libAlazar

This library wraps the AlazarTech ATS9870 shared library in a simplified interface appropriate for multi-segment edge-triggered experiments. It also provides averaging capability around inner (waveforms) or outer (round robins) loops. Data is passed to the user application through a socket interface, which is capability of very large bandwidth and is compatible with many event interfaces through OS file/socket watchers.

Build Status

Build Instructions

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ATS9870 DLL and SDK

Building libAlazar requires a license and copy of the AlazarTech ATS-SDK. For local users (at BBN), the SDK header files will be downloaded automatically by the build script. For external users, you must provide cmake a path where it can find the ATS-SDK header files via -DALAZAR_INCLUDE_PATH=/path/to/AlazarApi.h.

We provide an ATS API simulator for testing on machines that do not have an ATS9870 installed. Build the simulator and link libAlazar to it by passing -DSIM=true to cmake. To build a production version of libAlazar, the AtsApi shared library must be on the path.

Other notes:

• Tested using version 6.0.3 of the Alazar ATS-SDK
• Tested using version 5.10.6 of the Alazar ATS9870 DLL.
• Build assumes the AST9870 shared library is available on the path (e.g. it is installed in C:\Windows\System32)

Windows

Internally, we build libAlazar for windows in an msys2 environment.

Dependencies:

• pacman -S make
• pacman -S mingw64/mingw-w64-x86_64-cmake
• pacman -S mingw64/mingw-w64-x86_64-gcc

Instructions:

git submodule update --init
mkdir build
cd build
cmake -G "MSYS Makefiles"  ../
make install

NOTE:

1. Uses default values for SIM=false and LOG_LEVEL=2 (INFO)

2. Use -D option in cmake line to change from defaults.

   For example:

   cmake -G "MSYS Makefiles" -DSIM=true -DLOG_LEVEL=3 ../
   

Ubuntu 14.04.1 LTS

Dependencies:

Install cmake

sudo apt-get install cmake

Download and install Anaconda

bash Anaconda3-4.2.0-Linux-x86_64.sh

Instructions

Use cmake to build - the ATS simulator is used in Linux for CI.

git submodule update --init
mkdir build
cd build
cmake -DSIM=true ../
make install
./bin/unittest
cd ../src/python
python test_alazar_driver.py

OSX

The process is very similar to linux.

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Library version

Uses the most recent git tag and SHA1. Format is:

v<MAJOR>.<MINOR>.<PATCH>-<commits since tag>-<git sha1>[-<dirty>]

If present, "dirty" indicates that the code was built from a branch with uncommitted code.

Matlab Driver

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Windows 7/10

The TDM-GCC-64 Compiler can be used to build the thunk file. This can be added as a Matlab package:

• http://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/matlab_external/install-mingw-support-package.html

Set the MW_MINGW64_LOC environment variable to point to your TDM-GCC-64 or mingw-w64 gcc from msys2:

• http://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/matlab_external/compiling-c-mex-files-with-mingw.html

macOS

MATLAB works with the XCode command line tools. You should be prompted to install the required components if you simply execute clang at a shell.

Rebuilding the thunk File

>> cd src/matlab
>> [~,~]=loadlibrary('libAlazar.dll','libAlazarAPI.h','mfilename','libAlazar_pcwin64.m');

Then commit

• libAlazar_pcwin64.m
• libAlazar_thunk_pcwin64.dll
• loadLibAlazar.m

License

Licensed under the Apache License v2.

Funding

This software was funded in part by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA), through the Army Research Office contract No. W911NF-10-1-0324 and No. W911NF-14-1-0124. All statements of fact, opinion or conclusions contained herein are those of the authors and should not be construed as representing the official views or policies of IARPA, the ODNI, or the US Government.