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difference between ANALOG and DIGITAL ground

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The only difference between analog and digital grounds is what you connect to them. You connect your analog component returns to analog ground, and your digital component returns to digital ground.

The ferrite bead on the connection between the two grounds is intended to act as a high frequency filter to remove some of the noise that might be coupled from the digital side of the ground to the analog side.

The truth is that you don't need separate analog and digital reference planes if you are careful about component separation and signal routing. The critical design requirement is to prevent your analog signals from sharing a return path with the digital signals. That can be accomplished by simply avoiding routing analog signal traces over portions of the reference plane already in use by digital signals.

A couple of references:
http://www.hottconsultants.com/techtips/split-gnd-plane.html
http://www.sigcon.com/Pubs/news/7_02.htm
http://www.sigcon.com/Pubs/edn/adcgrounding.htm
http://www.analog.com/UploadedFiles/Application_Notes/495266810AN-404.pdf
 

Digital and analog gnd separation is very important if audio signal appear on your circuit. e.g digital cordless phone

This is because most digital cordless phone operates in TDD mode ( e.g. Dect TDD switches between Tx & Rx at 10ms period ) and transmit power is relatively high. As a result, TDD switching noise leaks to audio circuit through gnd ( return path ). A strong hum of 100Hz could be heard. Therefore, carefully gnd separation in between digital and analog is necessary for system optimization.
 

If you could seperate digital and analog tracing/routing area, it is not necessary to seperate digital and analog grouds.
 

Hi,

The fact is a noise level in the analog domain may pick up as a signal in the digital domain. That is why you have to separate them.

Ferrite bead is nothing but an inductor, which blocks the surge, spikes between them.
If you need more details, contact me.

Regards,

N. Muralidhara
CRL-BEL
 

Also know that, the signal chooses its return path. we designers have to be careful to provide it with fewer option.

When you are running a supply plane close by than ground, the supply plane is most likely to become the return path for that particular signal.

jeyaraman
 

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