- 2076 Chaitra · 3 marks
Difference between analog and digital signals
Short answer
Analog signals are continuous in time and amplitude (e.g., microphone), while digital signals have discrete levels like 0/1 (e.g., clock). Digital signals offer high noise immunity and easy storage.
Write the basic difference between analog and digital signals with examples.
An analog signal is continuous in time and amplitude and can take any value in a range; a digital signal has only discrete levels (usually 0 and 1) and changes in steps.
| Point | Analog signal | Digital signal |
|---|---|---|
| Nature | Continuous, smooth | Discrete, step-wise (0/1) |
| Values | Infinite values in a range | Finite values (two in binary) |
| Waveform | Sine-like curves | Square / rectangular pulses |
| Noise | Easily affected; noise adds to signal | High noise immunity |
| Storage | Hard to store without loss | Easy to store in memory |
| Accuracy | Limited by component tolerance | Set by number of bits |
| Processing | Analog circuits (op-amps, filters) | Logic gates, processors |
| Examples | Microphone output, thermocouple voltage, room temperature, AM radio | Computer data, clock pulses, TTL output, CD audio |
Analog: ~~~~ continuous curve ~~~~
Digital: _|‾‾|__|‾‾‾‾|_|‾|__
✓ Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort)
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