A desktop application built with C++ and Qt 5.15+ up to Qt6.9+ for visualizing and analyzing phase noise data from CSV files.
It is fully tested and compatible with native csv files from the amazing PN2060C Phase Noise Analyzer https://qsl.net/bg6khc/pn2060c_phase_noise_analyzer.htm
- Load Multiple CSV Files: Load and visually compare phase noise data from one or more CSV files.
- Each file is plotted as a separate trace with a distinct color.
- Optional reference noise data (if present in the 3rd column) is also plotted.
- Interactive Plot:
- Logarithmic frequency axis (Hz, kHz, MHz) with SI unit prefixes.
- Linear phase noise axis (dBc/Hz).
- Zooming (mouse wheel or right-click drag) and Panning (left-click drag).
- Home button to reset the view.
- Legend Control:
- Click legend items to toggle the visibility (enable/disable) of corresponding data traces. Disabled traces are indicated by strikethrough text.
- Right-click legend items to open a context menu to permanently remove a dataset from the current view.
- Visual Customization:
- Switch between Light and Dark themes.
- Toggle visibility of the main data grid.
- Toggle visibility of reference noise plots.
- Toggle visibility of spot noise markers and the spot noise table.
- Change the color of the spot noise markers via a color dialog.
- Data Analysis Tools:
- Crosshair Cursor: Displays the frequency and phase noise values of the data point nearest the mouse cursor.
- Measurement Tool: Click two points on the plot to display the frequency/noise coordinates of both points, the delta dBc/Hz between them, and the approximate slope in dB/decade.
- Spot Noise: Automatically calculates and displays phase noise values at standard frequency offsets (0.1 Hz, 1 Hz, 10 Hz, ..., 10 MHz) based on the first visible dataset. Markers and labels are shown on the plot.
- Spot Noise Table: Displays the calculated spot noise values in a table overlay on the plot.
- Data Filtering: Apply Moving Average, Median, or Savitzky-Golay filters to smooth the data (applied to all loaded datasets simultaneously). Adjustable window size (odd numbers only).
- Spur Removal: Basic algorithm to identify and interpolate over potential spurs in the measured data, using the reference noise data (if available for a dataset) as a baseline.
- Data Export:
- Save the current plot view as PNG, PDF, JPG, or BMP image. Customizable DPI for raster formats.
- Export the processed (filtered/spur-removed if active) phase noise data (all loaded datasets) to a new CSV file.
- Export the calculated spot noise data (from the first visible dataset) to a CSV file.
- Command Line Interface:
- Load initial CSV file(s) (
-ior--input, can be used multiple times). - Enable dark theme on startup (
--dark-theme). - Set output image DPI (
--dpi). - Optionally disable plotting reference noise by default (
--noplotref). - Standard
--helpand--versionoptions.
- Load initial CSV file(s) (
The application expects simple CSV (Comma Separated Values) or text files where data is separated by commas or whitespace.
- Minimum: Two columns are required:
- Frequency Offset (Hz) - Must be positive for log scale.
- SSB Phase Noise (dBc/Hz)
- Optional: A third column can contain: 3. Reference Noise Level (dBc/Hz) - Used for spur removal and optional display.
- Lines starting with
#or;are treated as comments and ignored. - Empty lines are skipped.
- Non-numeric data or lines with insufficient columns will be skipped (a warning may be printed to the console/debug output).
Example:
# Phase Noise Data Example
# Frequency(Hz),Measured(dBc/Hz),Reference(dBc/Hz)
0.1,-45.2,-55.0
1,-75.8,-80.5
10,-102.1,-105.3
100,-125.6,-128.0
1000,-140.0,-142.1
10000,-155.3,-156.0
# Spur example
15000,-110.5,-155.5
20000,-155.8,-155.8
100000,-160.1,-160.0
1000000,-162.5,-162.0
10000000,-163.0,-163.5
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Qt Framework: Version 5.15.x or later (tested with 5.15.2 and Qt 6.9.0). Ensure the QtWidgets and QtPrintSupport modules are installed.
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C++ Compiler: A C++11 compatible compiler (e.g., GCC, Clang, MSVC).
