Quantization

noise
Introduction
• Quantization, in mathematics and digital signal processing, is the
process of mapping a large set of input values ​to a smaller (countable)
set - such as rounding values ​to some unit of precision.

• The rounding error introduced by quantization is called the

quantization error.
 • It is not a random noise but a systematic
error due to the quantization of intensity
levels at a discrete number of gray levels.
Q-noise • Es un error de redondeo entre la tensión de
entrada analógica de la ADC y el valor de
salida digitalizado.
• It is a rounding error between the analog input voltage of the ADC and the
digitized output value.

• The noise is non-linear and dependent on the signal.

• In an ideal analog-to-digital converter, where the quantization error is

uniformly distributed between −1/2 LSB and + 1/2 LSB, the Signal to
Quantization Noise Ratio (SQNR) can be calculated from

𝑆𝑄𝑁𝑅 = 20𝐿𝑜𝑔10 2𝑄 ≈ 6,02 ∗ 𝑄𝑑𝐵

• The most common test signals that meet this are full amplitude triangle
waves and sawtooth waves.

• When the input signal is a full amplitude sine wave the distribution of the
signal is no longer uniform, and the corresponding equation is in place

𝑆𝑄𝑁𝑅 ≈ 1,761 + 60,2 ∗ 𝑄 ∗ 𝑑𝐵

• In this case a 16-bit ADC has a maximum signal-to-noise ratio of 98.09
dB. The difference in signal-to-noise 1.761 only occurs because the
signal is a full-scale sine wave rather than a triangle / sawtooth.
• For complex signals in high resolution ADC is an exact model. Low
resolution ADC, low-level signals in high resolution ADC and simple
waveforms of quantization noise that are not evenly distributed,
making this model inaccurate.

𝜕𝑣 2
𝑁= 𝑤
12

Typical real life values ​are worse than this theoretical minimum, due to
the addition of "dither"
For complex signals in high resolution ADC is an exact model. Low
resolution ADC, low-level signals in high resolution ADC and simple
waveforms of quantization noise that are not evenly distributed,
making this model inaccurate.