Analog-to-Digital Converters

At a glance

• Type: Lecture (2420000032) with exercises (2420000033)
• Cycle: every winter semester
• Scope: 2 contact hours lecture per week plus exercises
• Language: English
• Examination: oral exam
• Prerequisites: lectures on analog design and introduction to CMOS
• Programmes: Master Electrical Engineering and Master Industrial Engineering/Electrical Engineering (specialisation Information Technology), Master Microelectronics Engineering
• Lecturer: Prof. Dr. Thomas Kämpfe
• Registration and materials: Stud.IP

Contents

• Introduction: information representation and communication, abstraction, categorisation and symbolic representation, basic conversion algorithms, data converter applications, trade-offs among key parameters, ADC taxonomy
• Dual-slope and successive approximation register (SAR) converters: dual-slope principle, SAR operating principle, implementation with a capacitive array, range extension with a segmented array
• Algorithmic and pipelined A/D converters: algorithmic conversion principle, sample-and-hold stage, pipelined converter, multiplying DAC, flash sub-ADC and n-bit MDAC, redundancy and error correction
• Performance metrics and non-linearity: ideal ADC, offset and gain error, differential and integral non-linearity, capacitor mismatch and its impact on SAR ADC performance
• Flash, folding and interpolating converters: flash principle, thermometer-to-binary coding, sparkle correction, folding principle and residue extraction, folding amplifiers, cascaded folding and interpolation
• Noise in analog-to-digital converters: types of noise, noise calculation in electronic circuits, kT/C noise, sampled noise, noise analysis in switched-capacitor circuits, aperture uncertainty and sampling jitter
• Delta-sigma converters: linearity and resolution, from delta to delta-sigma modulation, first- and second-order modulators, higher-order modulation, clock jitter and SNR, design procedure for single-loop modulators
• Digital-to-analog converters: current-scaling D/A converters, current-steering DACs, calibration for improved performance

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing the module, students understand the principles and implementation of analog-to-digital converters as an important circuit block in mixed-signal design. They know how to implement these converters in hardware and can select and evaluate architectures with respect to resolution, speed, noise and power consumption.

Literature

• R. J. Baker, CMOS Circuit Design, Layout, and Simulation, 2nd edition, Wiley Interscience, Hoboken, 2005

Dates and registration

Winter semester 2026/27: lecture Fridays 11:30 to 13:00 and exercises Fridays 13:15 to 14:45, lecture hall HS 66.1 (Hans-Sommer-Strasse 66). Registration is via Stud.IP.