A DAC error measurement apparatus includes: an ADC and a feedback DAC, where a measurement input of the ADC includes a square wave signal with a constant frequency, a direct-current signal at a constant logical level, and an analog output of the feedback DAC; a measurement selection module, configured to provide a measured digit in a digital output to a separately selected source cell, and provide remaining digits in the digital output to remaining source cells, where the measured digit is a flippable digit, and the remaining digits are non-flipping digits; and a measurement module, configured to measure an amplitude of the digital output based on the digital output. One flipping digit in the digital output is the measured digit, and the remaining digits are the non-flipping digits, such that the measurement selection module may separately select one source cell to receive the measured digit.

System and method for processing a signal sampled from an output of a digital-analog converter. The method comprises: (a) transforming the input signal from time domain to frequency domain to obtain a signal having a plurality of bins; (b) estimating properties of a largest amplitude bin, except for direct current (DC) bin, in the input signal; (c) performing signal reconstruction in time domain based on the estimated properties to generate a reconstructed signal; (d) subtracting the estimated signal from the input signal to get a residual signal; (e) repeating steps (a)-(d) till a predetermined number of bins have been processed; (f) adding all the reconstructed signals and the last residual signal together to generate a sum signal; and (g) transforming the sum signal from the time domain to the frequency domain.

A failure determination device: acquires a second digital value indicating a difference between an analog electrical output generated by inputting a first digital value incremented at a first time interval to a DA conversion circuit and a target output indicated by the first digital value at a second time interval; and determines whether the DA conversion circuit has a failure based on a signal strength in a predetermined frequency of the second digital value that is a discrete signal.

Approaches provide for calibrating high speed analog-to-digital converters (ADCs). For example, a calibration signal can be applied to parallel ADCs. The output of the parallel ADCs can be analyzed using a gradient-based optimization approach or other such optimization approach to determine optimized gain error calibration data to compensate for gain mismatch in and between individual parallel time-interleaved ADCs and to determine time-offset calibration data to compensate for timing errors in and between individual parallel time-interleaved ADCs. For example, once a calibration signal is applied to an ADC, the output of the ADC can be analyzed to determine a spectrum of the calibration signal. One or more images (e.g., phasors) of the spectrum can be determined and used to determine initial values of the optimization. Thereafter, the optimization approach can be utilized to determine optimized gain error calibration data and optimized time-offset calibration data, which can be stored and/or used to calibrate individual time-interleaved ADCs.

A method and system for calibrating a time-interleaved digital to analog converter (DAC) provides equalization of frequency response misalignments in sub-DACs forming the DAC. In a calibration mode, test signals are applied to an DAC and output amplitudes and phases of are measured. From the measured values, complex values of the gains of the respective sub-DACs. h.sub.m(F) are determined and a specified target frequency response T(F) for a tandem connection equalizer-DAC is determined. For each of a plurality of test frequencies, complex values of equalizer gains Eq.sub.m are determined from Eq.sub.m(F)=T(F)/h.sub.m(F), to form equalizing frequency responses. Sets of equalizing coefficients C.sub.m(p) pursuant to discrete Fourier transforms on Eq.sub.m(F). In an operation mode, a digital input signal is transformed input into an equalized digital signal E(n) through use of the sets of equalizing coefficients C.sub.m(p).

Disclosed examples include a method and automated test system for testing an ADC. The method includes computing an ADC noise value based on a first set of data values sampled while the ADC input terminals are shorted, computing a first system noise value based on a second set of data values sampled while a test circuit signal source applies zero volts to the ADC through a signal chain, computing a signal chain noise value based on the first system noise value and the ADC noise value, computing a measured SNR value based on a third set of data values sampled while the test circuit signal source applies a non-zero source voltage signal to the signal chain, computing a second system noise value based on the measured SNR value, and computing an ADC SNR value based on the second system noise value and the signal chain noise value.

A test and measurement instrument includes one or more channels to receive a signal under test, each channel comprising an input port, a filter, and a sampler, at least one analog-to-digital converter (ADC), the at least one ADC having two pipes connected to the sampler of one of the one or more channels, the at least one ADC to produce digital samples of the signal at a sample rate, and one or more processors configured to execute code that causes the one more processors to acquire a spectrum of the digital samples for each pipe in the at least one ADC, and use the spectrums of the digital samples for each pipe in the at least one ADC to reconstruct the spectrum of the signal under test. A method of operating a test and measurement instrument, and a method a method of calibrating a test and measurement instrument is included.

Methods and apparatus for determining non-linearity in analog-to-digital converters are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a signal interface to receive an output of an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), the output corresponding to a periodic signal transmitted to the ADC; a signal transformer to determine at least one of a harmonic phase or a harmonic amplitude corresponding to the output; and an integral non-linearity (INL) term calculator to determine the INL of the ADC based on a characteristic of the periodic signal and the at least one of the harmonic phase or the harmonic amplitude.

A flash analog-to-digital converter (ADC) includes comparators that convert an analog input signal to a digital output signal. Offsets of these comparators introduce noise and can hurt the performance of the ADC. Thus, these comparators are calibrated using calibration codes. Conventional calibration methods determine these calibration codes by removing the ADC from an input signal. Otherwise, it is difficult to distinguish the noise from the signal in the calibration measurement. In contrast, an embodiment can determine the calibration codes while the ADC converts the input signal to a digital signal. Such an embodiment can be achieved by a frequency-domain technique. In an embodiment employing a frequency-domain power meter, an input signal can be removed from the power measurement. This removal enables accurate measurement of in-band noise without having the measurement be corrupted by input signal power.

A method for testing a DAC comprising controlling the DAC digitally to cause it to produce a known desired analog output, for example a fixed amplitude sine wave; determining the duration of fixed voltage segments of the actual output of the DAC and using the duration of the fixed voltage segments to assess or determine performance of the DAC.