Skip to main content

FIR vs IIR Digital Filters and Recursive vs Non Recursive Filters


Key Features

  • The higher the order of a filter, the sharper the stopband transition
  • The sharpness of FIR and IIR filters is very different for the same order
  • A FIR filter has an equal time delay at all frequencies, while the IIR filter's time delay varies with frequency. Usually, the biggest time delay in the IIR filter is at the filter's cutoff frequency.
  • The term 'IR' (impulse response) is in both FIR and IIR. The term 'impulse response' refers to the appearance of the filter in the time domain.

1. What Is the Difference Between an FIR and an IIR Filters?

The two major classifications of digital filters used for signal filtration are FIR and IIR. The primary distinction between FIR and IIR filters is that the FIR filter provides a finite period impulse response. In contrast, IIR is a type of filter that produces an infinite-duration impulse response for a dynamic system.

Mathematical representation of a filter equation:

A*y(t) = c1*x(t) + c2*x(t - t0) + c3*x(t - t1) + c4*x(t - t2) + . . . + cn*x(t – tn)
    

To make A equal 1, we change the values of the coefficients c1, c2, c3, etc., in the filter equation above. We carry out this to recover the original signal from various multipath (with different delay spreads).

We concentrate on taps and the corresponding weights when designing filters. The filter converges for some weightings of various taps. Some filters function quickly, while others function precisely. Applications determine uses. FIR filters have a limited number of taps and generate a finite amount of impulses. IIR filters, on the other hand, can generate an infinite number of impulse responses despite having a finite number of taps.

Why do we use filters?

The purpose of the use of different kinds of filters is different. But in general, they all smoothen the noisy signal.

MATLAB Code for FIR Filter

In this MATLAB code, we use a FIR filter of order 20 to remove high-frequency noise from a clean sinusoidal signal. The highest frequency component in the sinusoidal signal is 500 Hz. We set the cutoff frequency of the FIR filter to 1000 Hz.

clc;
clear;

% Sampling parameters
Fs = 8000; % Sampling Frequency (Hz)
t = 0:1/Fs:0.1;

% Create a noisy signal
f_clean = 500;
f_noise = 3000;
signal_clean = sin(2*pi*f_clean*t);
signal_noise = 0.5 * sin(2*pi*f_noise*t);
signal = signal_clean + signal_noise;

% FIR Filter Design
N = 20;
fc = 1000;
wn = fc / (Fs/2);
b = fir1(N, wn, 'low', hamming(N+1));

filtered_signal = filter(b, 1, signal);

% Plot
figure;
subplot(3,1,1); plot(t, signal); title('Noisy Signal');
subplot(3,1,2); plot(t, filtered_signal); title('Filtered Signal');
subplot(3,1,3); plot(t, signal_clean); title('Original Clean Signal');
    

Search related filters

Output

MATLAB FIR filter output showing noisy, filtered, and original signals

2. Difference between recursive and non-recursive filters

The output of a recursive filter is directly dependent on one or more of its previous outputs. In a non-recursive filter, the output is independent of previous outputs, such as a feed-forward system with no feedback.

3. Solve: The impulse response of a filter is defined as h[n] =

Impulse response filter question diagram

Now tell us this filter is a 1. Non-recursive IIR filter 2. Recursive IIR filter 3. Non-recursive FIR filter 4. Recursive FIR filter

Answer: Option 3

Generally, an FIR filter has a finite number of impulse responses and the output is independent of previous outputs. Therefore, the correct answer is Non-recursive FIR filter.

Next Page >>

Try Interactive Online simulators

We have developed a web-based simulator for the FIR, IIR, LTI, and other filters to make these techniques easier to understand and help users learn complex signal processing concepts through interactive simulations.

Try our simulators: FIR Filter Simulation   IIR Filter Simulation   LTI System Simulation


Read more about



Contact Us

Name

Email *

Message *

Popular Posts

Electromyography (EMG) Explained

  Electromyography (EMG) EMG stands for Electromyography . It is a medical test used to check how well your muscles and the nerves that control them are working. What it does EMG measures the electrical activity in your muscles. When nerves send signals to muscles, they create tiny electrical impulses—EMG records these. Why doctors use it Doctors may recommend EMG if you have symptoms like: Muscle weakness Numbness or tingling Muscle pain or cramping Suspected nerve disorders It helps diagnose conditions such as: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Peripheral Neuropathy How it’s done Nerve conduction study (NCS) – small electrical pulses are applied to test nerve signals Needle EMG – a thin needle electrode is inserted into muscles to record activity Does it hurt? You might feel mild discomfort (like a quick pinch or muscle soreness) ...

