Currentmodesignalprocessingasachallengeforimprovementoflock-inmeasuringinstruments.docVIP

Current Mode Signal Processing as a challenge for improvement of lock-in measuring instruments Mart Min and Toomas Parve Institute of Electronics, Tallinn Technical University, Tallinn, Estonia Abstract: Modern lock-in analysers enable to measure low level AC signals in the presence of non-coherent noise, exceeding the useful signal 100,000 times and even more within the input dynamic range of 140 dB (24 effective bits) at the frequencies up to 100 kHz. But the operating frequencies up to 50 MHz can be reached using mixed analog and digital signal processing and current mode operation. The latter approach enables also to reduce current consumption and to use low voltage power supply in mobile and micropower instruments like an on-chip lock-in bioimpedance analyser for implantable pacemaker. Keywords: lock-in measurements, current mode signal processing, phase locking. 1 INTRODUCTION Lock-in instruments (synchronous or phase sensitive amplifiers, and signal or network analysers) are commonly used for measurement of low level AC signals (nV and V) in the presence of non-coherent noises. In most of applications lock-in measurement systems consist of an excitation signal Sexc source and a synchronous detector SD (Fig.?1), driven by the inphase (0) or quadrature (90) reference signal Vref from the same excitation oscillator. As the interference can far exceed the useful signal (e.g. 100,000 times), the dynamic range of the input signal reaches even 140 dB (24 effective bits). Figure 1. A lock-in measurement system. Actually this value is achievable at the frequencies up to 100 kHz and a bit higher [1]. The problem is how to maintain the input dynamic range at much higher frequencies. Direct analog-to-digital conversion and following digital signal processing (DSP) is not an effective solution in this case, though the DSP has given quite good results [2]. In conditions of limited space and power, the well-balanced mixed analog and digital signal process