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Texas Instruments Incorporated
Data Acquisition
Interfacing op amps and analog-to-
digital converters
By Bruce Carter (Email: r-carter5@ti.com)
Advanced Linear Products, Op Amp Applications
Introduction
One of the most common questions asked of the TI High-
Speed Amplifiers Applications team is what op amp to use
with a given analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The ADC
is often from a competitor. Answering this question is a
challenging task—and there is no absolute answer, only a
list of gray areas and trade-offs.
It would be handy to have a table with ADCs on one
side and recommended op amps on the other. But this
table will never exist; there are too many variables in sys-
tem design that affect op amp selection. This article does
not contain answers, but questions. The questions will
help the designer organize his thoughts and define exactly
what the op amp needs to do. He should be prepared to
answer these questions before committing to a design.
The list of questions may look daunting at first, but it is
divided into sections that break up the system into compo-
nent parts: system, power supply, input signal, ADC, opera-
tional amplifier, and other considerations. The completion
of each section is a piece of the puzzle, and by the end of
the process the designer should have weeded out op amps
that are unsuitable for the job.
System information
The overall characteristics of the system often yield valu-
able information. A clear understanding of the product
and its function is imperative to design success.
• Exactly what is the end equipment and its application?
Different systems have different requirements. For
example, key concerns in a video system are completely
different from those in a wireless communication system.
• In general terms, what is the function of this signal-
acquisition chain in the system? Where does the input sig-
nal come from and what happens to it once it is digitized?
• How many signal-acquisition chains are used in the
product? Channel density can influence system design
in numerous ways, including space constraints, thermal
requirements, and amplifier channel density per package.
• Will this signal chain be duplicated in other products? Is
flexibility an advantage, or can the design be narrowly
focused on the task at hand?
• Is the design forced to adhere to a particular standard?
• In what temperature conditions will the system operate
(for example, –40°C to +85°C, 0°C to +70°C, or +45°C
to +55°C)?
• Does the system have forced air flow from a fan to help
with thermal dissipation?
• Is automatic gain control (AGC) functionality required?
If so, is it digital or analog control? What is the gain
range, etc.?
• Is a current solution unsatisfactory in some way? Why is
the current solution unsatisfactory?
Figure 1. Focusing on power supply
characteristics
Power
Supply
ADC
Analog
Input
Amplifier
Power supply information
Power supply rails can quickly rule out amplifier solutions.
This is similar to clothing shopping—the style may be
desirable; but if the size doesn’t fit, the style is useless.
So a wise shopper finds the options in the size first, before
becoming attached to a style. Similarly, an op amp with
fantastic specifications at ±15 V may not operate at all
from a +3.3-V power supply. Power supply information is
collected first, because it will simply and unequivocally
narrow choices. See Figure 1.
• What is the power budget for the overall system? Is
power a concern, or is performance the ultimate goal?
• What power supply voltages are available in the design?
• Is there a preferred power supply voltage for the ampli-
fier circuitry?
• Can an additional supply voltage be added if perform-
ance could be improved? Often, the best amplifier
performance can be obtained with split supplies.
• Is a precision reference available in the system? In single-
supply systems, it is important to supply a virtual
ground to the op amp circuitry. If the system contains a
reference, it would be advantageous to utilize it.
• Are there any special characteristics of the power
supply? For example, is the power supply a switching
power supply? Although op amps usually have excellent
power supply rejection, it could be a concern in a high-
resolution system. Any widely varying loads could also
affect the op amp supply voltage.
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Analog Applications Journal
4Q 2002
Analog and Mixed-Signal Products
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Data Acquisition
Texas Instruments Incorporated
Input signal characteristics
Understanding the input source is key to proper design of
the interface circuitry between the source and the ADC
(see Figure 2).
• What is used for the signal source to the amplifier block
in front of the ADC? Is it another amplifier, a sensor, etc.?
• Describe the input signal. For example, is it continuous
or discontinuous (i.e., pulsed)? The signal might be a
QAM signal, an NTSC signal, a non-standard continuous
wave signal, a random analog signal, etc.
• Are there any unusual characteristics of the signal
source? Some sources have characteristics that will
affect the performance of the amplifier circuit. For
example, photodiodes have an associated capacitance,
and the value of this capacitance plays an important role
in how the associated amplifier circuit is designed.
• What is the output amplitude range of the source?
• Does the source produce a voltage or a current output?
• Is the signal source output single-ended or differential?
• What is the output impedance of the signal source?
• Is the input signal dc-referenced? If so, to what dc volt-
age is it referenced?
