Slide 1

Noise & Noise Rejection

Noise Sources
Characterizing Noise
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR, S/N)
Power Spectral Density
Modes of Interference
Noise Rejection:
Filtering
Modulation
Shielding & Grounding
Differential Amplifier
Averaging
Slide 2
Noise
Noise
Noise is any unsteady component of the measurement signal
that causes the instantaneous value of the signal to differ from
its true value.
Time
x(t)

x t s t n t ( ) ( ) ( ) = +
Actual
Signal
Noise
Slide 3
Noise Sources
Internal
Temperature-induced random noise in conductors
(Johnson noise)
Random current fluctuations in transistors (Shot noise)
Flicker noise
External
AC Interference
Communication Interference
Switching Interference
Mechanical/Structural Vibration
Slide 4
Average Signal Power
Average power (in Watts) dissipated when voltage signal is connected
to a 1 O resistor:
Assume the actual signal s(t) and the noise n(t) are independent of
one another:
Root Mean Square (RMS) voltage of a signal is:
Ex: For x(t) = A sin(wt + f ), the average power of x(t) is:
Noise Characterization
x t
T
x t dt
T
2 2
0
1
( ) ( ) =
}

x t s t n t
2 2 2
( ) ( ) ( ) = +
Signal
Power
Noise
Power

x t x t ( ) ( )
rms
=
2
Slide 5
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR, S/N)
Characterizes the noisiness of a particular signal, x(t) = s(t) + n(t):
SNR is usually expressed in decibels (dB):
The uncertainty of a measurement is the inverse of the SNR.
Noise Characterization
S
N
Signal Power
Noise Power
= =
s t
n t
2
2
( )
( )
S
N
Signal Power
Noise Power
or
S
N
Signal RMS
Noise RMS
dB
dB
rms
rms
s t
n t
s t
n t
=
|
\

|
.
|
=
|
\

|
.
|
|
=
|
\

|
.
|
=
|
\

|
.
|
10 10
20 20
10 10
2
2
10 10
log log
( )
( )
log log
( )
( )
Slide 6
Noise Characterization
System Noisiness
The noisiness of a system (device) is called the Noise Figure (NF). It
is defined to be the ratio between the input and output SNR:
It is desirable to design a measurement system (device) that has a
noise figure (NF) close to 1.
NF
SNR
SNR
NF NF
dB
=
=
( )
( )
log ( )
INPUT
OUTPUT
10
10
Measurement
System (Device)
Input
x(t)
Output
y(t)
Slide 7
Random Noise
Observe random signal for several observation periods:
Signal is different from period to period.
The average power for each observation period is about the
same.
Noise Characterization
Slide 8
Noise Characterization
Random Signal
Can be approximated by a periodic signal, in which the first
observation period portion of the signal is repeated. The
approximation is valid if:
The observation period is long.
The approximation is only used for calculating the power
distribution in the random signal.
n t
n t
n t n t Periodic
n t
A
M k t
P
P
P k O k
k
( ):
( ):
( ) ( )
( ) cos( )
Random Signal
Periodic Approximation


~
= +
=

0
1
2
w
Slide 9
Noise Characterization
Average Power Spectrum
If kth harmonic is applied across a 1 O
resistor, the average power dissipated
is:
Power Spectrum: plot of W
k
vs w
k
(similar to Line Spectrum).
Cumulative Power for the first N
harmonics is:
n t n t
A
M k t
P k O k
k
( ) ( ) cos( ) ~ = +
=

0
1
2
w

2 2
0
1
cos ( )
O
T
k k O k
O
k
W M k t dt
T
w
w
= =
}
W A M
N k
k
N
= +
=

1
4
1
2
0
2 2
1
w
W
k
w
W
W
N
W
3
W
1
Slide 10
Noise Characterization
Cumulative Power Spectrum
In the limiting case when T
O
,
w
O
0 , W
N
becomes a
continuous function of frequency
w :
Power Spectral Density (f(w))
The derivative of the cumulative
power W(w) :
w
W(w)
W W
T
N
O
( )
lim
w =

|
|
( ) ( )
( ) ( )
w
w
w =
=
d
d
W
f
d
df
W f
[Watt /(rad/sec)]
or
[Watt /Hz]
w
|(w)
Slide 11
Noise Characterization
Power Spectral Density (|(w))
Signal power is a stationary quantity that can be used to quantify
random signals.
Power Spectral Density, |(w), is a quantity that is a measure of how
the power of a random signal is distributed among all possible
frequencies.
The power of a signal due to frequency
components between w
1
and w
2
is:
The total power of a signal is the area
under the |(w) curve:
W d
w w
w
w
w w
1 2
1
2
,
( ) =
}
|
w
|(w)
w
1
w
2
W d
TOT
=

