Improved cascaded delta-sigma architecture with high signal to noise ratio and reduced distortion

An architecture of cascaded delta-sigma modulator is presented. It attains a significant improvement in achievable SNR, dynamic range and has the additional advantage of reduced sensitivity to switch and op-amp nonlinearities. The design consists of approximating quantizer-gain by functional simulation of the modulator and then keeping this value in view while conceiving digital filters. Digital filters designed this way are more efficient in cancelling quantization error and provide better results. This architecture can be used at low oversampling ratios for wideband applications, as well as for high-resolution audio applications.