Amplitude distortion refers to unequal amplification or attenuation of the various frequency components of the signal, and phase distortion refers to changes in the phase relationships between harmonic components of a complex wave.
The maximum distance between the centre line to the peak is called amplitude, while the phase gives us a location of any particle in a waveform that is periodic in nature.
Frequency distortion occurs when the amplitudes of the different frequency components of an input signal are changed by a factor that is not the same for all frequencies. Phase distortion occurs when there is a phase shift between a system's output- and its input-signal components.
: change of wave form of a composite wave due to change of relative phase of its component harmonics.
Phase distortion results when different frequencies travel at different signal velocities due to dielectric dispersion in the PCB substrate. Because the dielectric constant varies with frequency, the signal velocity also varies with frequency.
Amplitude distortion is distortion occurring in a system, subsystem, or device when the output amplitude is not a linear function of the input amplitude under specified conditions. Generally, output is a linear function of input only for a fixed portion of the transfer characteristics.
Phase Distortion instead lets the signal modulate the phase of itself, essentially resulting in something similar to feedback FM. This way you can add that FM touch to any sound, to get a sweet 80's vibe or a filthy dubstep bass.
Two common types of distortion. In barrel distortion (left), magnification decreases with distance from the centre of the image; in pincushion distortion (right), magnification increases with distance.
There are four main types of distortion that come from map projections: distance, direction, shape and area.
*Phase distortion happens when the phase response of the filter changes nonlinearly across the filter's passband frequency response.
Frequency distortion: This occurs when a circuit or device causes the voltage/current of different frequency components in an input signal to be modified by different amounts. This can only be seen on broadband signals. This generally occurs in filters when the magnitude of the Bode plot is nonlinear.
The distinct types of distortion are linear distortion, nonlinear distortion, and multipath fading. There are two types of linear distortions: amplitude distortion and phase (or delay) distortion.
Two sound waves of the same frequency that are perfectly aligned have a phase difference of 0 and are said to be “in phase.” Two waves that are in phase add to produce a sound wave with an amplitude equal to the sum of the amplitudes of the two waves.
The amplitude and phase are constant. Amplitude modulation is a technique of modulation in which the amplitude of the carrier wave varies in accordance with the amplitude of the modulating signal. The frequency and phase are constant.
Conversely, because the amplitude of the resulting wave depends on the relative phase of the waves, this means that by changing the relative phase, you can affect the amplitude.
Harmonic distortion may be measured by looking at the output spectrum on a spectrum analyzer and observing the values of the second, third, fourth, etc., harmonics with respect to the amplitude of the fundamental signal. The value is usually expressed as a ratio in %, ppm, dB, or dBc.
When positions on the graticule are transformed to positions on a projected grid, four types of distortion can occur: distortion of sizes, angles, distances, and directions. Map projections that avoid one or more of these types of distortion are said to preserve certain properties of the globe.
A melted crayon, a deflated balloon, a CD or DVD with scratches that no longer plays correctly — these things have all been affected by distortion. Other examples of distortion are things like your reflection in a broken mirror or the sound of your voice underwater.
Several other types of distortion also exist, such as envelope distortion, digital aliasing, and intermodulation distortion, and any of these can be intentional musical effects or unwanted corruptions.
The difference between attenuation and distortion lies in the fact that in attenuation the signal losses some part of energy where the amplitude of the signal may decrease. On the other hand, distortion is the change in the waveform of the signal due to noise.
Second-order or 'even' harmonics are even-numbered multiples of the fundamental frequencies and create a rich, pleasing sound. Third-order or 'odd' harmonics are odd-numbered multiples of the fundamental frequencies, which give the signal an edgier, more aggressive sound.
Phase distortion can be avoided by the use of coaxial cables. in such cables the internal inductance is low at high frequencies because of skin effect, the resistance is small because of large conductors, the capacitance and leakage are small because of the use of dielectric.
If the phase shift is uniform with respect to frequency, a modulated signal will not be distorted, but if the phase shift is nonlinear with respect to frequency, the output signal is distorted compared to the input.
Linear distortion does not introduce new frequency components to a signal but does alter the balance of existing ones. This diagram shows the behaviour of a signal (made up of a square wave followed by a sine wave) as it is passed through various distorting functions.