Oscilloscope with 36 GHz Bandwidth on 4 to 10 Channels

04 July 2011 - LeCroy Corporation announced that the innovative LabMaster 9 Zi-A Modular Oscilloscope System now provides higher bandwidth at the same channel density with the addition of a 36 GHz Acquisition Module. In addition, LabMaster 9 Zi-A has significant other technical and performance advantages.

The higher bandwidth is desired by customers performing optical coherent modulation analysis at data rates of 28+ GBaud (112+ Gb/s) or for 10 to 28 Gb/s electrical non-return to zero (NRZ) serial data testing. Development and installation of systems utilizing these data rates is being driven by trends in cloud computing and mobile device communication that are requiring more optical backhaul transmission bandwidth. The IEEE 802.3ba standard and Optical Internetwork Forum (OIF) recommendations for 100 GbE are the technical drivers in these areas.

The new Acquisition Module can be configured in a LabMaster 9 Zi-A system to provide up to 10 channels at 36 GHz with 80 GS/sand 20 channels at 20 GHz with 40 GS/s, with analysis memory up to 512 Mpts/ch. It is also backwards-compatible with previously purchased LabMaster 9 Zi-A "Master" Acquisition Modules. In addition, customers needing even more bandwidth than 36 GHz can purchase LabMaster 9 Zi-A Modular Oscilloscope Systems that provide up to five channels at 45 GHz with 120 GS/s.

4 Channels at 36 GHz is Ideal for Optical Coherent Modulation Analysis

The most popular system configuration for the new 36 GHz LabMaster 9 Zi-A slave acquisition module is likely to be a 4 channel x 36 GHz LabMaster 9 Zi-A Modular Oscilloscope System for acquiring the four tributaries of a DP-QPSK or 16-QAM optical coherent modulated transmission system. The additional bandwidth in a 36 GHz LabMaster 936SZi-A compared to 30 or 32 GHz solutions provides for faster rise times, improvements in signal integrity measurements, and increased spectral content for I and Q eye diagram and IQ constellation diagram analysis, especially with systems utilizing additional Forward Error Correction (FEC) with 32 GHz tributaries. The ChannelSync architecture provides the extremely high phase stability necessary for accurate measurement of in-phase (I) quadrature (Q) phase shift keyed tributaries in a DP-QPSK or 16-QAM optical transmissions where small phase errors can magnify into inaccurate representation of symbols in constellation diagrams.

The capability described above is obtained with two LabMaster 936SZi-A Slave Acquisition Modules and one LabMaster 9CZi-A Master Control Module. US list price of this configuration is $421,000, much less than the list price of two conventional oscilloscopes with lower bandwidth. In addition, the ChannelSync architecture provides precise synchronization of all channels utilizing a 10 GHz distributed clock, in contrast to multiple conventional oscilloscopes that utilize imprecise physical oscilloscope interconnection schemes and 10 MHz synchronization clocks, and are 1000 times slower than the 10 GHz clock used to synchronize LabMaster 9 Zi-A Acquisition Modules.

Up to 10 Channels at 36 GHz for Leading-Edge Multi-Lane Serial Data Testing

The capability to provide up to 20 channels at 20 GHz and up to 10 channels at 36 GHz is of benefit to massively multi-lane serial data analysis. The 36 GHz capability provides investment protection for those developers who are implementing 8 to 10 Gb/s multi-lane systems today, but are likely going to be required to test four lane 25 to 28 Gb/s serial data systems in the future. In this case, 36 GHz provides enhanced spectral content of these higher speed signal, and 10 channels provides the ability to view four lanes of traffic simultaneously to analyze crosstalk effects or measure lane-to-lane skew among multiple, parallel serial data lanes without requiring the use of expensive, external differential amplifiers or probes.

Modularity, Flexibility, Upgradeability

The new LabMaster 936SZi-A Slave Acquisition Module is utilized with a LabMaster 9CZi-A Master Control Module that contains the front panel controls, 15.3" WXGA display, ChannelSync 10 GHz distributed clock architecture, and server-class CPU. This Master Control Module may also be used with previously announced LabMaster 13 to 45 GHz Slave Acquisition Modules.

All LabMaster 9 Zi-A Modular Oscilloscope Systems utilize a "Master" and "Slave" configuration to achieve a bandwidth range of 13 to 45 GHz with up to 20 channels and 768 Mpts/Ch of acquisition and analysis memory, depending on the configuration. In all cases, a server-class CPU using Intel Xeon X5660 processors (2.8 GHz per core, six cores per processor, and two processors per CPU = 33.6 GHz total effective clock speed) with 24 GB of RAM (192 GB optionally available) powers the LabMaster 9 Zi-A. Coupled with LeCroy’s proprietary X-Stream II streaming architecture, the CPU muscles its way through the immense amounts of acquisition data made possible by LabMaster 9 Zi-A.

The entire system simply and quickly connects together to create a functional, single oscilloscope package, but without the normal input channel or bandwidth limitations - operation is the same as a conventional oscilloscope. All waveforms are viewable on the built-in 15.3" WXGA display, or on a variety of optional or user-supplied displays (up to 2560 x 1600 resolution). Upgrade and investment protection programs are available to minimize initial investments and expand capabilities over time. The entire system design speaks to a level of sophistication and integration not seen before in laboratory equipment.

ChannelSync Architecture Provides Precise Synchronization

ChannelSync in LabMaster 9 Zi-A emulates the architecture of a single oscilloscope package, even though as many as 20 different channels can be synchronized. A single 10 GHz distributed clock signal is generated in the Master Acquisition and Master Control Modules, and also distributed to as many as five additional Slave Acquisition Modules. Slaves are automatically identified to the Master, and software provides simple calibration to correct for any static acquisition skew between all acquisition modules. The 10 GHz clock frequency - 1000 times faster than the 10 MHz reference clocks commonly used to synchronize lab equipment - ensures the high timebase accuracy and precise synchronization between all acquisition modules. The result is an ultra-low 275fsrms jitter between all channels, and up to twenty oscilloscope channels all operating as a single, conventional oscilloscope, which is ideal in applications where time and phase stability are critical measurements.