XDAC U-8
Nicslab XDAC U-8 XDAC-8U-R4G8 8-Channel Unipolar Source Measurement Unit
8-channel unipolar source measurement unit with 16-bit resolution, 0–34 V / 0–300 mA per channel and Ethernet/USB control.
- Channels / Output Quadrant
- 8 / Unipolar (single-quadrant, source only)
- Measurement Time
- 100 ms
- Voltage Sourcing Range
- 0–5 V / 0–10 V / 0–20 V / 0–40 V (34 V)
- Voltage Resolution
- 0.15 – 0.6 mV (range-dependent)
Overview
The Nicslab XDAC U-8 (XDAC-8U-R4G8) is a compact multichannel source measurement system with eight independently controlled channels. Each channel supports voltage or current sourcing and simultaneous voltage and current measurement, and the instrument is intended for low-power applications ranging from simple electronic circuits to photonic integrated circuits.
The outputs are unipolar (single-quadrant, source only). Each channel operates in Constant Current (CC) mode from 0 to 300 mA or Constant Voltage (CV) mode from 0 to 34 V, with a maximum output power of 10 W per channel. Voltage and current control use 16-bit resolution, and software-selectable ranges allow the full resolution to be applied to smaller output spans.
Basic and Premium tiers
The Basic version operates on the fixed 0–34 V / 0–300 mA output range. The Premium upgrade unlocks software-selectable voltage ranges (0–5 V, 0–10 V, 0–20 V) and current ranges (0–200 mA down to 0–3.125 mA), configurable reading speed, configuration save and upload, CC/CV sequence automation, data recording, voltage and current limits, and per-channel threshold and short-circuit protection.
Connectivity and software
The unit is controlled through a GUI for Windows, macOS and Linux, or through SCPI commands over Ethernet (ZMQ Req-Rep on port 5555), with examples for Python and support for MATLAB, LabVIEW and C#. A USB-to-Ethernet adaptor is included for computers without an Ethernet port. The instrument is powered from a single external DC supply of up to 36 V.
Connector versions
Two connector configurations are available: a male pin-header version for flexible DUT connection with cables or jumper wires, and an SMA version (XDAC-8U-R4G8-SMA) for direct connection with SMA cables, which also provides pin outputs.
Key Features
- 8 independently controlled channels
- Unipolar output, single-quadrant sourcing (0 to 34 V, 0 to 300 mA)
- Constant Current (CC, 0–300 mA) and Constant Voltage (CV, 0–34 V) operating modes
- 16-bit voltage control with software-selectable ranges 0–5 V, 0–10 V, 0–20 V, 0–34 V
- 16-bit current control with software-selectable ranges from 0–300 mA down to 0–3.125 mA
- Real-time voltage and current reading on every channel
- Maximum output power of 10 W per channel
- Control via GUI or SCPI commands (Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, C#)
- Ethernet connectivity with USB-to-Ethernet adaptor included
- Windows, macOS and Linux support
- Configurable reading speed via averaging samples and ADC conversion time
- Premium: configuration save and upload as CSV
- Premium: CC/CV sequence automation
- Premium: data recording
- Premium: per-channel voltage and current threshold protection
- Premium: per-channel short-circuit detection
- Multiple XDAC units can be controlled from one GUI (optional)
- GPIO for external control and monitoring
- Male header or SMA connector versions
- CE and RoHS3 (2015/863) compliant
Specifications
Electrical
| Channels / Output Quadrant | 8 / Unipolar (single-quadrant, source only) |
|---|---|
| Measurement Time |
100 ms
Manual states measurement time for single channel: 104 ms
|
| Voltage Sourcing Range |
0–5 V / 0–10 V / 0–20 V / 0–40 V (34 V)
Sub-ranges below 0–40 V (34 V) are a Premium feature
|
| Voltage Resolution | 0.15 – 0.6 mV (range-dependent) |
| Voltage Accuracy |
±0.04 – ±0.25 %FSR (range-dependent)
Manual Table 3 lists total unadjusted error ±0.01 %FSR typ., 0.1 %FSR max (all ranges)
|
| Slew Rate |
4 V/µs
All ranges except 0–5 V
|
| Current Sourcing Range | 0 – 300 mA (unipolar, source only) |
| Current Resolution |
10 µA (range-dependent)
Manual Table 6 lists 4.5 µA control resolution on the 0–300 mA range
|
| Current Accuracy |
±0.4 – ±1.4 %FSR
Total unadjusted error, 300 mA range
|
| Voltage Measurement |
0–34 V range, 1 mV resolution
Manual states real-time voltage reading 16-bit resolution = 1.25 mV
|
| Current Measurement |
0–300 mA range, 10 µA resolution
Manual states real-time current reading 16-bit resolution = 5 μA
|
| Max. Output Power | 10 W per channel |
DAC Voltage Performance
| Resolution |
16 Bits
Min.
