Signal sources and RF

Drivers for frequency synthesizers and RF instruments: Valon 5009, DDS AD9959, Agilent, Rigol.

Overview

Quatm supports a broad range of RF instruments, from general-purpose function generators to vector network analyzers, covering frequency synthesis, arbitrary waveforms and S-parameter measurement.

Valon 5009 dual-channel microwave frequency synthesizer

Overview

The Valon 5009 is a dual-channel frequency synthesizer (23.5 MHz – 6 GHz) controlled over a serial port. Quatm wraps it in valon, which sets the frequency and power of the two outputs independently.

Valon 5009 Dual RF Synthesizer

Communication	serial (RS232)
Frequency range	23.5 MHz – 6 GHz
Channels	2
Output power	-30 ~ +10 dBm
Frequency resolution	0.1 Hz

Widely used in ion trap experiments to drive microwave transitions (such as the Ba⁺ 9.9 GHz hyperfine transition) or as an AOM drive source.

Driver module: valon

Initialization

from quatm.drivers.valon.valon_quatm import valon

# Connect to Valon (default /dev/ttyUSB0)
valon = valon(port="/dev/ttyUSB0")

# Set channel 1 frequency to 500 MHz
valon.set_frequency(freq=500e6, source=1)

# Set channel 2 frequency to 9.925 GHz (external frequency multiplier required)
valon.set_frequency(freq=9.925e9, source=2)

# Send raw command
valon.sendRaw("LOCK 1 ON\r\n")

Key methods

Method	Description
`set_frequency(freq, source)`	Set the output frequency of channel 1 or 2 (Hz)
`sendCommand(source, command, value)`	Send a formatted SCPI command
`sendRaw(cmd)`	Send a raw string command

Serial communication

Underneath, the Valon driver communicates through VSerialPort (a serial.Serial subclass). Typical parameters:

# serial parameters (driver defaults)
port = "/dev/ttyUSB0"
baudrate = 115200
timeout = 0.1

Ba⁺ microwave transition scan Ba⁺

Use the Valon 5009 to drive the 9.925 GHz hyperfine transition and measure Rabi oscillations by scanning the frequency.

Key parameters

Start frequency	`9.924 GHz`
Stop frequency	`9.926 GHz`
Step	`10 kHz`
Repetitions per point	`100`

# experiment snippet: frequency scan
import numpy as np
frequencies = np.arange(9.924e9, 9.926e9, 10e3)
for f in frequencies:
    valon.set_frequency(freq=f, source=2)
    # ... run the probe sequence ...

Reference: See ion trap experiments → quantum state detection

Frequency accuracy

The internal reference stability of the Valon 5009 is limited. For high-precision spectroscopy or quantum control experiments we recommend:

an external 10 MHz rubidium clock reference
or real-time monitoring of the output frequency with a HighFinesse wavemeter / spectrum analyzer

class quatm.drivers.valon.valon_prog.Valon_Standalone(name='Valon')

Bases: object

Standalone driver for the Valon frequency generator. Commands can be sent via the Commandhub and are processed in parallel to the experiment, thereby the experiment is not delayed by the Valon.
- run()
function quatm.drivers.valon.valon_prog.run()

DDS AD9959 four-channel direct digital synthesis

Overview

The AD9959 driver wraps the AD9959 evaluation board and controls four independent DDS channels over the SPI bus, providing precise frequency, amplitude and phase control.

AD9959 evaluation board 4-channel DDS

Communication	SPI
Channels	4
Frequency resolution	32-bit (0.12 Hz @ 500 MHz clock)
Phase resolution	14-bit
Amplitude control	10-bit DAC

Widely used in cold atom/ion experiments for AOM driving, sideband generation and coherent manipulation.

