AVM4-10M-C2U42HP315 Operating Manualadvantexrf.com/Downloads/AVM4_Manual_en.pdfIt turns oﬀ all circuits except primary AC/DC convertor; 2.GraphicalOLEDdisplaywith128x64resolution,yellowcolor,4-bit;

RF Vector Modulator

AVM4-10MOperating Manual

Rev. 1.2

Advantex LLC

April 2, 2013

Russian Federation, 111250, Moscow,Krasnokazarmennaya st., 13/1,phone: +7 (495) 721-47-74, [email protected]://advantexrf.com

dvanteXIF/RF & Microwave Design

1

2

dvanteX AVM4-10M-C2U42HP315Vector Modulator 0.1 – 4GHz

IF/RF & Microwave Design

CONTENTS www.advantexrf.com

Document RevisionsRev. Date Description1.0 February

13, 2010Preliminary version. Based on the firmware R0.1

1.1 January18, 2012

Based on the firmware R1.1 of December 22, 2011 andRF-block AVM4-20M-RF

1.2 April 2,2013

Added section regarding calibration of LO andsideband suppression

Contents

1 Package Contents 5

2 Overview 5

3 Installation, Maintenance and Safety 5

4 Control Elements and Interfaces 7

5 Graphical User Interface 95.1 Menu Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105.2 Status Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105.3 Data Entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

6 Instrument Functions 136.1 Main Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136.2 Operation Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146.3 Settings of the Instrument . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

6.3.1 IQ offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156.3.2 Ext Pulse Mod . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

6.4 Storing the Current Settings of the Instrument (Save Current) . . 166.5 Preset the Instrument (Load Default) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176.6 Information about the Instrument(Info) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

7 LO and Sideband Suppression Calibration 177.1 Calibration with aid of baseband generator settings . . . . . . . . 197.2 Calibration with aid of LO signal level and internal I/Q offset

settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

8 Remote Control 208.1 Quick Start . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208.2 SCPI Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

8.2.1 SCPI Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228.2.2 SCPI Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

8.3 SCPI Command List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

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http://www.advantexrf.com



www.advantexrf.com LIST OF TABLES

8.3.1 *CLS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238.3.2 *IDN? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238.3.3 *RST . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238.3.4 *OPC? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248.3.5 SYSTem:ERRor[:NEXT]? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248.3.6 OUTPut[:STATe] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258.3.7 [SOURce:]FREQuency[:CW] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258.3.8 [SOURce:]POWer[:LEVel][:IMMediate][:AMPLitude] . . . 258.3.9 MEASure[:SCALar]:TEMPerature? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268.3.10 STATus:QUEStionable:CONDition? . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

9 Firmware Update 26

10 Disposal 28

List of Figures1 Block diagram of quadrature modulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Example of the instrument connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 Front panel view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 Rear panel view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117 Main menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148 Basic settings of the instrument (Operation Mode) . . . . . . . . 149 Instrument general settings (Settings) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1510 I/Q-channels DC offset (Settings . IQ offset) . . . . . . . . . . . . 1611 Pulse modulation settings (Settings .Ext Pulse Mod) . . . . . . . 1612 Information about the instrument (Info) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1813 Sideband and LO suppression calibration with aid of baseband

generator settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1814 Sideband and LO suppression calibration with aid of LO signal

level and I/Q DC offset settings of AVM4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1915 Example of the remote control using HyperTerminal application 2116 COM-port settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2117 Instrument control and command processing model . . . . . . . . 2218 Command structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2419 Device Manager window (My Computer .Manage) . . . . . . . . . 2720 Firmware update application – XMI Programmer . . . . . . . . . 29

List of Tables1 Math operations and numerical data entry . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

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3 INSTALLATION, MAINTENANCE AND SAFETY www.advantexrf.com

1 Package Contents

The following items are included to the delivery package:Item# Description Qty. Note

1 AVM4 RF Vector Modulator 100MHz – 4GHz 12 AC power cord with CEE 7/7 (E+F Type) plug 1 Note 13 USB Cable A-B, 3m (9.8ft.) 14 RS-232 Cable, D-sub 9F - D-sub 9M, 3m (9.8ft.) 0/1 Note 25 CD with drivers and documentation 16 AVM4 Operating Manual (printed version) 17 Calibration certificate 18 Warranty certificate 19 Packing List 1

Note 1: By default the power cord with CEE 7/7 (E+F Type) plug is placedif not explicitly specified by the customer.Note 2: By default it’s not placed if not requested by customer.

2 Overview

AVM quadrature modulator is designed to generate a modulated signal at thecarrier frequency. It can be applied in testing and debugging of digital communi-cation receivers, as well as for digital modulators which form complex I/Q-signalfor later transfer to the carrier frequency.

