Bandpass sampling for software radio receivers, and the effect of oversampling on aperture jitter

Abstract

To maximize reconfigurability in software radio receivers, digitization should occur as close to the antenna as possible. Bandpass sampling allows the digitization of bandpass signals at RF or intermediate frequencies without significantly increasing the sampling rate. This enables a more flexible receiver to be realized allowing for many radio functions to be defined in software. Sampling of signals at high carrier frequencies has associated problems such as the effects of aperture jitter. Jitter can limit the frequency at which digitization occurs and also degrade receiver performance. This paper investigates the effects of jitter on signal quality in bandpass sampling systems.