A/D Converter Calculations for RF Applications


These equations predict the RF electrical performance of Analog-to-Digital Converters. Since A/D converters are often the last stage in a receiver chain, it is extremely useful to be able to predict the contribution for noise figure, jitter, dynamic range, etc., since those values are needed for a complete cascade analysis. Be sure to note units both for the input parameters and for the equations, or you will end up with really bad results.

At the bottom of the page is an interactive calculator based on the Microsoft Office Web Components  (OWC), which allows an Excel spreadsheet to be embedded on the page.





A/D input full-scale power equation   A/D input full-scale power
VariableDefinition
VFSFull-scale peak input voltage
JitterAperture jitter time
"q" LevelsNumber of "q" levels
FAnalogSampled analog input signal frequency
PFSFull-scale input power
P1qPower of one "q" level
DRDynamic range
VFSFull scale input voltage
V1qInput voltage at one "q" levels
VnqInput voltage at "n" quantization ("q") levels
# of bitsTotal number of bits
PJitterPower in aperture jitter
SNRSignal-to-noise ratio

Note: Thanks to John P. for pointing out jitter power equation discrepancy that omitted the input resistance.

Power of one "q" level equation  Power of one "q" level
Dynamic range equation  Dynamic range
A/D input full-scale rms voltage equation  A/D input full-scale rms voltage
One “q” level at peak voltage equation  One “q” level at peak voltage
One “q” level at peak voltage in rms equation  Same as above, in rms
Voltage level at “n” quantization (“q”) levels equation  Voltage level at “n” quantization (“q”) levels
Voltage level at “n” quantization (“q”) levels in rms equation  Same as above, in rms
Power of “n” quantization (“q”) levels equation  Power of “n” quantization (“q”) levels
Input dynamic range for “N” bits equation  Input dynamic range for “N” bits
Jitter power equation  Jitter power
Signal-to-noise ratio equation  Signal-to-noise ratio

This calculator uses the above equations
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Webmaster: Kirt Blattenberger, BSEE, UVM 1989