Agilent Technologies n5181a Operating instructions

Programming Guide
(With Remote Operation and File Downloads)
Agilent Technologies
Signal Generators
This guide applies to the following signal generator models:
Due to our continuing efforts to improve our products through firmware and hardware revisions, signal generator design
and operation may vary from descriptions in this guide. We recommend that you use the latest revision of this guide to
ensure you have up-to-date product information. Compare the print date of this guide (see bottom of page) with the latest
revision, which can be downloaded from the following websites:
N5181A/82A MXG RF Signal Generators N5183A MXG Microwave Analog Signal Generator
E4428C/38C ESG RF Signal Generators E8663B RF Analog Signal Generator
E8257D/67D PSG Microwave Signal Generators
http://www.agilent.com/find/mxg http://www.agilent.com/find/esg
http://www.agilent.com/find/psg http://www.agilent.com/find/e8663b
Manufacturing Part Number: E8251- 90355
Printed in USA
February 2008
© Copyright 2006- 2008 Agilent Technologies, Inc.

ii
Notice
The material contained in this document is provided “as is”, and is subject to being changed, without
notice, in future editions.
Further, to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Agilent disclaims all warranties, either
express or implied with regard to this manual and to any of the Agilent products to which it
pertains, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a
particular purpose. Agilent shall not be liable for errors or for incidental or consequential damages in
connection with the furnishing, use, or performance of this document or any of the Agilent products
to which it pertains. Should Agilent have a written contract with the User and should any of the
contract terms conflict with these terms, the contract terms shall control.
Trademarks
Throughout this book, trademarked names are used. Rather than put a trademark symbol in every
occurrence of a trademarked name, we state that we are using the names in an editorial fashion only
and to the benefit of the trademark owner with no intention of infringement of the trademark.