|
|---|---|
| Integral nonlinearity (INL) |
-1 min, ± 0.5 typ, 1 max LSB
All ranges
|
| Differential Nonlinearity (DNL) |
-1 min, ± 0.5 typ, 1 max LSB
Specified 16-bit monotonic
|
| Total unadjusted error |
-0.1 min, ± 0.01 typ, 0.1 max %FSR
All ranges
|
| Unipolar offset error |
-0.03 min, ± 0.015 typ, 0.03 max %FSR
All unipolar ranges
|
| Unipolar zero-code error |
0 min, 0.04 typ, 0.1 max %FSR
All unipolar ranges
|
| Full-scale error |
-0.2 min, ± 0.075 typ, ± 0.2 max %FSR
All ranges
|
| Gain error |
-0.1 min, ± 0.02 typ, 0.1 max %FSR
All ranges
|
| Unipolar offset error drift |
±2 ppm of FSR/oC
Typ., all unipolar ranges
|
| Gain error drift |
±2 ppm of FSR/oC
Typ., all ranges
|
| Output voltage drift over time |
5 ppm of FSR
Typ., TA = 40 oC, full-scale code, 1900 hours
|
| Output Voltage Settling Time |
12 µs
Typ., ¼ to ¾ and ¾ to ¼ scale to ± 1 LSB, ±10 V range, RL = 5 k, CL = 200 pF
|
| Power-on glitch magnitude |
0.3 V
Typ., power-down to active DAC output, ±20 V range, midscale code, RL = 5 k, CL = 200 pF
|
| Output noise |
15 µV p-p
Typ., 0.1 Hz to 10 Hz, midscale code, 0 to 5 V range
|
| Output noise density |
78 nV/√Hz
Typ., 1 kHz, midscale code, 0 to 5 V range
|
| AC PSRR |
1 LSB/V
Typ., midscale code, 60 Hz, 200 mVpp superimposed on VDD, VCC or VSS
|
| DC PSRR |
1 LSB/V
Typ., midscale code, VDD = 5V, VCC = 20V ±5 %, VSS = 20V
|
| Code change glitch impulse |
4 nV-s
Typ., 1 LSB change around major carrier, 0 to 5 V range
|
| Channel to Channel AC crosstalk |
4 nV-s
Typ., 0 to 5 V range, measured channel at midscale, full-scale swing on all other channels
|
| Channel to Channel DC crosstalk |
0.25 LSB
Typ., 0 to 5 V range, measured channel at midscale, all other channels at full-scale
|
| Digital feedthrough |
1 nV-s
Typ., 0 to 5 V range, midscale code, FSCLK = 1 MHz
|
DAC Current Performance
| Resolution |
16 Bits
Min.
|
|---|---|
| Monotonicity |
16 Bits
Min.
