Pentek, Inc. announced the successful production, delivery and testing of the first announced and deliverable RFSoC boards in the market. The Quartz™ Model 5950 8-Channel 4 GSPS A/D and 6.4 GSPS D/A Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC 3U VPX Board and the Model 6001 8-Channel A/D and D/A Zynq UltraScale+ QuartzXM eXpress module will be used together for the customer’s application. Development will begin using the Navigator™ design suite and the Quartz Model 5950 in a 3U VPX chassis with the Model 6001 installed with a follow on to the application where the Model 6001 QuartzXM eXpress module will be deployed in the field.
“This technology has revolutionized how engineers are developing radar applications and delivering the first working solution to the market is big news! We are not just saying we are doing it, we have done it and delivered it successfully to customers,” said Rodger Hosking, vice president and co-founder, Pentek. He added, “The RFSoC chip functionality in combination with Pentek’s IP for DRFM, radar and high-performance data acquisition, gigabit I/O connections and software tools along with the unique, deployable QuartzXM eXpress module, nets a successful application that’s ready to deploy.”
“We are pleased to see the RFSoc device used in the market via Pentek’s Quartz board-level solutions. Measuring only 2.5 by 4 inches, the QuartzXM Model 6001 includes all of the circuitry needed to maximize the performance of this device. The Model 6001 can be housed on the Pentek 3U VPX Model 5950 or it can be deployed on a custom carrier. This flexibility offered has been well received as users can deploy this new technology in the field in a very small footprint, which is critical to Mil-Aero market needs,” said David Gamba, Xilinx senior director for the Aerospace and Defense Vertical Market.
The Quartz Architecture Difference
The Pentek Quartz architecture embodies a streamlined approach to FPGA boards, simplifying the design to reduce power and cost, while still providing some of the highest performance FPGA resources available today. Designed to work with Pentek’s Navigator™ Design Suite tools, the combination of Quartz and Navigator offers users an efficient path to developing and deploying FPGA software and IP for data and signal processing.
The Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC chip integrates eight RF-class A/D and D/A converters into the Zynq FPGA fabric and quad ARM Cortex-A53 and dual ARM Cortex-R5 processors, creating a multichannel data conversion and processing solution on a single chip. Complementing the RFSoC’s on-chip resources, the Quartz board architecture adds:
- Up to 18 GBytes of DDR4 SDRAM
- Sophisticated clocking for single-board and multi-board synchronization
- High-signal integrity connectors for RF inputs and outputs
- x8 PCIe Gen 3 link
- An 8 lane, 28 Gb/sec optical interface supporting a built-in dual 100 GigE interface or customer installed protocols
- 12 LVDS general purpose I/O pairs for specialized interfaces
- QuartzXM eXpress Module design for flexible deployment
- Factory-installed application IP for DRFM, high-speed data acquisition and radar
- Navigator design suite (BSP and FDK) for streamlined IP development
Live Signal Acquisition Video
To access a live signal acquisition video using Pentek’s Quartz Model 5950 8-Channel A/D and D/A Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC Processor and QuartzXM eXpress module Model 6001 8-Channel A/D and D/A Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC Processor utilizing Pentek’s Navigator Signal Viewer, please visit: https://www.pentek.com/go/rfsoclive.
Pricing and Availability
Designed for air-cooled, conduction-cooled and rugged operating environments, the combination of the Model 5950 and 6001 start at $28,495 USD. The Navigator BSP starts at $2,500 USD and the Navigator FDK starts at $3,500 USD, both including free lifetime support.