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide iii
1 Getting Started with Remote Operation
Programming and Software/Hardware Layers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
IO Libraries and Programming Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Agilent IO Libraries Suite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Windows NT and Agilent IO Libraries M (and Earlier) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Selecting IO Libraries for GPIB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Selecting IO Libraries for LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Programming Languages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Using the Web Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Enabling the Signal Generator Web Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Configuring the Display for Remote Command Setups (Agilent MXG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Configuring the Display for Remote Command Setups (ESG/PSG/E8663B) . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Getting Help (Agilent MXG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Getting Help (ESG/PSG/E8663B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Setting the Help Mode (ESG/PSG/E8663B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Error Message File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Error Message Types. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2 Using IO Interfaces
Using GPIB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Installing the GPIB Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Set Up the GPIB Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Verify GPIB Functionality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
GPIB Interface Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
GPIB Programming Interface Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Before Using the GPIB Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Interface Check using HP Basic and GPIB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Interface Check Using NI- 488.2 and C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
Using LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Setting Up the LAN Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Setting up Private LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Verifying LAN Functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Using VXI- 11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Using Sockets LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Using Telnet LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Using FTP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Using RS- 232 (ESG, PSG, and E8663B Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guideiv
Selecting IO Libraries for RS- 232 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Setting Up the RS- 232 Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Verifying RS- 232 Functionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Character Format Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
If You Have Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
RS- 232 Programming Interface Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Before Using the Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Interface Check Using HP BASIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
Interface Check Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Queries Using HP Basic and RS- 232 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Queries for RS- 232 Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Using USB (Agilent MXG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Selecting I/O Libraries for USB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Setting Up the USB Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
3 Programming Examples
Using the Programming Interface Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Programming Examples Development Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Running C++ Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Running C# Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Running Basic Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Running Java Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Running MATLAB Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Running Perl Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Using GPIB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Installing the GPIB Interface Card . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
GPIB Programming Interface Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Before Using the GPIB Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
GPIB Function Statements (Command Messages) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Interface Check using HP Basic and GPIB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Interface Check Using NI- 488.2 and C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Interface Check for GPIB Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Local Lockout Using HP Basic and GPIB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Local Lockout Using NI- 488.2 and C++. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Queries Using HP Basic and GPIB. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Queries Using NI- 488.2 and Visual C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Queries for GPIB Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Generating a CW Signal Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Generating an Externally Applied AC- Coupled FM Signal Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . 79
Generating an Internal FM Signal Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Generating a Step- Swept Signal Using VISA and C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide v
Generating a Swept Signal Using VISA and Visual C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Saving and Recalling States Using VISA and C. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Reading the Data Questionable Status Register Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
Reading the Service Request Interrupt (SRQ) Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Using 8757D Pass- Thru Commands (PSG with Option 007 Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
LAN Programming Interface Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
VXI- 11 Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
VXI- 11 Programming Using SICL and C++ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
VXI- 11 Programming Using VISA and C++. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Sockets LAN Programming and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Queries for Lan Using Sockets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Sockets LAN Programming Using Java . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Sockets LAN Programming Using PERL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
RS- 232 Programming Interface Examples (ESG/PSG/E8663B Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Before Using the Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Interface Check Using HP BASIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131
Interface Check Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Queries Using HP Basic and RS- 232 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Queries for RS- 232 Using VISA and C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
4 Programming the Status Register System
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Overall Status Byte Register Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Status Register Bit Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Example: Enable a Register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Example: Query a Register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
Accessing Status Register Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Determining What to Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Deciding How to Monitor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Status Register SCPI Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Status Byte Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Status Byte Register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Service Request Enable Register . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Status Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156
Standard Event Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Standard Operation Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Baseband Operation Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Data Questionable Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165
Data Questionable Power Status Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
Data Questionable Frequency Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guidevi
Data Questionable Modulation Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Data Questionable Calibration Status Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Data Questionable BERT Status Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
5 Creating and Downloading Waveform Files
Overview of Downloading and Extracting Waveform Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
Waveform Data Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Understanding Waveform Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Bits and Bytes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
LSB and MSB (Bit Order) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Little Endian and Big Endian (Byte Order). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Byte Swapping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
DAC Input Values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
2’s Complement Data Format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
I and Q Interleaving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Waveform Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
File Header. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
Marker File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193
I/Q File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194
Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Waveform Phase Continuity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Phase Discontinuity, Distortion, and Spectral Regrowth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Avoiding Phase Discontinuities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Waveform Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Memory Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Memory Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Commands for Downloading and Extracting Waveform Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Waveform Data Encryption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
File Transfer Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
SCPI Command Line Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Commands and File Paths for Downloading and Extracting Waveform Data . . . . . . . . . 206
FTP Procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Creating Waveform Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Code Algorithm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213
Downloading Waveform Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218
Using Simulation Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Using Advanced Programming Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
Loading, Playing, and Verifying a Downloaded Waveform. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Loading a File from Non- Volatile Memory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Playing the Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide vii
Verifying the Waveform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Building and Playing Waveform Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226
Using the Download Utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227
Downloading E443xB Signal Generator Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
E443xB Data Format. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Storage Locations for E443xB ARB files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
SCPI Commands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Programming Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
C++ Programming Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
MATLAB Programming Examples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Visual Basic Programming Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
HP Basic Programming Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Troubleshooting Waveform Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
Configuring the Pulse/RF Blank (Agilent MXG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Configuring the Pulse/RF Blank (ESG/PSG) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
6 Creating and Downloading User-Data Files
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
Signal Generator Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
Memory Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Memory Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Checking Available Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
User File Data (Bit/Binary) Downloads (E4438C and E8267D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
User File Bit Order (LSB and MSB). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
Bit File Type Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288
Binary File Type Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
User File Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
Determining Memory Usage for Custom and TDMA User File Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Downloading User Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
Command for Bit File Downloads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Commands for Binary File Downloads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300
Selecting a Downloaded User File as the Data Source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301
Modulating and Activating the Carrier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Modifying User File Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Understanding Framed Transmission For Real- Time TDMA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304
Real- Time Custom High Data Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Pattern RAM (PRAM) Data Downloads (E4438C and E8267D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309
Understanding PRAM Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310
PRAM File Size . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
SCPI Command for a List Format Download . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

