EXPERINMENT-10

R-2R LADDER DAC

10.1 OBJECTIVES

Design a D to A Convertor with a resolution of 0.3125V using R-2R network. Assume the
logic 1 to be 5V and logic 0 to be 0V.

10.2.1 HARDWARE REQUIRED

S.No Equipment/Component Specifications/Value Quantity

name
1 IC 741 Refer data sheet in appendix 1

3 Resistors 2K Ω 5

1K Ω 3

5 Dual Regulated power supply (0 -30V), 1A 1

5 Regulated power supply (0 -5V), 1A 1

6 Multimeter 1

10.2.2 THEORY

In electronics, a digital-to- analog converter (DAC) is a device for converting

a digital (usually binary) code to an analog signal (current, voltage or electric
charge). Digital-to-analog converters are the interface between the abstract digital
world and the analog real life. An analog- to-digital converter (abbreviated ADC,
A/D or A to D) is an electronic circuit that converts continuous signals to discrete
digital numbers. Most of the real world physical quantities such as voltage, current,
temperature, pressure and time are available in analog form. Even though an analog
signal represent a real physical parameter with accuracy, it is difficult to process,
store or transmit the analog signal without introducing considerable error because of
the superimposition of noise as in the case of amplitude modulation. Therefore, for
processing, transmission and storage purposes, it is often convenient to express these
variable in digital form. It gives better accuracy and reduces noise.

D/A conversion is an important interface process for converting digital signals

to analog (linear) signals. An example is a voice signal that is digitized for storage
processing, or transmission and must be changed back into an approximation of the
original audio signal in order to drive a speaker.
 Fig.10.1 A basic DAC

D/A Conversion fundamentals

The DAC fundamentally converts finite-precision numbers (usually fixed-

point binary numbers) into a physical quantity, usually an electrical voltage.
Normally the output voltage is a linear function of the input number.

Fig.10.2 Block Schematic of a basic DAC

Fig.10.2 shows the basic configuration for digital-to-analog (D/A) conversion.
The input is an n-bit binary word D and is combined with a reference voltage V R to
give an analog output signal. The output of a DAC can be either a voltage or current.
For a voltage output DAC, the D/A converter is mathematically described as
Vo = K VFS (d12 + d22 +….+dn2 )
-1 -2 -n

Where, Vo =output voltage

VFS= full scale output voltage

K=scaling factor usually adjusted to unity

d1 d2... dn=n-bit binary fractional word with the decimal point

located at the left d1 = most significant bit (MSB) with a weight
of VFS / 2

dn=least significant bit (ISB) with a weight of VFs / 2

n

Since the input to the D/A converter has a finite number of digital
combinations, the resulting analog output also has a limited number of possible
values (unlike pure analog signals, which may have an infinite number of values).
The greater the number of possible values, the closer the analog output will be to the
ideal value. The number of possible levels is determined by the number of lines or
bits in the digital number. More specifically, the number of states is computed as 2 N
where N is the number of bits in the digital number. For example, an 8-bit D/A
converter could be expected to produce 2 or 256, discrete output steps. If the full-
8

scale range of the converter is 0 to 10 volts, then each step will be 10/256, or about
39 millivolts. If finer resolution is required, we need more bits in the digital number.
Thus, a converter with 10-bit resolution would provide 2 or 1024, steps with each
10

step being equivalent to 10/1024, or about

9.8 millivolts. Accuracy of a D/A converter describes the amount of error between
the actual output of the converter and the theoretical output for a given input number.
This rating inherently includes several other sources of error.

R-2R Ladder D/A Converter

One of the most popular methods for D/A conversion is shown in Fig 12.3. It
is called an R-2R ladder D/A converter, since the input network resembles the rungs
on a ladder and the resistors in the input network are either equal (R) or have a 2:1
ratio (2R). One advantage of the R-2R converter over the weighted converter is the
resistors have a 2:1 ratio regardless of the number of bits being converted. This
makes matching resistors much easier and even makes the use of integrated resistors
practical.

An easy way to analyze the operation of the circuit is to Thevenize the input
circuit for one or more digital input numbers. Once the input circuit has been
simplified with the Thevenin’s theorem, it is left with a simple inverting amplifier
circuit whose input voltage is the Thevenin equivalent voltage and whose gain is
determined by the ratio of feedback resistance to Thevenin

equivalent input resistance. By performing several analyses with different input

numbers, you will discover that the least significant input (b 0) produces the least
effect on output voltage, and the next input (b l) has twice as much effect on output
voltage. Similarly, bit b2 has twice the effect of b1, but only half the effect onoutput
voltage of b3. These variable effects are identical to the relative weights of the digits
in a binary number.

Calculations: Output Voltage is given by

 Vo = - V * (R / 2R) * (b /2 + b /4 + b /8)
R f 2 1 0

where, V = 5V, R = 2R, b (MSB bit) and b (LSB bit)

R f 2 0

Design Constraints
 Resistance should be use ±1 to ±5 tolerance

 Input voltage should be 5V for high and 0V for low.

10.3 PRE LAB QUESTIONS

1. Classify DACs on the basis of their output.

2. How many resistors are required in a 12-bit weighted-resistor DAC?
3. How many levels are possible in a 2-bit DAC? What is its resolution if the
output voltage range is 0 to 3 V?

4. A 5-bit D/A converter is available. Assume that ‘00000’ corresponds to an

output of +10 V and that the D/A converter is connected for -0.1V per
increment. What output voltage will be produced for ‘11111’?
5. What is the resolution of a 0–5 V 6-bit digital-to-analog converter (DAC).
10.4 EXPERIMENT
.
1. Setup the circuit as shown in Fig. 12.3.
2. Set the approximate value of R and 2R.
3. Reference voltage V is set as 5V R

4. Find the output voltage Vo for different combinations of digital binary inputs
from 000 to 111.
5. Compare the calculated values with observed values and plot DAC characteristics.
Observations

R-2R LADDER DAC

b2 b1 b Vo ( observed)
0 Vo ( Calculated)

0 0 0

0 0 1

0 1 0

0 1 1

1 0 0

1 0 1

1 1 0

1 1 1
10.5 POST LAB QUESTIONS
1. Determine the output voltage of the DAC in Fig-10.3(a). The sequence of four-
digit binary codes represented by the waveforms in Fig-10.3(b) are applied to the
inputs. A high level is a binary l, and low level is a binary 0. The least significant
binary digit is D0.

Fig-10.3

2. The R-2R ladder DAC shown in Fig-10.4 below consists of 10KΩ & 20KΩ resistors, VREF
= 2V and R1 = 10KΩ. Determine the values required for RF such that VFS = 10V.

Fig-10.4 R-2R Ladder DAC

3. What is the value of resistor required in weighted resistor DAC if LSB resistor
value is 12KΩ for 4-bit DAC?
4. A 4-bit R/2R digital-to-analog (DAC) converter has a reference of 5 volts. What
is the analog output for the input code 0101?
5. What is the major advantage of the R/2R ladder digital-to-analog (DAC), as
compared to a binary-weighted digital-to-analog DAC converter?

Result: