Understanding High-Resolution Dynamic Element Matching DACs [Feature]

DEM in the context of non-segmented DACs is well understood in general, and numerous articles can be found in the literature on this topic and its fundamentals. DEM in the context of segmented DACs is a more puzzling subject, as randomizing the mismatch-induced error of a DAC whose elements are nominally different in size is not straightforward. In this article, we cover the topic of segmented DEM DACs via the step-bystep derivation of a simple DAC architecture that is linear by virtue of its shuffling scheme.