Contents
Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guideviii
SCPI Command for a Block Data Download . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
Selecting a Downloaded PRAM File as the Data Source. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Modulating and Activating the Carrier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Storing a PRAM File to Non-Volatile Memory and Restoring to Volatile Memory . . . . . . 319
Extracting a PRAM File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
Modifying PRAM Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
FIR Filter Coefficient Downloads (N5182A, E4438C and E8267D) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Data Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Data Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322
Downloading FIR Filter Coefficient Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Selecting a Downloaded User FIR Filter as the Active Filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
Save and Recall Instrument State Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Save and Recall SCPI Commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Save and Recall Programming Example Using VISA and C# . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
User Flatness Correction Downloads Using C++ and VISA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
Data Transfer Troubleshooting (N5182A, E4438C and E8267D Only) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340
User File Download Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340
PRAM Download Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341
User FIR Filter Coefficient File Download Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide ix
Documentation Overview
Installation Guide •Safety Information
•Receiving the Instrument
•Environmental & Electrical Requirements
•Basic Setup
•Accessories
•Operation Verification
•Regulatory Information
User’s Guide •Instrument Overview
•Front Panel Operation
•Security
•Basic Troubleshooting
Programming Guide •Remote Operation
•Status Registers
•Creating & Downloading Files
SCPI Reference •SCPI Basics
•Command Descriptions
•Programming Command Compatibility
Service Guide •Troubleshooting
•Replaceable Parts
•Assembly Replacement
•Post- Repair Procedures and Performance Verification
•Safety and Regulatory Information
Key Helpa
a.Press the Help hardkey, and then the key for which you wish help.
•Key function description
•Related SCPI commands

x Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide 1
1Getting Started with Remote Operation
•“Programming and Software/Hardware Layers” on page 2
•“Interfaces” on page 3
•“IO Libraries and Programming Languages” on page 5
•“Using the Web Browser” on page 10
•“Preferences” on page 16
•“Error Messages” on page 19

2 Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide
Getting Started with Remote Operation
Programming and Software/Hardware Layers
Programming and Software/Hardware Layers
Agilent MXG, ESG, PSG, and E8663B signal generators support the following
interfaces:
Use these interfaces, in combination with IO libraries and programming languages, to remotely
control a signal generator. Figure 1- 1 uses GPIB as an example of the relationships between the
interface, IO libraries, programming language, and signal generator.
Instrument Interfaces Supported
Agilent MXG GPIB, LAN, and USB 2.0
Agilent E8663Ba
a.The PSG and E8663B’s AUXILIARY INTERFACE connector is compatible with ANSI/EIA232
(RS-232) serial connection but GPIB and LAN are recommended for making faster measurements
and when downloading files. Refer to “Using RS-232 (ESG, PSG, and E8663B Only)” on page 45
and the User’s Guide.
GPIB, LAN, and ANSI/EIA232 (RS- 232) serial
connection
Agilent ESG GPIB, LAN, and ANSI/EIA232 (RS- 232) serial
connection
Agilent PSGaGPIB, LAN, and ANSI/EIA232 (RS- 232) serial
connection

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide 3
Getting Started with Remote Operation
Interfaces
Figure 1-1 Software/Hardware Layers
Interfaces
GPIB GPIB is used extensively when a dedicated computer is available for remote control of
each instrument or system. Data transfer is fast because GPIB handles information in
bytes with data transfer rates of up to 8 MBps. GPIB is physically restricted by the
location and distance between the instrument/system and the computer; cables are
limited to an average length of two meters per device with a total length of 20 meters.
For more information on configuring the signal generator to communicate over the
GPIB, refer to “Using GPIB” on page 22.

4 Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide
Getting Started with Remote Operation
Interfaces
LAN Data transfer using the LAN is fast as the LAN handles packets of data. The single
cable distance between a computer and the signal generator is limited to 100 meters
(100Base- T and 10Base- T).
The Agilent MXG is capable of 100Base- T LAN communication. The ESG, PSG and
E8663B are designed to connect with a 10Base- T LAN. Where auto- negotiation is
present, the ESG, PSG, and E8663B can connect to a 100Base- T LAN, but communicate
at 10Base- T speeds. For more information on LAN communication refer to
http://www.ieee.org.
The following protocols can be used to communicate with the signal generator over the
LAN:
•VXI- 11 (recommended)
•Sockets
•TELNET
•FTP
The Agilent MXG is LXI Class C compliant. For more information on the LXI standards,
refer to http://www.lxistandard.org/home.
For more information on configuring the signal generator to communicate over the LAN,
refer to “Using LAN” on page 28.
RS- 232a
(ESG/PSG/E8663B
Only)
RS- 232 is an older method used to communicate with a single instrument; its primary
use is to control printers and external disk drives, and connect to a modem.
Communication over RS- 232 is much slower than with GPIB, USB, or LAN because data
is sent and received one bit at a time. It also requires that certain parameters, such as
baud rate, be matched on both the computer and signal generator.
For more information on configuring the signal generator to communicate over the
RS- 232, refer to “Using RS- 232 (ESG, PSG, and E8663B Only)” on page 45.
USB
(Agilent MXG
Only)
•The rear panel Mini- B 5 pin connector is a device USB and can be used to connect
a controller for remote operation.
•The Type- A front panel connector is a host USB and can be used to connect a
mouse, a keyboard, or a USB 1.1/2.0 flash drive.
USB 2.0’s 64 MBps communication speed is faster than GPIB (for data transfers, >1 KB)
or RS- 232. (For additional information, refer to the Agilent SICL or VISA User’s Guide.)
But, the latency for small transfers is longer.
For more information on connecting the signal generator to the USB, refer to the
“Agilent IO Libraries Suite” on page 5 and the Agilent Connection Expert in the Agilent
IO Libraries Help.
For more information on configuring the signal generator to communicate over the USB,
refer to “Using USB (Agilent MXG)” on page 53.
a.The ESG, PSG, and E8663B’s AUXILIARY INTERFACE connector is compatible with ANSI/EIA232 (RS-232) serial connection but GPIB and
LAN are recommended for making faster measurements and when downloading files. Refer to “Using RS-232 (ESG, PSG, and E8663B Only)”
on page 45 and the User’s Guide.

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide 5
Getting Started with Remote Operation
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
The IO libraries is a collection of functions used by a programming language to send instrument
commands and receive instrument data. Before you can communicate and control the signal
generator, you must have an IO library installed on your computer. The Agilent IO libraries are
included on an Automation-Ready CD with your signal generator and Agilent GPIB interface board,
or they can be downloaded from the Agilent website: http://www.agilent.com.
NOTE To learn about using IO libraries with Windows XP or newer operating systems, refer to the
Agilent IO Libraries Suite’s help located on the Automation- Ready CD that ships with your
signal generator. Other sources of this information, can be found with the Agilent GPIB
interface board’s CD, or downloaded from the Agilent website: http://www.agilent.com.
To better understand setting up Windows XP operating systems and newer, using PC LAN
port settings, refer to Chapter 2.
Agilent IO Libraries Suite
The Agilent IO Libraries Suite replaces earlier versions of the Agilent IO Libraries. Agilent IO
Libraries Suite does not support Windows NT. If you are using the Windows NT platform, you must
use Agilent IO Libraries version M or earlier.
Windows 98 and Windows ME are not supported in the Agilent IO Libraries Suite version 14.1 and
higher.
CAUTION The Agilent MXG’s USB interface requires Agilent IO Libraries Suite 14.1 or newer. For
more information on connecting instruments to the USB, refer to the Agilent Connection
Expert in the Agilent IO Libraries Help.
NOTE The signal generator ships with an Automation- Ready CD that contains the Agilent IO
Libraries Suite 14.0 for users who use Windows 98 and Windows ME. These older systems
are no longer supported.
Once the libraries are loaded, you can use the Agilent Connection Expert, Interactive IO, or VISA
Assistant to configure and communicate with the signal generator over different IO interfaces. Follow
instructions in the setup wizard to install the libraries.
Windows NT and XP are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

