Also known as: DAC
A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) turns a sequence of digital numbers into a continuous analog voltage — the inverse of an analog-to-digital converter.1
Overview
A DAC takes a binary value and produces a proportional voltage on its output; feeding it a stream of values at a fixed rate reconstructs a waveform. Its two headline specs mirror the ADC’s: resolution (bits, which sets how finely the output is quantized) and update rate (how fast new samples are accepted). Some microcontrollers — such as parts of the STM32 line — include a true on-chip DAC; others approximate one by low-pass filtering PWM.
What it’s for
A DAC lets an MCU output genuinely analog signals: audio, control voltages for analog circuits, programmable reference levels, or arbitrary waveforms. It pairs naturally with sensors and actuators that expect an analog input. Where only a rough analog level is needed, filtered PWM on an ordinary GPIO pin is the cheaper substitute; a dedicated DAC wins on clean, fast, high-resolution output.
Sources
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Digital-to-analog converter — Wikipedia, on DAC operation and specifications. ↩