Analog to digital conversion in physical measurements

There exist measuring devices where an analog input is converted into a dig ital output. Such converters can have a nonlinear internal dynamics. We sho w how measurements with such converting devices can be understood using con cepts from symbolic dynamics. Our approach is based on a nonlinear one-to-o ne mapping between the analog input and the digital output of the device. W e analyze the Bernoulli shift and the lent map which are realized in specif ic analog/digital (A/D) converters. Furthermore, we discuss the sources of errors that are inevitable in physical realizations of such systems and sug gest methods for error reduction. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.