6 Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide
Getting Started with Remote Operation
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
NOTE Before setting the LAN interface, the signal generator must be configured for VXI- 11 SCPI.
Refer to “Configuring the VXI- 11 for LAN (Agilent MXG)” on page 29 or “Configuring the
VXI- 11 for LAN (ESG/PSG/E8663B)” on page 30.
Refer to the Agilent IO Libraries Suite Help documentation for details about this software.
Windows NT and Agilent IO Libraries M (and Earlier)
NOTE Windows NT is not supported on Agilent IO Libraries 14.0 and newer.
The following sections are specific to Agilent IO Libraries versions M and earlier and apply
only to the Windows NT platform.
For additional information on older versions of Agilent IO libraries, refer to the Agilent
Connection Expert in the Agilent IO Libraries Help. The Agilent IO libraries are included
with your signal generator or Agilent GPIB interface board, or they can be downloaded from
the Agilent website: http://www.agilent.com.
Using IO Config for Computer-to-Instrument Communication with VISA (Automatic or Manually)
After installing the Agilent IO Libraries version M or earlier, you can configure the interfaces
available on your computer by using the IO Config program. This program can setup the interfaces
that you want to use to control the signal generator. The following steps set up the interfaces.
1. Install GPIB interface boards before running IO Config.
NOTE You can also connect GPIB instruments using the Agilent 82357A USB/GPIB Interface
Converter, which eliminates the need for a GPIB card. For more information, go to
http://www.agilent.com/find/gpib.
2. Run the IO Config program. The program automatically identifies available interfaces.
3. Click on the interface type you want to configure, such as GPIB, in the Available Interface Types
text box.
4. Click the Configure button. Set the Default Protocol to AUTO.
5. Click OK to use the default settings.
6. Click OK to exit the IO Config program.
VISA Assistant
VISA is an industry standard IO library API. It allows the user to send SCPI commands to
instruments and to read instrument data in a variety of formats. You can use the VISA Assistant,

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide 7
Getting Started with Remote Operation
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
available with the Agilent IO Libraries versions M and earlier, to send commands to the signal
generator. If the interface you want to use does not appear in the VISA Assistant then you must
manually configure the interface. See the Manual VISA Configuration section below. Refer to the VISA
Assistant Help menu and the Agilent VISA User’s Manual (available on Agilent’s website) for more
information.
VISA Configuration (Automatic)
1. Run the VISA Assistant program.
2. Click on the interface you want to use for sending commands to the signal generator.
3. Click the Formatted I/O tab.
4. Select SCPI in the Instr. Lang. section.
You can enter SCPI commands in the text box and send the command using the viPrintf button.
VISA Configuration (Manual)
Perform the following steps to use IO Config and VISA to manually configure an interface.
1. Run the IO Config Program.
2. Click on GPIB in the Available Interface Types text box.
3. Click the Configure button. Set the Default Protocol to AUTO and then click OK to use the default
settings.
4. Click on GPIB0 in the Configured Interfaces text box.
5. Click Edit...
6. Click the Edit VISA Config... button.
7. Click the Add device button.
8. Enter the GPIB address of the signal generator.
9. Click the OK button in this form and all other forms to exit the IO Config program.
Selecting IO Libraries for GPIB
The IO libraries are included with the GPIB interface card, and can be downloaded from the National
Instruments website or the Agilent website. See also, “IO Libraries and Programming Languages” on
page 5 for information on IO libraries. The following is a discussion on these libraries.
CAUTION Because of the potential for portability problems, running Agilent SICL without the
VISA overlay is not recommended by Agilent Technologies.

