Mixed-Order Sturdy MASH Δ-Σ Modulator

An enhanced version of Sturdy MASH (SMASH) (Maghari et al., 2006) delta-sigma modulator is proposed. This structure takes advantage of the well-known stability of the MASH structure while greatly reducing its sensitivity to imperfect circuit blocks. Furthermore, no digital noise cancellation filters are needed. Hence there is no matching requirement for the analog and digital paths. With the proposed enhancement in noise shaping, the first and second stage quantization noise experience different (thus mixed) orders of noise shaping, and the accuracy of this modulator is comparable of that of the MASH structure. Simulations results and mathematical analysis demonstrate the effectiveness of this structure.