SBAS710B September   2016  – April 2026 ADS9120

PRODUCTION DATA  

  1.   1
  2. 1 Features
  3. 2 Applications
  4. 3 Description
  5. 4 Pin Configuration and Functions
  6. 5 Specifications
    1. 5.1  Absolute Maximum Ratings
    2. 5.2  ESD Ratings
    3. 5.3  Recommended Operating Conditions
    4. 5.4  Thermal Information
    5. 5.5  Electrical Characteristics
    6. 5.6  Timing Requirements: Conversion Cycle
    7. 5.7  Timing Requirements: Asynchronous Reset, NAP, and PD
    8. 5.8  Timing Requirements: SPI-Compatible Serial Interface
    9. 5.9  Timing Requirements: Source-Synchronous Serial Interface (External Clock)
    10. 5.10 Timing Requirements: Source-Synchronous Serial Interface (Internal Clock)
    11. 5.11 Typical Characteristics
  7. 6 Detailed Description
    1. 6.1 Overview
    2. 6.2 Functional Block Diagram
    3. 6.3 Feature Description
      1. 6.3.1 Converter Module
        1. 6.3.1.1 Sample-and-Hold Circuit
        2. 6.3.1.2 External Reference Source
        3. 6.3.1.3 Internal Oscillator
        4. 6.3.1.4 ADC Transfer Function
      2. 6.3.2 Interface Module
    4. 6.4 Device Functional Modes
      1. 6.4.1 RST State
      2. 6.4.2 ACQ State
      3. 6.4.3 CNV State
    5. 6.5 Programming
      1. 6.5.1 Data Transfer Frame
      2. 6.5.2 Interleaving Conversion Cycles and Data Transfer Frames
      3. 6.5.3 Data Transfer Protocols
        1. 6.5.3.1 Protocols for Configuring the Device
        2. 6.5.3.2 Protocols for Reading From the Device
          1. 6.5.3.2.1 Legacy, SPI-Compatible (SYS-xy-S) Protocols
          2. 6.5.3.2.2 SPI-Compatible Protocols with Bus Width Options
          3. 6.5.3.2.3 Source-Synchronous (SRC) Protocols
            1. 6.5.3.2.3.1 Output Clock Source Options with SRC Protocols
            2. 6.5.3.2.3.2 Bus Width Options with SRC Protocols
            3. 6.5.3.2.3.3 Output Data Rate Options with SRC Protocols
      4. 6.5.4 Device Setup
        1. 6.5.4.1 Single Device: All multiSPI™ Options
        2. 6.5.4.2 Single Device: Minimum Pins for a Standard SPI Interface
        3. 6.5.4.3 Multiple Devices: Daisy-Chain Topology
        4. 6.5.4.4 Multiple Devices: Star Topology
    6. 6.6 Register Maps
      1. 6.6.1 Device Configuration and Register Maps
        1. 6.6.1.1 PD_CNTL Register (address = 010h)
        2. 6.6.1.2 SDI_CNTL Register (address = 014h)
        3. 6.6.1.3 SDO_CNTL Register (address = 018h)
        4. 6.6.1.4 DATA_CNTL Register (address = 01Ch)
  8. 7 Application and Implementation
    1. 7.1 Application Information
      1. 7.1.1 ADC Input Driver
      2. 7.1.2 Input Amplifier Selection
      3. 7.1.3 Charge Kickback Filter
      4. 7.1.4 ADC Reference Driver
    2. 7.2 Typical Application
      1. 7.2.1 Data Acquisition (DAQ) Circuit for Lowest Distortion and Noise Performance With Differential Input
        1. 7.2.1.1 Design Requirements
        2. 7.2.1.2 Detailed Design Procedure
        3. 7.2.1.3 Application Curves
      2. 7.2.2 DAQ Circuit With FDA Input Driver and Single-Ended or Differential Input
        1. 7.2.2.1 Design Requirements
        2. 7.2.2.2 Detailed Design Procedure
        3. 7.2.2.3 Application Curves
  9. 8 Power-Supply Recommendations
    1. 8.1 Power-Supply Decoupling
    2. 8.2 Power Saving
      1. 8.2.1 NAP Mode
      2. 8.2.2 PD Mode
  10. 9 Layout
    1. 9.1 Layout Guidelines
      1. 9.1.1 Signal Path
      2. 9.1.2 Grounding and PCB Stack-Up
      3. 9.1.3 Decoupling of Power Supplies
      4. 9.1.4 Reference Decoupling
      5. 9.1.5 Differential Input Decoupling
    2. 9.2 Layout Example
  11. 10Device and Documentation Support
    1. 10.1 Documentation Support
      1. 10.1.1 Related Documentation
    2. 10.2 Receiving Notification of Documentation Updates
    3. 10.3 Support Resources
    4. 10.4 Trademarks
    5. 10.5 Electrostatic Discharge Caution
    6. 10.6 Glossary
  12. 11Revision History
  13. 12Mechanical, Packaging, and Orderable Information

7.1.2 Input Amplifier Selection

Selection criteria for the input amplifiers is highly dependent on the input signal type as well as the performance goals of the data acquisition system. Some key amplifier specifications to consider when selecting an appropriate amplifier to drive the inputs of the ADC are:

  • Small-signal bandwidth. Select the small-signal bandwidth of the input amplifiers to be as high as possible after meeting the power budget of the system. Higher bandwidth reduces the closed-loop output impedance of the amplifier, thus allowing the amplifier to more easily drive the low cutoff frequency RC filter (see the Charge Kickback Filter section) at the inputs of the ADC. Higher bandwidth also minimizes the harmonic distortion at higher input frequencies. In order to maintain the overall stability of the input driver circuit, select the amplifier with Unity Gain Bandwidth (UGB) as described in Equation 14:
    Equation 14. ADS9120
  • Noise. Noise contribution of the front-end amplifiers must be as low as possible to prevent any degradation in SNR performance of the system. Generally, to ensure that the noise performance of the data acquisition system is not limited by the front-end circuit, the total noise contribution from the front-end circuit must be kept below 20% of the input-referred noise of the ADC. Noise from the input driver circuit is band-limited by designing a low cutoff frequency RC filter, as explained in Equation 15.
    Equation 15. ADS9120

    where:

    • V1 / f_AMP_PP is the peak-to-peak flicker noise in µV,
    • en_RMS is the amplifier broadband noise density in nV/√ Hz,
    • f–3dB is the 3-dB bandwidth of the RC filter, and
    • NG is the noise gain of the front-end circuit that is equal to 1 in a buffer configuration.
  • Distortion. Both the ADC and the input driver introduce distortion in a data acquisition block. To ensure that the distortion performance of the data acquisition system is not limited by the front-end circuit, the distortion of the input driver must be at least 10 dB lower than the distortion of the ADC, as shown in Equation 16.
    Equation 16. ADS9120
  • Settling Time. For dc signals with fast transients that are common in a multiplexed application, the input signal must settle within an 16-bit accuracy at the device inputs during the acquisition time window. This condition is critical to maintain the overall linearity performance of the ADC. Typically, the amplifier data sheets specify the output settling performance only up to 0.1% to 0.001%, which may not be sufficient for the desired 16-bit accuracy. Therefore, always verify the settling behavior of the input driver by TINA™-SPICE simulations before selecting the amplifier.