236 Keysight EXG and MXG X-Series Signal Generators User’s Guide
Basic Digital Operation for N5172B/82B with Options 653/655/656/657
Multiple Baseband Generator Synchronization
Understanding the Master/Slave System
System Delay
The multiple BBG synchronization feature provides a system for synchronizing the waveform
generation capability of up to 16 signal generators to within a characteristic value of ± 8 ns
between the master and the last slave. This minor amount of delay (± 8 ns) can be reduced further
to picosecond resolution by using the I/Q Delay softkey located in the I/Q menu. To reduce the
delay, check and adjust the BBG signal alignment for each signal generator in the system. For more
information on adjusting the delay, see “I/Q Adjustments” on page 214.
The delay value includes compensation for cables that have less than 1 ns of propagation delay
between the EVENT 1 and PAT TRIG connectors (see Equipment Setup). The recommended cable is
a Keysight BNC cable, part number 10502A. The use of cables with greater propagation delay may
not allow the signal generators to properly synchronize.
System Synchronization
Synchronization occurs after the master signal generator sends a one–time event pulse that
propagates through and to each slave in the system. Prior to this event, each slave must recognize
that it is waiting for this event pulse, which occurs during the system configuration (see
“Configuring the Setup” on page 237). In order to properly send the synchronization pulse, the
trigger source and the Dual ARB Player for each signal generator must be turned off.
The master/slave setup does not incorporate a feedback system between the slaves and the signal
generator selected as the master. After synchronization, if changes occur to the Multi–BBG Sync
Setup menu or a signal generator is added to the system, the master does not automatically
resynchronize the setup. This may cause the signal generators in the system to incorrectly report
their status as In Sync.
The system can also misinterpret other signals as the synchronization pulse, which results in an
incorrect In Sync status. These types of signals include a continuous trigger or an active Marker
routed to the EVENT 1 connector. Improperly connected rear panel cables can also create a false
status.
You must resynchronize the entire system after making any change in one or all of the Multi–BBG
Sync Setup menus, after adding a signal generator to the system, or in doubt as to the true status
of a signal generator. Changes to parameters that are outside of the Multi–BBG Sync Setup menu
such as waveform files, Dual ARB state, sample rate, scaling, carrier frequency or amplitude have
no effect on the system synchronization. To resynchronize a system, see “Making Changes to the
Multiple Synchronization Setup and Resynchronizing the Master/Slave System” on page 240.
System Trigger Setup
The multiple BBG synchronization feature restricts the trigger selections (see page 234) for each
signal generator. For signal generators selected as slaves, you can only modify the trigger type
(with restrictions). The trigger source is fixed and set to receive a trigger through the rear panel PAT
TRIG connector. On the master, you can change both the trigger type (with restrictions) and the
trigger source. The trigger source provides three options for triggering the waveforms: external
trigger, front panel Trigger key, or the GPIB trigger.
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