreading code is defined as 256 and therefore cannot be changed.
E-DPCCHspreading
changed
E-DPDCH
PRACH
Down-Link
The 3GPP specification defines multimple test models on the Downlink. All these test models are included and
easy selectable from the API.
p
channel and pperform a different configuration.
g
You can still call the independent
P-CCPCHspreading code is defined as 256 and therefore cannot be changed.
CPICH
S-CCPCH
PICHspreading code is defined as 256 and therefore cannot be changed.
AICHspreading code is defined as 256 and therefore cannot be changed.
The payload for each channel can be changed as well as the relative power level (to the average of the signal).
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Lesson 14
WCDMA Measurements
When testing a transmitter, the tester analyzes the signals and perform different standard
measurements. Below there is a brief explanation of each of the measurements. Notice that only the
ones highlighted in blue will have a more detail explanation on later slides since they are the most
often used.
Adjacent Channel Power ACPAlso referred to as Adjacent Channel Leakage power Ratio or
ACLR, is measuring the power of the transmitted signal. It also measures the power from the
i
immediate
di t adjacent
dj
t channels
h
l andd the
th power off the
th alternate
lt
t power.
Complementary Cumulative Distribution Function CCDFMeasurement useful to see the

signal statistics and power distribution.
Code Domain Power CDPMeasures the power on each of the channels (different spreading
codes). This measurement provides detail information about each of the active and inactive
channels, specially the quality of their spread.
Channel Power CHPMeasures the amount of energy in the 5 MHz WCDMA channel.
Costellation EVMThis measurements performs a fast EVM of a known constellation such as

QPSK. This constellation is achieved with certain combination of channels and is intended to
perform an EVM faster than any other method.
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Lesson 14
Modulation Accuracy ModAccIs a measurement of the quality of the modulator. This

measurement will decode each of the active channels and compute the total EVM.
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Occupied Bandwidth OBWProvides a basic measurement of the actual bandwidth the signal is
occupying.
Spectral Emissions SEMIs a common measurement to validate that the transmitter is not leaking
power out of its band.
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Lesson 14
WCDMA Common Settings
Because there are several differences on the downlink and uplink signals, it is important to select the
UUT and the Scramble Control. Otherwise, no synchronization on the signal will be found and
measurements will be incorrect.
Set UUTdefines if it is a User Equipment or a Base Station.
Set Alphadefines the filter coefficient.
Sett A
S
Active
ti Ch
Channelsdecreases
l d
measurementt ti
time since
i
it will
ill nott perform
f
an channel
h
l
autodetect routine.
Set UL or DL Scramble Controlis important to mix the signal and avoid consecutive errors.
Set BTS Sync Typethis can be the most common one CPICH or SCH.
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Lesson 14
Adjacent Channel Power (ACP)
Also refered to as Adjacent Channel Leakage Ration (ACLR), ACP is a common measurement in
WCDMA to make sure that there are no emissions in the adjacent channels.
The default values measure adjacent channels (5 MHz) and first alternate channels
(10 MHz) which is the most common case.
The results are usually given as relative to the carrier power. For this reason, the adjacent channels
p the noise ppower of the instrument and therefore,, the less RF attenuation the lower the
usuallyy report
noise floor will be. This is why this measurement is sensitive to dynamic range.
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Lesson 14
Constellation EVM
This measurement performs a fast EVM of a known constellation such as QPSK. This constellation
is achieved with a certain combination of channels and is intended to perform an EVM faster than
any other method.
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Lesson 14
Code Domain Power (CDP)
The measurement usually reported is the power of a specific channel or the power of all the active
channels with respect to the power of the inactive channels. The graphs show each of the channels
(256 for I and 256 for Q in UL mode or 512 in DL mode) on the x axis and power (relative to the
power of the signal) on the y axis. All channels above a certain threshold are assumed to be active
channels.
The width of the channel represents the number of channels that the code is occupying. If one OVSF
i chosen,
is
h
other
h channels
h
l cannot use any OVSF dderived
i d ffrom there.
h
The following examples from the channels in the graphs above help explain the possible
combinations of channels:
1. Code = 1 and SF = 16 are used, this means that the following combinations of channels are
already taken:
a.
SF = 256
codes = 1631
b. SF = 128
codes = 815
c.
SF = 64
codes = 47
d. SF = 32
codes = 23
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already
l d taken:
t k
a.
SF = 256
codes = 128-191
b. SF = 128
codes = 64-95
c.
SF = 64
codes = 32-47
d. SF = 32
codes = 16-23
e.
SF = 16
codes = 8-11
f.
SF = 8
codes = 4-5
already taken:
a
a.
SF = 256
codes = 64-67
64 67
b. SF = 128
codes = 32-33
already taken:
a.
SF = 256
codes = 96-127
b. SF = 128
codes = 48-63
c.
SF = 64
codes = 24-31
d. SF = 32
codes = 12-15
e.
codes = 6-7
SF = 16
As noted, in UL, using any code in SF = 256 (largest spreading code used) does not block any other
channels. In DL mode, this is the second largest code (largest is SF = 512) and similar blocking will
exist.
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Lesson 14
Modulation Accuracy (ModAcc)
Modulation accuracy measures the quality of the received signal. This measurement despreads each
of the active channels and re-modulates them in perfect conditions to compare the differences. These
differences are reported in the EVM number.
The quality of the modulation (rho) is also reported, which is basically a 01 value that represents the
difference between the detected waveform and the ideal waveform.
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Lesson 14
Spectral Emissions (SEM)
Spectral emissions is a set of specific settings of a normal spectral emissions mask test. These
settings are configured already by the toolkit.
The closer offsets are measured with a different resolution bandwidth than the farther offsets. This is
why the noise floor looks higher on the further offsets.
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Lesson 14
E. Applications
pp
for Cellular Test
The following section cover the specific needs for each application area including typical tests
performed for the different layers of components that build a cellular device.
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Lesson 14
Transceivers
All transceivers require some sort of calibration to ensure that is not transmitting higher or lower than
the specifications. Most types of calibration are basically a power measurement. The constants of
calibration are stored in the transceiver.
Notice that this calibration is different from the system calibration, which should be always
performed in order to perform accurate measurements.
y can test the transmitter both spectrally

p
y and in modulation. The
After the transceiver is calibrated,, you
receiver is also tested for sensitivity by generating packets at different power levels.
There are many tests to perform and multiple variables as parameters that can change. The
permutations increase more and more and test companies do not want to increase their test cost. This
is the reason test time is so critical.
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Lesson 14
Power Amplifiers and Switches
Power amplifiers usually do not require calibration but do require a very methodical process to get
accurate and repeatable measurements.
Notice the system calibration should be always performed in order to perform accurate
measurements.
Many tests performed on power amplifiers run into multiple different conditions. Because there are
power amplifiers
p
out there,, the test time are as minimal as possible.
p
several tens of billions of p
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Lesson 14
PCB Board Test
After the baseband, transceiver, power amplifiers and other RF components are mounted on the PCB
design, there is a general RF test that can be as thoughtful as making a base station connection to
something faster and simpler as similar to the transceiver tests.
The PCB might also store calibration constants and therefore a final calibration could be performed.
After than, very similar test to the transceiver tests are performed.
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Lesson 14
Final Test for Phone
The final test of the phone can be defined dependent on the PCB tests.
The main change to the product is that is now using the antenna and many times there is no direct
connection to the device anymore. For this reason, the test is trying to measure how the product will
behave in the final enclosure.
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Lesson 14
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Lesson 14
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Notes
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Lesson 15
15-1
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Lesson 15
A Brief Historyy
WiMAX was created and is maintained by the WiMAX Forum. Its technology is based on
communication standards created by the IEEE 802 working group in their 802.16 standard.
Fixed WiMAX uses the OFDM PHY layer in the 802.16d version of the specification, originally
published in 2004. Mobile WiMAX uses the OFDMA PHY layer of the 802.16e specification,
published in 2005.
WiMAX was primarily designed for broadband wireless Internet access. The Fixed variety was
designed to be used for last
last-mile
mile delivery of broadband to homes.
homes The Mobile variety can be used for
broadband access for smartphones and other portable devices.
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Lesson 15
Fixed WiMAX (802.16d)

(
)
Fixed WiMAX uses OFDM for efficient use of available spectrum. It always uses 256 subcarriers,
but the width of the subcarriers (and therefore the entire signal) can be varied, up to a total channel
bandwidth of 10 MHz.
Fixed WiMAX allows for frequency- or time-based duplexing. (Duplexing describes the connection
between two partiesin this case, the base station and subscriber station). In frequency-based
duplexing, a WiMAX channel is split into two subchannels of half the original bandwidth. One
subchannel is dedicated to uplink
p
(subscriber
(
to base station),
), and one subchannel is dedicated to
downlink (base station to subscriber). In time-based duplexing, the full channel is used for uplink for
a fixed period of time, then it is used for downlink for a fixed period of time.
Multiplexing, on the other hand, describes how a system shares access between multiple users. Fixed
WiMAX uses time-based multiplexing only, meaning that the base station communicates with each
subscriber for a fixed slot in time (as opposed to frequency-based multiplexing, which allocates a
dedicated subchannel to each subscriber).
Fi d WiMAX can operate
Fixed
t iin both
b th licensed
li
d andd unlicensed
li
d bands.
b d
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Lesson 15
Mobile WiMAX (802.16e)

(
)
Mobile WiMAX is similar to Fixed WiMAX in that it uses OFDM for spectral efficiency.
The key difference between the two is how Mobile WiMAX handles multiplexing. Mobile WiMAX
base stations distinguish subscriber messages not only in time, but in OFDM subcarrier groups. This
is called OFDMA (essentially OFDM Multiple Access), and it is discussed at length later in this
lesson.
Mobile WiMAX is time-division duplexed only. In contrast to Fixed WiMAX, the subcarrier
bandwidth of the OFDM signal
g is fixed,, but the number of subcarriers (or
( FFT ppoints)) is variable to
achieve different channel bandwidths.
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Lesson 15
Licensed and Unlicensed Bands
WiMAX is being used in several licensed and unlicensed bands. There are several worldwide
deployments of Mobile WiMAX in the 2.5 GHz band, and lots of Fixed WiMAX in the
3.5 GHz band. There are also many deployments of both Fixed and Mobile WiMAX in the
unlicensed 5.x GHz band.
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Lesson 15
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Lesson 15
Orthogonal
g
Frequency-Division
q
y
Multiplexing
p
g (OFDM)
(
)
WiMAX uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing, or OFDM, to maximize spectral

efficiency.
A QPSK or QAM modulated signal with no pulse shaping has a unique shape in the frequency
domain; most of the power of the signal is distributed around the center frequency, but the harsh
transitions between symbols create side lobes that extend far out to either side. The shape of the lobes
creates peaks and valleys at various multiples of the signal bandwidth, as shown above.
Traditionally, a QAM signal will have a pulse shaping filter that flattens and dramatically reduces the
Traditionally
power of these side lobes, and adjacent channels will be spaced far enough apart that the adjacent
channel power is very low. However, if the pulses are left unfiltered, a channel can be placed with its
center frequency at one of the valleys of the first signal, and cross-channel interference will be
minimized; the two channels are essentially orthogonal. This can be extended to add dozens or more
subcarriers to a channel, as long as the symbol rates and subcarrier spacing is chosen appropriately.
The nulls of the sidelobes of each subcarrier fall directly on the center frequencies of the adjacent
subcarriers.
subcarriers
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Lesson 15
Orthogonal
g
Frequency-Division
q
y
Multiplexing
p
g (OFDM)
(
)
This is the spectrum of an actual WiMAX OFDM signal. The flat top contains the OFDM
subcarriers, and the side lobes extend outwards.
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Lesson 15
Orthogonal
g
Frequency-Division
q
y
Multiple
p Access (OFDMA)
(
)
In typical OFDM applications, one OFDM symbol is composed of one symbol from each of the
subcarriers being transmitted simultaneously. With time-based multiplexing, one or more OFDM
symbols are sent to one receiver, then one or more OFDM symbols are sent to another receiver.
With OFDMA, subsets of the OFDM subcarriers can be allocated to multiple receivers within the
same OFDM symbol. When combined with time-based multiplexing, it becomes possible to
visualize a two-dimensional representation of the signals being sent to various receivers, with one
axis beingg time and the other axis beingg OFDM subcarrier.
In the example signal above, subcarriers 04 for OFDM symbols 0 and 1 form the FCH packet, and
subcarriers 530 for the same OFDM symbols form the data packet for B0. For the next two OFDM
symbols, all of the subcarriers are used for data for B3. For the next two OFDM symbols, the
subcarriers are split in half for B1 and B2, and so on.
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Lesson 15
Fixed WiMAX Communication Structure (TDD)

(
)
Both fixed and mobile WiMAX use the frame as their fundamental unit of communication. Each
frame is composed of two subframesuplink and downlink. In time domain duplexing (TDD) mode,
the downlink subframe starts each frame, and the uplink subframe follows it in the same frequency
channel. Each subframe contains a series of bursts, which are used for channel control or direct
communication between a base station and subscriber unit. The types of bursts for fixed and mobile
WiMAX are explained in the following sections.
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Lesson 15
Fixed WiMAX Communication Structure (FDD)

