Measurement software based on QCoDeS, developed in University of Washington physics.

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MeasureIt is a measurement software package built on top of QCoDeS for physics experiments. The architecture follows these key patterns:

• Sweep-based Measurement System: The core abstraction is the BaseSweep class with specialized implementations (Sweep0D, Sweep1D, Sweep2D) for different dimensional measurements
• Qt-based Threading: Uses PyQt5 with separate threads for data acquisition (RunnerThread) and plotting (PlotterThread)
• Driver Layer: Custom instrument drivers in the Drivers/ module that interface with various lab equipment
• Notebook Workflow: Designed for Jupyter/CLI usage; PyQt5 powers background threading and signaling
• Data Management: Integration with QCoDeS for data storage and experiment management

• Base Classes: BaseSweep provides the foundation with parameter following, measurement creation, and thread management
• Measurement Types:
  • 0D (time-based measurements)
  • 1D (single parameter sweep)
  • 2D (dual parameter sweep)
• Queue System: SweepQueue for batch experiment execution
• Real-time Plotting: Live data visualization during measurements
• Station Management: QCoDeS Station integration for instrument management

src/measureit/
    sweep/             # Measurement implementations
    base_sweep.py      # Core sweep functionality
    tools/             # Data utilities and sweep helpers
    Drivers/           # Instrument drivers
    visualization/     # Plotting helpers

• Python 3.8+
• Git
• NI DAQmx drivers: http://www.ni.com/en-us/support/downloads/drivers/download/unpackaged.ni-daqmx.291872.html
• NI VISA package: http://www.ni.com/download/ni-visa-18.5/7973/en/

pip install qmeasure

Note: The package is installed as qmeasure, but you import it as measureit:

import measureit  # Import name stays the same

git clone https://github.com/nanophys/MeasureIt.git
cd MeasureIt
pip install -e .

MeasureIt (installed as qmeasure) stores databases, logs, and configuration files. You have three options:

Data is automatically stored in OS-appropriate locations:

• Linux: ~/.local/share/measureit/
• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/measureit/
• Windows: C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\measureit\

export MEASUREIT_HOME="/path/to/your/data"  # Linux/macOS
set MEASUREIT_HOME="C:\path\to\data"        # Windows

import measureit
measureit.set_data_dir('/custom/path')

cd /path/to/MeasureIt
git pull
pip install -e . --upgrade

• ipykernel 7.0.x has a dormant event-loop bug that prevents the Qt/pyqtgraph plotter from updating. Stick to ipykernel>=6.29 (or the newer 7.1+ series).

It is useful to first create a conda environment to manage all the required packages for this package to work. First, download some form of conda (Miniforge3 is strongly recommended since it comes with mamba):

• Download Miniforge: https://github.com/conda-forge/miniforge
• Download Anaconda: https://www.anaconda.com/download/
• Download Miniconda: https://docs.conda.io/projects/miniconda/en/latest/miniconda-install.html

import measureit
from qcodes import Station

# Create a station and add instruments
station = Station()
# ... add your instruments ...

# Choose where databases should be stored (optional)
measureit.set_data_dir("/path/to/measureit-data")

# Create a 1D sweep
sweep = measureit.Sweep1D(
    set_param=dac.voltage,
    start=0,
    stop=1,
    step=0.01,
    inter_delay=0.1
)

# Follow parameters to measure
sweep.follow_param(dmm.voltage, lockin.x)

# Start the measurement
sweep.start()

• All sweeps and the SweepQueue now log status messages to timestamped files in the MeasureIt data directory's logs/ folder (see Data Directory Configuration above). Each run creates a file named sweeps_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.log that captures info/warning/error messages.

• To mirror those messages inside Jupyter notebooks, attach the notebook handler once per kernel:

  from measureit import attach_notebook_logging
  
  attach_notebook_logging()

  The handler safely marshals log output from background Qt threads back into the notebook cell output, so database switches and sweep transitions are visible while the queue runs.

# Install documentation dependencies
uv pip install -e ".[docs]"  # or pip install -e ".[docs]"

# Build HTML documentation
cd docs/source
make html

The documentation is located in the docs/source directory. The built documentation will be in docs/source/_build/html/.

Visit our online documentation for detailed guides and API reference.

MeasureIt includes a comprehensive test suite to ensure reliability and correctness.

# Install development dependencies
pip install -e ".[dev,jupyter]"

# Run all tests
pytest

# Run with coverage report
pytest --cov=src/measureit --cov-report=html

# Run specific test categories
pytest tests/unit -v           # Unit tests only
pytest tests/integration -v    # Integration tests only
pytest -m "not slow"           # Skip slow tests

# Run tests with Qt debugging
export PYTEST_QT_API=pyqt5
export QT_LOGGING_RULES="*.debug=true"
pytest tests/integration -v -s

• tests/unit/: Fast, isolated unit tests for individual components
• tests/integration/: Tests for component interactions (Qt threads, signals)
• tests/e2e/: End-to-end tests for complete workflows
• tests/stress/: Performance and stress tests

MeasureIt uses:

• pytest with pytest-qt for Qt event loop handling
• pytest-cov for coverage reporting
• Mock QCoDeS instruments for hardware-independent testing
• Temporary databases and isolated MEASUREIT_HOME per test

All tests run automatically on:

• Multiple Python versions (3.8-3.12)
• Multiple operating systems (Linux, Windows, macOS)
• Every push and pull request

See TODO_CI_test_plan.md for detailed testing strategy.

We welcome contributions! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md for detailed information about:

• Setting up a development environment
• Code quality standards and tools
• Testing guidelines
• Documentation standards
• Submitting pull requests

For quick development setup:

# Clone and set up development environment
git clone https://github.com/nanophys/MeasureIt
cd MeasureIt
uv pip install -e ".[dev,docs,jupyter]"  # or pip install -e ".[dev,docs,jupyter]"

# Run tests to verify setup
pytest tests/unit -v

David Cobden's lab

Xiaodong Xu's lab

Pablo Jarillo-Herrero's lab

Long Ju's lab