Figure 1 shows the block diagram of quadrature modulator, the main blockof the instrument. Signal from the LO input is fed to the phase-shifter, oneoutput of which is shifted by +45° and multiplied by the signal from the I input,the other shifted by −45°, – multiplied from the Q input. Then these signals areadded and fed to the filter block, which suppress the LO products, i.e. 2fLO,3fLO, etc. The resulting signal is fed to the APC ! Designed APC system is based

on the amplitude detector

(Automatic Power Control)block, then – to the RF Out output.

Figure 2 shows an example of instrument application. Signal generator withrequired carrier frequency is connected to the LO input. Base-band generatoroutputs or two channels of AWG (Arbitrary Waveform) generator are fed to Iand Q inputs. Signal from RF Out is fed to the receiver under test.

3 Installation, Maintenance and Safety

When installing the instrument, please note the following: !

• AVM4 Vector Modulator is designed for laboratory use only and is notprotected against moisture and mud.

• Some space from the bottom and rear side should be provided to ensureproper air cooling of the instrument.

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www.advantexrf.com 3 INSTALLATION, MAINTENANCE AND SAFETY

Coupler

RF On/OffRF Out

P

+45°

-45°

I

Q

LO

Figure 1: Block diagram of quadrature modulator

• During connecting cables or other equipment make certain that connectorscorrespond to each other, and are in proper condition. Otherwise somedamage to instrument’s connectors may occur.

• A grounded, three pin AC power receptacle should be used for powersupply of the instrument. The grounded pin of the AC power cord isinternally connected to the instrument’s chassis.

• When connecting equipment to the instrument, make sure that all equip-ment are properly grounded and there is no voltage difference betweentheir cases. Otherwise it may result in damage of the instrument’s inputor output.

When installing and turning on the instrument, it is recommended to follow theorder listed below:!

1. Verify that front panel power ON/OFF button (item 1, fig. 3) is turnedoff (not in depressed position).

2. Verify that rear panel AC power ON/OFF switch (item 1, fig. 4) is turnedoff.

3. Connect AC power cord to the instrument and to AC wall power supply.

4. Turn on the AC power switch at the rear panel of the instrument.

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4 CONTROL ELEMENTS AND INTERFACES www.advantexrf.com

5. Turn on the ON/OFF button at the front panel of the instrument. Textcorresponding to the current operation mode should be displayed on thescreen.

6. To turn off the instrument just press the ON/OFF button at the frontpanel.

With long-term non-use of the device it is recommended to turn off the AC powerswitch at the rear panel. Before doing this make certain that the instrument isoff. i

Over time, the deviation of the output signal level from the specified valuesmay increase, so the device should be calibrated periodically. Recommendedcalibration interval is 1 year.

4 Control Elements and InterfacesFigure 3 shows the front panel view of the instrument. The elements are desig-nated with the following callouts:

1. Power On/Off button. It turns off all circuits except primary AC/DCconvertor;

2. Graphical OLED display with 128 x 64 resolution, yellow color, 4-bit;

3. Keyboard;

4. Rotary knob, 24 positions per 360°;

5. Context sensitive menu keys.

6. Q input, SMA connector, female;

7. I input, SMA connector, female;

8. LO input, SMA connector, female;

9. RF Out ON/OFF button and ON/OFF LED indicator, light means RFOut is On. Actually it turns on and off the power supply of the outputstage amplifier, the other part of the instrument continues to work, i.e.even when RF-output is OFF all instrument functions are available andmake an effect on the instrument state. By default RF Out is always OFFwhen the device is turned on or reset via remote control;

! Turning on the RF Out results

in short glitch of the RF level about

5 ms width. It occurs because of the

absence of signal at the APC input be-

fore the RF Out turning on. At this

moment the gain of the APC is maxi-

mum which results in the power jump.

Therefore when connecting to the RF

Out a device with sensitive input, it’s

strongly recommended to use external

fixed attenuator (see figure 2)

10. RF-signal output (RF Out), SMA connector, female.

Figure 4 shows rear panel view of the instrument. Its elements are designatedwith the following callouts:

1. Main AC power supply switch, it turns off all circuits including primaryAC/DC convertor;

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www.advantexrf.com 4 CONTROL ELEMENTS AND INTERFACES

3.500 GHz-10dBm

RF OUT

AVM Vector Modulator

Attenuator

RF INLO I Q

3.500 GHz0dBmRF

OUT

SG8 RF Signal Generator

QAM16Fs 100MHz

Baseband Generator

I Q

Device Under Test

Figure 2: Example of the instrument connection

1 2 3

45678

9

10

Figure 3: Front panel view

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5 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE www.advantexrf.com