• What are the frequency characteristics of the input sig-
nal? For example, the signal might have a 10-MHz band-
width centered around 25 MHz, or it might be a signal
with frequency content from dc up to 20 MHz. If low
frequency isn’t important, this opens the possibility of
ac coupling the input signal.
• What level of rejection is required out-of-band? Some
applications have very strict requirements for out-of-
band rejection, while others are less strict. The filter
interface between the amplifier network and the ADC is
dictated by this sort of information.
• Is there a known interfering frequency (system clock,
sample clock, etc.) that must be filtered out? Are other
large signals expected outside of the band of interest? A
simple low-pass filter often may not have sufficient
rejection of a particular interfering signal, forcing addi-
tional circuitry to produce a high Q notch filter.
• Is there a requirement for gain or phase flatness or
error? This is a concern in video systems.
• Is there a matching requirement on the input impedance
of the amplifier circuit? Some circuits require that the
load be matched to a particular value for optimal perform-
ance (e.g., 50 Ω).
ADC characteristics
Once the power supply and input signal have been
defined, it is time to focus on the device that the op amp
will drive—the ADC (see Figure 3).
• Has the ADC been selected, or can it be changed to
enhance performance?
• What is the desired sampling rate? Designers often
assume that a data converter is going to be used at its
maximum level of performance, but this typically isn’t
the case. For example, an 80-megasample-per-second
(MSPS) converter might be given a sampling frequency
of 60 MSPS.
Figure 2. Focusing on the input signal
Power
Supply
Analog
Input
Amplifier
ADC
Figure 3. Focusing on the ADC
Power
Supply
Analog
Input
Amplifier
ADC
• What is the desired resolution and effective number of
bits? A 14-bit converter won’t effectively yield 14 bits.
The true resolution will probably be closer to 12 or 13.
• What is the full-scale input range of the data converter?
Some data converters permit the input to be configured
for different ranges.
• Will the data converter be used with single-ended or dif-
ferential inputs? Typically, most high-performance data
converters have differential inputs and require their use
for optimal performance.
• Are there any other options on the data converter that
could be an advantage? Data converters have lots of
options that vary from part to part.
• Are there any compensation requirements for the input
of the data converter? Normally, a small RC filter is
required at the input of the data converter to compensate
for its capacitive input. These components are usually
specified in the converter data sheet and should be
included as part of the interface. Otherwise, the op amp
interface circuit may exhibit instability.
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Analog Applications Journal
Analog and Mixed-Signal Products
4Q 2002
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Texas Instruments Incorporated
Data Acquisition
Operational amplifier characteristics
Although this article is intended to aid in the selection of
the correct operational amplifier, it is possible that the
nature of the system already defines some characteristics.
See Figure 4.
• Has the operational amplifier already been selected, or
can it be changed to improve system performance?
• Are there specific requirements for the package of the
amplifiers? For example, must it be an 8-pin SOIC, or as
small as possible, etc.?
• Does the cost of the operational amplifier interface or
the physical size of the interface circuitry dictate that as
few operational amplifiers as possible be used? Or would
it be an advantage for the circuitry to be easily modified
in the future, using more operational amplifiers for the
flexibility?
Other pertinent considerations
This is the point at which the definition of the system
should be complete. The wise designer, however, should
take a step back. He should be asking, “Are there any
other questions I should have asked? If questions were not
asked, why not?”
The biggest consideration of all may be cost. This single
concern has the potential of forcing a lot of good design
work to be thrown on the trash heap. Yet a wise designer
seldom goes wrong if he keeps the cost and number of
components in mind when creating his design. Whether a
million systems are produced, or only one, every manager
will be pleased if the cost can be reduced without compro-
mising system performance.
Conclusion
The design of a data acquisition system is a complex and
time-consuming task. There are no universal solutions, nor
are there any reliable lists of which op amp is matched to
which ADC. There are a great number of factors affecting
performance, and each design should be approached as if
it were a custom design for which no precedent exists.
Figure 4. Focusing on the operational amplifiers
Power
Supply
Analog
Input
Amplifier
ADC
The designer must first answer the questions presented
earlier to gain a good understanding of the true nature of
his system and the scope of his design task. The next step
is to visit amplifier.ti.com and look in the op amp selec-
tion guides for op amps that fit the application. As a gen-
eral rule, the op amp should be much better than the data
converter to which it is interfaced; otherwise, the designer
is wasting money on the data converter.
In addition to the “Related Web sites” below, TI has a
semiconductor technical support knowledge base to assist
designers in finding products and services related to their
technical questions. The direct link to this knowledge base
For more general support information, visit
support.ti.com
Related Web sites
dataconverter.ti.com
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Analog Applications Journal
4Q 2002
Analog and Mixed-Signal Products
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TIWorldwide Technical Support
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