An analog front-end (AFE or analog front-end controller AFEC) is a set of analog signal conditioning circuitry that uses sensitive analog amplifiers, often

operational amplifier An operational amplifier (often op amp or opamp) is a DC-coupled high-gain electronic voltage amplifier with a differential input and, usually, a single-ended output. In this configuration, an op amp produces an output potential (relative to c ...

s, filters, and sometimes

application-specific integrated circuit An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC ) is an integrated circuit (IC) chip customized for a particular use, rather than intended for general-purpose use, such as a chip designed to run in a digital voice recorder or a high-efficie ...

s for sensors, radio receivers, and other circuits to provide a configurable and flexible electronics functional block needed to interface a variety of sensors to an antenna,

analog-to-digital converter In electronics, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC, A/D, or A-to-D) is a system that converts an analog signal, such as a sound picked up by a microphone or light entering a digital camera, into a digital signal. An ADC may also provide ...

or, in some cases, to a

microcontroller A microcontroller (MCU for ''microcontroller unit'', often also MC, UC, or μC) is a small computer on a single VLSI integrated circuit (IC) chip. A microcontroller contains one or more CPUs (processor cores) along with memory and programmable i ...

. A

radio frequency Radio frequency (RF) is the oscillation rate of an alternating electric current or voltage or of a magnetic, electric or electromagnetic field or mechanical system in the frequency range from around to around . This is roughly between the upp ...

AFE is used in radio receivers, known as an

RF front end RF is an abbreviation for radio frequency. Rf or RF may also mean: Arts and entertainment * ''Red Faction (series)'', a series of revolution video games * Rinforzando, , in music notation * '' RF Online'', an online RPG made by CCR Businesses * ...

Modules

AFE hardware modules are used as interface sensors for many kinds of analog and digital systems, providing hardware modularity. For example,

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American technology company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronics designers and manufacturers globall ...

markets health monitoring AFEs as the ADS1298, AFE4400 and AFE4490.

Atmel Atmel Corporation was a creator and manufacturer of semiconductors before being subsumed by Microchip Technology in 2016. Atmel was founded in 1984. The company focused on embedded systems built around microcontrollers. Its products included micr ...

markets analog front-ends for

smart meter A smart meter is an electronic device that records information such as consumption of electric energy, voltage levels, current, and power factor. Smart meters communicate the information to the consumer for greater clarity of consumption beha ...

Analog Devices Analog Devices, Inc. (ADI), also known simply as Analog, is an American multinational semiconductor company specializing in data conversion, signal processing and power management technology, headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts. The co ...

markets a CN0209 product for test and measurement applications.

References

{{Reflist Analog circuits Electronic circuits