Delta-sigma converters go beyond performing a simple analog-to-digital conversion. They have an oversampling mechanism, a modulator, and a digital filter. The oversampling mechanism spreads the noise power across a wider frequency range. The modulator shapes the low-frequency noise or pushes it out to higher frequencies. The digital filter averages the noise and eliminates it in the higher frequencies. The id eal successive-approximation-register and pipeline SNR (signal-to-noise ratio) is 6.02N+1.76 (Reference 1), where N is the number of converter bits. The delta-sigma-converter SNR is 6.02(N+NINC)+1.76, where N is the number of modulator bits and NINC, the increase in resolution, is:

　　In this formula, M is the order of the modulator, and K is the oversampling ratio during the conversion.

　　Ideally, the delta-sigma-converter SNR, with a first order modulator, is 6.02N+1.76–5.17+30log10OSR where OSR is the oversampling rate and N is the number of modulator bits—not converter bits (Figure 1).

　　These ideal formulas assume that the linearity, noise, and offset errors of the ADC and DAC—usually, 1-bit devices—are ideal and that the digital filter has an ideal brick-wall response. Actual delta-sigma converters are not as ideal as you would hope.

　　With these theories of the ideal, the best approach is still to rely on bench data for your converter performance. This data gives you a realistic view of the converter’s capabilities. On the bench, you can measure your converter’s rms noise by acquiring a few hundred samples of a dc-input signal. In this circumstance, the formula that describes any ADC SNR is 20log10(VRMS-FS/VRMS-NOISE).

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