8 Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide
Getting Started with Remote Operation
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
VISA VISA is an IO library used to develop IO applications and instrument drivers that
comply with industry standards. It is recommended that the VISA library be used
for programming the signal generator. The NI- VISA and Agilent VISA libraries are
similar implementations of VISA and have the same commands, syntax, and
functions. The differences are in the lower level IO libraries; NI- 488.2 and SICL
respectively. It is best to use the Agilent VISA library with the Agilent GPIB
interface card or NI-VISA with the NI PCI- GPIB interface card.
SICL Agilent SICL can be used without the VISA overlay. The SICL functions can be
called from a program. However, if this method is used, executable programs will
not be portable to other hardware platforms. For example, a program using SICL
functions will not run on a computer with NI libraries (PCI- GPIB interface card).
NI- 488.2 NI- 488.2 can be used without the VISA overlay. The NI- 488.2 functions can be
called from a program. However, if this method is used, executable programs will
not be portable to other hardware platforms. For example, a program using
NI- 488.2 functions will not run on a computer with Agilent SICL (Agilent GPIB
interface card).
Selecting IO Libraries for LAN
The TELNET and FTP protocols do not require IO libraries to be installed on your computer.
However, to write programs to control your signal generator, an IO library must be installed on your
computer and the computer configured for instrument control using the LAN interface.
The Agilent IO libraries Suite is available on the Automation- Ready CD, which was shipped with your
signal generator. The libraries can also be downloaded from the Agilent website. The following is a
discussion on these libraries.
Agilent VISA VISA is an IO library used to develop IO applications and instrument drivers that
comply with industry standards. Use the Agilent VISA library for programming the
signal generator over the LAN interface.
SICL Agilent SICL is a lower level library that is installed along with Agilent VISA.
NI- VISA is a registered trademark of National Instruments Corporation.

Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide 9
Getting Started with Remote Operation
IO Libraries and Programming Languages
Programming Languages
Along with Standard Commands for Programming Instructions (SCPI) and IO library functions, you
use a programming language to remotely control the signal generator. Common programming
languages include:
•C/C++
•C#
•MATLAB
® (MATLAB is a registered trademark of The MathWorks.)
•HPBasic
•LabView
• Java (Java is a U.S. trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc.)
•VisualBasic
® (Visual Basic is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.)
•PERL
•AgilentVEE
For examples, using some of these languages, refer to Chapter 3.

10 Agilent N518xA, E8663B, E44x8C, and E82x7D Signal Generators Programming Guide
Getting Started with Remote Operation
Using the Web Browser
Using the Web Browser
The instrument can be accessed through a
standard web browser, when it is
connected to the LAN. To access through
the web browser, enter the instrument IP
address as the URL in your browser.
The signal generator web page, shown at
right and page 13, provides general
information on the signal generator, FTP
access to files stored on the signal
generator, and a means to control the
instrument using either a remote
front- panel interface or SCPI commands.
The web page also has links to Agilent’s
products, support, manuals, and website.
For additional information on memory
catalog access (file storing), and FTP, refer
to the User’s Guide and “Waveform
Memory” on page 198 and for FTP, see
“Using FTP” on page 43 and “FTP
Procedures” on page 210.
The Web Server service is compatible with
the Microsoft© Internet Explorer (6.0 and
newer) web browser and operating systems
Windows 2000, Windows XP, and newer.
For more information on using the Web
Server, refer to “Enabling the Signal
Generator Web Server” on page 11.
Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft.
To operate the signal generator, click the keys.
The Agilent MXG is LXI Class C compliant. For more information on the
LXI standards, refer to http://www.lxistandard.org/home.
Note: If you do not see this window, check to see if the window is hidden
behind your browser window or your web browser settings are set to block
pop-ups. To use this feature, you need to set your web browser to allow
pop-ups for your instrument’s IP address.