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QCustomPlot: The source code (qcustomplot.cpp and qcustomplot.h) is included directly in the project. No separate installation is needed.
-
Software Qt Creator 16.x (to build the code)
- For development I use Qt Creator which compile the code with Visual Studio 2019 Community with static build of Qt 5.x (to avoid any external dependencies)
- To do a static build of Qt 5.15.2 (with Visual Studio 2019) see Build_Qt5_15_2_msvc2019_64bits.md
- The code build and work (with few warnings) with Qt 6.9.0
- Tested on Windows 11 Pro with Visual Studio 2019 & 2022 / MinGW 64bits(mingw1310_64) / MinGW Clang 64bits(llvm-mingw1706_64)
- Tested on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
- For development I use Qt Creator which compile the code with Visual Studio 2019 Community with static build of Qt 5.x (to avoid any external dependencies)
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Clone the Repository:
git clone <repository-url> cd pna_qt
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Open the Project: Open the pna_qt.pro file in Qt Creator.
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Configure Project: Select the appropriate Kit (compiler and Qt version).
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Build: Build the project (usually Build -> Build Project "pna_qt" or Ctrl+B).
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Run: Run the application from Qt Creator (Ctrl+R) or find the executable in the build directory.
Alternatively, you can build from the command line:
cd pna_qt
qmake pna_qt.pro # Or path/to/qt/bin/qmake
make # Or nmake on Windows with MSVC, or mingw32-make with MinGWThe executable will typically be located in a build subdirectory (e.g., build-pna_qt-.../).
Launch the executable.
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File Menu:
- Open CSV...: Load one or more CSV files. New files are appended to the existing view.
- Save Plot...: Save the current plot image.
- Export Data...: Export processed data for all loaded files to a single CSV.
- Export Spot Noise Data...: Export calculated spot noise table.
- Exit: Close the application.
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View Menu: Control visibility of themes, reference noise, spot noise markers/table.
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Tools Menu: Enable/disable Crosshair, Measurement Tool, Filtering, and Spur Removal.
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Toolbar: Quick access to common actions (Open, Save, Theme, Tools, Home View, Pan/Zoom).
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Plot Controls Panel (Dock Widget):
- Active Curve dropdown list to select the active curve (used for Spot Noise Points/Spot Noise Table/Crosshair).
- Adjust Y-axis (Phase Noise) range limits.
- Adjust X-axis (Frequency) range limits using sliders corresponding to standard decades.
- Checkboxes for toggling Reference Noise, Spot Noise (Points/Table), Grid, Dark Theme, Spur Removal.
- Button to change Spot Noise color.
- Controls for enabling/configuring Data Filtering (Type, Window Size).
- Buttons for exporting data.
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Plot Area:
- Pan: Left-click and drag (when Pan/Zoom tool is active).
- Zoom: Mouse wheel (when Pan/Zoom tool is active).
- Legend Click: Toggle visibility of the corresponding dataset.
- Legend Right-Click: Show context menu to remove the dataset.
- Measurement: Left-click start point, left-click end point (when Measurement tool is active).
- Crosshair: Move mouse over plot (when Crosshair tool is active).
pna_qt [options]Options:
-h, --help: Displays help message.-v, --version: Displays version information.-i <csv_filename>, --input <csv_filename>: Path to input CSV file(s). Can be specified multiple times to load multiple files.--noplotref: Do not plot reference noise by default, even if available.--dark-theme: Use dark theme on startup.--dpi <dpi>: DPI for output raster images (default: 150).
Example:
./pna_qt -i data1.csv -i data2.csv --dark-theme --dpi 300- Qt Framework (5.15+): Core, GUI, Widgets, PrintSupport and svg modules.
- QCustomPlot (2.1.1): Included directly (Copyright (C) 2011-2022 Emanuel Eichhammer).
This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program. If not, see http://www.gnu.org/licenses/.
QCustomPlot is licensed under the GPLv3 license.
For more details on GPLv3 license see https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html
- Benjamin VERNOUX - https://github.com/bvernoux
Feel free to open issues or submit pull requests.