Driver module: AD9959

Initialization

from quatm.drivers.dds import AD9959

dds = AD9959()

# Configure channel 0 — cooling-light AOM
dds.set_frequency(0, 80e6)       # 80 MHz
dds.set_amplitude(0, 0.5)        # 50% amplitude
dds.set_phase(0, 0)              # 0° phase

# configure channel 1 — repump AOM (+0.1 MHz offset)
dds.set_frequency(1, 80.1e6)
dds.set_amplitude(1, 0.3)

Key methods

Method	Description
`set_frequency(ch, freq_hz)`	Set the channel frequency (Hz)
`set_amplitude(ch, amp)`	Set the channel amplitude (0–1 fraction)
`set_phase(ch, phase_deg)`	Set the channel phase (°)
`update_all()`	Update all channels at once

Synchronized update

The AD9959 supports a synchronized update mode: first call the set_* methods for the four channels individually (buffered), then call update_all() to write everything to the hardware at once. This guarantees phase consistency between channels, which is essential for experiments such as sideband cooling that rely on precise phase relations.

Device configuration

"aom_dds": {
    "type": "local",
    "module": "drivers.DDS",
    "class": "AD9959",
}

Typical applications

Application	Configuration
AOM drive	Single channel, fixed frequency
Raman transitions	Two channels, difference-frequency locking
Trap drive	Multi-channel phase control
Sideband cooling	Frequency modulation

Alternative driver

An alternative AD9959 board driver with a serial (AT command) interface is also available:

from quatm.drivers.dds.alibaba import AD9959Board

Rigol DG1020Z two-channel function generator

DG1020Z

DG1020Z Rigol function generator

Communication	VISA (USB/LAN)
Channels	2
Frequency range	1 µHz – 25 MHz
Amplitude	1 mVpp – 10 Vpp
Sampling rate	200 MSa/s

Used to generate AOM/EOM drive signals, modulation waveforms and custom arbitrary waveforms.

Driver module: RigolDG1020Z

from quatm.drivers.AWG.specific import RigolDG1020Z
fg = RigolDG1020Z(addr="USB0::...")
fg.set_frequency(80e6)
fg.set_amplitude(1.0)       # 1.0 Vpp
fg.enable_output(channel=1, enable=True)
fg.set_function(channel=1, function="SIN")

Other Rigol devices

DP1116A programmable DC power supply

DP1116A Rigol DC power supply

Communication	VISA
Output	16V/10A or 32V/5A
Channels	1
Resolution	1 mV / 1 mA

Used for coil current control, laser diode driving and circuit board supply.

Driver module: DP1116A

from quatm.drivers.rigol.power_supply import DP1116A

ps = DP1116A(addr="USB0::0x1AB1::0x0E11::DP1A123456789::INSTR")
ps.set_voltage(12.0)       # 12V
dc.set_current(0.5)        # 500 mA current limit
ps.enable_output(True)

Oscilloscopes

Rigol DS series oscilloscopes are compatible with the Tektronix SCPI command set and are controlled through the ITektronixScope driver:

from quatm.drivers.tektronix.base import ITektronixScope

scope = ITektronixScope(addr="USB0::0x1AB1::0x04CE::DS123456789::INSTR", nchannels=4)
scope.set_timebase(scale=1e-6)     # 1 µs/div
scope.set_vertical(channel=1, scale=0.5)  # 0.5 V/div
waveform = scope.acquire(channel=1)

Agilent / Keysight 33500 series arbitrary waveform generators

33500B / 33220A / 33250A Agilent/Keysight

Communication	VISA (USB/LAN/GPIB)
Channels	1–2
Frequency	up to 120 MHz (33500B)
Resolution	14-bit
Sampling rate	250 MSa/s
Waveforms	sine/square/ramp/pulse/noise/ARB

A laboratory standard signal source for AOM driving, modulation signals and reference clock generation.

