Amplitude response and square wave describing functions

Abstract

An analog of the describing function method is developed using square waves rather than sinusoids. Static nonlinearities map square waves to square waves, and their behavior is characterized by their response to square waves of varying amplitude - their amplitude response. The output of an LTI system to a square wave input is approximated by a square wave, to give an analog of the describing function. The classical describing function method for predicting oscillations in feedback interconnections is generalized to this square wave setting, and gives accurate predictions when oscillations are approximately square.