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--- ice:ice_quickstart_guide [2021/11/23 16:26] – external edit 127.0.0.1
+++ ice:ice_quickstart_guide [2022/08/09 00:14] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1
@@ Line 24: / Line 24: @@
-<imgcaption ice_4_laser|The ICE Box controlling an atom-locked 4 laser system in maser/slave configuration>{{ :ice:ice_4-laser_system.png?400|}}</imgcaption>
+<imgcaption ice_4_laser|The ICE Box controlling an atom-locked 4 laser system in master/slave configuration>{{ :ice:ice_4-laser_system.png?400|}}</imgcaption>
@@ Line 31: / Line 31: @@
 =====Purchase Includes=====
-  * ICE-box Integrated Control Electronics Card Chassis
+  * ICE Box Integrated Control Electronics Card Chassis
-  * Some power cables probably?
+  * USB Type-B Cable
-  * Maybe some other stuff?
+  * Power Cable (if purchased with ICE PS2 Power Supply)
+  * All required connection cables for included ICE Cards.
@@ Line 49: / Line 50: @@
 ===== Getting Started =====
-After unpacking your ICE Box and [[https://vescent.com/us/ice-ps2-power-supply.html|ICE PS2 Power Supply]], you should begin by familiarizing yourself with the [[ice:ice_quickstart_guide#Rear_Panel|connections]] on the back of the box. The sections below will guide you through setting up the ICE box, and obtaining a lock to spectroscopy using the ICE box GUI. The laser system used in this example is a [[https://vescent.com/us/distributed-bragg-reflector-laser-module-at-standard-wavelengths.html|D2-100]] (780nm) DBR laser, and a [[https://vescent.com/us/d2-210-saturated-absorption-spectroscopy-module.html|D2-210]] (Rb) spectroscopy module.
+After unpacking your ICE Box and [[https://vescent.com/us/ice-ps2-power-supply.html|ICE PS2 Power Supply]], you should begin by familiarizing yourself with the [[ice:ice_quickstart_guide#Rear_Panel|connections]] on the back of the box. The sections below will guide you through setting up the ICE Box, and obtaining a lock to spectroscopy using the ICE Box GUI. The laser system used in this example is a [[https://vescent.com/us/distributed-bragg-reflector-laser-module-at-standard-wavelengths.html|D2-100]] (780nm) DBR laser, and a [[https://vescent.com/us/d2-210-saturated-absorption-spectroscopy-module.html|D2-210]] (Rb) spectroscopy module.
 ====Powering on the ICE Box====
-To power on the ICE box, connect the ICE PS2 power supply to a [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_electricity|mains power]] wall outlet, then connect the ICE box with the included power supply cable. Toggling the rocker switch on the back of the ICE PS2 power supply will turn the power supply on, after which the front rocker switch can be toggled to place the ICE system into standby mode. In standby mode, the ICE box is not powered on, but can activate either by [[ice:commands:master|serial API commands]], or by pressing the circular power button on the front of the ICE box. The four LEDs on the front of the ICE PS2 power supply indicate whether the ICE box is in standby mode (top LED on), or receiving full power (bottom three LEDs on).
+To power on the ICE Box, connect the ICE PS2 power supply to a standard wall outlet, then connect the ICE Box to the ICE PS2 power supply with the included power supply cable. Toggling the rocker switch on the back of the ICE PS2 power supply will turn the power supply on, after which the front rocker switch can be toggled to place the ICE system into standby mode. In standby mode, the ICE Box is not powered on, but can activate either by [[ice:commands:master|serial API commands]], or by pressing the circular power button on the front of the ICE Box. The four LEDs on the front of the ICE PS2 power supply indicate whether the ICE Box is in standby mode (top LED on), or receiving full power (bottom three LEDs on).
 ====Making Connections to a Laser System====
-The ICE-CS1 and ICE-QT1 boards each have two connections, and the ICE-PB1 board has four. Not all connectors on each card are used in the configuration described in this guide, but all connections on each card can be used at the same time. While the ICE box is fully powered off, connect the Hirose temperature control of the D2-100 to the "Ch 1 & 2" Hirose connector on the ICE-QT1 card using an 8-pin Hirose cable. Attach an SMA cable to the "Laser Out" SMA on the ICE-CS1 card, then remove the 50Ω shorting cap from the D2-100 and connect the SMA cable. Finally, connect the top 6-pin Hirose power connector on the ICE-PB1 card to the power connector of the D2-210 spectroscopy module. Power on the ICE system. Descriptions of each card can be found below.