Driver module: Agilent33500 / Agilent33220A

from quatm.drivers.awg.specific import Agilent33500

awg = Agilent33500(addr="USB0::0x0957::0x2C07::MY52801234::INSTR")

# Configure an 80 MHz sine wave
awg.set_function(channel=1, function="SIN")
awg.set_frequency(80e6)
awg.set_amplitude(1.0)      # 1 Vpp
awg.enable_output(channel=1, enable=True)

# Burst mode — generate N cycles, then stop automatically
awg.enable_burst(channel=1, ncycles=100)

Supported models

Driver class	Applicable models
`Agilent33500`	33500B, 33510B, 33520B, 33522B
`Agilent33220A`	33220A, 33250A
`RigolDG1000`	DG1022, DG1032
`RigolDG1020Z`	DG1022Z, DG1032Z

Instek AFG2000 / AFG2225 dual channel

AFG-2225 / AFG-2100 Instek

Communication	VISA
Channels	1 (AFG2000) / 2 (AFG2225)
Frequency	up to 25 MHz
Sampling rate	200 MSa/s

A cost-effective two-channel arbitrary waveform generator.

Driver module: InstekAFG2225 / InstekAFG2000

from quatm.drivers.awg.specific import InstekAFG2225

awg = InstekAFG2225(addr="USB0::...")
awg.set_frequency(10e6)
awg.set_amplitude(2.0)
awg.enable_output(channel=1, enable=True)
awg.enable_output(channel=2, enable=True)

Tektronix AFG1000 arbitrary waveform generator

AFG1022 / AFG1062 Tektronix

Communication	VISA
Channels	2
Frequency	up to 60 MHz (AFG1062)
Sampling rate	300 MSa/s
Arbitrary waveform	64 MB memory

A high-performance two-channel AWG with support for large custom waveforms.

Driver module: TektronixAFG1000

from quatm.drivers.awg.specific import TektronixAFG1000

awg = TektronixAFG1000(addr="USB0::...")
awg.set_function(channel=1, function="ARB")
# Load a custom waveform...

Tektronix DPO/MSO series oscilloscopes

DPO2000 / MSO4000 series Tektronix oscilloscope

Communication	VISA
Bandwidth	100 MHz – 1 GHz
Channels	2–4
Sampling rate	up to 5 GS/s

Automates waveform acquisition and parameter measurement over SCPI. Frequently used for experiment debugging and pulse sequence verification.

Driver module: ITektronixScope

from quatm.drivers.tektronix.base import ITektronixScope

scope = ITektronixScope(
    addr="USB0::0x0699::0x0401::C012345::INSTR",
    nchannels=4
)

# Configure trigger
scope.set_trigger(source=1, level=0.5, slope="POS")
scope.set_timebase(scale=1e-6)          # 1 µs/div
scope.set_vertical(channel=1, scale=0.1) # 0.1 V/div

# Acquire waveform
waveform = scope.acquire(channel=1)

Agilent E5071C vector network analyzer

E5071C Agilent VNA

Communication	VISA
Frequency	9 kHz – 20 GHz
Ports	2–4
Functions	S-parameters, impedance, Smith chart

Used for RF component characterization: S-parameter measurement of filters, amplifiers, antennas and transmission lines.

Driver module: AgilentE5071C

from quatm.drivers.Agilent.vna import AgilentE5071C

vna = AgilentE5071C(addr="TCPIP::192.168.1.100::INSTR")
vna.set_frequency_range(start=1e6, stop=1e9, points=1001)
vna.set_if_bandwidth(100)       # 100 Hz IFBW
vna.set_averaging(count=10)

# Read S21 parameters
freq, s21 = vna.read_S_parameters(parameter="S21")

PicoVNA portable vector network analyzer

PicoVNA Pico Technology

Communication	TCP/SCPI (port 5025)
Frequency	300 kHz – 8.5 GHz
Ports	2
Dynamic range	100 dB

A compact USB-controlled VNA, well suited to desktop RF debugging in the laboratory.

Driver module: PicoVNA

from quatm.drivers.PicoTech.vna_scpi import PicoVNA

vna = PicoVNA(addr="localhost")  # or IP address
vna.set_frequency_range(start=10e6, stop=500e6)
s_params = vna.read_S_parameters(parameter="S21")

Generic SCPI device configuration

"function_gen": {
    "type": "local",
    "module": "drivers.awg.specific",
    "class": "Agilent33500",
    "arguments": {"addr": "USB0::..."},
}