AD/DA conversion

Which metric converts the performance of a real AD converter, including noise and distortion, into the bit count of an ideal ADC?

  1. AENOB (effective number of bits)
  2. BLSB
  3. CDNL
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Answer: A. ENOB (effective number of bits)

ENOB (effective number of bits) is calculated from the measured SINAD (signal-to-noise-and-distortion ratio) as ENOB = (SINAD − 1.76) / 6.02. Even a 12-bit ADC may have an ENOB of about 10 bits because of noise and distortion, so ENOB is used to compare real-world performance.

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More AD/DA conversion questions

  1. Which AD converter splits conversion into several stages processed like an assembly line, combining high speed with medium to high resolution?
  2. With simple oversampling and no noise shaping, how much does quantization noise improve when the sampling frequency is quadrupled?
  3. Why does timing fluctuation (jitter) of the sampling clock become a problem when converting high-frequency signals?
  4. When a microcontroller produces an analog voltage by passing a PWM signal through a low-pass filter, what determines the output voltage?
  5. What does 'MS/s (MSPS)', used to express the conversion speed of an AD converter, mean?