The Impact of Finite Wordlength Implementation

In the practical implementation of DSP systems, whether using hardware or software, one needs to take into account the effects of finite wordlength, especially when this length is short. This chapter deals with the effects of finite wordlength on the performance of DSP systems. Main topics covered are quantization of fixed-point and floating-point numbers, impact of quantization on DSP system implementation, coefficient quantization error in digital filters, quantization errors in arithmetic operations, and limit cycle phenomena.