In-Phase & Quadrature Sinusoidal Components Next  |  Prev  |  Up  |  Top  |  Index  |  JOS Index  |  JOS Pubs  |  JOS Home  |  Search

In-Phase & Quadrature Sinusoidal Components

From the trig identity $ \sin(A+B)=\sin(A)\cos(B)+\cos(A)\sin(B)$, we have

\begin{eqnarray*}
x(t) &\isdef & A \sin(\omega t + \phi) = A \sin(\phi + \omega ...
...omega t) \\
&\isdef & A_1 \cos(\omega t) + A_2 \sin(\omega t).
\end{eqnarray*}

From this we may conclude that every sinusoid can be expressed as the sum of a sine function (phase zero) and a cosine function (phase $ \pi/2$). If the sine part is called the ``in-phase'' component, the cosine part can be called the ``phase-quadrature'' component. In general, ``phase quadrature'' means ``90 degrees out of phase,'' i.e., a relative phase shift of $ \pm\pi/2$.

It is also the case that every sum of an in-phase and quadrature component can be expressed as a single sinusoid at some amplitude and phase. The proof is obtained by working the previous derivation backwards.

Figure 4.2 illustrates in-phase and quadrature components overlaid. Note that they only differ by a relative $ 90$ degree phase shift.

Figure 4.2: In-phase and quadrature sinusoidal components.
\includegraphics{eps/quadrature}


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[How to cite this work] [Order a printed hardcopy]

``Mathematics of the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT), with Music and Audio Applications'', by Julius O. Smith III, W3K Publishing, 2003, ISBN 0-9745607-0-7.
Copyright © 2007-02-02 by Julius O. Smith III
Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA),   Stanford University
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