(
)
In frequency domain duplexing (FDD) mode, the downlink and uplink subframes happen at the same
time in two different frequency channels. Fixed WiMAX supports FDD with subscriber units capable
of half-duplex or full-duplex communication. In full-duplex mode, the subscriber can receive at the
same time that it transmits; a half-duplex subscriber can only do one or the other. The base station
arranges the bursts within the frame to support simultaneous half- and full-duplex communication to
different subscribers.
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Lesson 15
Types
yp of Bursts Fixed Downlink
There are three types of bursts that occur during the downlink subframe.
Preamblea fixed sequence used to synchronize the transmitter and receiver.
Frame Control Header (FCH)contains information describing the modulation type and
duration of the downlink packets the base station is about to transmit. This is sent so the
receivers know which bursts to listen for and how to demodulate them.
Downlink Packetscontain information from the base station directed to one of the receiver
units.
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Lesson 15
Mobile WiMAX Communication Structure
Mobile WiMAX uses OFDMA for multiple access in downlink packets. The packets are the same,
they are just arranged differently.
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Lesson 15
Types
yp of Bursts Mobile Downlink
Mobile WiMAX has one important additional packet type. The downlink map (DL-MAP) is like a
more-detailed version of the FCH. Because downlink bursts are arranged not only in time but by
subcarrier as well, the DL-MAP is literally a map of the downlink frame describing this twodimensional arrangement.
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Lesson 15
NI Tools for WiMAX Test
A full WiMAX test system comprises a PXI chassis with VSA and VSG modules, LabVIEW
software for development, and the fixed and mobile WiMAX analysis and generation toolkits.
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Lesson 15
Features of the WiMAX Toolkits
The Analysis and Generation Toolkits for Fixed and Mobile WiMAX provide the IP necessary to
perform transmitter and receiver tests for WiMAX devices. You can perform generation and
measurement interactively using the Soft Front Panels provided with the toolkits. You can perform
automated measurements using the LabVIEW or C APIs. The measurement toolkits support spectral
measurements, power measurements, and demodulated measurements for Fixed and Mobile
WiMAX. When you use PXI, LabVIEW, and the WiMAX Toolkits for automated testing you can
increase speed 510 times more than when you perform identical tests with GPIB and traditional
boxed instruments.
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Lesson 15
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Lesson 15
D. Transmitter Test
Measurement Types for Transmitter Test
The WiMAX toolkits separate transmitter measurements into three fundamental groups:
Spectral Mask MeasurementsThis group contains measurements performed in the frequency

domain, such as spectral mask and occupied bandwidth.
Transmit Power MeasurementsThis group contains measurements of the signals power

over time, such as average and peak burst power.
Demodulated MeausrementsThe group for any measurement that requires demodulation of

the signal, such as EVM, carrier frequency offset, and IQ impairments.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Spectral

p
Mask
All of the frequency-domain measurements for WiMAX are contained in the spectral mask
measurement. Data for the spectral mask measurement is typically acquired using spectrum mode in
the NI-RFSA driver or the Gated Spectrum Acquisition VI from the Mobile WiMAX toolkit.
Spectral mask measurement with Fixed WiMAX requires a continuous signal from the device, since
Spectrum mode acquisition is not triggered. Mobile WiMAX includes a gated spectrum acquisition
mode that allows for accurate capture of power level-triggered spectral data, so the device can remain
in a bursting
g mode for all tests.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Spectral

p
Mask
The spectral mask measurement returns a single trace waveform with two sets of data. The first
waveform is the shape of the spectral mask, and the second waveform is the power spectral density
(PSD) of the acquired signal.
The measurement returns several values. The Spectral Mask Margin result includes pass/fail data for
the spectral mask measurement, explained in detail on the next slide. It also returns the reference
level of the acquired spectrum.
The spectral mask measurement also performs occupied bandwidth (OBW) and channel power
(CHP) measurements on the same set of data. The measurement returns the low and high frequencies
of the occupied bandwidth calculated as 99% of the signal power. It returns center channel power as
well as adjacent channel power(s).
All the results can be found inside the Spectral MeasurementsResults section of a WiMAX property
node.
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Lesson 15
Spectral
p
Mask Results
The reference level for the top of the mask is set by the highest-power bin in the in-band section of
the signal (the central flat part). The shape of the mask is defined by the 802.16 specification. The
toolkit then returns the point with the lowest, or most-negative, difference between the mask level
and the signal level. In the case of a passing signal, the entire signal will be under the mask; the
toolkit then returns 0 since, technically, the point of most-negative difference is the point used to
determine the reference level of the mask. However, if at any point the signal crosses the mask, that
difference will be a negative power level, which is what the toolkit returns. In summary, a value of 0
means the test was passed; a negative value means the test was failed.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Transmit Power
The transmit power measurement measures the IQ power of a time-domain signal. It does not fully
demodulate the signal, but it parses the FCH (and DL-MAP) to obtain the structure of the subframe
so bursts and zones can be measured.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Transmit Power
The transmit power measurement returns a waveform showing the signal power vs. time. It also
returns average and peak power resutls for the subframe preamble section, the entire data section,
per-zone data and subcarrier, and per-burst data and subcarrier.
All the results can be found inside the Transmit Power > Results section of a WiMAX property node.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Demodulated Measurements
Like the transmit power measurement, the demodulated measurement operates on a bursted timedomain signal. However, the demodulation measurement requires fully demodulating all zones and
bursts in the signal.
During this process, the demodulation algorithm has to correct for thing like carrier frequency offset
and IQ impairments. The corrections applied during demodulation are returned as measurement
results as well.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test Demodulated Measurements
The demodulation measurement returns several traces:
The Constellation shows I vs Q of the demodulated symbols. This is an excellent way to view IQ
impairments.
EVM per Symbol per Subcarrier shows performance across the width of the OFDM symbol,
which can be useful for locating interferers.
Spectral Flatness displays the flatness of an acquired symbol across all the subcarriers.
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Lesson 15
Transmitter Test: Demodulated Measurements
The demodulated measurement also returns several different measurement results:
RMS and peak EVM for the data and pilot subcarriers.
RMS EVM for data and pilots on a per-zone and per-burst basis.
Per-zone spectral flatness.
IQ and Signal Impairments:
Sample clock offset
Carrier frqeuency offset
IQ gain imbalance
I and Q DC offsets
All the results can be found inside the Demodulation > Results section of a WiMAX property node.
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Lesson 15
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Lesson 15
E. Receiver Test
From an instrumentation standpoint, receiver tests are somewhat simpler than transmitter tests. In
contrast to transmitter tests, where specific algorithms must be used to perform each meausrement,
most receiver tests simply require a specific generated reference signal connected to the device. That
reference signal needs to be of high enough quality that any error in the receiver is actually from the
receiver (and not from the generator). One exception to this rule is testing receiver performance
under nonideal transmitter conditions; in this case, the generator needs to be able to precisely degrade
the quality of its generated signal for testing purposes.
On the other hand, fully automated receiver testing can be challenging, because it usually requires
more communication with the device under test. Since the device itself is typically demodulating
data or performing the measurement itself, automating it requires more control of the device and
knowledge of its communication.
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Lesson 15
Receiver Test Sensitivityy
One common receiver test is sensitivity. Receiver sensitivity quantifies a receivers ability to detect
and successfully demodulate a very low-power signal. In a production environment, it often involves
a single test at a predfined level; if a devices specification indicates a sensitivity of 40 dBm, theres
no reason to test above or below that number.
In this case, the generation hardware must generate a reference signal of high quality at
40 dBm, then determine if the receiver has successfully received and demodulated the signal.
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Lesson 15
F. Software Architecture Analysis

y API
The Analysis API enables dynamic and automated configuration and execution of the measurements
demonstrated by the Soft Front Panel. Much like hardware resources are controlled with session
handles, the WiMAX toolkits use a WiMAX session handle to keep track of configuration,
measurement, and results. This session is opened and closed just like a hardware session.
Regardless of measurement, the flow of the software follows a common pattern. Understanding this
pattern is important; All of NIs example Vis follow this pattern, and the example Vis provide a good
startingg ppoint for developing
p g customized measurements. Performingg a measurement comprises
p
six
steps:
1. Configure Measurement
2. Enable Measurement Types

4. Acquire Data
5 Perform Measurements
5.
6. Get Measurement Results
Note Due to the lengthy discussion of supporting technologies, the WiMAX APIs are not
discussed in detail in this lesson; they are, however, very similar to the WLAN APIs
detailed in Lesson 12, WLAN Test.
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Lesson 15
Analysis
y API
Automated measurement happens in six steps:
1. Configure Measurement: In this step, common properties of the measurement are configured,
such as reference power level and center frequency. Those familiar with the NI RF APIs might
notice that this configuration, which usually happens in the RFSA session, actually happens in
the WiMAX session instead. This is to enable the autoconfigure functionality discussed in Step
3.
2 Enable Measurement Type: Each WiMAX session is capable of performing one of the three
2.
measurement types discussed earlier (Spectral Mask, Transmit Power, or Demodulation). The
desired measurement type can be enabled using the VIs or using a property node directly. Trace
data must also be enabled at this point if the user wants to be able to fetch the trace data in
addition to the measurement results.
3. Autoconfigure Hardware: Based on both the user-configured hardware properties and the type of
measurement being performed, the WiMAX toolkit will automatically configure the RFSA
h d
hardware
for
f optimum
ti
acquisition
i iti settings.
tti
4. Acquire Data: Depending on the measurement type, either the RFSA Read or Fetch VIs or the
WiMAX Read Gated Spectrum is used to acquire raw data to be measured. Refer to the
respective help files for details on these functions.
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5. Perform Measurements: The acquired data is passed into the WiMAX Measure VI where,
depending on the selected measurement type, the specified measurements are performed. This VI
does not actually return measurement results; instead,
instead it stores the results in the WiMAX session
handle where they can be retrieved later. If the selected measurement is configured for multiple
averages, the WiMAX Measure VI will return a boolean value indicating when the averaging has
been completed. This boolean can be used to stop a multi-record acquisition.
6. Get Measurement Results: Once the measurements have been performed, the results are fetched
using specific VIs or a WiMAX Analysis property node. For per-zone or per-burst results, the
user specifies the desired zone/burst using the channel input on the VI or the Active Channel
propert in the propert
property
property node.
node For eexample,
ample to retrie
retrievee the zone
one EVM for the second zone,
one pass
zone2 into the channel input.
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Lesson 15
Generation API
Like the Measurements API, the Generation API enables automated configuration and generation of
WiMAX test signals. The WiMAX toolkits use a WiMAX Generation session handle similar to the
Analysis toolkit. Generation is performed in six steps:
1. Configure Generation Settings
2. Configure Generated Signal
4. Create and Load Waveform

5. Start Generation
6. Wait for Generation Complete
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Lesson 15
Generation API
Generation happens in six steps:

1.
Configure Generation Settings: Common settings of generation are configured here, such as power level
and center frequency. Configuration happens in the WiMAX handle, not the RFSG handle, since the
settings are later used for autoconfiguration.
2.
Configure Generated Signal: As previously discussed, a WiMAX signal is composed of many different
bursts. In order to generate a signal for a given device, the toolkit must create these bursts. There are
several VIs that create bursts, set their position in the subframe, control their modulation types, and
configure the data contained in the burst. There are also VIs for setting FFT size and FCH and DL-MAP
contents. Like the results VIs in the Analysis toolkits, these VIs use a channel input to enable users to
configure a single burst across multiple Vis.
3.
Autoconfigure Hardware: This VI configures the RFSG hardware according to the settings in the
WiMAX toolkit session and the user-configured bursts.
4.
Create and Load Waveform: Once all the bursts have been configured and the Autoconfigure function
has set certain important properties (like IQ rate), the WiMAX toolkit can create the complex waveform
off th
the generation
ti signal.
i l Once
O
the
th waveform
f
has
h been
b
created,
t d it is
i loaded
l d d into
i t the
th RFSG arbb waveform
f
memory using the standard NI-RFSG Write Arb Waveform function. Since the generated signal is just a
complex waveform, its possible to create multiple waveforms and control generation dynamically using
Script mode.
5.
Start Generation: Once the waveform is loaded, generation is started.
6.
Wait for Generation Complete: Since generation happens repeatedly and asynchronously, the example
VI simply waits in a loop for the user to stop generation. In an automated test setting, generation can be
stopped once the measurement is complete.
complete
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Lesson 15
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Lesson 15
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Lesson 16
This lesson covers the following topics.

Where Is Analog Modulation Used?
Modulation Toolkit Overview
Amplitude Modulation
Frequency Modulation
Phase Modulation
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Lesson 16
A. Where Is Analog
g Modulation Used?
Several applications still use Analog Modulation to solve communication problems.

These applications include but are not limited to:
Radio Broadcast
Some RC control
Satellite TV
Two Way Radios

di
Wireless Audio
Cordless Phones
Because these applications are generally for massive deployment, the manufacturing testing platform
should be fast enough to keep up with the expected capacity.
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Lesson 16
Compare Digital and Analog Signals
Digital Modulation loses part of the data. This process is called quantization and can be very small if
the number of bits is high enough. However, quantizing an analog signal provides several
advantages:
The integrity of the quantized signal is preserved when copied and/or transmitted (if the signal
quality is good).
Processing digital signals is easier and provides more reliable and consistent results.
Compression of the signal can be achieved more easily and saves storage space.
Distance for Transmission
Some systems, such as the mobile phone system, tolerate many errors in the transmission. In analog
mode, this translates to noise and even in a very noisy environment, our ears can receive the
information that was sent.
With digital signals, if the noise is greater than certain threshold, the device will not be able to play
any audio that our ear would be able to decipher.
This issue has been solved by using channel coding techniques to the digital signals allowing them to
recover the transmitted signals even when many errors where detected. This is possible, because
channel coding techniques can not only detect errors but correct them as well.
Cost/Complexity
Digital Modulation provides many advantages and solves many problems in the communications
world
ld but
b also
l brings
bi
further
f h complexity
l i to the
h systems. Complexity
C
l i usually
ll translates
l
to cost off
development, testing, and deployment.
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Lesson 16
Analog
g Modulation and Analog
g Demodulation Subpalettes
p
The Modulation Toolkit contains the necessary tools to create the popular analog modulation
schemes:
Amplitude ModulationThe message is embedded on the envelope of the carrier. All the other
parameters remain unchanged and therefore the frequency and phase of the carrier never changes.
Amplitude Modulation has three main variations that will be illustrated the Amplitude Modulation
section of the lesson:
Double Side band (DSB)
Single Side band (SSB)
Vestigial Side band (VSB)
Frequency ModulationThe message changes the cumulative phase of the carrier. If we change
this phase in a cumulative way (non linear), then the actual frequency of the carrier will change and
will oscilate faster for positive values of the message and slower for negative values of the message.
Phase ModulationThe message changes the instantaneous phase of the carrier creating similar
behavior as FM but with a very different method. The phase is changed linearly.
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Lesson 16
B. Modulation Toolkit Overview

Palettes
The Modulation Toolkit includes the Analog Modulation and Digital Modulation subpalettes.
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Lesson 16
1. Open Basic Analog Modulation.vi.
2. Show all modulations schemes to review the understanding of each one of them.
3. Using FM modulation with a sine wave, the IQ diagram looks like it is spinning several times
clockwise if the message amplitude is positive and it spins counterclockwise when the message
amplitude is negative.
4. PM, however, (still with a sine wave) the phase changes gradually from one to the other and
speed is constant (meaning that phase is changing linearly).
5. (Optional) You can show FSK and PSK now just by selecting square wave as input signal. This
will be seen on the digital modulation section with more detail in case they have questions.
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Lesson 16
C. Amplitude
p
Modulation
When referred to as AM (Amplitude Modulation), this usually means AM modulation of Double

Side band (DSB) with carrier.
The basic formula for AM DSB includes the following terms:
Ac The unmodulated carrier amplitude
c The angular frequency (in radians) of the carrier

positive constant called the modulation index.
Ap
Xm the message signal
The second term of the formula will effectively multiply the message signal by the carrier signal.
When adding the carrier component in, the message signal will have the same shape as the envelope
of the modulated carrier in the time domain.
The second formula is a version of the first in which the message signal is a constant frequency
sinusoid. The parameter has been replaced by with the following terms:
Am The message amplitude.
m The angular frequency (in radians) of the message signal.

A positive constant called the modulation index.
The following discussions and images will generally refer to the modulating signal as a constant
frequency sinusoid.
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Lesson 16
C. Amplitude
p
Modulation
When referred to as AM (Amplitude Modulation), this usually means AM modulation of Double

Side Band (DSB) with carrier.
The basic formula for AM DSB includes the following terms:
Ac The unmodulated carrier amplitude
c The angular frequency (in radians) of the carrier

positive constant called the modulation index.
Ap
Xm the message signal
The second term of the formula will effectively multiply the message signal by the carrier signal.
When adding the carrier component in, the message signal will have the same shape as the envelope
of the modulated carrier in the time domain.
The second formula is a version of the first in which the message signal is a constant frequency
sinusoid. The parameter has been replaced by with the following terms:
Am The message amplitude.
m The angular frequency (in radians) of the message signal.

