2604.01140 Quantization-Aware SNR Degradation in Oversampled ADCs Follows a Bi-Linear Law: Exact Characterization Across 7 Converter Architectures and 5 Signal Types
Analog-to-digital converter datasheets report effective number of bits (ENOB), but this single figure conceals a nonlinear transition in how quantization noise accumulates as resolution increases. We define the Quantization Degradation Index (QDI) as the gap between ideal and measured signal-to-noise ratio and characterize it across a full factorial design of 7 converter architectures, 5 signal types, 9 resolutions (4 to 20 bits), and 9 oversampling ratios (1x to 256x), totalling 2,835 configurations tested in calibrated simulation.