Superconductor analog to digital converter
US8188901B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 17, 2009 |
| Grant date | May 29, 2012 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 25, 2030 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH03M3/46
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Superconductor analog-to-digital converters (ADC) offer high sensitivity and large dynamic range. One approach to increasing the dynamic range further is with a subranging architecture, whereby the output of a coarse ADC is converted back to analog and subtracted from the input signal, and the residue signal fed to a fine ADC for generation of additional significant bits. This also requires a high-gain broadband linear amplifier, which is not generally available within superconductor technology. In a preferred embodiment, a distributed digital fluxon amplifier is presented, which also integrates the functions of integration, filtering, and flux subtraction. A subranging ADC design provides two ADCs connected with the fluxon amplifier and subtractor circuitry that would provide a dynamic range extension by about 30-35 dB.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.