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Advantage of single-ended to differential buffers

Hi all,

I have an analog coming from a BNC cable thus single ended. Now I want to digitilize it using 16-18bit ADC. In this case, is there any advantage of using a differential ADC?

I understand the advantages of differential ADC and common mode rejection, but if the analog signal is coming from a single ended input.. the only thing I can reject is the noise between the single-ended to differential buffer and the ADC itself. I am maybe missing something here!

Thanks

Paul

  • Paul,

    I can't think of any big advantage of using a differential ADC. The only thing that I'd caution on is that with a direct measurement you'll need to measure the input signal with the positive input and then the ground with the negative input. On some ADCs the input range does not extend all the way to ground (as you had referenced, that could be solved by a single ended to differential buffer).

    Unless you have some sort of ground loop or extra noise on the ground, I don't think the differential measurement adds an advantage.

    Joseph Wu