1

2 3

4

56

Figure 4: Rear panel view

2. USB interface for the connection to PC;

3. RS-232 interface for the PC’s COM-port connection. 9-pin D-Sub connec-tor;

4. Fan for cooling;

5. Grounding terminal. Actually grounding is provided via central pin ofthe standard power supply cord, so this auxiliary terminal should be usedonly if your AC socket has no any grounding pins;

6. AC power supply connector with fuse. i It’s recommended to use

2A / 250V fuse

5 Graphical User InterfaceFigure 5 shows the display screen view. It is divided into several fields: StatusBar (1), Menu Items which can be textual, numeric and graphical (2), ContextSensitive Menu (3) which depends on the currently selected item, and Scroll bar(4) showing the current position of the displayed window relative to the wholemenu item list. Menu consists of the items arranged in left-to-right and top-to-bottom order (2.1-2.4). The number of the items can vary from a few to dozensmaking up several lines of the screen. One line can contain more than one item.In the case of more than three lines scroll bar appears on the screen. Some itemscan be shaded (have less brightness, 2.3). It means that in this operation modethese items are blocked (not used) or used only to display information (i.e. noteditable by the user) or can’t be used to launch the operation corresponding this

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www.advantexrf.com 5 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE

1

2

3

2.2

2.1

4

2.3

3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4

2.4

Figure 5: Display

item. When navigating through menu items the current item is being selected(2.2). When entering data numerical item turns active (i.e. becomes brighter,see 2.4), it means that the item is in the numerical data editing mode. Menu canhave hierarchical structure, the moving between levels can be performed withaid of context sensitive menu (3).

5.1 Menu NavigationNavigation through the menu items (moving to next or previous item, enteringto sub-menu or one level up) can be performed by the context menu buttons(see figure 3, item5), and rotary knob (item4).

RET – moving one level up;

↑ – moving to previous item;

↓ – moving to the next item;

>‌> – entering to the sub-menu (one level down);

OPT – entering to the options menu of the current operation mode.

Rotating knob clockwise corresponds to ↓ command, counterclockwise – ↑, press-ing knob – >‌>.

5.2 Status BarStatus bar (top line of the screen) displays the current operation mode andsettings of the instrument. An information displayed in the status bar in symbolform is listed below.

Warnings and Errors:

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5 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE www.advantexrf.com

2 [B]

3 [E]

4 [C]

1 [D]

Figure 6: Keyboard

UNC – (Uncalibrated) means that value of one of the parameters of thecurrent mode of operation is out of calibrated range;

OVT – (Overtime) microcontroller does not have time to process the eventqueue;

#XX – (Error Code) last error code.

5.3 Data EntryNumerical data entry can be performed either using the keyboard (fig. 3, item 3)or the rotary knob (item 4).

The default state of the rotary knob is the menu navigation mode. Singleclick the knob on the selected numerical menu item (e.g. see fig. 5, item. 2.2)puts the menu item to the numerical data entry mode, rotation of the knobcorresponds to the increase or decrease of the numerical value. To exit from thenumerical entry mode to the navigation mode just click the knob again or pressone of the context sensitive menu keys (RET, ↓, ↑).

The instrument keyboard is divided into several groups (fig. 6):

1. Numeric buttons (D group);

2. Backspace (B) – deletes the last input symbol;

3. Enter/Units (E group);

4. Operations (C group).

Numerical entry mode is automatically activated by pressing any of the D,B or C group keys. The pressing on any key of E group performs the entryof the input data following by the exit from the numerical entry mode. Whenpressing E group key in navigation mode, the change of the unit scale factor isperformed, e.g. if the current frequency value is 1’000’000’000.00 Hz, then afterpressing [MHz] key the value 1’000.000 000 00 MHz will appear on the screen,

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www.advantexrf.com 5 GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE

and so on. When changing unit scale factor (i.e. k – kilo, M – mega, e.t.c.)the increment step of the edited value while rotating the knob will also change.Typically the minimum step while rotating the knob equals to the one-tenth ofthe selected unit scale, i.e. if the current unit scale is kHz, then rotary knobstep will be 0.1 kHz. With increasing rotation speed step increases.

Table 1 shows examples of some operations and corresponding commandsequences.

Table 1: Math operations and numerical data entry

Sequence Expression Description

E R

Used for unit scale factor entry, e.g. Hz,kHz, MHz, GHz, also it’s used to repeatthe last entered command. To do so (torepeat the operation with the lastoperand) the same button of E-groupwhich was used last time should bepressed. Otherwise the exit from commandrepeat mode is performed.1

C E R · (−1)As a valid “C”-key it’s possible only “−”.Used for negative value entry.

