Digital-to-analog converter

A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) maps discrete digital values to a continuous voltage, current, or other analog signal. Its resolution and conversion behavior determine how closely the output represents the encoded signal.

R-2R ladder: A resistor network that uses only two resistor values to generate weighted analog outputs from digital bits. Its repeating resistor pattern converts binary bit weights into an output voltage.
Digital signal: A signal represented by discrete symbols or numerical values rather than a continuous range. A DAC takes these numerical values as its input.
Digital audio: Sound represented, stored, or transmitted as numerical samples. Audio playback converts sample values into a continuously varying electrical signal.
Analog-to-digital converter: An electronic circuit that converts a continuous analog input into a digital representation. It performs the reverse direction of conversion.
Sigma-delta modulation: A conversion technique that encodes signal amplitude in a high-rate stream and shapes quantization noise toward higher frequencies. Sigma-delta DACs trade high sample rates and filtering for fine effective resolution.
Binary number: A number represented using the two digits 0 and 1. Binary code bits commonly specify the DAC's target output level.
Audio amplifier: An electronic device that increases the power of an audio-frequency signal to drive a load. It commonly amplifies a DAC's analog output to drive speakers or headphones.
Digital potentiometer: An electronically controlled resistor whose effective resistance is set by a digital code. It changes resistance rather than directly producing a general analog signal.
Pulse-width modulation: A method of representing a signal by varying the duty cycle of a pulse train. Filtering a duty-cycle-controlled output can produce an analog level from digital switching.
Sampling (signal processing): The process of measuring a continuous signal at discrete points in time. Sampled values often become the sequence a DAC later reconstructs.

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