C2000 device data sheets provide specifications for many aspects of ADC performance. These include linear specifications like INL, DNL, gain error, offset error. The data sheet also provides AC specifications such as SNR, THD and ENOB. Please refer to the TI Glossary of Analog-to-Digital Specifications and Performance Characteristics to see definitions for these specifications. When ADC performance is outside of these data sheet specifications, it can be difficult to find the source of the problem. For this reason, it can be helpful to know which errors are likely to be caused by a poor ADC voltage reference circuit.

For example, high gain error can be caused by an ADC reference voltage with DC error, since the voltage represented by each ADC code is different than the expected value. Conversely, dynamic errors can occur when the ADC reference voltage is unstable during fast changes in the load impedance. These concepts are discussed in detail in TI Precision Labs - Driving the reference input on a SAR ADC.