+While the ICE Box is fully powered off, connect the temperature control of the D2-100 to the "Ch 1 & 2" Hirose connector on the ICE-QT1 card using an 8-pin Hirose cable. Attach an SMA cable to the "Laser Out" SMA on the ICE-CS1 card, then remove the 50Ω shorting cap from the D2-100 and connect the SMA cable to the laser. Finally, connect any of the 6-pin Hirose power connectors on the ICE-PB1 card to the power connector of the D2-210 spectroscopy module, and an SMA cable from the signal output of the D2-210 to the "Error In" connector on the CS1 card. Power on the ICE system. Descriptions of each card can be found below.
 ===ICE-QT1===
@@ Line 69: / Line 70: @@
 ===ICE-PB1===
-The ICE-PB1 board has Four 6-pin Hirose power connectors. A table of the connectors pinout can be found below. This ICE card is primarily used to power system auxiliaries, such as the D2-210 spectroscopy module, or the D2-260 beatnote detector. Each connector on the ICE-PB1 board can power one auxiliary device, allowing four devices per board.
+The ICE-PB1 board has Four 6-pin Hirose power connectors. This ICE card is primarily used to power system auxiliaries, such as the D2-210 spectroscopy module, or the D2-260 beatnote detector. Each connector on the ICE-PB1 board can power one auxiliary device, allowing four devices per board.
 <imgcaption pb1|The ICE PB1 Board>{{ :ice:ice-pb1.jpg?300 |}}</imgcaption>
 ====Installing and Using the ICE Control GUI====
-The ICE Control GUI can be found on our gethub page [[https://github.com/Vescent/ICE-GUI/releases/tag/V1.2|here]], and installed by scrolling to the bottom of the page and choosing between the three file formats. If you are using a Windows 10 machine, it will be easiest to download "ICE_Control_v1.2_32bit.zip", which includes an executable file. Once you have downloaded the .zip file, extract it to whichever directory will be most convenient to run an executable from. The executable must be left in the extracted folder, as it will have trouble finding some of its dependencies if you move it. It is important to note that you must both save the file (the Windows Default is to "Open" files), and also extract the file before the ICE Control GUI can be used. You will not be able to open the ICE Control GUI if you do not.
+<WRAP center round important 100%>This guide demonstrates interfacing with the ICE Box using the Vescent ICE GUI purely because it is a convenient visual aid. However, the official ICE GUI has several known issues and as such, we recommend that users primarily interface with ICE through the [[ice:commands:overview|Serial API command structure]]. The GUI should be used only at set up for basic confirmation that a system is working before transitioning to the use of Serial API commands.
+</WRAP>
+The ICE Control GUI can be found on our Github page [[https://github.com/Vescent/ICE-GUI/releases/tag/V1.2|here]], and installed by scrolling to the bottom of the page and choosing between the three file formats. If you are using a Windows 10 machine, it will be easiest to download "ICE_Control_v1.2_32bit.zip", which includes an executable file. Once you have downloaded the .zip file, extract it to whichever directory will be most convenient to run an executable from. The executable must be left in the extracted folder, as it will have trouble finding some of its dependencies if you move it. It is important to note that you must both save the file (the Windows Default is to "Open" files), and also extract the file before the ICE Control GUI can be used. You will not be able to open the ICE Control GUI if you do not perform both of these steps.
 <imgcaption github|The download page for the ICE Control GUI>{{ :ice:github_page.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
-Once you are finished downloading and unzipping, navigate to the extracted file and double click "ICE_Control", which should be an executable with the Vescent Logo as its icon. A blank command prompt window will appear, and the ICE Control GUI will take a minute or two to open. It is not necessary to type any commands into the command prompt window.
+Once you're finished downloading and unzipping, navigate to the extracted file and double click "ICE_Control", which should be an executable with the Vescent Logo as its icon. A blank command prompt window will appear, and the ICE Control GUI will take a minute or two to open. It is not necessary to type any commands into the command prompt window.
 <imgcaption blank_gui|The ICE Control GUI before Connecting to an ICE Box>{{ :ice:blank_gui.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
-Now that the ICE Control GUI is open, you must plug your powered on ICE box into your computer using a USB Type-B to USB Type-A adapter, and determine which COM port was assigned to it. To find the ICE box's COM port on Windows, type "Device Manager" into the search bar at the bottom of the screen, press enter, and then expand the "Ports (COM & LPT)" drop down menu (<imgref devices>). Unplug the USB cable from your ICE box and watch the list of COM ports to see which one disappears. Plug your ICE Box back in and observe the new COM port device appear in the menu. The COM port of each device is listed in paranthesis at the end of each line. Select the correct COM port from the Drop Down menu in the ICE Control GUI and press "Connect".