D E D

Direct input of numeric value. Unit scalefactor is defined by pressed “E” button, i.e.by pressed unit (µs, ms, dBm, kHz and soon)

D C E D · (−1)

As a valid “C”-key it’s possible only “−”.Used for negative value entry. Forexample, to enter −10 dBm you shouldpress the following: “1”, “0”, “−”, “dBm”

C D E R~D

It is used in conjunction with “E”-key forquick data entry with linear or exponentialincrement step. For example, to setconsequently frequencies 100, 110, 120,130, 140 MHz just set 100 MHz at first,then press “+”, “1”, “0”, “MHz”, and aftereach next pressing of “MHz” key the valuewill be increased by 10 MHz.This sequence can also be useful to offsetfrom current value. For example, you needto set 0.999 998 GHz. It will take less timeif you set 1 GHz first by D E sequence, andthen subtract from it 2 kHz by pressingC D E sequence.

(continued on next page)1Exit from last operation repeat mode can also be performed by pressing “Bck” (after last

pressed E-group button)

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6 INSTRUMENT FUNCTIONS www.advantexrf.com

(continued Table 1, beginning on the facing page)Sequence Expression Description

D C D E D1 ~D2

Can be used for evaluation ofmathematical expression along with resultdata entry. For example, when enteringmultiple frequencies.2

C D C E (R~D) · (−1) Rarely used

C D C D E (R~A D1) ~B D2

Can be used for evaluation ofmathematical expression along with resultdata entry. When used sequences witharbitrary number of operands, theintermediate result isn’t loaded to theinstrument immediately, only the finalresult after pressing “E”-key is loaded.Thus the intermediate results are restrictedonly to the capacity of operands whileevaluation the expression. 3

Each next “E”-key pressing repeats the lastoperation with the last operand of theinput sequence.

D C D C D E (D1 ~A D2) ~B D3Can be used to evaluate expressions suchas D · m/n

R – current value, ~ – operation (+, −, ÷, ∗), D – entered numerical value.

6 Instrument Functions

6.1 Main Menu

Main menu of the instrument consists of the following items (fig. 7):

Operation Mode – contains sub-menu with the following parameters – outputsignal power 4 and frequency;

Settings – contains sub-menu with the basic settings of the instrument relatingto all modes of operations or to a group of modes;

2When evaluating expressions with several operands – all of them except the last one havecurrent unit scale factor (µ, m, k, M, G), i.e. the factor that was valid before the entryprocess. The last operand has unit scale factor corresponding to pressed “E”-key closing thesequence. For the operands without units like in expressions “*” and “/” scale factor equals 1.For example the sequence “*”, “2”, “kHz” multiplies current value by 2 and displays the resultin “kHz” units. Factor values in “*” and “/” operations have 10-3 accuracy and maximumvalue not less than 10+3.

3Integer 64-bit. Internal fixed point evaluation algorithm applies 104 factor for Hz, 102 –for dBm and degrees, 109 – for seconds.

4Signal power and signal level means the same in this document

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www.advantexrf.com 6 INSTRUMENT FUNCTIONS

Sub-menu entry

Contains basic

settings of operation

Stores current settings

of the instrument

to the nonvolatile memory

Presets the instrument

Information about

the instrument

General settings

of the instrument

Figure 7: Main menu

LO frequency

RF output level

Frequency band

Return – exit from sub-menu

Figure 8: Basic settings of the instrument (Operation Mode)

Save Current – the command saves the current settings and values of all numer-ical parameters. When powering up the instrument it will be initializedby the values stored by Save Current command;

Load Default – the command loads default values for all parameters;

Info – contains information about the instrument.

When powering up the instrument tries to read from the nonvolatile mem-ory (EEPROM) setting values stored previously by Save Current command. Ifchecksum is valid, i.e. data is valid, then stored values are loaded, if not – thedefault values which are defined by the vendor are loaded to the instrument.

6.2 Operation ModeThe instrument has one operation mode, its parameters are listed in OperationMode menu (fig. 8):

Level – RF signal level;

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6 INSTRUMENT FUNCTIONS www.advantexrf.com

I/Q DC offset

External pulse

modulation

Figure 9: Instrument general settings (Settings)

Frequency – frequency of LO signal. This value is used for filter bandwidthselection, and for output level digital correction;

i Output level calibration process

is performed at sine output signal,

i.e. when sin and cos signals are

supplied to the I/Q inputsFrequency Band – the band of currently selected output filter. These values

are defined by the selected filter path and automatically displayed basedon the value entered in Frequency field. i Actual band is a bit wider to

include some I/Q BWThe signal generated at the output of the instrument corresponds to the follow-ing expression:

S(t) =√P · <

[(I(t) + Q(t)) exp

(ωt− π

4

)],

where P – level of output signal S(t), I(t) and Q(t) – normalized input signals,ω – carrier frequency (LO), < – operator of the real part of a complex number.