}
|
0
( ) w w
Slide 12
Noise Characterization
Special Random Signals
White Noise :
Uniform power spectral density
Band Limited White Noise :
Band limited uniform power spectral
density

| ( ) w w = s s A
constant
0

|
=
( ) w w w
w w
= s s
s
A
C
C
constant


0
0
w
|(w)
A
w
|(w)
w
C
A
Slide 13
Sources of Noise
Internal
Thermal (Johnson) Noise
Temperature-induced random motion of the electrons in resistors and
semiconductors causes a corresponding random voltage.
Johnson Noise is a type of white noise with uniform power spectral
density:
where
Thermal noise amplitude roughly obeys a Gaussian distribution.
Can only be reduced by reducing temperature and measurement
bandwidth.
|
J
o
o
f kRT
k J/ K
R
T K
( )
.
=
=
=
=

4
138 10
23
[volts / Hz]
[ ] - Boltzmann' s constant
Resistance in the device [ ]
Absolute temperature of the device [ ]
2
O
Slide 14
Shot Noise
Quantization of electrons causes fluctuation of current flowing through
transistor junctions.
Shot noise is white noise with a uniform power spectral density:
for current measurement:
for voltage measurement:
where
Q: What is the RMS voltage due to Johnson and Shot noise?
Sources of Noise
|
S n
I
f I q ( ) = 2 [amperes / Hz]
2
|
S n
V
f I qR ( ) = 2
2
[volts / Hz]
2
q C
R
I A
n
=
=
=

1 59 10
19
. [ ] - Electron charge
Resistance in the device [ ]
Nominal current flowing in the device [ ]
O
Slide 15
Sources of Noise
Internal
Flicker Noise
Low-frequency noise, including random drift, present in transistors.
Many naturally occurring processes, such as ocean currents, also
exhibit 1/f type behavior:
Flicker noise is usually important at low frequencies, f < 1000 Hz.
Avoid DC measurement when very small signals are to be
measured.
|

2
[volts / Hz]
F
n
f
C
f
( ) =
C
f
n f
f
F
=
=
~
Material dependent constant
Frequency [Hz]


1
1
| ( )
Slide 16
Noise Propagation
Noise measured at the output:
When a device, such as an amplifier, amplifies the input signal,
so too does it amplify internal noise:
Device
T(je)
Input
x(t)
Output
y(t)
( )
W f df
out
TOT
=

}
|
0
( ) ( ) ( )
| t |
out in
f T j f f = 2
2
Slide 17
Noise
Example:
A voltage amplifier uses transistors in its circuitry, and has a total resistance of 10 kW, with
nominal current of 30 mA, at a temperature of 40
o
C. Its frequency response function can be
approximated as an ideal low-pass filter with gain of 10 and cutoff frequency of 1000 Hz.
a) Determine total noise power at the amplifier output, considering both Johnson and Shot
noise.
Slide 18
b) Assuming that the measured input signal is a pure sinusoid having amplitude of 0.33 V
and frequency of 10 Hz, calculate the SNR of the output signal (in dB).
Slide 19
Sources of Noise
External
AC Interference
60/120/180/240 Hz sinusoidal interference due to power lines,
fluorescent lights, fans, etc.
Communication Interference
Radio/TV (1-100 MHz), cordless phone, cellular communication
interference.
Switching Interference
Switching interference due to switching power supplies, relays,
lightning, arc welders, auto ignition systems, etc.
Mechanical/Structural Vibration
Normally under 20 Hz.
Slide 20
Noise Spectrum
Slide 21
Modes of Interference
Series Mode Interference
Noise or interference voltage V
SM
enters the measurement system in
series with the measurement signal voltage E
TH
.
E
TH
R
C
/ 2
R
C
/ 2
Z
L
V
SM
Z
OUT
Source Load
V
L
V
Z
Z R Z
E V E V
E
V
L
L
OUT C L
TH SM TH SM
dB
TH
SM
=
+ +
+ ~ +
=
|
\

|
.
|
( )
log
S
N
20
10
Slide 22
Modes of Interference
Common Mode Interference
The potentials on both sides of the signal circuit are raised by a
common voltage V
CM
relative to a common earth ground.
V E V
V V
V V V E
A TH CM
B CM
L A B TH
~ +
~
= = Differential Measurement
Source
Load
V
L
= V
A
- V
B
E
TH
R
C
/ 2
R
C
/ 2
Z
L
Z
OUT
V
A
V
B
V
CM
Slide 23
Shielding & Grounding
Inductive Coupling
AC Power line in close proximity to
one of the measurement leads will
generate a series mode interference:
where i is the power line current
Mis the mutual inductance.
Solution:
(1) Physical separation
(2) Shorter cable length
(3) Twisted pair
Noise Rejection
V M
d
dt
i
SM
=
M d 1
Slide 24
Shielding & Grounding
Capacitive Coupling
Induce both common mode and
series mode noise.
Solution:
(1) Physical separation
(2) Shielding
Noise Rejection
V
C
C C
V V
C
C C
V
V V
V V V
B
E
AC E
E
AC
CM E
SM B E
=
+
=
+
=
=