A positive constant called the modulation index.
The following discussions and images will generally refer to the modulating signal as a constant
frequency sinusoid.
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Lesson 16
Analog Modulation
There are three main variants of AM:

Double Side band (DSB)
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Single Side Band (SSB)
Vestigial Side Band (VSB)
In any of the three main variants, you can suppress the carrier. This is useful to maximize the
message transmit power. However, it is more difficult to recover because there is no reference of the
phase or frequency (this is exactly the purpose of the carrier).
Single Sideband and Vestigial Sideband are two variants of DSB that try to eliminate one of the side
bands. Because they are symmetric, this can be reconstructed on the demodulator.
Both SSB and VSB start from a DSB signal and filter it to get only half the spectrum. SSB uses a
Hilbert filter and VSB uses a predefine filter so that it will not entirely remove one of the sidebands
and a vestige remains.
Having only one band increases spectral efficiency because the bandwidth of the modulated signal is
going to be less than twice the baseband bandwidth. Ideally, it will be the same, meaning that only
the essential part of the message was transmitted.
transmitted
In real world applications, it is difficult to do a Hilbert filter without taking a small portion of the low
frequency content. This is why many of the real world applications such as AM radio, AM TV, and
so on use VSB amplitude modulation.
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Lesson 16
MT Modulate AM and MT Demodulate AM
This polymorphic VI which has three instances

1. AM-Double Side Band
2. AM-Single Side Band
3. AM-Vestigial Side Band
Refer to the LabVIEW Modulation Toolkit Help for more specific information about these VIs.
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Lesson 16
Amplitude Modulation Generation Example

1. Open a session to the NI-RFSG.
2. Configure the center frequency and output power.
3. Enable IQ Generation. This indicates to the driver to generate an arbitrary waveform (in this case
an AM waveform) instead of a sine tone.
4. Generate the message signal at a sample rate consistent with the sample rate requirements of the
RF Signal Generator.
5. Modulate the message signal using Amplitude Modulation.

6. Write the AM waveform.
7. Initiate generation according to programmed settings.
8. Check the generation status and exit if an error has occurred.
9. Disable the output. This sets the noise floor as low as possible.
10 Close
10.
Cl
the
th session
i to
t the
th NI-RFSG.
NI RFSG
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Lesson 16
Amplitude Modulation Acquisition Example

2. Configure the reference clock.

5. Configure the carrier frequency.

6 Configure
6.
C fi
th
the IQ rate.
t
7. Configure the number of samples per record.

8. Read IQ.
9. Demodulate IQ data to get message signal

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Lesson 16
D. Frequency
q
y Modulation
Most used in Analog Modulation applications for the following reasons:
More power efficient because the amplitude does not change with the message and propagation
range increase over AM because the attenuation of the signal does not always decompose the
message.
The demodulator is not very complicated with analog circuitry and is therefore inexpensive.
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Lesson 16
Frequency
q
y Modulation Concepts
p
Carsons Rule will help you determine the bandwidth of the FM signal and thus the IQ rate at which
you should generate the signal.
fdevitation is the specified frequency deviation on the MT Modulate FM VI.
fmax is the maximum frequency of your message signal (that is, the baseband bandwidth)
BW is the bandpass bandwidth that the FM signal will have when it is modulated centered at the
carrier frequency.
q
y
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Lesson 16
MT Modulate FM Details
This VI performs signal processing on data and operates independently of your hardware settings.
This VI can be used in simulated as well as hardware-equipped applications.
The output frequency-modulated wave is described by the following equation:
FM e
frequencyD eviation
i 2
fs
t ( messageSignal ) dt carrierPhase
MT Demodulate FM
The information signal is computed as a result of a demodulation process, which takes place in two
steps internally. First the incoming IQ data is phase-demodulated, and then the result of this phase
demodulation is differentiated using a software FIR with three taps.
You can wire the FM demodulated waveform output to any of the LabVIEW waveform
measurement VIs for further measurements. If the information signal is a single tone, you can wire
the FM demodulated waveform output to the Extract Single Tone Information VI to measure the
amplitude, frequency, and phase of the information signal.
Refer to the LabVIEW Modulation Toolkit Help for more specific information about these VIs.
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Lesson 16
Frequency
q
y Modulation Generation Example
p
Complete the following steps to perform a frequency modulation.

1. Open a session to the NI-RFSG.
2. Configure the center frequency and output power.
3. Enable IQ Generation. This indicates to the driver to generate an arbitrary waveform (in this case
an FM waveform) instead of a sine tone.
4 Generate the message signal.
4.
signal
5. Modulate the message signal using Frequency Modulation.

6. Write the FM waveform.
7. Initiate generation according to programmed settings.
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Lesson 16
Frequency Demodulation Acquisition Example
Complete the following steps to perform a frequency demodulation.

2. Configure the reference clock.

5 Configure
5.
C fi
th
the carrier
i frequency.
f
6. Configure the IQ rate.
7. Configure the number of samples per record.

8. Read IQ.
9. Demodulate IQ data to get message signal

10. Close the RFSA session
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Lesson 16
E. Phase Modulation
Phase Deviation (deg) specifies the maximum desired phase deviation of the phase-modulated signal
returned in the PM modulated waveform output.
In phase modulation, phase deviation quantifies the maximum difference between the instantaneous
phase angle of the modulated wave and the phase angle of the unmodulated carrier wave.
Refer to the LabVIEW Modulation Toolkit Help for more information about these VIs.
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Lesson 16
Analog Modulation Key Considerations
It is required to have IQ rate set to the baseband sample rate, typically at times one can have
baseband sample rate is low especially for low bandwidth signals, for example AM or FM radio
signals. In that case you will need to oversample your baseband signal, and then apply filter in
software to extract all the information present in that signal.
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Lesson 16
Analog Modulation Key Considerations
Higher frequency resolution is required when user wanted to identify the two signals which are
relatively close in frequency domain, for example say you want frequency resolution of 1Hz, which
means you want to identify two signals that are 1Hz apart like 10KHz and 10.001KHz.
Hence baseband frequency resolution greatly impacts your waveform size, as you will need more
points inorder to represent the baseband signal.
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Lesson 16
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Lesson 16
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Appendix A
This appendix covers the following topics.
A. Common Applications and Frequencies
B. Spectrum Analyzers and Vector Signal Analyzers (VSAs)
C. Vector Signal Generator (VSG) and Continuous Wave (CW) Sources
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Appendix A Understanding RF Measurement Hardware
A. Common Applications
pp
and Frequencies
q
The frequency spectrum is divided among different RF applications. Older cellular

communication standards, such as AMPS, TDMA, and some early forms of CDMA occupy
the 800900 MHz range. Newer cellular standards, such as 2.5G and 3G occupy the 1.8
GHz to 2.1 GHz frequency range. The ISM band (Industrial-Scientific-Medical) is an
unlicensed band. Examples of applications within this band are Bluetooth, 802.11 b/g, and
WLAN.
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Appendix A
B. Spectrum
p
Analyzers
y
and Vector Signal
g Analyzers
y
(VSAs)
(
)
This section describes the following topics.
What is a spectrum analyzer?
What is a VSA?
Spectrum analyzers versus VSAs
Common applications of spectrum analyzers and VSAs
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What is a Spectrum Analyzer?
Four classes of instruments exist to analyze or generate RF signals. The first class of
instruments are spectrum analyzers. The figure above shows the basic architecture of a
spectrum analyzer. The input goes through a narrowband tunable filter, and the output of the
detector is converted to a digital code (power), which is then displayed on the instrument as
a function of frequency. Spectrum analyzers only return information about the amplitude of
the signals that they measure. They have limited transient analysis and typically do not
support spectrogram capabilities.
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Appendix A
What is a VSA?
The second class of instruments is vector signal analyzers (VSA). In contrast to spectrum
analyzers, VSAs have a wideband tunable filter with digital Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)
processing to provide the same power versus frequency display. In addition to power
measurements, VSAs can return phase information. VSAs use this amplitude and phase
information to perform joint time and frequency domain and modulation domain
measurements.
Note If you want to look at both magnitude and phase, then you need the
VSA class of instruments. The word vector implies that you are looking at both the
magnitude and phase component of the signal.
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Spectrum Analyzers vs. VSAs
Spectrum analyzers only show magnitude vs. frequency plots.
You can use VSAs to measure the phase of the signal. You can also perform joint time and
frequency domain analysis and look at characteristics of the message signal itself.
The figure above shows a graphical differentiation between the measurement and
visualization capabilities of SAs and VSAs.
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Appendix A
Common Applications
Spectrum analyzers show frequency versus power or voltage but are not used for communication
systems.
VSAs can display the frequency spectrum just as spectrum analyzers do, but VSAs can also extract
the phase component of the signal, which spectrum analyzers cannot. With the phase, amplitude, and
frequency components of a signal, VSAs can demodulate most communication signals.
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C. Vector Signal
g Generators ((VSGs)) and Continuous Wave ((CW)) Sources
This section describes the following topics.
What is a VSG?
What is a CW source?
Applications of CW sources
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Appendix A
What is a VSG?
The third class of instruments is vector signal generators (VSG). VSGs are similar to VSAs
in that they can work with wideband signals. VSGs generate the signals in a wideband
fashion by typically using an arbitrary source that is upconverted to
RF frequencies.
There are two designs of VSGs on the market today. One design uses an IQ signal generated
from an arbitrary waveform generator (AWG) device and inputs this as
a pair of IQ signals to be upconverted. The second design uses an arbitrary waveform
generator as well but combines the IQ data using the AWG instead of the RF upconverter
and generates an IF signal for upconversion. Refer to Lesson 5, Digital Downconversion,
Digital Upconversion, Digitizers, and Sources, for more information about the process of
upconverting from IQ baseband data to IF with the AWG.
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Applications of Vector Signal Generators
RF vector signal generators can be used in almost every RF and communication application
including the applications listed above for the RF signal generators. However, they are ideal for
complex user-defined, arbitrary waveform signal generation including IQ baseband signals or
multitone generation.
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Appendix A
What is a CW Source?
A CW source is a simple RF generation source typically used for tone generation or narrowband
waveform generation. This tone generation can vary from baseband to millimeter wavelength (>40
GHz). The figure above illustrates a simplified architecture of a CW source that uses a DDS to
synthesize the actual tone to very accurate frequencies. In addition, this DDS can create frequency
modulation like FSK or FM. Depending on the output frequency the tone either passes through the
main synthesizer, divider, and multiplexer or goes straight to a level control circuit. The divider and
multiplexer scale the frequency over the range of the product from baseband to RF. At the next stage,
the automatic leveling control (ALC) loop performs fine amplitude control. The ALC has a broad
frequency response, typically from a few kHz to several GHz. Attenuators (the final block of the
system) perform coarse amplitude control. These attenuators are responsible for the on-off keying
(OOK) capabilities of the
CW source.
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Applications of CW Sources
Because of the faster tuning speeds and better phase noise, CW sources are excellent for signal
sweeping applications and device characterization including the following examples.
Antenna resonant frequency measurement and testing
Amplifier linearity
Amplifier frequency response
Selectivity
y measurement
SINAD sensitivity test
On-site effective sensitivity test
Cable fault detection
Filter tuning
With DDS-enabled modulation and OOK,, a CW source is ideal for simple

p communications
equipment testing such as the following examples.
Antenna response to FM
Keyless entry using 2-FSK
Radar testing with burst signals using OOK
PRBS for bit-error rate testing (BERT) to test all symbols
Frequency hopping
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Also, because of the excellent phase noise and low jitter of this device, a CW source also is ideal for
tone generation
i andd clocking
l ki applications
li i
suchh as the
h following
f ll i examples.
l
Single tone generation
Common tunable LO for RF devices
Arbitrary IQ and sample rates for waveform generators (clocking W-CDMA signals)
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Appendix B
This appendix is an introduction to the hardware covered in this course. It goes into the background
of PXI including the features discussed.
A. Overview and Background of PXI
B. PXI Features, Technologies, and Benchmarks

C. PCI Express
D. Integrating PCI Express with PXI to Form PXI Express
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Appendix B PXI and PXI Express
A. Overview and Background

g
of PXI
PXI (PCI eXtensions for Instrumentation) is an open specification governed by the PXI Systems
Alliance (PXISA) that defines a rugged, CompactPCI-based platform optimized for test,
measurement, and control. PXI combines PCI electrical-bus features with the rugged, modular,
Eurocard packaging of CompactPCI and adds specialized synchronization buses. This makes it both
a high-performance and low-cost deployment platform for measurement and automation systems.
These systems serve applications such as manufacturing test, military and aerospace, machine
monitoring automotive
monitoring,
automotive, and industrial test
test.
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Appendix B
Instrumentation Timeline
To understand the history of instrumentation architectures, examine the timeline depicting the
introduction of several popular instrument architectures. In 1965, the General Purpose Interface Bus
(GPIB) was developed to interface with popular bench-top instruments. In 1987, VXI (VME
eXtensions for Instrumentation) was introduced, ushering in the era of modular-based instruments. In
the early 90s, PC plug-in instruments were developed to take advantage of the popular PCI bus
found on standard desktop PCs. Then, in 1995, CompactPCI built on PC technology introduced a
rugged,
gg , modular architecture,, thus paving
p
g the way
y for the introduction of PXI in 1997. Finally
y in
2004 CompactPCI Express was ratified and shortly after in June of 2005 PXI Express was created.
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PXI History and Status
PXI, the fastest growing instrumentation architecture over the last decade, was officially established
in 1998 through an alliance of instrument, control, and automation vendors. These member
companies formed the PXI Systems Alliance, whose goals are to maintain and improve the PXI
specification, ensure device interoperability, and promote the PXI standard.
Currently, there are over 70 members making up the PXISA. Through these members and other
organizations, close to 1200 different devices have been released for PXI. In addition the growth of
PXI sales has risen dramatically year over year.
For more information, refer to the PXISA website at www.pxisa.org for specifications, tutorials,
applications notes, whitepapers, and to locate member companies and products.
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Appendix B
Partial PXISA Member List
Here is a partial list of the PXI Systems Alliance (PXISA) membership. A complete list is available
at www.pxisa.org.
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PXI Industry Adoption
Although the initial survey dates to 2004, the results indicate that of the top 20 electronic businesses,
16 of them use or have standardized on PXI as an instrumentation platform.
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Appendix B
PXI Includes Two Form Factors
PXI specifies two module sizessmall (3U = 100 by 160 mm) and large (6U = 233.35 by 160 mm).
Chassis are available that support a combination of 3U and 6U modules. Additionally, you can use
all 3U modules in 6U slots with an adapter.
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PXI System Overview
The chassis provides the rugged and modular packaging for the system and regulates the cooling and
power distribution to each slot. Chassis generally range in size from 4 to 18 slots and are available
with special features, such as DC power supplies and integrated signal conditioning. The chassis
contains the high-performance PXI backplane, which includes the PCI bus and timing and triggering
buses. These timing and triggering buses enable users to develop systems for applications requiring
precise synchronization. For more information on the functionality
of the PXI timing
g and triggering
gg
g buses,, refer to the PXI Hardware Specification
p
at
www.pxisa.org/specifications.html.
As defined by the PXI Hardware Specification, all PXI chassis contain a system controller slot
located in the leftmost slot of the chassis (slot 1). Controller options include remote control from a
standard desktop PC or a high-performance embedded control with either a Microsoft operating
system, such as Windows 2000/XP, or a Real-Time operating system (RTOS), such as LabVIEW
Real-Time. Windows-based controllers have same look and feel as Windows-based desktop PCs.
These controllers are offered with high performance processors (such as a Intel Core-Duo), and the
entire controller resides embedded in a slot of the PXI chassis. NI also offers a line of controllers that
only operate with the RTOS and use compactFlash drives. These controllers are designed for
applications requiring deterministic and reliable performance and are run under headless operation
(that is, no mouse or keyboard).
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Appendix B
PXI Chassis
The chassis provides the rugged and modular packaging for the system. Chassis, ranging in size from
4-slots to 26-slots, are available for all different types of applicationsportable, benchtop, and rack
mount. Chassis are available with all 3U slots, all 6U slots, or a combination of 3U and 6U slots, and
chassis are also available with special features such as DC power supplies and integrated signal
conditioning. The chassis contains the high-performance PXI backplane, which includes the PCI bus
and timing and triggering buses. Using these timing and triggering buses, users can develop systems
for applications
pp
requiring
q
g pprecise synchronization.
y
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Embedded System Controllers
Embedded controllers eliminate the need for an external PC, therefore, providing a complete system
within the PXI chassis. PXI embedded controllers are built using standard PC components in the
compact, PXI package. For example, an embedded controller includes the latest Intel processor,
memory, a hard drive, and standard PC peripherals such as Gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, ExpressCard,
serial, and parallel ports. Additionally, you can install your choice of operating system on an
embedded controller, including Windows XP/2000 and Linux. Windows-based controllers have
same look and feel as Windows-based desktop
p PCs. Embedded controllers are also available with
Real-Time operating systems such as LabVIEW Real-Time and VxWorks. These controllers are
designed for applications requiring deterministic and reliable performance and are run under headless
operation (i.e., no mouse, keyboard).
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Appendix B
Remote PXI System Controllers
With PXI remote controllers, you can control PXI systems with standard desktop and laptop PCs.
The links are high-throughput (up to 110 MB/s) and software-transparent. PC control of PXI enables
use the latest desktops, servers, and workstations for applications that require the highestperformance processor, high-speed or long-duration streaming to disk, etc. Fiber-optic cabling
options are available for long distances (up to 200 m) and electric isolation. Both PCI Express and
PCI controllers are available. PXI remote controllers can also be used to build multichassis PXI
systems.
y
Laptop
p p control of PXI enables control of pportable applications
pp
and,, when ppaired with a DCpowered chassis, enables mobile systems for applications such as in-vehicle data logging. Both
ExpressCard and PCMCIA CardBus controllers are available.
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PXI and cPCI Module Interoperability
PXI and CompactPCI modules have complete compatibility. CompactPCI modules