When powering up the instrument is in this mode of operation regardless ofthe current position within the menu system. Any changes made to operationmode settings are saved while exiting and switching to another mode until thepower is turned off.

When powering up those settings are loaded which were current before theSave Current command was clicked.

6.3 Settings of the InstrumentSettings menu contains the following items (fig. 9):

IQ offset – sub-menu with I/Q DC offset settings;

Ext Pulse Mod – sub-menu with settings of the external pulse modulation bythe signal supplied to the TRIG input.

6.3.1 IQ offset

I/Q DC offset menu contains the following items (fig. 10):

• IQ offset Auto – automatic offset. When applying AC coupled I/Q con-nection, you can use already-calibrated offset values (which are stored inthe instrument) for given LO frequency and 0 dBm LO level;

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www.advantexrf.com 6 INSTRUMENT FUNCTIONS

I offset

Q offset

Automatic I/Q DC offset

for AC coupled I/Q sources

Figure 10: I/Q-channels DC offset (Settings . IQ offset)

RF Out turning on

by falling edge of

TRIG signal

Ext. pulse modulation

enable

Figure 11: Pulse modulation settings (Settings .Ext Pulse Mod)

• I-channel DC offset;

• Q-channel DC offset.

The range of the offset adjustment is ±100%. The scale is relative, 100%corresponds to about 200 mV. It should be noted that input stages are designedfor connection with 50 Ohm output impedance sources. It is in this case, 0%offset value approximately correspond to maximum carrier suppression.

If AC coupled connection is used, it results in additional I/Q input stageoffset, which also can be eliminated by the adjustment of settings describedabove.

6.3.2 Ext Pulse Mod

External pulse mode menu contains the following items (fig. 11):

• Enable – enables pulse modulation on external signal applied to TRIGinput;

• Inverse – when in ON state, it results in turning on the RF Out on fallingedge of TRIG signal (by default RF Out is turned on on rising edge, andturned off on falling edge).

6.4 Storing the Current Settings of the Instrument (SaveCurrent)

This menu command stores the current settings and values of parameters of theinstrument to nonvolatile memory (EEPROM). After power on the instrument

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7 LO AND SIDEBAND SUPPRESSION CALIBRATIONwww.advantexrf.com

reads stored data, analyzes its integrity, and initializes parameters and valuesby the stored data. If integrity check is failed, 5, the default values are loaded.

6.5 Preset the Instrument (Load Default)This menu command presets all parameters of the instrument by the defaultvalues and enters the CW operation mode. It can be useful if you want to resetall parameters.

6.6 Information about the Instrument(Info)Info menu contains the following items (fig. 12):

Part Number – the full name of the instrument, including the series number,its modification, and assembly variant;

Serial Number – the unique ID number of the instrument.

Firmware Revision – the version of the firmware in Rx.x mm/dd/yy format,where x.x – firmware revision, mm - month, dd – day, yy – year of thefirmware;

Operation Time – total time of operation of the instrument in hours. It in-crements each hour. If operation time since powering on is less than onehour then when powering off it remains the same;

Power-On Count – number of powering up events.

Temperature – the internal temperature of the quadrature modulator block ofthe instrument.

7 LO and Sideband Suppression CalibrationThere are two ways to calibrate LO and sideband suppression. The first wayis based on the adjustment I/Q amplitude and phase imbalance (and I/Q DCoffsets) using baseband generator as shown on figure 13. It implies that basebandgenerator is capable of generating signals with adjustable phase offset, amplitudeimbalance and I/Q DC offsets. It’s the most direct way to achieve high qualitysignal at the AVM4 output.

Another way of sideband calibration is based on the adjustment of LO signalpower that results in phase imbalance adjustment in AVM4 modulator, see figure14. LO suppression can be achieved with aid of I/Q DC offset settings in AVM4instrument, see figure 10. It should be noted that calibration is valid only fordefined LO frequency, i.e. calibration settings have to be changed with LOfrequency. Please, follow the instructions in the next sections to calibrate LOand sideband suppression. ! I and Q signal cables should

have equal length for proper

operation

5It could be after firmware update, when new version’s parameter set is incompatible withthe older version

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www.advantexrf.com7 LO AND SIDEBAND SUPPRESSION CALIBRATION

Firmware revision

and date

Part Number

of the instrument

Serial Number

Total operation time

Number of

power-on events

Internal temperature

of quadrature

modulator block

Figure 12: Information about the instrument (Info)

