Texas Instruments ADC08D1520RB User Manual

ADC08D1520RB

Reference Board Users’ Guide

SNAU127 Page1

Table of Contents

1.0 Overview

1.1 Features

1.2 Packing List

1.3 References

2.0 Quick Start

2.1 Installing the WaveVision 5 Software

2.2 Installing the ADC08D1520RB Hardware

2.3 Launching the WaveVision 5 Software

2.4 WaveVision 5 – User Interface Overview

2.5 System / Device Configuration

2.6 Data Capturing

3.0 Secondary Panel Description

4.0 Reference Board Functional Description

4.1 System Block Diagram

4.2 System Description

5.0 Electrical Specification

SNAU127

1.0 Overview

The ADC08D1520RB demonstrates a high-performance signal acquisition sub-system that achieves 8-bit resolution
and corresponding SNR and dynamic range on two channels with sampling rates of at least 1.5 GS/s or one channel
at a sampling rate of 3.0 GHz. The board showcases the following Texas Instruments devices:

• ADC08D1520 analog-to-digital converter

• LMX2541 clock synthesizer

• LP3878 and LP38513-ADJ linear LDO regulators

• LM20242, LM25576 and LM26400 switching regulators

• LM3880 power sequencing controller

• LM95233 temperature sensor

In addition, the board also employs the Xilinx XC4VLX25-11FFG668 Virtex-4 FPGA for the critical function of
capturing the high-speed digital data sourced by the ADC.

SNAU127 Page3

1.1 Features

 Demonstrates the ADC08D1520's typical dynamic performance – see the datasheet for full details.
 Dual channel sample rates of up to 1.5 GS/s (limited by the ADC specifications and the FPGA capture

limitations)

 Single channel (Interleaved) sample rates of up to 3.0 GS/s (limited by the ADC specifications and the

FPGA capture limitations)

 FMC Expansion Header for streaming data capture
 External Hardware Trigger
 Updated Status LEDs
 On-board LMX2541 based clock circuit with a connector for a selectable external clock
 A complete high-performance low-noise power management section for the ADC, clock circuit, FPGA and

USB controller

 Single +7.5V power adapter input
 Simplicity and performance of USB 2.0 connection to the PC
 Functions with TI's latest WaveVision 5 signal-path control and analysis software

1.2 Packing List

The ADC08D1520RB kit consists of the following components:

• ADC08D1520RB Reference Board

• Documentation on CD Including

o ADC08D1520RB Users Guide (this document)
o Wavevision 5 Software
o ADC08D1520RB schematic & layout
o ADC08D1520RB bill of materials
o ADC08D1520RB performance plots
o FPGA source code
o Balun datasheets

• Hardware Kit Including

o 110V-240V AC to +7.5V DC Power Adapter
o USB cable
o 4 – DC blocks
o 2 – 50Ω terminators
o 1 – ADC-Low Distortion-Balun Board (useful bandwidth of 400 MHz to 3 GHz)
o 1 – ADC-Wide Band-Balun Board (useful bandwidth of 4.5 MHz to 3 GHz)
o 4 – 6” SMA cables

1.3 References

• *ADC08D1520 datasheet

• *LMX2541 datasheet

*Note: Please refer to www.ti.com for the latest edition of all datasheets / application notes.

SNAU127

1.4 Board Orientation

Q-ch. Sig.

I-ch. Sig.

LMX2541

Int Clock

ADC

Control

Jumpers

Power

Power
Switch

+7.5

Power

section

Ext. Trigger

Ext Clock

FPGA
(Xilinx

DCLK_RST

LEDs

ADC08D1520

USB

Controller

USB

Auxiliary Data Port

(FMC connector)

on bottom

Figure 1: ADC08D1520RB Board Layout

SNAU127 Page5

2.0 Quick Start

This section will aid in bringing up the board for the first time as well as a brief tutorial on the WaveVision 5
(WV5) software. Further description of the Reference Board is in subsequent sections of this document. The
software is further described in the WaveVision 5 Users' Guide or the HELP function within the software. The
ADC08D1520 and LMX2541 datasheets should be consulted for detailed understanding of device functionality.

The user is advised to construct a lab setup as close to the one shown in Figure 2 as possible. This setup, along with
the board and software configuration described below, is what was used to test the reference board at TI’s lab. This
set of conditions produces the stated reference performance - which is normally included with each board shipped
to customers. The objective is to assure that the user can achieve the same performance as that recorded at TI’s lab
prior to board shipment.

