Assessing the Impact of Analog-to-digital Converter Resolution on the Phase Difference Measurement Error in a Digital Receiver

The article studies the impact of reducing the resolution of an analog-to-digital converter of a digital receiver on the phase difference measurement error by the method of statistical modeling. Dependencies of the phase difference measurement error on the ratio of signal-carrier frequency and sampling frequency are shown. Dependencies of frequency-band maximum and frequency-band average phase difference measurement error on signal-to-noise ratio are provided. The results are given on modeling for analog-to-digital converter resolution of 8, 4, 2, 1 bits at the change of signal-carrier frequency within the range of 0.125 to 0.375 of sampling frequency, and the change of signal-to-noise ratio from −5 to 50 dB. The main peculiarities of the phase difference measurement error in case of small resolution of an analog-to-digital converter of a digital receiver are outlined, and recommendations on reducing it are worded.