can be installed in PXI systems and vice-versa. The PXI backplane adds timing and
synchronization to the CompactPCI specification. However, for modules, connection of the
timing and synchronization signals to the PXI backplane is optional. For example, most bus
interface modules, such as GPIB, ARINC, 1553, and FireWire, do not require backplanebased trigger and clock synchronization, so they can be branded either PXI or CompactPCI
byy their vendors,, and are interoperable
p
in both systems.
y
On the other end of the spectrum,
p
,
instrumentation modules such as the Agilent N6030A Wideband Arbitrary Waveform
Generator use ample front-panel space to provide connectivity to clocks and triggers outside
of the backplane.
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Appendix B
PXI Platform Baseband Capabilities
In addition to having a wide breadth of functionality, PXI is a very high-performance platform. For
example, if we look at the baseband capabilities of PXI instrumentation (frequency versus
resolution), there are many areas where PXI has the best performance of any platform. For example,
the NI PXI-5922 Flexible Resolution Digitizer, 2006 Test & Measurement World Test Product of the
Year, delivers 24 bits of resolution up to 500 kS/s, ranging to 16 bits of resolution at 15 MS/s. This
performance is higher than any other platform.
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Example PXI Modules and Instruments
PXI is a platform with a breadth of functionality, including modules for analog and digital
I/O, high-speed instrumentation, vision, motion, and numerous bus interfaces. Over 1,000
PXI modules are available from the 70+ members of the PXISA. On average, National
Instruments release a new PXI product each week.
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Appendix B
Integrating Multiple Platforms Hybrid Systems
All the existing instrumentation systems shown in the figure above easily integrate into a
PXI based system. PXI systems are controlled with an embedded controller or an MXI
interface card interfaced to a desktop. The figure above shows an embedded controller, but
it could be a MXI interface card as well, using Ethernet or MXI-4 to integrate Desktop PCs.
There are GPIB ports on many embedded controllers. You can use MXI-2 to integrate with
VXI architectures, and PXI is compatible with CompactPCI cards.
With all of these interfaces to existing equipment, PXI as an instrumentation platform
preserves your existing investment.
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PXI vs. GPIB
Typical instrumentation systems contain oscilloscopes, signal generators, DMMs, and switching
systems.
Combined, these components take up valuable space in your lab or automated test system. With PXI,
users can reduce the system size by 90%, and the systems are cost effective. A typical system with
the GPIB instruments shown here would cost over $80,000. The same PXI modular instruments now
cost about $40,000.
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Appendix B
B. PXI Features,, Technologies,

g , and Benchmarks
The block diagram above shows the PXI interface specified by PXI-1 which was ratified in
1998 by PXISA. There are three important parts to the timing and synchronization features.
PXI Trigger Bus is a generic trigger bus which routes TTL triggers across the
PXI backplane between peripheral devices.
System
y
Reference Clock is a 10 MHz clock available for Phase Lock Looping
p g a common
clock to other peripheral device clocks. In slot 2 of the PXI-1042 chassis it allows you to
replace this 10 MHz clock with your own external clock or the peripheral clock of the
device. There is typically less than 1 nanosecond skew in the 10 MHz clock shared across
the backplane.
The Star Trigger Bus is a unique bus to route triggers across the backplane with equal length
traces. Hence a trigger from slot 2 will reach slots 38 simultaneously to 1 nanosecond
propagation delay. This is ideal for synchronizing a start trigger between devices.
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Key PXI Features
PXI is widely adopted with close to 1200 PXI modules offered to fulfill various measurement
applications. PXI also integrates easily with instrumentation systems such as GPIB, Serial, and/or
VXI. PXI offer seamless integration with these architectures. As time progresses,
PXI allows you to expand your system to keep up with current technology and meet your
ever-changing test and measurement needs.
PXI is modular. This means that you buy only what you need. The instrument vendor does not
define the make-up of your system
system, you do
do.
PXI is a PC in a ruggedized box. Thus, if you can operate a standard desktop PC, you already
know how to operate a PXI system.
PXI offers advanced timing and synchronization, as you will see in the demo in a few moments.
PXI takes advantage of standard technology.
j strength
g of PXI is that it uses pproven, industry-standard
y
technology.
gy PXI is built on
The major
CompactPCI, an industrial version of the PCI bus found in almost all desktop computers. PXI then
adds timing, triggering, and synchronization similar to the functionality delivered in VXI.
For easy integration, PXI uses OS, driver, and networking standards from the PC software market,
including plug and play drivers. Because PXI and CompactPCI offer complete interoperability, users
can use any core CompactPCI product in a PXI system and vice-versa.
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Appendix B
C. PCI Express
p
Advances in PC Bus Technology
The figure above shows various buses and their associated bandwidth and latency. Latency, or the
minimum time to do a single transaction, is decreasing along the x axis and bandwidth is increasing
along the y axis.
A by four (x4) PCI express link has the lowest latency and furthers the bandwidth lead over other
b
buses.
A x4
4 link
li k can provide
id up to
t 1 GB off ddata
t in
i eachh direction.
di ti
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PCI Express Applications and Background
The main feature of PCI Express is its speed. It achieves this speed by using a serial interconnect at
2.5 gigabits per second. It takes the PCI transactions that previously existed and packetizes them and
then serializes them using LVDS (low-voltage differential signaling) in a point-to-point fashion with
8B/10B encoding.
Note 8B/10B encoding is a correction method to balance digital transmissions. It saps 20% of
the
h bit-rate
bi
i the
in
h process, though.
h
h
The x1 configuration (with one serial lane) gives performance of 200 MB/s per direction. Notice the
difference between bits and bytes in the figure above. The x16 configuration (with sixteen serial
lanes) gives performance of 3.2 GB/s per direction.
This is also a p
purely
y evolutionaryy version of PCI, meaning
g that all software support
pp is 100%
backward compatible. When NI released the PCI Express GPIB device, the driver development team
didnt need to make any changes to the GPIB driver to support the new device. It looked exactly the
same to the software as PCI.
Just as PC performance and bus bandwidth continues to drive PC applications, vendors and
customers who adopt PC-based platforms have seen rapid increases in performance that opens up
new applications. These new applications are often lower cost solutions because they rely on
commercial off-the-shelf technology that has been adopted by the mass PC market.
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Appendix B
PXI and PXI Express
The increased bandwidth that is available with PCI Express opens up application areas for PC and
PXI test and measurement systems that incorporate PCI Express technology.
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PCI Express New Applications
Dedicated bandwidth systems
High-frequency, high-resolution IF/RF systems
High-speed digital interfaces
High-channel count data acquisition
g speed imaging
ag g
High-speed
High-speed communication links
PXI Applications
General purpose automated test (DMMs, switching, baseband instruments, and so on)
General purpose data acquisition (AI, AO, DIO, and so on)
B interfaces
Bus
i t f
(CAN
(CAN, 1553,
1553 ARINC
ARINC, and
d so on))
Motion control
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D. Integrating
g
g PCI Express
p
with PXI to Form PXI Express
p
PXI Express technology is the latest addition to the PXI platform. The PXI Express Specification
integrates PCI Express signaling into the PXI standard to increase the backplane bandwidth of PXI
Express from 132 MB/s to 6 GB/s, a 45X improvement. It also enhances PXI timing and
synchronization features by incorporating a 100 MHz differential reference clock and differential
triggers. The PXI Express specification adds these features to PXI while maintaining backward
compatibility.
PXI Express maintains both software and hardware compatibility with PXI peripheral modules.
SoftwarePCI Express uses the same operating system and driver model as PCI, resulting in
complete software compatibility between PCI-based systems (such as PXI) and PCI Expressbased systems (such as PXI Express). This software compatibility is ensured by the PCI Special
Interest Group (PCI-SIG), a group composed of member companies, such as Intel, who are
committed to the development and enhancement of the PCI and PCI Express standards.
HardwarePXI
H
d
PXI Express
E
chassis
h i provide
id hybrid
h b id peripheral
i h l slots
l that
h accept both
b h PXI Express
E
peripheral modules and hybrid slot-compatible PXI peripheral modules. These peripheral slots
deliver signaling for both PCI and PCI Express.
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Appendix B
Why PXIExpress?
PXIExpress has several advantages over PXI-1.
Bandwidth of the controller is up to 6 GBytes/sec per direction as opposed to 132 Mbytes/sec with
PXI-1. In addition the backplane of the PXI Express has bandwidth up to 2 GBytes/sec
(x8 connection)
Hardware with current PXI Express products have been made compatible with PXI-1 peripheral
boards. This is typical with PXI Express Hybrid chassi like the PXIe-1062 or PXIe-1065 chassis.
More power is available per slot over PXI-1. 30 Watts per slot opposed to less than 10 W per slot
with PXI-1. Further 140W is available for the controller.
A new feature with PXI Express is chassis and environmental monitoring. This allows the user to
programmatically check for temperature internal to chassis and external including each slot
temperature They can also monitor voltage as well as fan speed.
temperature.
speed This helps with maintaining
systems running in harsher environments and manufacturing test.
Finally a new scheme with geographical addressing for the slots helps with expansion, configuration
and distribution of power.
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Looking at PXI Express Slots
Here is an explanation of the slots by number in a PXI Express chassis. PXI-1 may also be
called traditional PXI slots. The names are interchangeable. The PXI-1 specification was
created in 1998.
1. The first slot from the left is the PXI Express System Controller Slot. This is the slot
for your PXI Express Embedded or Remote controller and provides PCI Express
connections to the chassis backplane. The PXI Express System Controller slot can only
accept
p a PXI Express
p
controller.
The PXI Express specification allows for two different link modes. The first is a fourlink architecture that provides four PCI Express links of up to x4 width for a maximum
bandwidth of 4GB/s to the host. The two-link mode provides one x8 link and one x16
link for a maximum of 6GB/s. The PXI Express chassis determines which link mode is
used
The controller slot also provides access to the parallel PXI Trigger bus.
2. The second slot from the left is the PXI Express Hybrid Slot. The Hybrid Slot
combines the PXI Express Peripheral and most functionality from the PXI-1 Peripheral
slot. This allows you the flexibility to put a PXI Express Peripheral or a Hybrid slotCompatible PXI peripheral into the slot depending on your system needs. Taking a look
at the connectors, we can see how this slot can accept either module.
3. The third slot from the left is the PXI Express Peripheral Slot. These slots provide
PCI Express
p
signaling
g
g and access to most PXI-1 and all PXI Express
p
timing
g and
triggering signals.
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PXI and PXI Express
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4. The fourth slot type is the PXI Express system timing slot. This slot provides the necessary
connections to drive both the new timing and triggering features of PXI Express and the
i
incorporated
t d ffeatures
t
off th
the PXI
PXI-1
1 specification.
ifi ti Th
The system
t ti
timing
i slot
l t uses PCI Express
E
signaling and provides the necessary connections to drive and accept both PXI and PXI Express
Timing and Triggering signals. The System Timing Slot can also accept a PXI Express
peripheral. This slot is optional for PXI Express chassis.
5. The last slot shown on the right is the PXI Peripheral Slot. Traditional PXI slots were defined
in the PXI-1 specification and are used by PXI modules, chassis and controllers. They provide
PCI signaling and PXI timing and triggering features. These features which we covered in the
what is PXI section are the point-to-point star trigger, the parallel PXI trigger bus, the local
bus and the 10 MHz system clock PXI_CLK10.
The PXI Express specification leverages these slots for existing PXI peripheral modules.
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Hybrid Slot Connector Definition
The diagram above shows the different connections for PXI Express and PXI-1 modules. Most PXI1 modules from National Instruments have the new modified PXI-1 module connection.
From left the first diagram shows a 32-bit CompactPCI card fitting into a PXI Express hybrid slot.
The middle picture shows a modified PXI-1 module fitting into a PXI Express slot. If you own PXI-1
modules made by National Instruments without the modified connector National Instruments offers a
service to modify these modules. The last image on the right shows a PXI Express card fitting into
the PXI Express hybrid slot.
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Appendix B
Benefits of PXI Express Timing and Synchronization Features
The bandwidth gains of PCI Express have been leveraged in the PXI Express specification. The PXI
Express Specification increases module bandwidth from the shared 132 MB/s of PXI up to
2 GB/s and host bandwidth up to 6 GB/s.
In addition to improving controller and module bandwidth, The PXI Express Specification adds other
features such as:
Increasing available power to modules to 140 W for the system controller and 30 W for a peripheral
module
d l tto allow
ll ffor modules
d l with
ith hi
higher
h power requirements.
i
t
PXI Express has explicit hardware support for geographical addressing. A PXI Express device can
determine its slot number by reading the GA(4:0) pins. Previously, to create the pxisys.ini file
describing the topology of the PXI system, a PXI resource manager needed to use the run time PCI
device tree, the chassis.ini files, and vendor-specific information about the PCI topology of the Slot 1
Controller. Using the new hardware support, a full PCI bus tree is no longer needed. Each Module
can discover its slot number independently.
Additional timing and triggering signals improve upon the first revision of PXI (PXI-1).
PXI Express adds additional signals to the PXI-1 specification discussed in the first section.
The figure in the Hybrid Slot Connector Definition section shows a PXI Express extension of the
PXI diagram used in the what is PXI section. Note that all slots are PXI Express capable but the
rightmost slot. All PXI-1 timing and triggering features but local bus are still distributed to every
peripheral slot.
The first addition is a 100MHz differential clock