AVM4

RF OutI

Q

LO

½VIQsin(2πΔf t)+VQoffs

Sid

eban

dSu

ppre

ssio

n

FLO

Spectrum Analyzer

Q

I ½(VIQc+ΔV)cos(2πΔf t+Δφ)+VIoffs

Baseband Generator

or 2-channelArbitrary

Waveform Generator

LOS

uppr

essi

on

ΔfΔV, Δφ, VIoffs, VQoffs

Variable parametersfor sideband and LO

suppression calibration

Signal GeneratorFLO, PLO

Figure 13: Sideband and LO suppression calibration with aid of baseband gen-erator settings

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7 LO AND SIDEBAND SUPPRESSION CALIBRATIONwww.advantexrf.com

AVM4

RF OutI

Q

LO

½VIQsin(2πΔf t)

Sid

eban

dSu

ppre

ssio

n

FLOSignal GeneratorFLO, PLO

Spectrum Analyzer

Q

I ½VIQcos(2πΔf t)Baseband Generator

or 2-channelArbitrary

Waveform Generator

LOS

uppr

essi

on

ΔfPLO

Ioffset,Qoffset

Variable parametersfor LO suppression

calibration

Variable parameterfor sideband suppression

calibration

Figure 14: Sideband and LO suppression calibration with aid of LO signal leveland I/Q DC offset settings of AVM4

7.1 Calibration with aid of baseband generator settings1. Connect the instruments as shown in figure 13;

2. Apply LO signal with your frequency and about 0 dBm level;

3. Apply to I and Q inputs 100 kHz sine signals with 90° phase offset (VIQ=0.3..0.8Vpp,∆V=0V, ∆φ=0°, VIoffset=VQoffset=0V), as shown on figure 13;

4. Adjust ∆φ to minimize level of sideband component;

5. Adjust ∆V to minimize level of sideband component;

6. Repeat step 4 and 5 to achieve better sideband suppression;

7. Adjust VIoffset to minimize level of LO component;

8. Adjust VQoffset to minimize level of LO component;

9. Repeat step 7 and 8 to achieve better LO suppression.

7.2 Calibration with aid of LO signal level and internalI/Q offset settings

1. Connect the instruments as shown in figure 14;

2. Apply LO signal with your frequency and about 0 dBm level;

3. Apply to I and Q inputs 100 kHz sine signals with 90° phase offset (VIQ=0.3..0.8Vpp),as shown on figure 14;

4. Adjust LO signal level (in range from -15 to +13 dBm) to minimize levelof sideband component;

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www.advantexrf.com 8 REMOTE CONTROL

5. Adjust Ioffset setting to minimize level of LO component (fig. 10);

6. Adjust Qoffset setting to minimize level of LO component (fig. 10);

7. Repeat step 5 and 6 to achieve better LO suppression.

8 Remote Control

The remote control of the instrument is based on the SCPI (Standard Commandsfor Programmable Instruments) protocol. It is implemented via RS-232 andUSB interfaces located on the rear panel of the instrument, fig. 4, (USB looksin OS like COM-port), so it can be easily managed by any software which hasaccess to the COM-port of the PC. Only one port can be active, the choice isautomatic and remains the same until the power off. The choice of the activeport occurs when any byte comes to the one of the ports (not necessary a validcommand). The connection via USB is implemented with aid of USB to UARTbridge, so from the view point of PC software it looks like a COM-port, fig. 19.This method requires driver installation 6 (integral circuit CP2102). The driveris available for the following OSes: Win2K/XP/2K3, Vista, Windows 7, MacOS, Linux 3.1.

8.1 Quick Start

As a simple remote control application you can use the standard Windowsapplication – HyperTerminal (Start .Programs .Accessories .Communications .HyperTerminal) to send the SCPI commands to the instrument, fig. 15. COM-port settings are the following: 115200 bps, 8 data bits, parity none, 1 stopbit, flow control none, fig. 16. For more convenient use of the HyperTerminalit’s recommended to configure the settings (File .Properties, Settings tab, ASCIISetup. . . button) “Echo typed characters locally” and “Send line ends with linefeeds”. For example, the following typed sequence in HyperTerminal application

*rstfreq 100MHzpow -1dBm

will reset the instrument, set the output frequency to 100 MHz, and output RFlevel to −1 dBm.

8.2 SCPI Commands

Figure 17 shows the model of SCPI command processing.

