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AD6636
Rev. 0 | Page 27 of 72
0
NCO TUNES SIGNAL TO
SIGNAL OF INTEREST
AFTER FREQUENCY TRANSLATION
SIGNAL OF INTEREST
SIGNAL OF INTEREST IMAGE
SIGNAL OF INTEREST IMAGE
–fs/2
–7fs/8
–3fs/8
–5fs/16
–fs/4
–3fs/16
–fs/8
–fs/16
DC
fs/16
fs/8
3fs/16
fs/4
5fs/16
3fs/8
7fs/8
fs/2
–fs/2
–7fs/8
–3fs/8
–5fs/16
–fs/4
–3fs/16
–fs/8
–fs/16
DC
fs/16
fs/8
3fs/16
fs/4
5fs/16
3fs/8
7fs/8
fs/2
FREQUENCY TRANSLATION (SINGLE 1MHz CHANNEL TUNED TO BASEBAND)
WIDEBAND INPUT SPECTRUM (30MHz FROM HIGH SPEED ADC)
WIDEBAND INPUT SPECTRUM (–fsamp/2
TO
fsamp/2)
Figure 30. Frequency Translation Principle Using the NCO and Mixer
For example, if the carrier frequency is 100 MHz and the clock
frequency is 80 MHz,
(
25
.
=
80
clk
f
)
20
=
,
mod
clk
ch
f
f
This, in turn, converts to 0x4000 0000 in the 32-bit twos
complement representation for
NCO_FREQ
.
If the carrier frequency is 50 MHz and the clock frequency is
80 MHz,
(
125
.
=
80
clk
f
)
10
=
,
mod
clk
ch
f
f
This, in turn, converts to 0xE000 0000 in the twos complement
32-bit representation.
Mixer
The NCO is accompanied by a mixer. Its operation is similar to
an analog mixer. It does the down-conversion of input signals
(real or complex) by using the NCO frequency as a local
oscillator. For real input signals, this mixer performs a real
mixer operation (with two multipliers). For complex input
signals, the mixer performs a complex mixer operation (with
four multipliers). The mixer adjusts its operation based on the
input signal (real or complex) provided to each individual
channel.
Bypass
The NCO and the mixer can be bypassed individually in each
channel by writing Logic 1 in the NCO bypass bit in the NCO
control register of the channel under consideration. When
bypassed, down-conversion is not performed and the AD6636
channel functions simply as a real filter on complex data. This is
useful for baseband sampling applications, in which the input
Port A (or C) is connected to the I signal path within the filter
and the Input Port B (or D) is connected to the Q signal path.
This might be desired, if the digitized signal has already been
converted to baseband in prior analog stages or by other digital
preprocessing.
Clear Phase Accumulator on Hop
When clear NCO accumulator bit of NCO control register is set
(Logic 1), the NCO phase accumulator is cleared prior to a
frequency hop. Refer to the Chip Synchronization section for
details on frequency hopping. This ensures a consistent phase of
the NCO on each hop. The NCO phase offset is unaffected by
this setting and is still in effect. If phase-continuous hopping is
needed, this bit should be cleared (NCO accumulator is not
cleared). The last phase in the NCO phase register is the
initiating point for the new frequency.
Phase Dither
The AD6636 provides a phase dither option for improving the
spurious performance of the NCO. Writing Logic 1 in the phase
dither enable bit of NCO control register of individual channels
enables phase dither. When phase dither is enabled, random
phase is added to LSBs of the phase accumulator of the NCO.
When phase dither is enabled, spurs due to phase truncation in
the NCO are randomized.
The energy from these spurs is spread into the noise floor and
the spurious free dynamic range is increased at the expense of a
very slight decrease in the SNR. The choice of whether to use
phase dither in a system is ultimately decided by the system
goals. If lower spurs are desired at the expense of a slightly
raised noise floor, phase dither should be employed. If a low
noise floor is desired and the higher spurs can be tolerated or
filtered by subsequent stages, then phase dither is not needed.