clock. As with other PXI Express timing and triggering
features, the clock is only routed to PXI Express slots.
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PXI Express Timing and Sychronization
The block diagram above shows the PXI Express interface which was ratified in 2005 by
PXISA. Just like PXI-1 there are three important parts to the timing and synchronization
features.
PXI Trigger Bus is still supported with PXI Express and is a generic trigger bus which
routes TTL triggers across the PXI backplane between peripheral devices, both PXI Express
and PXI-1.
Still supported is a 10 MHz clock for Phase Lock Looping a common clock to other
peripheral device clocks. In slot 2 of the PXI-1042 chassis it allows you to replace this 10
MHz clock with your own external clock or the peripheral clock of the device. There is
typically less than 1 nanosecond skew in the 10 MHz clock shared across the backplane.
New to the PXI Express bus is the Differential Synchronization Signal or PXIe_SYNC100.
This is routed by the backplane to each Module and provides this capability. This signal is
synchronous
y
to PXIe_CLK100 and asserts one out of every
y 10 clocks to indicate the p
phase
relationship of the 10 MHz and 100 MHz reference clocks. This is key for synchronization
and triggering in that it allows the existing triggering capabilities to be used and
interoperate. Devices using the Trigger Bus can send triggers synchronous to PXI_CLK10
no matter what system reference clock is used. The PXIe_SYNC100 also provides a
synchronization signal for Modules wanting to divide the 100 MHz reference clock for use
on the Module. This allows multiple Modules to begin the clock division on the same clock
edge without requiring a high-frequency trigger bus.
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PXI and PXI Express
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The Star Trigger Bus is a unique bus to route triggers across the backplane with equal length traces.
Hence a trigger from slot 2 will reach slots 38 simultaneously to 1 nanosecond propagation delay.
Thi is
This
i id
ideall for
f synchronizing
h i i a start
t t trigger
ti
between
b t
devices.
d i
PXI Express
E
adds
dd three
th Differential
Diff
ti l
Star triggers to the specification to allow for higher frequency signaling with less jitter.
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Comparing PXI Express Clock 100 with PXI Clock 10
The High-Frequency System Reference Clock, or PXIe_CLK100 as it is called out in the

specification, is the most significant addition for timing in PXI Express. This signal provides a
differential, 100 MHz LVPECL clock to each PXI Express Peripheral Slot in the system. Advancing
technology has allowed PXI to adopt differential clocking, which provides for increased noise
immunity in the backplane. This allows instrumentation Modules to receive a clock with low jitter
and improve overall system performance. The differential technology also allows for a higher
frequency
q
y reference clock of 100 MHz. This not only
y allows for higher
g
pperformance clocking,
g, but
also allows the cost of Modules to be lowered by eliminating clock multiplication for Modules able
to work with PXIe_CLK100 and divisions directly. The PXIe_CLK100 is added into the
specification in a way to be completely interoperable with PXI_CLK10. The PXI_CLK10 and
PXIe_CLK100 are phase aligned and allow for highly accurate synchronization of devices, including
all PXI-1 compliant devices, no matter which clock is used.
Two important details to note are that PXI_Clk10 is synchronous to PXIe_CLK100 so devices that
use either PXI_CLK10 or PXIe_CLK100 as a reference clock are synchronized
Additionally, the skew of the new clock has been improved from a module-to-module skew of
<= 1 ns to < or = 200 ps to minimize skew between peripheral devices. This becomes critical in
MIMO or diversity applications for RF and baseband.
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PXI and PXI Express
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Appendix B
Summaryy
PXI eases system integration with close to 1200 modules leveraging standard technology and
integration with existing GPIB, Serial and VIX systems.
PXI is the most advanced test, measurement and automation platform including advanced timing and
synchronization with expandability to PXI Express.
The NI RF and Communications p
platform uses a modular,, software-defined approach
pp
to RF and
microwave test to solve multiple applications and communication standards.
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Notes
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Appendix C
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Appendix C Configuring Hardware in MAX for the 2.7 GHz RF Suite
Configuring
g
g the NI PXI-5661 VSA and NI PXI-567x VSG
The Windows Configuration Manager keeps track of all the hardware installed in your computer,
including National Instruments RF devices. If you have a Plug & Play (PnP) device, the Windows
Configuration Manager automatically detects and configures the device. All National Instruments RF
devices are PnP.
You can verify the Windows Configuration by accessing the Device Manager, available by selecting
StartSettingsControl PanelSystemDevice Manager. You can see Data Acquisition Devices,
which lists all RF devices installed in your computer. Double-click an RF device to display a dialog
box with tabbed pages. The General tab displays overall information regarding the device. The
Resources tab specifies the system resources to the device, such as interrupt levels, DMA, and base
address for software-configurable devices. The NI-DAQ Information tab specifies the bus type of
the RF device. The Driver tab specifies the driver version and location for the RF device.
NI-RFSG and NI-RFSA install MAX, which establishes all device and channel configuration
parameters.
t
Aft
After iinstalling
t lli an RF ddevice
i iin your computer,
t you mustt run MAX.
MAX MAX reads
d the
th
information the Device Manager records in the Windows Registry and assigns a logical device
number to each RF device. Use the device number to refer to the device in LabVIEW and
LabWindows/CVI or the C environment. Access MAX by double-clicking its icon on the desktop or
selecting ToolsMeasurement & Automation Explorer in LabVIEW.
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Appendix C
Renaming
g Modules
MAX allows you to rename any NI-DAQmx hardware module. Use the MAX name in software
(LabVIEW, LabWindows/CVI, C) to operate the hardware resources for the module. You do not
have to change the module names from the default, but doing so can make programming easier.
Complete the following steps to rename a PXI module.
1. Right-click the device in MAX and select Rename.
you want to associate with the module.

2. Enter the name that y
3. Click OK.
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Configuring the NI PXI-5661 VSA
The NI PXI-5661 RF VSA consists of the following two NI-PXI hardware modules.
NI PXI-56002.7 GHz RF superheterodyne downconverter module with output frequencies

between 5 and 25 MHz.
NI PXI-514214 bit, 100 MS/s digitizer module
You must create a MAX association between the NI PXI-5600 downconverter module and the
NI PXI-5142
PXI 5142 di
digitizer
iti module
d l tto control
t l bboth
th hhardware
d
modules
d l as a single
i l RF signal
i l analyzer.
l
1. Right-click the NI PXI-5600 and select Properties.
2. In the Device Properties dialog box, select the NI PXI-5142 digitizer that is connected to the
NI PXI-5600.
3. Click OK to configure the devices as an NI PXI-5661

PXI 5661 VSA.
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Appendix C
Configuring the NI PXI-567x VSG
The NI PXI-567x RF Vector Signal Analyzer consists of the following NI-PXI hardware modules.
NI PXI-56102.7 GHz RF superheterodyne upconverter module with input frequencies between

15 and 35 MHz.
One of the following arbitrary waveform generator modules.
NI PXI-542116 bit, 100 MS/s AWG module
PXI-544116
5441 16 bit
bit, 100 MS/s AWG module with DUC capability
NI PXI
You must create a MAX association between the NI PXI-5610 upconverter module and the NI 54xx
AWG module to control both hardware modules as a single RF signal generator.
1. Right-click the NI PXI-5600 and select Properties.
2 In the Device Properties dialog box

2.
box, select the NI PXI
PXI-54xx
54xx AWG module that is connected to
the NI PXI-5600.
3. Click OK to configure the devices as an NI PXI-567x Vector Signal Generator.
Note The NI PXI-565x RF Signal Generator and NI PXI-5690 Preamplifier are single slot
NI-PXI modules and do not need any configuration in MAX. As long as they appear under
NI-DAQmx Devices in MAX they will operate correctly.
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Using
g Test Panels to Generate and Acquire
q
Signals
g
Use the test panels in MAX to verify the device configuration.
Acquisition with the NI PXI-5661
Use the NI-RFSA test panel in MAX to acquire a spectrum using the RF signal analyzer hardware.
The NI-RFSA test panel tests both modules that comprise the NI PXI-5661 VSA as a single
instrument.
Complete the following steps to test the configuration of the NI-PXI-5661 VSA.
1. Right-click the NI PXI-5600 downconverter module and select Test Panels to open the test
panel.
2. In the NI PXI-5661 tab of the Test Panels dialog box, specify a center frequency, reference
level, span, and resolution bandwidth (RBW).
3. Click Start to begin signal acquisition and view the acquired data in the Power Spectrum plot.
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Appendix C
Generation with the NI PXI-5661
Use the NI-RFSG test panel in MAX to generate a simple signal using the RF signal generator
hardware. The NI-RFSG test panel tests both modules that comprise the NI PXI-567x VSG as a
single instrument.
Complete the following steps to test the configuration of the NI PXI-567x VSG.
1. Right-click the NI PXI-5610 upconverter module and select Test Panels to open the Test Panel.
2 IIn th
2.
the NI PXI-567x
PXI 567 tab
t b off the
th Test
T t Panels
P l dialog
di l box,
b specify
if a frequency
f
andd a power level
l l for
f
signal generation.
3. Click Start to begin signal generation. During signal generation the ACTIVE LEDs on both
NI 567x hardware modules are activated.
You can access the test panel for the NI PXI-565x RF Signal Generator using the same steps listed
above. The test panel for the NI PXI-565x is almost identical to the test panel for the NI PXI-567x.
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Notes
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Additional Acquisition and Generation Information
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Appendix D
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Appendix D
A. Nyquist,
yq , Aliasing,
g, and Undersampling
p g
Figure 1 shows a signal with frequency content from 0-1 MHz being sampled at 2 MHz. You can see
that Fs/2 is 1 MHz, and the sampling creates many images. An image is a copy of a signal at a
different frequency that is created as a result of the finite sampling process. The first image is a
reversed spectrum from Fs/2 to Fs. The next is a correct spectrum from Fs to (Fs + Fs/2). The next
is a reversed spectrum from (Fs + Fs/2) to 2*Fs, and so on.
Figure 2 shows a signal with more frequency content than can be accurately captured with a
2 MHz sampling rate. As a result, when it is sampled, the images overlap, shown in Figure 3. The
overlapping signals add together to create the incorrect representation of the signal in Figure 4.
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Appendix D
The Nyquist theorem states that to sample a signal of bandwidth B, a sampling rate of at least 2B
must be used. It does not, however, say that the maximum frequency of that signal must be below B.
In the case of the PXIe-5663 RF Signal Analyzer, the IF signal coming in to the digitizer is 50 MHz
wide and centered around 187.5 MHz, shown in Figure 1. If the signal is bandpass filtered there, we
can be sure that the only frequency content in the signal is now that 50 MHz bandwidth centered
around 187.5 MHz, shown in Figure 2.
The PXIe-5622 digitizer samples at 150 MHz, which means it can accurately capture a bandwidth of
75 MHz,
MH shown
h
iin Fi
Figure 33. Wh
When th
the IF signal
i l iis sampled,
l d an iimage iis created
t d centered
t d around
d 37
37.5
5
MHz, shown in Figure 4; however, because of the bandpass filtering,
this image is actually an accurate representation of the IF signal, since there is no frequency content
in the 37.5 MHz band, and this image can be used as the actual IF signal.
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Appendix D
B. Impairment Calibration
I/Q impairments, such as I offset, Q offset, I/Q gain imbalance and I/Q phase skew, degrade
the spurious performance of the I/Q modulator. The offsets contribute to carrier suppression.
Gain imbalance and phase skew contribute to the creation of an image for the singlesideband RF signal output that is mirrored across the carrier. For a continuous waveform at
a frequency + fs as the baseband signal generated at a carrier frequency of fc, the expected
LO leakage and the image is shown in the plot above.
The image power relative to the desired RF output (ISR),
(ISR) in dBc,
dBc is given by the following
formula:
2
2

ISR 10Log10
4
where represents I/Q gain imbalance

represents I/Q skew in radians
The carrier to desired output (CSR), in dBc, is given by the following formula when the
output power is 0 dBm:
CSR 10 Log10 10 2 2
where represents volts offset on the I channel

represents
p
volts offset on the Q channel
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Appendix D
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Impairment calibration minimizes the effects of the I/Q impairments. Impairment calibration is a
characterization procedure performed at NI during the manufacturing process or during an annual
external calibration.
calibration The procedure involves using a spectrum analyzer to measure the modulation
impairments of the NI 5673/5673E. Once these impairments are measured, they are stored on the NI
5673/5673E where they can then be used to correct each generated signal. The result of this
correction is improved carrier and image suppression.
Impairment calibration is automatically applied to every signal generated on the
NI 5673/5673E. Impairments vary over frequency, and multiple sets of impairments for different
frequencies are stored on the NI 5673/5673E. Interpolation is automatically performed when the
generated signal frequency does not match a frequency point at which impairments were stored.
Impairments are also corrected for temperature drift. Every time
a session is initialized, the onboard temperature is read and used to correct the stored impairments
according to the temperature coefficients stored alongside the impairments.
To correct for temperature drift without having to re-initialize a session, call then
iRFSG_PerformThermalCorrection VI or the niRFSG_PerformThermalCorrection VI.
You may also apply additional impairment correction with the properties or attributes in
NI-RFSG. For more information on applying impairments, refer to the NI RF Signal Generators
Help document that installs with
NI-RFSG.
Improving Carrier and Image Rejection Performance
Further improvement in carrier and image rejection performance is possible by completing