Figure 2: Recommended lab setup. A filter may not be necessary on the

clock if the generator is very clean (beyond -80dBm SFDR).

7.5V DC

ADC08D1520RB

PC

USB2.0

DC block

DC block

DC block

DC block

Signal

Generator

Bandpass

Filter

Balun

50Ω termination

50Ω termination

Signal

Generator

Bandpass

Filter

SNAU127

2.1 Installing the WaveVision 5 Software

(Note: The WaveVision 5 software requires Windows XP 32-bit operating system)

1. Insert the included WaveVision 5 CD-ROM into the computer CD drive.

2. Locate, unzip and run the install.bat program on the CD-ROM.

3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation.

4. Follow the WaveVision 5 Software Driver Installation Guide from www.ti.com/tool/wavevision5

the required drivers for the ADC board. This typically involves manually installing them from the “driver”
folder in the WaveVision 5 directory.

to install

2.2 Installing the ADC08D1520RB Hardware

1. Place the ADC081520RB Reference Board on a clean, static-free surface.

2. For the ADC, the "ECE (Extended Control Enable, active low)" jumper should be installed in the LOW

position. This enables SPI control of the ADC.

3. Pin 9 on J15 must be connected to Ground for ac-coupled operation. The board ships with this jumper in

place as it is configured for ac-coupled operation only
In that case the applied signal must be dc-coupled, and have the common mode DC voltage set to the
required ADC08D1520 V

4. Connect the enclosed +7.5V DC power adapter to the power jack. Connect the other side of the power

supply to an AC outlet (100-240 VAC, 50-60 Hz).

5. Connect the input signal generator, the band-pass filter, the balun and the DC blocks to the

ADC08D1520RB Reference Board's I-channel input connectors. Set the signal generator at one of the
frequencies and signal levels stated in the reference performance report. Always use high-quality RF SMA
cables for optimum performance.

voltage.)

CM

. (The jumper is removed for dc-coupled operation.

Do not overdrive the signal and clock inputs as the ADC may be damaged. Refer to the
Electrical Specification section of the datasheet for the voltage tolerance of these inputs.

Including insertion loss from filters, baluns, cables, DC blocks, etc. input power should
not exceed operating limits as found in the datasheet.

6. In the TI lab, the following (or equivalent performance) equipment are used to test the board. It is essential

that the customer use signal generators, filters, DC blocks and a balun of equivalent or better performance.

o Rohde & Schwarz SME-03 or SMA-100 signal generator
o Filters - Trilithic 5VF 5% tunable bandpass filter or other fixed frequency bandpass filter of

equivalent performance

o

Balun – ADC-LD-BB
DC blocks – Mini Circuits BLK-89 S+

o
o 50 Ω terminators – Mini Circuits ANNE 50+

Note: The board comes equipped with DC-blocks applied to the I-channel signal input connectors and DC
blocks and terminators applied to the unused Q-channel input connectors. These must be used at all times ­that is, the channel being used must be connected through dc-blocks if the ADC is configured for ac­coupled operation (as shipped). The unused channel must also be DC blocked then terminated to ac
ground. This is graphically illustrated in Figure 2.

7. Turn on the SW2 rocker power switch. Verify that the green LED (labeled LD10, near the J12 power jack)

is lit.

8. Connect the supplied USB 2.0 cable from the PC USB port to the ADC08D1520RB USB jack.

SNAU127 Page7

2.3 Launch the WaveVision 5 Software.

Start the WaveVision 5 software on your computer by selecting the desktop icon “WaveVision 5” or by clicking on
the Start button, and selecting

Start -> Programs -> WaveVision 5 -> WaveVision 5

The software will automatically detect the board and load the appropriate software profile and will proceed to
download the controller firmware and FPGA code onto the reference board. As an alternative, the icon on the
desktop can be used to launch WaveVision 5. The WaveVision 5 user interface will appear on the computer screen.

The status LED’s should take on the following states when the system is initially powered up, Wavevision 5 has
loaded the FPGA image and the system is ready for an acquisition:

(Where green is on, black is off)

DCLK_LOCKED

OVER-RANGE_Q-CH

TRIGGER_ARMED

ADC_POWER

ADC_CALIBRATION

OVER-RANGE_I-CH

FPGA_OPERATIONAL

ECM_ENABLED

RCOUT1/2_ENABLED

NOTE: The status LEDs are valid, only if the FPGA_OPERATIONAL LED is lit.

