Waveform generators create basic, arbitrary, and RF signals

The T3AWG6K series from Teledyne LeCroy lets you produce fundamental baseband signals, complex analog/digital signals, and RF signals in one box.

Today’s designs often need testing through a combination of analog, digital, and RF signals, which can require up to three signal generators. With the T3AWG6K series from Teledyne LeCroy, you can generate all of these signals and a combination of them in a single instrument.

Available in two, four, and eight analog channels as well as 8, 16, and 32 digital channels, respectively (or with no digital outputs), the waveform generators can operate as basic function generators (AFG) using direct-digital synthesis (DDS) architecture. When operating as an AWG or RF modulated-signal generator, the instruments use a variable-clock-rate architecture. You can synchronize analog and digital outputs. Analog outputs have 16-bit resolution with 4 Gsamples of waveform memory per channel.

There’s also an RF mode, which Teledyne LeCroy refers to as “@RF.” In this mode, you can generate digital I/Q modulated signals with single or double carriers at bandwidths up to 5 GHz and at sample rates up to 12.32 GSa/sec. You can select an RF waveform from a drop-down menu list, then select amplitude, voltage offset, sample rate, and number of repetitions.

Whether using @RF or AWG modes, you can build complex waveforms with loops, jumps, and branches. Furthermore, you can generate real-world waveforms by capturing them with a Teledyne LeCroy oscilloscope.

While testing with clean signals represents a starting point, your design will encounter impurities from noise and interference. The T3AWG6K waveform generators feature modes that let you produce clean or imperfect signals.

• @perfect signal, which produces clean signals,
• @real-world signal, which plays back waveforms captured from an oscilloscope,
• @extreme condition signal, for producing stresses and corner-case signals, and
• @noise and interference signal, for adding noise, interference, and other impurities.

Often, you need to run automated tests, be they on your bench or for production test. The T3AWG6K contains USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports as well as a LAN port. You can automate tests through SCPI commands to control the instrument in AFG and AWG modes. Programming examples show you how to use the instrument with LabVIEW, MATLAB, Python, or .NET languages.