the following steps: Connect the NI 5673/5673E RF OUT front panel connector to an
NI RF signal analyzer.
Generate a continuous waveform or a multi-tone signal with the NI 5673/5673E at a specified carrier
frequency.
Observe the resulting spectrum and identify the generated signal along with its image and
LO leakage.
Adjust the impairments using the appropriate properties or attributes to reduce their effects.
D-5
Appendix D
Example:
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Reduce the LO leakage and the image of the NI 5673/5673E at a 1 GHz carrier frequency by
completing
l i the
h following
f ll i steps:
1. Generate a single-sideband continuous waveform at 1 MHz. Note Generate at 1 MHz by
writing cos(21 MHzt) to the I channel and sin(21 MHzt) to the Q channel, where t represents
time.
2. Set the carrier frequency with the niRFSG Configure RF VI or the niRFSG_ConfigureRF
function to 1 GHz and the output RF power to 0 dBm.
3 Set the NI RF vector signal analyzer to read the spectrum centered at 1 GHz with a 5 MHz span
3.
span.
4. Set the reference level appropriately so that the incoming signal does not saturate the device.
5. Set the resolution bandwidth as small as possible while still obtaining updated spectra fast
enough so that you can see the effect(s) of changing an impairment.
6. With the NI RF vector signal analyzer, locate the generated signal at exactly 1.001 GHz (if the
device is locked in frequency with the NI 5673/5673E), the leaked LO at 1 GHz and the image
at 0.999 GHz. Make sure the image and the leaked LO are at least 20 or 30 dB above the
displayed noise floor. If not, reduce NI RF vector signal analyzer attenuation and/or resolution
bandwidth to obtain such results.
7. Adjust I/Q skew in steps of 0.1 degrees from 0.0 while observing the image level. If setting the
skew equal to 0.1 degrees reduces the amplitude of the image, then continue to increase the skew
until the image reverses its course and starts increasing. If the image level increases by changing
the skew from 0 to 0.1, then change the skew to 0.1, 0.2 and so on. The skew value that yields
the minimum image is the value to save and use in
Step 8.
8. Adjust gain imbalance in steps of 0.001, starting from 1.000. Continue to increase the gain
imbalance until the image is at its minimum.
9. For further reduction in image power, adjust I/Q skew in steps of 0.01 degrees until minimum
image is achieved. The gain imbalance then can be readjusted with steps of 0.0001. Iterate as
needed while reducing the step size by a decade going from one iteration to the next.
Manual offset calibration is performed using the preceding steps. While observing the amount of LO
leakage recorded by the NI RF vector signal analyzer, adjust I offset in steps of 0.001 V until
minimum LO leakage is achieved. Adjust Q offset in similar steps until minimum LO leakage is
achieved. If needed, iterate with steps of 0.0001 V and so on.
For example, to achieve 65 dBc image-to-signal and carrier-to-signal levels, the residual (following
calibration)
lib ti ) I/Q gain
i imbalance
i b l
should
h ld be
b less
l than
th 0.000795
0 000795 ((or 00.0795
0795 %)
%), th
the II-Q
Q phase
h
skew
k
should be less than 0.000795 radians (or 0.045), and the residual equivalent offsets should be kept
less than 0.125 mV each.
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Appendix D
C. Onboard Signal
g Processing
g
Modern communications systems rely on creative, intensive digital signal processing to maximize
channel efficiency, minimize power consumption, and improve link quality and throughput.
Traditionally the signal processing was done by a DSP or ASIC, but with the advent of high-gatedensity field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), the flexibility of a DSP and the parallel processing
power of ASICs can be realized in a single device. The National Instruments PXI-5441 arbitrary
waveform generator and NI PXI-5671 RF vector signal generator make use of FPGA technology to
efficientlyy pprocess or create communications waveform data on the modules themselves,, as opposed
pp
to using the general-purpose processor of the host computer. The onboard signal processing (OSP) of
the PXI-5441 and PXI-5671 (Figure 1) significantly extends waveform playback time and reduces
the time required to compute and download waveform data by computing the waveform data using
an FPGA. The OSP block delivers several signal processing functions used to modify the data stored
in waveform memory during generation. OSP functions include finite-impulse response (FIR) and
cascaded-integrator comb (CIC) interpolation filters, digital prefilter gain and offset control, a
numerically controlled oscillator (NCO), and IQ mixing for quadrature digital upconversion. Using
these processing functions, OSP delivers four main functional modes
Quadrature digital upconversion with signal impairments

Baseband signal interpolation
Direct double sideband amplitude modulation
Function generation
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Appendix D
Benefits of OSP
The OSP delivers four main benefits:

Reduced computational and download times of waveforms to onboard waveform memory
Longer waveform playtimes
On-the-fly signal adjustments such as signal impairments and frequency changes
Linking and looping of baseband waveforms
The OSP effectively transfers the creation of waveforms from the host PC to the hardware, thus
reducing the computational and download times significantly. The following scenario depicts a
typical use case. The computation and download of a waveform representing a 65,000 sample 3.84
MS/s QPSK signal generated at the maximum sample rate of 100 MS/s takes more than 85 s using
the host PC processor (PXI-8187 controller with 2.5 GHz Pentium 4 running Windows XP). The
computation and download time of the same waveform using OSP takes under 10 s; an >8.5X
improvement. Additionally the waveform memory requirements are reduced significantly as well.
The host PC method takes up to 3.15 MB of onboard memory whilst the OSP method takes up to 0.5
MB a 6.3X
MB;
6 3X improvement.
i
t This
Thi iis bbecause th
the hhostt PC method
th d creates
t the
th roott raised
i d cosine
i pulse
l
shaped waveforms from I/Q chip data and resamples it to a 100 MS/s sampling rate, thus taking up
considerable waveform memory. The OSP creates the waveforms on the fly from I/Q chip data
stored on the onboard memory. The pulse shaping, interpolation, and upconversion of the data at
baseband to an IF frequency is done in line - the data is fed to the OSP at the symbol/chip rate and
the OSP feeds the waveforms at 100 MS/s to the DAC.
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Appendix D
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Table 2 illustrates some of the common communications applications the waveform playtimes
possible on the PXI-5441 and PXI-5671, allowing for large PN sequence signal generation for
enhanced bit-error-rate test (BERT) of receivers.
D-9
Appendix D
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And the OSP delivers on-the-fly signal impairments, which allows things such as I/Q gain, offset,
and quadrature skew discussed in detail later in this paper.
Quadrature Digital Upconversion with Impairments
In quadrature upconversion, I and Q complex waveform data is stored in waveform memory and is
passed to the OSP block. OSP then shapes and interpolates the data using the FIR filters, interpolates
it up to a high sample rate using the CIC filters, and then up-converts the data to a programmable
carrier frequency up to 43 MHz. You can choose to suppress the lower or upper modulation sideband
b adjusting
by
dj ti th
the NCO iin-phase
h
and
d quadrature
d t
output
t t phase
h
settings.
tti
For modeling channel effects and testing the robustness of a receiver, the OSP can add several
impairments to the signal on the fly (during waveform generation). IQ gain imbalance and DC offset
impairments are implemented by adjusting the one-filter gain and offset settings, while quadrature
skew and frequency error can be introduced by adjusting the I or Q carrier phase and frequency.
Baseband Interpolation for I/Q Signal Generation
Useful for g
generatingg baseband signals,
g
such as I and Q signals,
g
you
y can use the PXI-5441 OSP
block to interpolate low-data-rate waveforms to a much higher sampling rate, thereby improving the
output frequency spectrum by relocating zero-order sample-and-hold reconstruction images to higher
frequencies. With the images at higher frequencies, the seventh-order lowpass analog filter in the
PXI-5441 can greatly suppress them without disturbing the amplitude or phase of the signal.
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Appendix D
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For example, a waveform created at 3 MS/s sampling rate can be interpolated to 96 MS/s by using
4X FIR interpolation and 8X CIC interpolation. The upsampled signal is then passed to the DAC
which can also interpolate by 2, 4, or 8X resulting in an effective sampling rate of 384 MS/s (4X
DAC interpolation). The resulting sampling rate of 384 MS/s places the sampling images well above
the lowpass analog filter cutoff frequency, thus effectively attenuating the images. Because the
original waveform was sampled at only 3 MS/s, rather than 96 MS/s, a 1:32 compression ratio is
achieved, resulting in dramatically faster waveform computation and download times. The resulting
compression can be used to efficiently store data in the PXI-5441 onboard memory so that you can
achieve much longer playback time without streaming from arrays of high-speed disk drives. Long
playback times are essential for improving the statistical significance of many communications
measurements and displays such as bit error rate, CCDF, trellis plots, and constellation plots.
Using T-Clock synchronization technology, multiple PXI-5441 modules can be synchronized for
applications requiring a greater number of channels, such as I/Q signal generator or multiple IF
generation for MIMO systems. Because it is built into the SMC, T-Clock can synchronize the PXI5441 with SMC-based high-speed digitizers and digital waveform generator/analyzers for tight
correlation of analog and digital stimulus and response. Using onboard calibration measurements and
compensation T-Clock
compensation,
T Clock can automatically synchronize any combination of SMC
SMC-based
based modules with
less than 500 ps module-to-module skew. Greatly improved from traditional synchronization
methods, the skew between modules does not increase as the number of modules increases. To
achieve even better performance, a high-bandwidth oscilloscope such as the Tektronix CSA8000
Communications Signal Analyzer can be used to precisely measure the module-to-module skew.
Using the oscilloscope measurement for calibration information, T-Clock can achieve <20 ps
module-to-module skew (Figure 6).
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Appendix D
Channel-to-channel jitter is also an important consideration for I/Q signal generation. Significant
jitter leads to unwanted quadrature skew and gain imbalance. The total system jitter between two
PXI-5441 outputs is less then <20 psrms (Figure 7) thus allowing for wideband I/Q signal
generation.
generation
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Appendix D
Creating I/Q Data for Use with OSP
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A number of additional tools exist to create I and Q waveform sample data. Commonly, data
resulting from simulations using a math package such as MATRIXx X-Math are stored to disk.
National Instruments LabVIEW and LabWindows/CVI can read a variety of data file types and
con ert them to either I16s or complex
convert
comple double-precision
do ble precision floating-point
floating point nnumbers
mbers - two
t o formats that
the NI-FGEN driver directly accepts. By first normalizing the waveform data to 1 V and extracting
the gain multiplier, the AWG can use the full 16-bits of the DAC and amplify or attenuate the output
signal using the front-end analog electronics to ensure the best output signal quality.
LabVIEW can also directly generate I/Q data using the NI Modulation Toolkit. The Modulation
Toolkit provides LabVIEW VIs for modulating and demodulating both analog and digital schemes
such as AM, FM, PM, QPSK, and QAM. Figure 8 shows how to use the toolkit to create I and Q
d t ffor a ffrequency-modulated
data
d l t d (FM) signal.
i l With th
the fi
firstt VI,
VI you generate
t the
th FM message signal
i l
by selecting from standard waveforms such as sine, square, or triangle, and specifying the carrier
frequency and frequency deviation. The next VI performs the modulation and returns the complex
envelope of the FM signal. Lastly, two VIs extract I and Q data from the complex envelope signal
and download it to two T-Clk synchronized arbs. The toolkit can also modulate a user-defined
message signal and extract the modulated signal magnitude and phase (polar form) components to
test a polar-based digital modulator. The programming for creating waveforms with different
modulation schemes (such as QAM and QPSK) follows a similar structure.
To model channel effects, the Modulation Toolkit offers Rayleigh and Rician fading profiles; or you
can create your own custom-defined fading profile based on the simulation tool output.
D-13
Appendix D
Double-Sideband Amplitude Modulation (AM)
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By using only the in-phase (I) path of the OSP block, one can generate an AM signal by directly
downloading the message signal into onboard memory. The message signal scales the amplitude of
the pprogrammable
g
frequency
q
y output
p of the NCO.
Single-Tone and Function Generation
Using the OSP NCO, the PXI-5441 can generate sine, square, triangle, ramp and other standard and
user-defined waveforms similar to function generators (The PXI-5671employs the NCO to generate
RF tones). The benefit of using the OSP for function generation is elimination of waveform creation
and downloads to the onboard memory for function generation and phase-continuous frequency
changes. For example a tone with <50 Hz resolution may require many cycles of a sine waveform to
be downloaded for generation at 100 MS/s, consuming valuable host PC processor and onboard
memory resources. With the NCO, no waveforms are downloaded to arbitrary waveform memory.
(For further information on NCO functionality please refer to [6].)
The frequency of the output waveform may be adjusted during generation with 355 mHz resolution
for generating phase continuous frequency sweeps and hops. The phase is also adjustable relative to
other synchronized instruments, the PXI 10 MHz reference clock or an externally supplied reference
clock.
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Appendix D
Onboard Signal Processing Functions
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Independent I and Q Prefilter Gain and Offset

Because of slight component mismatches, I and Q signal paths of a physical communications system
where I and Q are handled in the analog domain invariably have some mismatch in skew
skew, gain
gain, and
DC offset. To model this effect, OSP has independently controlled prefilter gain and DC offset
parameters. This capability is particularly useful during the prototyping and verification stages of
product development to evaluate receiver sensitivity/immunity to impairments. These parameters can
be set before or during signal generation.
To see the effects of I/Q gain imbalance on a digitally modulated signal, consider a QPSK signal.
The ideal symbol coordinates of a QPSK signal would lie on the unit circle when plotted as a
constellation diagram in the I/Q domain. When I/Q gain imbalance is applied, the symbol
constellation distorts vertically or horizontally (Figure 11).
DC offset is a complex signal impairment that shifts the locus of the ideal symbol coordinates off
center in the I/Q plane. A DC offset can be added to the I component, the Q component, or both. The
DC offset can be either positive or negative, with the sign indicating direction of the shift (Figure
12).
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Appendix D
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Appendix D
Numerically Controlled Oscillator (NCO)
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The NCO is a digital circuit that creates two discrete-time, discrete-valued representations of sine
waves of the same frequency (the carrier frequency) with two independent phases
phases. The OSP NCO
produces sine and cosine waveform data for quadrature digital upconversion and features 355 nHz
frequency resolution and 0.0055 phase resolution. To add quadrature skew, also called quadrature
error, to a quadrature-modulated signal, the phase of the sine and cosine outputs of the NCO can be
independently adjusted. Quadrature skew describes a complex signal impairment such that the I and
Q components are not perfectly orthogonal and appears as a twisting in the IQ domain
constellation diagram (Figure 13).
Digital Interpolation
Interpolation of waveforms sampled at low data rates to high sample rates for digital-to-analog
conversion is achieved with a FIR filter and a CIC filter. Multistage filter structures are more
efficient than single-stage filters. A multistage filter gradually increases the sampling rate by passing
the signal through two or more resampling stages. Each stage has a lower interpolation factor, which
enables the required transition bandwidth of each stage to be substantially relaxed. Because each
stage contains fewer operations, the filter order of each stage is also reduced which reduces the
complexity of the overall filter. The FIR filter interpolates the waveform up to 8X and the CIC filter
can further interpolate up to 256X delivering a total interpolation factor of 2048X.
The FIR filter plays three important roles it interpolates and pulse shapes the waveform to address
intersymbol interference (ISI) and compensates for the CIC filter frequency response. CIC filters are
used to achieve the large sample rate changes. They are typically used in applications that have a
high sample rate that is redundant; the system sample rate is much larger than the bandwidth
occupied by the signal. The following two section discusses the FIR and CIC filters in more detail.
D-17
Appendix D
Finite-Impulse Response (FIR) Filter
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The OSP FIR filters are used to pulse shape I and Q data for more efficient frequency spectrum
usage and compensate for the CIC filter response. The FIR filter structure, as opposed to the IIR
fil structure, iis frequently
filter
f
l usedd in
i communications
i i
systems because
b
off severall off its
i properties:
i
Exactly linear phase response is possible with symmetric coefficients.
Guaranteed stability because feedback is not used.
Easily implemented in FPGAs.
The structure of the FIR filter is a long shift register. Each tap in the shift register is multiplied by an
associated coefficient (c(x) in Figure 14). The results for all of the taps are then summed to create the
final output of the filter. The OSP FIR filter has 95 taps with 17-bit filter coefficients for precise
control of the filter response.
In communications applications where phase is often used to encode data, filter phase linearity is
crucial and is the main driver behind using FIR filters. To determine FIR coefficients for linear
phase, the coefficients must be symmetric. Thus, the first and last taps have the same coefficient, the
second and second-to-last taps have the same coefficient, and so on. The FIR filters in the OSP block
are symmetric. Because the FIR filter in the OSP has an odd number of taps, the center tap does not
have a matching tap
tap.
The final purpose of the FIR filter is to interpolate the waveform data by 2, 4, or 8X. This process
involves two steps:
Inserting samples with a value of zero in between data samples (upsampling).
Passing the resulting waveform through the FIR filter.
By interpolating, the sample rate of the data is increased, which results in better spectral performance
once the samples are converted by the DAC into an analog signal.
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Appendix D
Pulse Shaping
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The need for pulse shaping can be readily understood by examining a straightforward
implementation
p
of a digital
g
transmitter. This transmitter would switch on an energy
gy source of a fixed
duration to transmit a 1 and would switch the energy source off to transmit a 0, resulting in an
irregular pulse train when viewed in the time domain. The power spectrum of such a signal
resembles the sinc function and the signal theoretically occupies infinite bandwidth (Figure 15). This
is a direct result of the sharp pulse edges in the time-domain signal.
To increase transmission speed without decreasing accuracy or increasing bandwidth, rectangular

pulses can be shaped into more suitable signals by using a filter. The raised cosine pulse and root
raised cosine pulses are two such pulse shapes that improve spectral efficiency (Figure 15). As with
all physical systems, this saving comes at the expense of another design parameter complexity. As
opposed to the elegant simplicity of simply switching on and off an energy source to create a
rectangular pulse signal, transmitters and receivers for pulse-shaped signals are much more complex
and susceptible
p
to jitter.
j
Careful design
g must be used to maintain adequate
q
link margin
g when more
complex pulse shaping methods are used to improve spectral efficiency.
D-19
Appendix D
FIR Filter Types

