Another breakthrough came from Fujitsu Laboratories

Fujitsu Laboratories ’new analog-to-digital converter (ADC) is also only half the size and power consumption of traditional converters.

The conventional ADC operates by converting the voltage level of the external analog input signal to a digital value compared to an internally generated reference level. Switches are needed to change the reference levels, but process technology advances in semiconductor manufacturing make high-speed switching difficult.

In response to this problem, Fujitsu Laboratories has designed an entirely new circuit design with digital control technology that does not require the use of a switch or the generation of a reference voltage at all. Based on the new design, the new ADC offers 6-bit resolution and 1 GS / s speed - uniquely small in the performance category - on a 0,04 mm2 chip surface with 9,9 W of power consumption. With multi-channel, time-overlapping operation1, high speeds and power of up to ten GS / s are achieved, resulting in significant performance improvements for the system utilizing the solution. The technology was presented in detail at the 2012 International VSLI-DAT (VLSI Design, Automation & Test) Symposium on April 23 in Taiwan.

 

The latest advances in digital technology have been achieved by increasing the performance of digital circuits. However, in the natural environment, information and signals exist in analog form, so they need to be digitized with an ADC for digital processing. In addition, even signals available in digital form (e.g., HDD) may be distorted during high-speed, high-density transmission, making it difficult to read the original digital value. Therefore, it is also becoming more common to convert a distorted digital signal into a digital value by digital signal processing.

 

Source: Press release