The Significance of a Linear Phase
Discover why the linear phase is preferred in most DSP algorithms.
We'll cover the following
We know that a phase shift is directly proportional to a time shift in a sinusoid.
Here, is a time shift. From this, we observe the exact relationship below:
Clearly, the time shift of each sinusoid depends on its phase shift normalized by its own frequency. This is a linear expression of the form in which the slope is given by .
Signal distortion
Almost all practical signals consist of multiple sinusoids. If there is a delay in the signal processing chain through a system, e.g., an amplifier or a filter, then this delay affects all the constituent sinusoids according to their own frequencies.
Let’s see an example in the code below. A square wave is again generated by a sum of sinusoids, but their phases can be altered to observe their impact.
Get hands-on with 1200+ tech skills courses.