OSP includes FIR filter coefficients for flat, raised cosine, root-raised cosine, and Gaussian
responses. It is also possible to load custom filter coefficients.
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Flat
When using OSP to interpolate baseband data to higher sample rates, the flat response is often the
proper filter response type. The flat response is designed to give a flat response until the specified
passband value. For instance, with the interpolation rate set to 4X, the filter passband ripple is 0 to
0.08 dB with 74 dB out of band suppression. The passband value is a fraction of the IQ rate of the
data coming into the FIR filter and can be up to 0.43 (IQ Rate).
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Appendix D
Raised Cosine
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The raised cosine filter type is frequently used in digital communications to increase the efficiency of
bandwidth usage by confining the signal power within the specified band. The ideal frequency
response
p
of a raised cosine filter consists of unityy ggain at low frequencies,
q
, a raised cosine shape
p in
the middle, and zero gain at high frequencies. The following equation describes mathematically the
magnitude response of a raised cosine filter.
The sole parameter in specifying the characteristics of raised cosine filter is ( ), also called the rolloff factor. The passband of the raised cosine filter stops at 0.5 (1 ) of the IQ Rate. The stopband of the raised cosine filter begins at 0.5 (1 + ) of the IQ Rate.
D-21
Appendix D
Root-Raised Cosine
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To split the overall raised cosine filtering evenly between the transmitter filter and receiver filter, use
the root-raised cosine filter. This configuration maximizes the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) while
minimizing
g ISI. This filter is used in W-CDMA and DVB ((digital
g
video broadcast)) standards as well
as many others. As with the raised cosine filter, the magnitude response characteristics of a rootraised cosine filter are controlled by . For = 0, the filter response would be identical to the ideal
Nyquist brick-wall filter. Such a filter is not possible to construct: OSP supports from 0.1 to 0.9.
The following equations illustrates the magnitude response of the root raised cosine filter.
Custom
OSP also accepts user-defined FIR filter coefficients. This capability is especially useful for
researching and prototyping new transmitter designs. OSP has 95 symmetrical coefficients defined
for the FIR filter. To design a custom OSP FIR filter, the coefficients must be correctly scaled and
compensate for CIC filter rolloff.
Cascaded-Integrator Comb (CIC) Filter
A CIC filter is designed to efficiently interpolate waveform data by large factors. Interpolation, or
upsampling is the process of increasing the sampling rate of a signal to a higher integrally related
upsampling,
sampling rate. The signal spectrum of the output signal is the same as the input signal spectrum,
except that a high frequency region with zero power density is added. Most of the interpolation in
OSP is done in the CIC filter, which has an interpolation range of 6X to 256X. The CIC filter is a
series of combs (differentiators) followed by a zero stuffer, followed by a series of integrators.
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Appendix D
The transfer function demonstrates that a CIC filter is equivalent to N-stage cascaded FIR filters.
Because all the coefficients of the FIR filters are unity, and therefore symmetric, a CIC has a linear
phase response and constant group delay exactly like linear phase FIR filters. The frequency
response (in dB) of the CIC follows the following formula:
where
R = CIC Interpolation Rate
f = Frequency (fraction of CIC input sample rate)
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Appendix D
However the CIC has the following response:
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Appendix D
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The CIC compensated FIR response is designed as follows:
The CIC compensated FIR response is designed as follows:
D-25
Appendix D
Conclusions
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The NI PXI-5441 arbitrary waveform generator and NI PXI-5671 RF vector signal generator make
use of FPGA technology to efficiently process or create communications waveform data on the
module itself as opposed
pp
to using
g the general-purpose
g
p p
processor
p
of the host computer.
p
The benefits
are increased playtimes, higher throughput for automated test, and reduced computational demands
on the Host processor.
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Appendix E

A. Data Sizes for Record and Playback
B. Bus Technology
C. Applications and Considerations
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Appendix E
A. Data Sizes for Record and Playback

y
When calculating the size of the data that you will record it is important to understand how this is
determined. Analog to Digital Converters (ADCs) will convert analog real-world data into digital
data. This data is represented by a certain number of bits. These bits are then saved into either a
floating point or binary format. Floating point has more flexibility for transferring its saved numbers
to other applications like Excel, Word, DIAdem, Mathematica, etc. To open binary files a user must
know the header information of the binary file and then have an application that allows you to read
this format
format. This is because binary data is not scaled so scaling information should be stored either in
a header or a separate file and written before the streaming starts. The data will be scaled once the
data is read out from the data files and used for analysis.
Once the user knows the bit resolution of the ADC they need to also know what the ENOB is for the
instrument that hosts that ADC. ENOB is the effective number of bits that are interpreted from the
ADC as derived from its quantization. Many times a device will have an ADC that says 16-bit but in
realityy the number of bits that are readable is 14-bit or less. Once the user knows this reported
p
number from the manufacturer they can best determine how to save the data. Some instrumentation
will have a lower bit resolution save option in order to compress more data although with the loss of
some of the resolution of the original signal.
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Appendix E
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Once the data is digitized and in the PC it needs to then be saved to a floating point or binary file.
Fl ti point
Floating
i t will
ill representt 8-bit
8 bit data
d t as 1 B
Byte
t tto 4 Bytes
B t or more depending
d
di on the
th precision
i i off
the file type. It is recommended to use 2 Bytes for 8-bit and 4 Bytes for 16-bit, etc. Binary will use
half the data size by using a header to define the data format. In this manner 1 Byte can be used for
8-bit data while 2 Bytes can be used for 16-bit. As a general rule data resolution rounds itself up to
the next level for non 8 multiples. An example would be 14-bit which is saved as 4 Bytes floating
point. It is possible to save 14-bit as 2 Bytes floating point however you will lose 6 bits of resolution
of the originally recorded signal. This feature must be supported by the instrument or digitizer as is
the case of the PXI
PXI-5122.
5122
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Appendix E
How Much Board Memory do you Need?
There are several factors to consider when determining how much memory you need for an
instrumentation system. The following list describes reasons to higher memory options.
Size of data files to capture/generateIn some cases the PCI bus and the typical hard drives are
too slow to move across the data to the PC. In this case, you need to update your hard drives to
SCSI, RAID, or a streaming setup, such as Conduant. If you are sampling at greater than 50
MSamples/sec for a long period of time, the bus can become an issue. In this case you must rely
on memory to capture all of your data at once, such as off a trigger.
Data StreamingIn the case of data streaming it is recommended to use at least 64 MB of
memory with the PXI-5661 VSA and 256 MB of memory for the PXI-5671 and PXIe-5672
VSG. Why so much memory for the generator when it is streaming? Even though you are
streaming from disk as you will see later on the data is moved into memory and the CPU before
being sent to the PXI-567x VSG. Hence if there are other operations or handling being done by
the system it could create a hiccup which can break the continuity of the data. The recommended
architecture for data streaming utilizes the memory in the hardware as a buffer to accommodate
any unexpected hiccups.
FIFO operationsDo you need more memory to keep up with your processes by using a FIFO
approach?
ScriptingWith the SMC architecture of the NI PXI-5441 and NI PXI-5142, you share scripting
memory with the data memory. This is useful for large waveform downloads to the NI PXI-5441
that need instructions to change their waveform outputs.
Generating CW tonesThe more memory you have with the NI PXI-5670, the more accurate
your frequency resolution is for generating CW tones. The DUC on the
NI PXI-5671 takes care of this frequency accuracy through its OSP.
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Appendix E
B Bus Technology
B.
Review of Current PC Bus Technology
EthernetThe most widely used Local Area Network (LAN). Ethernet connects up to 1,024 nodes
at 10 Megabits per second (Mbits/s) over twisted pair, coaxial, and fiber-optic cables. Based on the
IEEE 802.3 standard. Newer versions of Ethernet connect at 100 Mbits/s and 1 Gbit/s. 10 Gbit/s
Ethernet is also under development.
USBUniversal Serial Bus. A 12 Mbit/s serial bus providing plug and play installation and hot
pluggable connectivity. A new, higher performance version of USB, called USB 2.0 has been
announced by Intel providing up to 480 Mbit/s performance while retaining compatibility with
existing USB devices.
GPIBGeneral Purpose Interface Bus, synonymous with HP-IB. (With the spin-off of the
instrument division of Hewlett Packard, the term HP-IB is no longer used.) The standard bus used for
controlling
t lli electronic
l t i instruments
i t
t with
ith a computer.
t Also
Al called
ll d IEEE 488 bus
b because
b
it is
i defined
d fi d
by ANSI/IEEE Standards 488-1978, 488.1-1987, and 488.2-1987.
PCI (PXI)A high-performance expansion bus architecture originally developed by Intel to replace
ISA and EISA. It has achieved widespread acceptance as a standard for PCs and workstations, and
offers a theoretical maximum transfer rate of 132 Mbytes/s. Future versions of the bus will be 64-bits
wide and offer double-clock speed.
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PCI Express (PXI Express)PCI Express answers these issues and provides benefits across five
main areas:
High PerformanceRelates specifically to bandwidth, which is more than double that of PCI in an
x1 link, and grows linearly as more lanes are added. An additional benefit that is not immediately
evident is that this bandwidth is simultaneously available in both directions on each link. In addition,
the initial signaling speed of 2.5 Gb/s is expected to increase, yielding further speed improvements.
I/O SimplificationRelates
p
to the streamlining
g of the plethora
p
of both chip-to-chip
p
p and internal user
accessible buses, such as AGP, PCI-X, and HubLink. This feature reduces the complexity of design
and cost of implementation.
Layered ArchitecturePCI Express establishes an architecture that can adapt to new technologies,
while preserving software investment. Two key areas that benefit from the layered architectures are
the physical layer, with increased signaling rates, and software compatibility.
N
Next-Generation
G
i I/O
I/OPCI
PCI Express
E
provides
id new capabilities
bili i ffor ddata acquisition
i i i and
d multimedia
l i di
through isochronous data transfers. Isochronous transfers provide a type of quality of services (QOS)
guarantee that ensures on-time data delivery through deterministic, time-dependent methods.
Ease of UsePCI Express will greatly simplify how users add and upgrade systems. PCI Express
offers both hot-swap and hot-plug. Because the hot-plug feature relies on specific OS features, it may
lag the hardware launch. In addition the variety of formats for PCI Express devices, especially SIOM
and ExpressCard,
ExpressCard greatly increases the ability to add high-performance
high performance peripherals in servers and
notebooks.
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Appendix E
Data Streaming Example at Boeing Corporation
As part of the Quiet Technology Demonstrator 2 (QTD2) project, Boeing flight-tested new
technologies intended to reduce the amount of noise aircraft generate. Measuring the effectiveness of
these technologies required a flexible, accurate, and scalable test system to perform phased array
acoustic imaging. The company required a distributed system architecture with the ability to expand
to up to 1,000 channels or more while maintaining tight timing and synchronization between
channels.
Phased Array Data Acquisition and Analysis
Boeing conducted research using an array of microphones to acquire noise data, which it then
processed into noise-level maps showing noise source, frequency, and loudness. By overlaying the
noise-level maps with a visual image, Boeing could assess the effectiveness of noise-reduction
technologies, identify opportunities for additional noise-source reductions, and distinguish between
engine and airframe sources. Using NI tools, the company could then validate several advanced
noise-reduction concepts.
p
To collect the data, Boeing used 82 National Instruments PXI-4462 dynamic signal acquisition
modules, with per-channel acquisition rates up to 204.8 kS/s. It also used eight PXI chassis, each
containing the NI PXI-4462 module, PXI timing and synchronization cards, and PXI MXI-4
fiber-optic connections.
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Each PXI MXI-4 fiber-optic card linked a PXI chassis with an NI PXI-8350 server-class machine
running National Instruments LabVIEW software. Boeing was able to separate the chassis from the
controlling computer by up to 200 m with the fiber-optic link. The company connected each PXI8350 controller through Gigabit Ethernet to one central host computer for faster post-acquisition data
recovery and other systems used for data processing and analysis. With increased performance and
an unlimited, distributed architecture, Boeing reduced the cost per channel by more than 50 percent
compared to previous VXI-based systems.
The Phased Array Flyover Test
Boeing
oe g ou
outfitted
ed itss test
es facility
c y with
w more
o e than 600 ground-based
g ou d b sed microphones
c op o es arranged
ged in a custom
cus o
spiral pattern spread over the end of the runway in a 250-foot-wide by 300-foot-long area (see
figure). Boeing collected the noise from a 777-300ER as it flew overhead and immediately retrieved
and processed the data to get an acoustical image of the airplane. A data processing computer cluster
connected to a host computer via Gigabit Ethernet analyzed the data in real time.
During a typical test cycle, the aircraft flew over the microphone array approximately every
six minutes. The system was able to upload the previously acquired data and prepare itself to acquire
more data within that window. During the test sequence, Boeing conducted more than 300
acquisition events, yielding 78 minutes of flyover resultsmore than 1 terabyte (TB) of data.
Timing and Synchronization
Boeing used NI PXI-665x modules to provide tight synchronization among modules in a single
chassis and to extend timing and synchronization to multiple chassis. By using a combination of NI
PXI-6653
PXI
6653 master modules with NI PXI-6651
PXI 6651 slave modules
modules, all the PXI chassis operated using the
same clock and acquired data phase correlated to within 1 degree.
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Appendix E
File I/O Block Sizes
Block sizes are important point to note when continuously streaming data. Data must
be written or read in quantities that are a multiple of the sector size (512 bytes).
The benchmarks above show the result of writing data in different block sizes.
Data must be aligned in memory on boundaries required by the IDE, SATA, or RAID
controller. The memory alignment requirement is typically 2 bytes, although nVIDIA
onboard RAID controllers require 4 bytes and Adaptec RAID controllers require 8 byte
alignment. Most data arrays allocated by modern compilers are 8-byte aligned, so this is
usually not a problem.
Included on the CD there are disk utilities you can run to evaluate the performance of read
and write operations to your disk. There are also other Windows utilities to help you
configure your system for optimal read and write performance. See the utilities directory for
these applications.
The following terms are commonly used when talking about hard drives:
Sector SizeHard drive sectors (also known as blocks) are 512 bytes in size.
Cluster SizeCluster sizes are dependent on the FAT file system. A cluster typically
consists of multiple sectors. Since a cluster normally consists of several sectors, the
minimum number of sectors transferable by the operating system per data request would be
the number of sectors p
per cluster. This is because the operating
p
g system
y
reads and writes data
in clusters, and not sectors. Usually, several clusters are transferred at one
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go. So, it makes sense to transfer multiple sectors using only a single interrupt. Hence the operating
system transfers
f ddata not in
i sectors, but
b iin clusters
l
which
hi h translates
l
iinto multiple
l i l sectors.
Block transfer modeThe transfer of multiple sectors of data in one interrupt of the PC. Data can
transfer up to 64 Kbytes/sec per interrupt which helps speed up reading/writing of the hard disk.
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Appendix E
Internal Hard Drive Streaming Suggestions
Here are some recommendations if you would like to stream to disk with your internal hard
drive. An example would be streaming narrowband RF data to the internal drive on the
PXIe-8106. See Appendix D for more information benchmarks to see what numbers you
can achieve with internal hard drive streaming.
Selecting a Hard Drive for Streaming
Most hard drive manufacturers do not specify
p y streaming
g rates.
Specifications beyond the interface dictate hard drive performance.

