RFSoC Board Synchronization Demonstration across Multiple Boards
In the ever-evolving world of radio frequency (RF) systems, maintaining synchronization across multiple boards is a significant challenge. However, a solution has been found with the Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC architecture, powering applications such as phased array radars, 5G and wireless infrastructure, radio telescopes, and test and measurement systems.
The iWave demonstration, using the iW-RainboW-G42P ZU49DR RFSoC platform, illustrates the feasibility of multi-board synchronization. The demonstration employs Vitis tools in conjunction with Octave for synchronized waveform generation.
The iW-RainboW-G42P RFSoC PCIe card, a key component of the demonstration, includes 8GB of DDR4 memory, M.2 NVMe storage support, and complies with PCIe Gen 1/2/3 standards. The iW-RainboW-G42M SoM, another crucial element, offers wide-ranging interface support, including 16 high-speed PL-GTY transceivers with data rates of up to 28.21Gbps.
Achieving multi-board synchronization in RFSoC-powered systems requires careful management of technical parameters such as clock drift, phase alignment, data coherence, and environmental variations. In the iWave demonstration, one RFSoC board is configured as the master, generating triggers for both playback and capture operations across both boards.
The iW-RainboW-G42P RFSoC PCIe Card is designed to showcase the capabilities of the Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC SoM and features 16-channel RF-DACs and 16-channel RF-ADCs. The demonstration involves the iW-RainboW-G42M ZU49DR RFSoC System on Module and iW-RainboW-G42P RFSoC ADC DAC PCIe Card.
Key techniques employed include Unified Reference Clock, Phase Alignment, Data Coherence, Multi-Tile Synchronization (MTS), and High-Precision Synchronization Hardware. MTS, a RFSoC-specific technique, aligns multiple ADC/DAC tiles or channels on a single chip, facilitating intra-chip coherence as a foundation for multi-board synchronization.
The upcoming iW-RainboW-G60M SoM will support up to 8 ADC channels at 5Gsps and 8 DAC channels at 9.85Gsps, catering to applications requiring ultra-fast data conversion and processing. The iW-RainboW-G42M SoM integrates 16 ADC channels and 16 DAC channels into a compact, production-ready module, built on the AMD Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC architecture.
In RF applications like phased array radar, distributed antenna systems, and MIMO networks, phase synchronization across multiple channels is essential. The iWave demonstration utilizes RFSoC System on Modules and PCIe Cards to showcase expertise in building scalable, high-performance RF systems for advanced applications.
Sources: 1. Multi-Board Synchronization in RFSoC Systems 2. OctoClock-LW-G: Precise Timing and Frequency Synchronization 3. iWave Systems - iW-RainboW-G42P RFSoC PCIe Card 4. iWave Systems - iW-RainboW-G42M RFSoC System on Module
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