+Now that the ICE Control GUI is open, plug the powered on ICE Box into your computer using the included USB Type-B to USB Type-A cable and determine which COM port was assigned to it. To find the ICE Box's COM port on Windows, type "Device Manager" into the search bar at the bottom of the screen, press enter, and then expand the "Ports (COM & LPT)" drop down menu (<imgref devices>). Unplug the USB cable from your ICE Box and watch the list of COM ports to see which one disappears. Plug your ICE Box back in and observe the new COM port device appear in the menu. The COM port of each device is listed in parentheses at the end of each line. Select the correct COM port from the Drop Down menu in the ICE Control GUI and press "Connect".
 <imgcaption devices|Device Manager window highlighting the Ports drop down>{{ :ice:device_manager.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
@@ Line 88: / Line 93: @@
 The list of board slot numbers on the left hand side of the ICE Control GUI will illuminate, indicating which boards are installed. Boards can be selected from this list by clicking on the numbers to navigate to the control options for the corresponding ICE board.
 =====Locking a Laser to Spectroscopy=====
-After making all the necessary connections you will need to find spectroscopy. This can be done by setting the **Laser Current** to a value which gives the desired output power, and then modifying the setpoint temperature of the QT1 card. If using a D2-100 DBR laser purchased from Vescent, refer to the documentation which came with the laser to find the approximate Ch 2 setpoint. If your paperwork is unavailable, start with the temperature at 15°C and increase the setpoint slowly up to 30°C until spectroscopy is found. If using a 3rd party laser, refer to its documentation to find suggested transition setpoints.
+After making all the necessary connections you will need to find spectroscopy. This can be done by modifying the setpoint temperature of the QT1 card to the temperature specified in your lasers documentation. To do this, first ensure that the **T Min** and **T Max** temperatures are configured to safe values for your system, then click on the **TSet(C)** field to enter a new value with the keyboard. For the D2-100 it is recommended to set **Stage 1** (Top) to 25°C, and to keep **Stage 2** (Bottom) between 15°C and 30°C.
+<imgcaption temp_1|QT1 GUI showing TSet(C) and T Min/T Max locations>{{ :ice:ice_temp_1.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
+If using a D2-100 DBR laser purchased from Vescent, refer to the documentation which came with the laser to find the approximate **Stage 2** setpoint. Once the desired value is entered, click the **Servo: Off/On** button to engage the temperature servo. The **Temp(C)** field displays the measured temperature of the thermal plant, and **TError(mK)** displays the difference between **TSet(C)** and **Temp(C)** while the values are within the range of the monitor. **TError(mK)** is plotted in the graph below.
+<imgcaption temp_2|QT1 GUI showing engaged servo and live error graph>{{ :ice:ice_temp_2.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
+It is now safe to enable the laser on the CS1 card. Check that the current limit, and current setpoints are both within the specified range found in the laser documentation, then click the "Laser On/Off" button next to the current dial.
 <imgcaption step_1|Rb Spectroscopy (top) and Peak Lock Differential signal (bottom)>{{ :ice:ice_step_1.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
-Once spectroscopy has been found, turn **Ramp** on and align the feature you want to lock to with the center line on the GUI plots. You can do this either by changing the **Laser Current** supplied to the diode, or by shifting the **Center** dial in the **Ramp** box. Turning **Range** up and down will make your ramp amplitude larger or smaller and show you more or less of your spectroscopy. Whatever is lined up with the center line on the plots is the feature the ICE box will try to lock to. If you want to lock to a peak, align the top graph with the peak you want, and note that the bottom graph should be near the middle of a slope.
+If your D2-100 documentation is unavailable, start by enabling the **Ramp**, then  setting **Stage 2** to 15°C, engage the servo, then increase it 0.5°C at a time until spectroscopy is found or 30°C is reached. Assuming that the value of **Range** is non-zero, this should be a reliable method to find spectroscopy.
+Once spectroscopy has been found, align the feature you want to lock to with the center line on the GUI plots. You can do this either by changing the **Laser Current** supplied to the diode, or by shifting the **Center** dial in the **Ramp** box. Turning **Range** up and down will make your ramp amplitude larger or smaller and show you more or less of your spectroscopy. Whatever is lined up with the center line on the plots is the feature the ICE Box will try to lock to. If you want to lock to a peak, align the top graph with the peak you want, and note that the bottom graph's peak lock signal should be near the middle of a slope.