1
1 1
2
2 2
;
V
AC
GND
Screen (Shield)
Measurement Circuit
Slide 25
Shielding & Grounding
Ground Loop
Noise Rejection
V
V i Z Z
R
Z
V V V
E V V
E V i Z Z i Z
E V i Z Z Z
E i
R
V
V i
R
V i Z
E E E SE
C
RE
L R S
th P S
th E E E SE
V
E RE
V
th E E E SE RE
th E
C
SM
SM E
C
CM E RE
P S
U
=
= + + +
=
= +
= + +
= + + +
= +

=
=

0
2
2
2
Forms loop TUPS

( )
( )
( )
( )
( )


Solution:
Single Ground for all devices!!
using low-impedance grounding
Slide 26
Noise Rejection
Filtering
Slide 27
Noise Rejection
Filtering
Slide 28
Noise Rejection
Modulation
Slide 29
Noise Rejection
Averaging
The S/N ratio of a periodic signal can be increased by taking
repeated measurements of the signal.
Periodic signal s(t) = s(t + kT) k = 1, 2, 3, ...
1st Sample:
2nd Sample:
3rd Sample:

th Sample:
Sum:
Average:
s t n t
s t T n t
s t T n t
N s t N T n t
Ns t n t
N
k
k
N
( ) ( )
( ) ( )
( ) ( )
( ( ) ) ( )
( ) ( )
+
+ +
+ +
+ +
+
=

1
2
3
1
2
1

Time
Volt
T
Slide 30
Noise Rejection
Averaging
Average after N repeated measurements:
If n
k
(t) is zero mean,
x t s t
N
n t s t n t
k
k
N
( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) = + = +
=

1
1

= =

is zero mean

n t
N N
n
n
n
n
( )

2
2
| |
( )
| |
( ) ( ) ( )
| | | |
S
N
s t
S
N
s t s t
N
N
s t
S
N
N
S
N
Orig
n
N
n
n n
N Orig
=
= = =
=
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
o
o o o
avg
avg

Slide 31
( )
V E V
V V
V
R
R
V V
R
R
E
A TH CM
B CM
OUT
F
i
B A
F
i
TH
~ +
~
= = Differential Measurement
Noise Rejection - Common Mode
Noise
Differential Amplifier (Instrumentation Amplifier)
Source
V
OUT
E
TH
Z
OUT
V
A
V
B
V
CM
-
+
R
i
R
i
R
F
R
F
Slide 32
More realistic Op Amp model:
If a common mode voltage V
CM
exists
Common Mode Rejection Ratio (CMRR)
Noise Rejection - Common Mode
Noise
-
+
A
OL
V
-
V
+
V
O
V A V V A V
O OL CM CM
= +
+
( )
CMRR
Differential Gain
Common Mode Gain
= =
A
A
OL
CM
-
+
A
OL
V
-
V
+
V
O
V
CM
CMRR
V A V V
A
V
V A V V
V
O OL
OL
CM
O OL
CM
= +
= +

(
+
+
( )
( )
CMRR

CMRR

Slide 33
Noise Rejection - Common Mode
Noise
Differential Amplifier considering Common Mode Rejection
Source
E
TH
Z
OUT V
A
V
B
V
CM
V
OUT
R
i
R
i
R
F
R
F
-
+
( )
V
R
R
V V
R
R
V
OUT
F
i
B A
F
i
CM
= + +

(
1
CMRR
Ex: Let V
A
- V
B
= 1 mV, R
F
/R
i
= 1000, V
CM
= 1V and CMRR = 10
4
, find V
OUT
.
Slide 34
Noise Rejection - Common Mode
Noise
Instrumentation Amplifier
V
R
R
V V
O
G
A B
= +
|
\

|
.
| 1 2
1
( )
V
OUT
-
+
R
2
R
2
R
2
R
2
-
+
-
+
R
1
R
1
V
B
V
A
Closed-loop differential-input device
Committed gain amplifier.
High input impedance, high CMRR, low offset drift, low input bias current.
R
G