The effect of amplitude resolution and mismatch on a digital-to-analog converter used for digital harmonic-cancelling sine-wave synthesis

Pasindu Aluthwala, Neil Weste, Andrew Adams, Torsten Lehmann, Sri Parameswaran

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference proceeding contributionpeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Digital harmonic-cancelling sine-wave synthesizers (DHSSs) enable programmable, low cost, spectrally pure, sinusoidal signal synthesis for application areas such as communication systems, and on-chip testing of analog/mixed-signal integrated circuits. The implementation of a DHSS requires a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). However, unlike a conventional binary-coded DAC, the harmonic-cancelling DAC (HC-DAC) used in a DHSS scales the input digital signals by a set of irrational amplitude weights. Consequently, the conventional knowledge of how amplitude resolution affects a binary-coded DAC does not apply to HC-DACs. In this paper, we present a mathematical study of how amplitude resolution and unit-element mismatch affects the signal-todistortion (SDR) ratio of an HC-DAC. The results of the study show that it is possible to find a Pareto optimal value of amplitude resolution for a given HC-DAC with a target SDR. The values of SDR estimated from the mathematical model have been verified against circuit simulation results from two HC-DAC designs created using a 013 μm CMOS technology.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationISCAS 2016 - IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems
Place of PublicationPiscataway, NJ
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
Pages2018-2021
Number of pages4
ISBN (Electronic)9781479953400
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 29 Jul 2016
Externally publishedYes
Event2016 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, ISCAS 2016 - Montreal, Canada
Duration: 22 May 201625 May 2016

Other

Other2016 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, ISCAS 2016
Country/TerritoryCanada
CityMontreal
Period22/05/1625/05/16

Keywords

  • amplitude quantization
  • built-in-self-test
  • digital sinusoid oscillator
  • low harmonic distortion
  • signal generator

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The effect of amplitude resolution and mismatch on a digital-to-analog converter used for digital harmonic-cancelling sine-wave synthesis'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this