Seek times (ms)
Buffer size (MB)
Rotational speed (RPM)
I t
Internal
l benchmarking
b h
ki att NI has
h nott demonstrated
d
t t d a silver
il
bullet
b ll t specification.
ifi ti
The newer the technology the better.
Benchmarking is the only guarantee.
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Formatting Allocation Unit Size

Computer Management Disk Management
Allocation unit size is the cluster size
Larger cluster sizes provide better streaming performance
Example (8-drive RAID-0):
512 byte clusters
402 MB/s write
306 MB/s read
64k byte clusters:
452 MB/s write
445 MB/s read
Use quick format
Hard Drive Properties

Write caching MUST be turned on
By default, it is usually turned on
Turn off System Restore and Recycle Bin
Location on Disk and Fragmentation

Ideally, the file is at the beginning of the disk and unfragmented StartPrograms
AccessoriesSystem ToolsDisk Defragmenter
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Appendix E
Fragmentation Contig Utility
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Contig can be used to:

View a specific files fragmentation
Defragment a file or files
Pre-allocate a file for writing to later (avoids on-the-fly file creation)
SysInternals (www.sysinternals.com)
Defragments a file, but cannot tell you where it is on disk (DiskView)
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Appendix E
F. Applications
pp
and Considerations
Dynamic Range Considerations for RF Streaming
One important thing to consider when streaming or recording RF data is to make sure the dynamic
range of the signal you are trying to measure is sufficient to abstract the information you need. An
example is a GPS signal which can have power levels around 120 dBm and dynamic range of 30
40 dB. This means the recording instrument needs a measurable dynamic range between 100 dBm
to 160 dBm in absolute terms. With the PXI-5661 you have a noise floor of around 135 dBm.
Hence half the dynamic range is removed and you cant effectively demodulate the recorded data. In
this case an amplifier of some sort is required.
The most cost effective amplifier is an LNA or Low Noise Amplifier. These have the advantage of
being relatively inexpensive and in some cases can have very good noise figures. Noise figure is
important because it defines the amount of added noise to the noise floor at that temperature. In the
example above the PXI-5690 has a noise figure 5 dB across the entire 3 GHz band. This means that
the lowest detectable noise floor would be 169 dBm. Some signals like AM require even lower
noise floors to be able to effectively be demodulated without discernable signal loss. Hence an LNA
with a lower noise figure works well.
The advantage of the pre-amplifier like the PXI-5690 is its broadband frequency range and its
programmability. Be sure the output of the pre-amplifier is never above the maximum input of the
PXI-5600.
When you playback your signal, remember that the output power is specified as Peak Power Mode
and therefore,
therefore the Peak Power of your signal should be the full range of a I16 datapoint (or 32,757).
32 757)
If this is not the case, you will not be using the full dynamic range of the 16 bits Arbitrary Function
Generator.
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Appendix E
Automatic Gain Control
Another method of amplifying the RF signal is to use Automatic Gain Control. When the signal level
is fluctuating in power usually because of the transmitter proximity this can cause problems with the
recorded data. If the signal level drops significantly there can be a large loss in dynamic range. The
best way to solve this problem is to use a power detection method that can adjust the amplifier power
on the fly. Automatic Gain Control does this by varying the update rates.
Another method of automatic gain control records the original RF signal maximizing the best
dynamic range with LNA or attenuators. However instead of adjusting these on the fly it records the
varying signal strength at that time with the original recorded RF data. During playback a
programmable attenuator uses this recorded signal strength to adjust the output signal to emulate the
original RF signal providing maximum dynamic range from the vector signal generator. This is
important especially for very small signals like broadcast radio or television in remote areas since the
PXI-567x cant automatically adjust its own gain on the fly while playing back the signal.
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Appendix E
MindReady RF Record and Playback Solution
MindReady provides a complete RF Record and Playback solution which takes into account several
of the challenges of portable RF recording: amplification, Automatic Gain Control, EMC Shielding,
DC power from inverter and corresponding filtering for power conversion, banded RF signal filtering
and integrated GPS location.
Incoming power (RF out) continuously measured by URT
Average Value of RF signal & pre-amp gain are continuously recorded
With AGC RF out signal is optimized for maximum dynamic range

AGC can be turned off at anytime
Overload detection in pre-amp and URT. Notification with time stamp in Comment file
Filtering is provided for all input signals. Filtering is essential to avoid overload from interferer
Filters can be provided by Mindready for all bands:
Tubular (LC) or high Q mechanical tuning filter .55 to 10% BW
FM, IBOC tubular: 76-90 MHZ, 88-108 MHz

AM: Low pass LC < 2MHz
MindReady also offers an EMI shielded enclosure for their system. This eliminates any unwanted
EMI from outside or even from the PXI system itself for recording very sensitive signals.
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Appendix E
Signal Processing of Streaming Data
What about processing data in-line while recording or playing back RF data?
As you can imagine when you are working with data at rates of 100 Million Samples/sec this can be
a lot of work. Help from FPGAs to digitally downconvert and decimate data can accelerate this
process. However in most cases in-line signal processing has been limited to embedded hardware
like FPGA, DSP and microprocessors. The good news is that multi-core processors and the silicon
technology is allowing for more possibilities. Already with the
PXI-8106 controller you can easily run an FFT or analog demodulation while streaming 20 MHz of
data to disk. This will improve to more complex digitally modulated data formats as processing
power increases. Again this is good news because with software like LabVIEW it is much simpler
and faster to design and develop signal processing with user friendly software than embedded code.
Currently National Instruments does offer a programmable FPGA based board with IF analog inputs
and outputs. The board is the PCI-5640R. Since this board is PCI based it can stream data although
there
h is
i much
h more ddevelopment
l
effort
ff needed
d d than
h the
h current PXI solutions
l i
because
b
off its
i FPGA
GA
interface. FPGA requires you to program in fixed point math as opposed to floating point math. In
signal processing most algorithms are floating point based. However there is on-going development
to provide conversion tools from floating point math to fixed point for communications applications.
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Appendix E
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Appendix F
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Appendix F Peer-to-Peer API
P2P Streaming Host API
P2P host API is required to create and link the writer and reader. This is easily done with:
niP2P Create Peer to Peer Stream VILinks a writer and reader and creates a stream between
them. The user also has the ability to enable a stream by default or set enable stream to F and
explicitly enable from HW or the host.
niP2P Destroy Peer to Peer Stream VIUnlinks the writer and reader and purges data from the
stream. Any existing data in the writer is lost. If a stream is enabled, this VI disables the stream
without
ith t fl
flushing
hi the
th writer
it before
b f
unlinking
li ki the
th reader
d andd writer.
it
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Appendix F
P2P Host API
The host can control the current state of the stream. Advanced Vis: The host can explicitly link and
unlink streams without destroying them.
niP2P Enable Peer to Peer Stream VIPrepares the stream for data transmission. After this VI
runs, the stream is capable of transmitting data from the writer to the reader. You must enable the
stream before you can transmit data.
You also can set the enable stream input of the niP2P Create Peer to Peer Stream VI to TRUE to
enable
bl a stream
t
without
ith t using
i the
th niP2P
iP2P E
Enable
bl P
Peer tto P
Peer St
Stream VI
VI.
niP2P Disable Peer to Peer Stream VIImmediately disables a stream without flushing data from
the writer. Any existing data in the writer is lost. To avoid data loss and guarantee all existing data in
the writer is flushed to the reader before disabling the stream, use the niP2P Flush And Disable Peer
to Peer Stream VI.
niP2P Flush And Disable Peer to Peer Stream VIImmediately flushes data from the writer and
disables the stream. Flushing
g the writer prevents
p
the writer from accepting
p g new data and sends all
existing data in the writer to the stream.
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P2P Host API
The host can control the current state of the stream. Advanced Vis: The host can explicitly link and
unlink streams without destroying them.
niP2P Link Peer to Peer Stream VILinks the writer and reader in the stream you specify.
Linking a stream exchanges hardware addresses between the reader and writer. If a stream is in the
Unlinked state when this VI runs, the stream becomes linked and transitions to the Disabled state.
You can use applications on the host, writer, or reader to enable the stream when the stream is in a
Disabled state.
state
niP2P Unlink Peer to Peer Stream VIUnlinks the reader and writer in the stream you specify. If
the stream is enabled, this VI disables the stream before unlinking the reader and writer.
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Appendix F
P2P Host API
niP2P Stream Properties
Reader:Number of Elements for ReadingReturns the current number of elements that the reader
can read from the stream without creating an underflow condition in the stream.
Reader:Size in ElementsReturns the current size of the reader in number of elements.
Reader:UnderflowReturns TRUE if an underflow condition previously occurred in the stream.

After querying this property, LabVIEW resets the stream underflow status to FALSE. Details
StateReturns the current state of the stream. Valid values include Unlinked, Disabled, Enabled,
and Flushing.
Writer:Number of Elements for WritingReturns the current number of elements that the writer
can write to the stream without creating an overflow condition in the stream.
Writer:OverflowReturns TRUE if an overflow condition previously occurred in the stream. After

querying this property, LabVIEW resets the stream overflow status to FALSE.
Writer:Size in ElementsReturns the current size of the writer in number of elements.
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Notes
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This appendix contains additional information about National Instruments

technical support options and resources.
National Instruments Technical Support Options
Visit the following sections of the award-winning National Instruments

Web site at ni.com for technical support and professional services:
SupportTechnical support at ni.com/support includes the

following resources:
Self-Help Technical ResourcesFor answers and solutions,

visit ni.com/support for software drivers and updates,
a searchable KnowledgeBase, product manuals, step-by-step
troubleshooting wizards, thousands of example programs, tutorials,
application notes, instrument drivers, and so on. Registered
users also receive access to the NI Discussion Forums at
ni.com/forums. NI Applications Engineers make sure every
question submitted online receives an answer.
Standard Service Program MembershipThis program entitles

members to direct access to NI Applications Engineers via phone
and email for one-to-one technical support as well as exclusive
access to on demand training modules via the Services Resource
Center. NI offers complementary membership for a full year after
purchase, after which you may renew to continue your benefits.
For information about other technical support options in your
area, visit ni.com/services or contact your local office at
ni.com/contact.
System IntegrationIf you have time constraints, limited in-house

technical resources, or other project challenges, National Instruments
Alliance Partner members can help. The NI Alliance Partners joins
system integrators, consultants, and hardware vendors to provide
comprehensive service and expertise to customers. The program ensures
qualified, specialized assistance for application and system
development. To learn more, call your local NI office or visit
ni.com/alliance.
If you searched ni.com and could not find the answers you need, contact
your local office or NI corporate headquarters. Phone numbers for our
worldwide offices are listed at the front of this manual. You also can visit the
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Worldwide Offices section of ni.com/niglobal to access the branch

office Web sites, which provide up-to-date contact information, support
phone numbers, email addresses, and current events.
Other National Instruments Training Courses
National Instruments offers several training courses for LabVIEW users.

These courses continue the training you received here and expand it to other
areas. Visit ni.com/training to purchase course materials or sign up for
instructor-led, hands-on courses at locations around the world.
National Instruments Certification
Earning an NI certification acknowledges your expertise in working with

NI products and technologies. The measurement and automation industry,
your employer, clients, and peers recognize your NI certification credential
as a symbol of the skills and knowledge you have gained through
experience. areas. Visit ni.com/training for more information about the
NI certification program.
RF Resources
Refer to the following resources for more information on RF and PXI.
ni.com/pxi
www.pxisa.org
Understanding the Differences between RF Vector and CW Signal

Generators on the NI Developer Zone. Visit ni.com/info and enter
the Info Code rdudbe.
RF & Communications Resources on the NI Developer Zone.

Visit ni.com/info and enter the Info Code rdrfus.
Onboard Signal Processing (OSP) on National Instrument Signal

Generators on the NI Developer Zone. Visit ni.com/info and enter
the Info Code rdospr.
G-2
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National Instruments Corporate Headquarters

Course Description ...............................................................................................vii

PXI System Overview ..........................................................................................2-2

Introduction to Spectral Measurements Toolkit ...................................................4-2

National Instruments Corporation

RF Application Development Course Manual

Introduction to System Calibration.......................................................................7-2

Introduction to RF Record and Playback..............................................................8-2

Introduction to FPGA Technology .......................................................................9-2

RF Application Development Course Manual

Example to Application ........................................................................................11-2

History of the 802.11Standard ..............................................................................12-2

A. Introduction to GNSS ...........................................................................................13-2

Industry and Devices ............................................................................................14-2

National Instruments Corporation

RF Application Development Course Manual

Where is Analog Modulation Used?.....................................................................16-2

RF Application Development Course Manual

The RF Application Development course teaches you to use the NI-PXI RF

An introduction that describes what you will learn.

A discussion of the topics.

A set of exercises that reinforces the topics presented in the discussion.

A summary that outlines important concepts and skills taught in the

B. What You Need to Get Started

NI Advanced Signal Processing Toolkit 9.0 or later

Spectral Measurements Toolkit 2.5.1 or later

National Instruments Corporation

RF Application Development Course Manual

NI-RFSA 2.3.1 or later

TestStand 4.2.1 or later

NI GPS Simulation Toolkit 1.5 or later

NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for Fixed WiMAX 1.0 or later

NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for Mobile WiMAX 1.0 or later

NI Signal Generation Toolkit for Fixed WiMAX 1.0 or later

NI Signal Generation Toolkit for Mobile WiMAX 1.0 or later

NI WLAN Generation Toolkit 2.0 or later

NI Signal Analysis Toolkit for GSM/EDGE 1.0 or later

NI Signal Generation Toolkit for GSM/EDGE 1.0 or later

NI PXIe-5663E RF Vector Signal Analyzer

NI PXIe-5673E RF Vector Signal Generator

RF Application Development CD, which contains the following files:

Folder containing all the files needed to complete the exercises

Folder containing the solutions to all the course exercises

RF Application Development Course Manual

C. Installing the Course Software

1. Insert the course CD in your computer. The RF Application

3. Follow the onscreen instructions to complete installation and setup.

Exercise files are located in the <Exercises>\RF Application

This course presents the following topics:

Understanding the hardware architecture of NI downconverters and

Understanding the hardware architecture of NI digitizers and signal

Configuring, automating, and troubleshooting NI RF hardware

Understanding digital downconversion and upconversion

Using the NI-RFSA, NI-RFSG, NI-SWITCH, and NI-5690 APIs

Designing an integrated RF test application with drivers and analysis

Solving RF test problems using NI RF products

Using the Modulation Toolkit and the Spectral Measurements Toolkit

This course does not present any of the following topics:

Every RF, Modulation Toolkit, and Spectral Measurements Toolkit

Providing integration for a specific project; refer to the NI Example

Building custom modulation for different standards such as WiMax or

National Instruments Corporation

RF Application Development Course Manual