-<WRAP center round important 100%>The intuitive thing to do is to center right on the feature you want, but you actually want to be a little bit offset from that. The ICE box gives a slight kick when the servo is engaged, so if you're right on the center it will sometimes bump you over to the next peak. It doesn't matter which side you offset from (a little right or left will be fine) as long as you're still on the correct slope. It will always kick towards the center of the selected slope. It is recommend to aim for a roughly 5% offset from center when aligning the feature you wish to lock to.
+<WRAP center round important 100%>While it may be intuitive to center right on the feature you wish to lock to, it is better to center the feature with a small offset either to the right or the left. The ICE Box servo gives a slight kick when the it is engaged, so if your feature is perfectly centered it can sometimes bump over to the next peak. The servo will always kick towards the center of the selected slope. A roughly 5% offset from center when aligning the feature is ideal.
 </WRAP>
@@ Line 106: / Line 123: @@
-<imgcaption step_2|TEXT>{{ :ice:ice_step_2.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
+<imgcaption step_2|CS1 GUI showing the Ramp Box, and the Center Line to which the Servo Locks>{{ :ice:ice_step_2.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
 Engage the **Servo** button and watch the signals. The top graph should go to a value that corresponds to the feature you were trying to lock to, and the bottom graph should go to zero.
-<imgcaption step_3|TEXT>{{ :ice:ice_step_3.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
+<imgcaption step_3|When the ICE Box locks to spectroscopy, the top graph will flatten out at a DC offset corresponding to the locked feature (Yellow Line)>{{ :ice:ice_step_3.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
-If these do not happen, it might mean that your **Op Offset** and **Gain** settings are not optimal like in <imgref wrong_gain>. To optimize these, turn your gain down as low as it will go without losing lock, and then adjust the **Op Offset** so that the signal on the bottom graph goes to zero. You may not be able to get it exact due to the digitization of that setting, but there will be a setting for which it is closest and changing up or down will flip what side of the line you are on. Once you've done this, turn **Gain** back up until the signal looks nice. Getting **Gain** to the right setting is a little difficult to do with just the ICE box, but a good way to approximate it is to increase **Gain** until you lose lock, and then back off by ~40-50%. The optimal **Gain** setting ultimately comes down to your measurements of noise on externals such as a beat note between two lasers.
+If these do not happen, it might mean that your **Op Offset** and **Gain** settings are not optimal such as in <imgref wrong_gain>. To optimize these, turn your gain down as low as it will go without losing lock, and then adjust the **Op Offset** so that the signal on the bottom graph goes to zero. You may not be able to get it exact due to the digitization of that setting, but there will be a setting for which it is closest and changing up or down will flip what side of the line you are on. Once you've done this, turn **Gain** back up until the signal looks nice. Getting **Gain** to the right setting is a little difficult to do with just the ICE Box, but a good way to approximate it is to increase **Gain** until you lose lock, and then back off by ~40-50%. The optimal **Gain** setting ultimately comes down to your measurements of noise on externals such as a beat note between two lasers.
+<imgcaption wrong_gain|Demonstration of how incorrect Offset and Gain can affect your lock>{{ :ice:went_wrong_change_gain_and_op_offset.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
+Finally, if you are only seeing the spectroscopy on the top graph of the CP1 GUI, and not the peak lock signal on the bottom graph, or if your peak lock signal appears to be small or weak, it is likely that your Phase and Dither settings are incorrect. Generally, it is best to optimize the Phase setting by adjusting the corresponding dial on the GUI, and then minimizing your Dither such that you are still able to reliably lock to the desired feature. The 4MHz frequency dither which is used to generate the peak lock signal is written onto the D2-100 being controlled by the ICE box, so the smaller the dither amplitude can be the better.
+<WRAP center round important 100%>If using the mouse to drag the position of the GUI dials for dither and phase, note that the corresponding values are not updated until the mouse is released. For this reason, it's recommended that the + and - buttons on the face of the dial are used when attempting to optimize phase and dither.
+</WRAP>
-<imgcaption wrong_gain|TEXT>{{ :ice:went_wrong_change_gain_and_op_offset.png?400 |}}</imgcaption>
@@ Line 141: / Line 164: @@
-<WRAP center round important 100%>The DB-9 Connector (1) is **NOT** for powering the ICE box. Do not confuse it with the daisy chain power system used in the D2 product line. Attempting to use this connector for power may damage your ICE box.
+<WRAP center round important 100%>The DB-9 Connector (1) is **NOT** for powering the ICE Box. Do not confuse it with the daisy chain power system used in the D2 product line. Attempting to use this connector for power may damage your ICE Box.
 Use the D-Sub Combo Power Connector (5) and the ICE-PS2 power supply as described [[ice:ice_quickstart_guide#Powering On the ICE BOX|here]].