6The driver (its last version) can be downloaded from CP2102 bridge vendor site SiliconLabs

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http://www.silabs.com




8 REMOTE CONTROL www.advantexrf.com

Figure 15: Example of the remote control using HyperTerminal application

Figure 16: COM-port settings

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Input unit with input buffer

Command recognition

Data set /Instrument hardware

Status reporting system

Output unit with output buffer

RS-232USB

RS-232USB

Figure 17: Instrument control and command processing model

8.2.1 SCPI Compliance

Instrument control command set is based on the SCPI v. 1999.0, but it’s notfully compatible. The differences are listed below:

• not all required commands are implemented (see the command list);

• command parser recognizes only one command in single string, and thestring size shall not exceed 64 symbols;

• command buffer length equals two, i.e. it is possible to send second com-mand after the first one immediately (not waiting for completion of thefirst command), but not more;i In applications where one

command follows after another

immediately without any time delay,

for proper SCPI operation it is

recommended to use *OPC?

command

• status information is not fully supported;

• not all data formats are supported;

• documentation doesn’t meet all the requirements of the standard.

8.2.2 SCPI Summary

Some notes listed below can help the newcomers to start the work with SCPIinstrument.

• SCPI-commands are not case sensitive, i.e. commands *RST and *rst areidentical.

• The first part of the command name, which is written in capitals, corre-sponds to a short form of the command. For example, to set frequencyyou can write FREQ, as well as FREQuency.

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• Commands placed to the brackets are optional. For example the command[SOURce:]FREQuency[:CW] have the same effect when written in followingforms SOURce:FREQuency:CW,FREQuency:CW, SOURce:FREQuency, FREQuency.

• If command requires the numerical parameter expressed in some unitsthen the default unit exists. For example commands FREQ 1GHz, FREQ1E9Hz and FREQ 1000000000 sets the same frequency value 1 GHz, andthe default unit is one Hz.

• Commands ending with a question mark, are the queries and return aresponse. For example the *IDN? command returns an instrument ID.Many commands that set some value, also have a query form to read thecurrent value, e.g. FREQ? – returns the current value of frequency.

• Commands that provide input of numerical parameters, can also take thefollowing: MINimum – minimum value, MAXimum – maximum value, DEFault– default value. For example FREQ MAX command sets the maximum fre-quency (4 GHz), and FREQ DEF sets 1 GHz (default value).

• If the entered command didn’t produce the desired effect, it’s worth check-ing the error buffer by means of request SYSTem:ERRor:[NEXT]?. If it werenot an error, the return value will be the following string 0,”No error”,otherwise it returns error code and short description.

8.3 SCPI Command List

Figure 18 represents the available command tree (except standard commands).Optional parts of commands are marked with dotted line.

8.3.1 *CLS

*CLS command clears error buffer.

8.3.2 *IDN?

This query command returns the string containing the information about the in-strument in the following format: manufacturer,part number,serial number,firmwareinfo.

8.3.3 *RST

This command presets the instrument (as the Load Default menu command do),in more detail: frequency 1 GHz, level 0 dBm, RF output is off.

It’s a good practice to start the remote control process with the *RST com-mand.

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OUTPut

STATe

SOURce

FREQuency POWer

CW LEVel

IMMediate

AMPLitude

GHZ, MHZ, MAHZ, KHZ,

HZDBM

ON, OFF, 0, 1

float number float number

Com

man

ds

Parameters or return values

Units

MEASure

SCALar

TEMPerature

(°C)

STATus

QUEStionable

integer

CONDition

Figure 18: Command structure

8.3.4 *OPC?

This query command returns 1 after its completion. It means that all previouscommands are completed. It’s good practice to use this command instead offixed time delay between commands.

Examples: If you need to send several commands following immediately oneafter another, for example to set frequency and level, it’s recommended to do itthis way:

freq 100 mhz*opc?1pow 1 dbm*opc?1

8.3.5 SYSTem:ERRor[:NEXT]?

This query command returns the string containing the error code and its de-scription from the error buffer. If the buffer is empty then the returned stringcontains 0,”No error”.

Error buffer is organized in form of FIFO (First In First Out). If inputcommand doesn’t meet the requirements of parser, or for whatever reason cannot be executed, the corresponding message is placed to the error buffer. The

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buffer can contain 2 messages. There are two ways to clear the buffer: by readingthe errors with aid of SYST:ERR? command one by another, or using *CLScommand. When the buffer is already full, and one more error message comes,then the last error message will be rewritten by the following -350,"Queueoverflow".

8.3.6 OUTPut[:STATe]

The command turns on or off the RF output as the hardware RF OUT ON/OFFbutton located at the front panel do.

Parameters: To turn on the output: 1 or ON, to turn off – 0 or OFF.In query form the command returns 0 – if RF output is off, and 1 – if it’s

on.

Examples:

output onoutp offoutp:state 1OUTPUT 0OUTP:STAT?

8.3.7 [SOURce:]FREQuency[:CW]

The command sets output frequency

Parameters: Parameter has the following form[+|-]float_num[E[+|-]int_num][GHZ|MHZ|MAHZ|KHZ|HZ].The default unit is HZ. Input value is rounded with accuracy of 10−4. If thespecified value is out of valid range, then the nearest limit value is applied,error message will not be formed.