|
| Differential Nonlinearity | ± 0.2 typ, ±1 max LSB |
| Integral Nonlinearity | ± 12 typ, ± 64 max LSB |
| Offset Error Current | ± 0.1 typ, ± 0.4 max %FSR |
| Gain Error |
± 0.3 typ, ± 0.9 max %FSR
300 mA range
|
| Total Unadjusted Error |
± 0.4 typ, ± 1.4 max %FSR
300 mA range
|
| Power Supply Rejection Ratio |
± 2.2 LSB
Typ., 100 mA; IOUT = 50 mA
|
| DC Crosstalk |
±14 LSB
Typ., due to 200 mW change in dissipated power
|
| VDROPOUT |
1.15 typ, 1.751 max V
300 mA range
|
| Hi-Z Output Leakage Current | 0.1 typ, 1 max µA |
| Settling time (tSET) |
4.7 µs
Typ., full-scale, 200 mA range
|
| Glitch Impulse |
180 pA.s
Typ., at mid-scale transition, 200 mA range
|
| DAC-to-DAC Crosstalk |
150 pA.s
Typ., 100 mA to 200 mA step, Rload = 15 Ω
|
| Output current noise density |
5 nA√Hz
Typ., f = 10 kHz, internal reference, Iout = 150 mA, Rload = 4 Ω, Cload = 10 µF
|
| Output current noise density |
0.5 nA√Hz
Typ., f = 100 kHz
|
| Output current noise density |
0.05 nA√Hz
Typ., f = 1 MHz
|
Voltage Control Resolution
| 0 – 40 V (34 V) range |
0.6 mV
Default range
|
|---|---|
| 0 – 20 V range |
0.3 mV
Premium
|
| 0 – 10 V range |
150 μV
Premium
|
| 0 – 5 V range |
76 μV
Premium
|
Current Control Resolution
| 0 – 300 mA range |
4.5 µA
Default range
|
|---|---|
| 0 – 200 mA range |
3.05 µA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 100 mA range |
1.52 µA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 50 mA range |
0.76 µA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 25 mA range |
0.38 µA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 12.5 mA range |
0.19 µA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 6.25 mA range |
95 nA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
| 0 – 3.125 mA range |
47 nA
Premium, firmware 4.1.1.1 and up
|
Measurement Configuration
| Averaging samples | 1, 4, 16, 64, 128, 256, 512, 1024 Samples |
|---|---|
| V and I ADC conversion time | 50 µS, 84 µS, 150 µS, 280 µS, 540 µS, 1052 µS, 2074 µS, 4120 µS |
Power Requirements
| DC Power Supply Input |
12 V to 36 V (≥1 A Current Compliance)
Manual: DC supply max 36 V, effective voltage output range 34 V; power up minimum 18 watt (36 V, 0.5 A power supply setting)
|
|---|---|
| Required Headroom |
1.4 – 2 V
Manual recommends supply voltage = maximum output + 3 V
|
Operating Conditions
| Room Temperature | 0 ~ 40 ºC |
|---|---|
| Humidity | 5 ~ 80 % (No Condensing) |
| Waterproof/Dustproof | To be operated under room condition |
| Calibration period | 2 years |
Interfaces
| Host interface | Ethernet port; USB 2.0 Ethernet network adaptor included |
|---|---|
| Other ports | USB 3.0, USB 2.0, GPIO |
|
Output connector
XDAC-8U-R4G8
|
Pin Output (8 channels) |
|
Output connector
XDAC-8U-R4G8-SMA
|
SMA and Pin Output (8 channels each) |
| Remote control | SCPI via ZMQ Req-Rep mode, port 5555 |
Software
| GUI operating systems | Windows 7 (32-bit, 64-bit), Windows 10 (32-bit, 64-bit), Windows 11 (64-bit), macOS Big Sur, Linux Ubuntu |
|---|---|
| Programming support |
SCPI command support (Python, C#, Matlab, and LabVIEW)
SCPI library is a Premium upgrade
|
Mechanical
|
Dimensions (H×W×L)
XDAC-8U-R4G8
|
61.1 × 106 × 164 mm |
|---|---|
|
Dimensions (H×W×L)
XDAC-8U-R4G8-SMA
|
91 × 141 × 187 mm
SMA manual states 141 (W) x 186.99 (L) x 91 (H) mm
|
| Weight |
0.8 kg
Male header and SMA versions
|
Compliance and Warranty
| Compliance | CE and RoHS Directive 2015/863 (RoHS3) |
|---|---|
| Warranty | 3-year limited warranty from the date of shipment |
Applications
- Photonic integrated circuit biasing
- Low-power electronic circuit sourcing and measurement
- Multichannel voltage and current biasing
- Automated voltage and current sweeps
- Laboratory test automation
Included
- XDAC-8U-R4G8 box
- DC power line cord (red, black), 2 pcs
- Ethernet cable
- USB 2.0 Ethernet network adaptor
- USB flash disk with GUI, specification and manual, test report, serial key (upgrade), XDAC key, software library (Premium) and CSV templates
Options & Accessories
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
| XDAC-8U-R4G8-BASIC | Male Header, Basic — Pin-header connector version with Basic software tier (fixed 0–34 V / 0–300 mA range) |
| XDAC-8U-R4G8-PREMIUM | Male Header, Premium — Pin-header connector version with Premium software features |
| XDAC-8U-R4G8-SMA-BASIC | SMA, Basic — SMA connector version (pin output also available) with Basic software tier |
| XDAC-8U-R4G8-SMA-PREMIUM | SMA, Premium — SMA connector version (pin output also available) with Premium software features |