Agilent Technologies Signal Analyzer N9030a - Manual (Page 1388)

6 RLC Swept SA Measurement Front-Panel & SCPI Reference
Trace/Detector
More Information
The format and byte-ordering of the sent or received data depend on the settings controlled by the
FORMat:DATA
and FORMat:BORDer commands. ASCII data consists of a string of comma
separated values. REAL or INTeger data is sent as a definite length block, with a header
describing the data to follow.
For example, a four point trace might look like this if in ASCII (FORMat:DATA ASCIi):
–5.87350E+01, –5.89110E+01, –5.87205E+01, –5.12345E+01
and like this if in INTeger with 4 bytes per point (FORMat:DATA INT,32):
#216<16 bytes of data>
where the 2 in the #216 means “2 digits of numeric data to follow”, and the 16 is the 2 digits and
means “16 binary bytes to follow” (this is the definite length block format).
Note that the data is terminated with . (For GPIB this is newline, or linefeed, followed
by EOI set true. For LAN, this is newline only.)
The data format set by FORMat:DATA and FORMat:BORDer is used both for sending data to the
instrument and receiving data from the instrument.
When sending data to the instrument, the data block must contain exactly the number of points
currently specified in Sweep, Points or an error message will be generated and there will be no
change to the target trace.
No units terminator (for example, dB or V) is used when sending data; the data is taken as being
in the current Y Axis Unit of the analyzer.
When a trace is sent to the instrument, it immediately overwrites all of the data in the target
trace. Consequently the trace should be inactive in order to achieve predictable results. If you
send trace data while a trace is active, and particularly if a sweep or an Average or Max/Min Hold
sequence is already in progress, you may end up with a trace that combines the data you sent
with measurement data. Similarly, when querying trace data, it is best if the instrument is not
sweeping during the query.
Therefore, it is generally advisable to be in Single Sweep, or have the trace in View, when sending
trace data to the instrument or querying trace data from the instrument.
Smooth Trace Data (Remote Command Only)
Included for ESA compatibility. Not recommended for new designs. Use the command
CALCulate:DATA:COMPress instead.
1388 Remote Language Compatibility Measurement Application Reference