Query form of the command returns current frequency in Hz. The result hasthe following form: [+|-]float_num.

Examples:

freq 2.1GHZfrequency 21e-1ghzsour:freq:cw 21E8freq max

8.3.8 [SOURce:]POWer[:LEVel][:IMMediate][:AMPLitude]

The command sets RF output level.

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www.advantexrf.com 9 FIRMWARE UPDATE

Parameters: Parameter has the following form[+|-]float_num[E[+|-]int_num][DBM].The default unit is DBM. Input value is rounded with accuracy of 10−2. If thespecified value is out of valid range, then the nearest limit value is applied, errormessage will not be formed.

Query form of the command returns current output level in dBm. The resulthas the following form: [+|-]float_num.

Examples:

pow 5.1dbmsource:power 1.23POWER 123E-2DBMPOW MAX

8.3.9 MEASure[:SCALar]:TEMPerature?

The command reads the internal temperature of RF synthesizer block in °C.The result has the following form: [+|-]float_num.

Examples:

meas:scal:temp?meas:temp?

8.3.10 STATus:QUEStionable:CONDition?

The command returns current status of the instrument. The result has thefollowing form: integer_num. Zero value means that all is OK, “1” in 3-rd bitmeans that power which was set to the instrument is outside of the calibratedarea.

Examples:

STAT:QUES:COND?8

9 Firmware UpdateThe instrument comprises a microcontroller (MCU), which controls all RF-blocks, graphical display and handles keyboard and rotary knob events. MCUhas two types of nonvolatile memory: Flash that contains program code, andEEPROM which stores all information about the device, including informationabout current firmware version. Thus the firmware update consists of two filesin Intel Hex format, one – for Flash, and the other – for EEPROM. Firmwareupdate is carried out through RS-232 or USB interface, connected to the PC.The connection via USB is implemented with aid of USB to UART bridge, so

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9 FIRMWARE UPDATE www.advantexrf.com

Figure 19: Device Manager window (My Computer .Manage)

from the view point of PC software it looks like a COM-port, fig. 19. Thismethod requires driver installation 7 (integral circuit CP2102).

After driver installation and when the instrument is connected to the PC,the COM-port appears in the hardware list. Its number is indicated at the endof the string (fig. 19).

When powering up the instrument, it enters firmware update mode and waitsfor the appropriate command from the PC. If it doesn’t receive the commandwithin a half of a second, it exits the update mode and no longer responds tothe read/write Flash or EEPROM commands, since in regular mode RS-232and USB interfaces are used for remote control. For the firmware updatingthe XMI Programmer (XMEGA Instrument Programmer)8 application is used,fig. 20. The sequence of actions is the following:

1. Turn off the instrument;

2. Connect it to the PC via RS-232 or USB cable;

3. Launch the XMI Programmer software;7The driver (its last version) can be downloaded from CP2102 bridge vendor site Silicon

Labs8XMI Programmer software supports the following OSes: WinXP, Vista, Windows 7.

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www.advantexrf.com 10 DISPOSAL

4. Select the port, then press Connect button. If you chose the wrong port,then press the Stop button, select the right port, then press Connect;

5. Turn on the instrument. The connection should be established within asecond (you will see the string Connecting. . . Ok!). If it’s not happenedthen probably wrong port was selected. In such a case press the Stopbutton, turn off the instrument, change the port in drop-down list, pressConnect and then turn on the instrument. The string Connecting. . . Ok!should be displayed;

6. Select the Write to MCU radio-box, the Rewrite All EEPROM Data flagshould remain inactive9;

7. Select the files for Flash and EEPROM;

8. Press Go! button. The firmware update process takes about 30 secondsand comprises the data integrity check, the results of the operations aredisplayed in the log window;

9. After successful verifying the written data you may close the application.

You can save the current firmware and EEPROM data by selecting Readfrom MCU radio-button at 6-th step.

10 DisposalOnce a lifetime of the product has ended, it should be disposed of by the localrepresentative of the company specializing in electronic equipment recycling, oryou can contact us by email [email protected].

9If you select this flag, then all EEPROM memory will be re written, not only the part,that contains the information about current firmware revision. That is the personal data ofthe instrument (serial number, operation time, power-on count) will be erased, which is notdesirable

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10 DISPOSAL www.advantexrf.com

Figure 20: Firmware update application – XMI Programmer

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Documents

AVM4-10M-C2U42HP315 Operating Manualadvantexrf.com/Downloads/AVM4_Manual_en.pdfIt turns oﬀ all circuits except primary AC/DC convertor; 2.GraphicalOLEDdisplaywith128x64resolution,yellowcolor,4-bit;