Comparative Evaluation of Xilinx RFSoC Platform for Low-Level RF Systems

TL;DR

The paper assesses the viability of Xilinx RFSoC platforms for low-level RF control in accelerator environments by performing a measurement-based comparison against conventional LLRF designs. Using a ZCU208 RFSoC with direct-sampling, it evaluates phase noise, DAC/ADC performance, crosstalk, and latency at a 4 GHz sampling rate, revealing that clocking optimization can dramatically reduce jitter to sub-100 fs levels. DAC and ADC characterizations indicate competitive SNR, SFDR, and ENOB with realistic loopback performance, while crosstalk remains comparable to traditional systems and latency is notably lower due to the elimination of IF stages. The study concludes that RFSoC architectures can deliver comparable stability and signal fidelity with reduced analog complexity, albeit with higher initial hardware costs and specialized development needs, guiding future LLRF system designs in accelerator facilities.

Abstract

The rapid advancement of Radio Frequency System-onChip (RFSoC) technology from Xilinx (AMD) has enabled the integration of high-speed data converters and programmable logic within a single package. RFSoC platforms are already widely adopted in telecommunications, radar, and satellite communications, where they promise reductions in system footprint and power consumption. However, their suitability for Low-Level RF (LLRF) control systems in accelerator environments - where stability requirements are critical - has not been quantitatively evaluated. This paper presents a comparative measurement-based assessment of RFSoC-based and conventional LLRF designs, focusing on signal fidelity, phase noise, latency, system complexity, and integration challenges. The advantages and challenges of adopting RFSoC-based direct conversion architectures are discussed, providing guidance for future LLRF system implementations.

Figures (8)

• Figure 1: Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC top-level architecture.
• Figure 2: Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC PL data path.
• Figure 3: Measured phase noise with different configurations.
• Figure 4: DAC spectrum output at 500 MHz.
• Figure 5: ADC power spectrum at 500 MHz.