opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

The official pyboard running MicroPython.
This is the reference design and main target board for MicroPython.
You can buy one at the store.
Target audience: Users with a pyboard.
chuckbook
Posts: 135
Joined: Fri Oct 30, 2015 11:55 pm

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by chuckbook » Mon Mar 05, 2018 7:09 pm

Hi Andre, I may have missed it but can you provide us with the content of your buf or content of step_b12.dat ?

andreo
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:46 pm
Location: Belgium

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by andreo » Mon Mar 05, 2018 7:58 pm

chuckbook,

These data are in the zip file on https://www.proximuscloud.be/web/app/sh ... 8s7ru3yYNX

Andre

User avatar
pythoncoder
Posts: 5956
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2014 8:01 am
Location: UK
Contact:

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by pythoncoder » Tue Mar 06, 2018 7:33 am

Hi Andre,
I'm afraid I'm foxed by this: I can neither replicate it nor identify a possible cause. Perhaps someone else will enlighten us and write a reproducible test case. Then we could fix it or raise an issue. I think it's unlikely to be a defective Pyboard but who knows?

I'll come back if I think of a fresh approach.

Regards, Pete
Peter Hinch
Index to my micropython libraries.

andreo
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:46 pm
Location: Belgium

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by andreo » Tue Mar 06, 2018 9:50 am

Hi Peter,

The mystery is still there...
(I got the same behavior with the DAC.triangle() function.)

It has been a pleasure to have your help and it definitively raised my interest in the pyboard.
I'll keep this one with my collectibles, with my old Apple II, a 1983 IBM PC, a prototype 8087...

As I'll explore more technical aspects of the pyboard, be sure we'll meet in another thread of the forum.

Best regards,

Andre

andreo
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:46 pm
Location: Belgium

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by andreo » Tue Mar 06, 2018 6:36 pm

Hi Peter,

Some news:
just reading the DAC registers with stm.mem32 changed the results !!!

the files are in https://www.proximuscloud.be/web/app/sh ... pijdmt6mbj

The 2 signals are (almost) as expected, but DAC 2 seems to use the analog buffer and has a reduced voltage.

Only explanation is that I have a pyboard with a Qubit.
Somebody replaced a good old normal 0/1 bit with a Qubit that can change value when reading it.
(beware theoretical physicists !)

Andre

chuckbook
Posts: 135
Joined: Fri Oct 30, 2015 11:55 pm

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by chuckbook » Wed Mar 07, 2018 9:50 am

This looks like a broken output buffer op-amp. The write_timed driver enables the output driver (inverting/scaling) per default.
This is ok for most use cases but using the output amp reduces max. conversion rate and the output has to be calibrated in order to achieve full precision. Of course it is possible to damage the output stage.
I don't know if it is possible to switch off output buffering with the default firmware. If it can be done it would be worth giving it try.
However, if precision is required I would always turn of internal buffering and use external components to reduce output impedance.

Unfortunately you may have to cancel your ticket to Stockholm as it is definitely not a Q-Bit :-)

andreo
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:46 pm
Location: Belgium

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by andreo » Wed Mar 07, 2018 11:04 am

Hi Peter and chuckbook,

I turned output buffering off with

Code: Select all

DAC_CR = 0x40007400
BOFF2 = 0x00020000
stm.mem32[DAC_CR] = stm.mem32[DAC_CR] | BOFF2
and it worked.

See RM0090 Reference manual
www.st.com/resource/en/reference_manual/dm00031020.pdf

Digital-to-analog converter (DAC) chapter 14 page 433
Bit 17 BOFF2: DAC channel2 output buffer disable
This bit is set and cleared by software to enable/disable DAC channel2 output buffer.
0: DAC channel2 output buffer enabled
1: DAC channel2 output buffer disabled
Andre

User avatar
pythoncoder
Posts: 5956
Joined: Fri Jul 18, 2014 8:01 am
Location: UK
Contact:

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by pythoncoder » Thu Mar 08, 2018 6:14 am

Hi Andre,
I'm aware of the output buffer. It is non-inverting. The main effect of using it is to restrict the maximum positive and negative excursion of the output, so with the buffer present the output typically lies in the range 0.2V to Vdd-0.2V. As @chuckbook says, an external buffer is best if you want low impedance and accuracy.

So I'm still foxed by the results you're getting. You could have a rare example of a defective board, but as a hardware fault an intermittent voltage inversion is a very odd failure mechanism.

Regards, Pete
Peter Hinch
Index to my micropython libraries.

chuckbook
Posts: 135
Joined: Fri Oct 30, 2015 11:55 pm

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by chuckbook » Thu Mar 08, 2018 9:06 am

Most likely the buffer op-amp of the port is damaged. This would explain the symptoms.
According to the sparse documentation of chip internals the output op-amp is indeed inverting and the DAC output is also (digital) inverted
if buffer mode is selected. So if the op-amp is broken an inverted (and probably reduced) voltage would be seen on the output pin.
Disabling buffered mode will isolate the op-amp and give correct (but high impedance) results.

andreo
Posts: 13
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2018 6:46 pm
Location: Belgium

Re: opposite polarities on the 2 DACs

Post by andreo » Thu Mar 08, 2018 3:01 pm

Hi Peter and chuckbook,

chuckbook wrote
Most likely the buffer op-amp of the port is damaged. This would explain the symptoms.
On top of that, my pyboard doesn't behave the same way as when I signalled the problem and is somewhat erratic.

After resetting the board and restarting, it seems DAC 2 is going thru the buffer.
DAC 1 is never using the buffer.

After setting the BOFF2 bit I get the correct signals: both the same.

DAC 2 with buffer is random, on one of the tests, inversion is clear.

Code: Select all

dac1.write_timed(buf, tim_dac, mode=DAC.CIRCULAR)  
dac2.write_timed(buf, tim_dac, mode=DAC.CIRCULAR)

DAC_CR = 0x40007400
BOFF1 = 0x00000002
BOFF2 = 0x00020000

for n in range(10):
    utime.sleep_ms(2000)
    stm.mem32[DAC_CR] = stm.mem32[DAC_CR] | BOFF1
    stm.mem32[DAC_CR] = stm.mem32[DAC_CR] | BOFF2 
    utime.sleep_ms(2000)
    stm.mem32[DAC_CR] = stm.mem32[DAC_CR] & (BOFF1 ^ 0xffffffff)
    stm.mem32[DAC_CR] = stm.mem32[DAC_CR] & (BOFF2 ^ 0xffffffff)
Thanks to the faulty board and to both of you I learned quite a few things...
Looking forward to learn some ARM assembler on the pyboard too.
(don't worry for my mental health, I have written a lot of KLOCs of IBM/360, 6502, 8086, HP 2114B assembler in the past, it couldn't get worse)

Andre
Attachments
Screenshot at 2018-03-08 10-53-00.png
Screenshot at 2018-03-08 10-53-00.png (63.33 KiB) Viewed 6185 times
Screenshot at 2018-03-08 15-15-01.png
Screenshot at 2018-03-08 15-15-01.png (66.17 KiB) Viewed 6185 times

Post Reply