Meaning of the status LED’s:

• DCLK_LOCKED: If FPGA detects DCLKI and DCLKQ toggling, this LED lights.

• OVER-RANGE_Q-CH: ADC’s overrange Q-ch pin pulse stretched to around a half second when

overranged.

• TRIGGER_ARMED: Lights when “H/W Trigger” is checked inside the Wavevision 5 GUI. Does not

clear upon data capture.

• ADC_POWER: Lights when ADC supply voltage of 1.9V is detected.

• ADC_CALIBRATION: Will light temporarily when calibration is run. ADC’s CalRun pin is pulse

stretched to about a half second.

• OVER-RANGE_I-CH: ADC’s overrange I-ch pin pulse stretched to around a half second when

overranged.

• FPGA_OPERATIONAL: Lights when FPGA’s 100MHz reference is locked and FPGA is out of reset.

• ECM_ENABLED: Lights when ADC is in Extended Control Mode.

• RCOUT1/2_ENABLED: Not valid for the ADC08D1520

SNAU127

2.4 WaveVision 5 - User Interface Overview

Figure 3: WaveVision 5 Example Window

Figure 3 above shows the WV5 user interface panel (GUI). This is the top level interface panel. It is arranged in
such a way that the plot is always in the middle. There are tabs arranged on each side of the window to give the user
additional information or control of features.

The tabs available on the left side access panels that are pertinent to the current plot window - such as channel
selection, grid selection, FFT Readouts, and FFT controls.

The right side panels allow the user to take control of the hardware. These include the Signal Source, Signal
Control and Registers panels (the most relevant for this board).

In addition, a small FFT parameter summary box can be displayed by pressing CTL-R.

For more details on the general operation and use of WaveVision 5, please refer to the WaveVision 5 Users Guide.

SNAU127 Page9

2.5 System / Device Configuration

Prior to capturing data, confirm that the board is in the "ECE (Extended Control Enable)" mode, The ECE jumper is
located in the ADC pin control jumper area. The board should be sent with this jumper in place. This means that
the ADC will be controlled through the SPI interface and not with jumpers driving the control pins. This allows the
user to control the ADC's behavior through the WaveVision 5 Registers panel.

SNAU127

Figure 4: WaveVision 5 overview of control buttons

Figure 5: WaveVision 5 main window command buttons

2.5.1 Main Panel

The main menu bar of the WaveVision 5 software has several control buttons as shown in Figures 4 and 5, which
may be used to perform most tasks with a button click.

1 - Load Plot

A new plot window is created and the Plot Load dialog is displayed. The selected plot file is loaded into the new
window.

2 - Import Data

Clicking this button creates a new time-domain plot and opens the Import Data dialog. Data may be imported from
WaveVision 4 data files as well as from ASCII data files created by other programs.

3 - Create a New Time Domain Plot

Clicking this button creates a new time-domain plot. The plot will contain no data, but is available as a data
destination.

4 - Create a New Hardware Histogram Plot

Clicking this button creates a new hardware histogram plot. Hardware histograms are available only in conjunction
with evaluation boards which can gather histogram data internally. This button is enabled only when an evaluation
board which supports hardware histograms is attached.

5 - Acquire Data

Click this button to acquire data to the active plot. If you have created more than one plot, the Active plot has a
highlighted title bar.

6 - Continuous Acquisition

This button is a toggle - when it is pressed, data is acquired continuously, one buffer after another as fast as the
hardware can go; when pressed again data acquisition stops. When in continuous acquisition mode, acquisition may
be started and stopped using the Acquire button without leaving the continuous acquisition mode.

7 - FFT Averaging

This button is also a toggle - when it is pressed, FFT's are averaged. The number of buffers to be averaged is
specified in the hardware section of the Signal Sources tab.

Please refer to the WaveVision 5 Users Guide for more information.

SNAU127 Page11

2.5.2 Plot Window Controls

Figure 6: WaveVision 5 plot window controls

1 - Load Plot

The Plot Load dialog is displayed, and the selected plot file is loaded into the new window.

2 - Save Plot

Displays the Plot Save dialog (this button is only active when the plot contains one or more channels with data).

3 - Reset Zoom

Reset X and Y axis zoom to 100%.

4 - Clear

Clear data from all channels.

5 - Print
Print the plot.

6 - Time Domain

Display the plot as time domain data.

7 - FFT

Display the plot as an FFT

8 – Histogram

Display a histogram of the data.

9 - Close

Close this plot.

SNAU127