RMS Delay Spread, Excess Delay Spread and Multi-path ...(with MATLAB + Simulator)

📘 Overview of Delay Spread and Multi-path 🧮 Excess Delay spread 🧮 Power delay Profile 🧮 RMS Delay Spread 📚 Further Reading 📂 Other Topics on RMS Delay Spread, Excess Delay ... 🧮 Multipath Components or MPCs 🧮 Online Simulator for Calculating RMS Delay Spread 🧮 Why is there significant multipath in the case of very high frequencies? 🧮 Why RMS Delay Spread is essential for wireless communication? 🧮 Why the Power Delay Profile is essential? 🧮 MATLAB Codes for Calculating Different Types of delay Spreads Delay Spread, Excess Delay Spread, and Multipath (MPCs) The fundamental distinction between wireless and wired connections is that in wireless connections signal reaches at receiver thru multipath signal propagation rather than directed transmission like co-axial cable. Wireless Communication has no set communication path between the transmitter and the receiver. The line...

Direction of Arrival (DoA) Online Simulator (using MUSIC)

Interactive DOA Simulator X-axis XY angle (deg): 45 XZ angle (deg): 30 Noise: 0.05 Y-axis XY angle (deg): 60 YZ angle (deg): 45 Noise: 0.05 Z-axis XZ angle (deg): 60 YZ angle (deg): 30 Noise: 0.05 Estimated DOA (deg): 0 Simulation Workflow and Mathematical Background This simulator demonstrates Direction of Arrival (DOA) estimation using three-axis sensor signals (X, Y, Z), Maximal Ratio Combining (MRC) , and the MUSIC algorithm . It allows interactive control of signal angles and noise for teaching purposes. 1. Signal Generation A pure sinewave signal of frequency f is projected onto three axes using user-defined angles in different planes: X-axis: θ XY , θ XZ Y-axis: θ XY , θ YZ Z-axis: θ XZ , θ YZ Mathematically, for each time sample t : x(t) = s(t) * cos(θ_xy_x) * cos(θ_xz_x) + n_x(t) y(t) = s(t) * sin(θ_xy_y) * cos(θ_yz_y) + n_y(t) z(t) = s(t) * sin(θ_xz_z) * sin(θ_yz_z) + n_z(t) wh...

MIMO Channel Matrix | Rank and Condition Number

MIMO / Massive MIMO MIMO Channel Matrix | Rank and Condition...   The channel matrix in wireless communication is a matrix that describes the impact of the channel on the transmitted signal. The channel matrix can be used to model the effects of the atmospheric or underwater environment on the signal, such as the absorption, reflection or scattering of the signal by surrounding objects. When addressing multi-antenna communication, the term "channel matrix" is used. Let's assume that only one TX and one RX are in communication and there's no surrounding object. Here, in our case, we can apply the proper threshold condition to a received signal and get the original transmitted signal at the RX side. However, in real-world situations, we see signal path blockage, reflections, etc.,  (NLOS paths [↗]) more frequently. The obstruction is typically caused by building walls, etc. Multi-antenna communication was introduced to address this issue. It makes diversity app...

Amplitude Demodulation Simulation

Instructions for Amplitude Modulation (AM) Step 1: Click on 'Generate Message' button to generate input message signal Step 2: Then click on 'Generate Carrier' button to generate carrier signal. The carrier frequency has to be more than the message frequency and You can change frequencies using sliders Step 3: Click on 'Generate Amplitude Modulated Signal' button to generate Amplitude Modulated Signal Step 4: Click the 'Show Frequency Spectrums' button to view the AM spectra. Here, the modulation index is defined as the ratio of the message signal amplitude to the carrier signal amplitude. You can adjust both values. 50 Hz Step 1: Generate Message 500 Hz Step 2: ...

MATLAB Code for MUSIC

  MATLAB Code clc; clear; close all ; %% Step 1: Define Parameters M = 8; % Number of array sensors d = 0.5; % Sensor spacing (lambda/2) K = 2; % Number of signals N = 200; % Number of snapshots theta = [-20 30]; % True signal angles (degrees) SNR = 10; % Signal-to-noise ratio (dB) fprintf( 'Step 1: Parameters Initialized\n' ); %% Step 2: Generate Signal Sources t = 1:N; s1 = exp(1j*2*pi*0.05*t); s2 = exp(1j*2*pi*0.1*t); S = [s1; s2]; figure; plot(real(S(1,:))) title( 'Signal 1 (Real Part)' ) xlabel( 'Samples' ) ylabel( 'Amplitude' ) figure; plot(real(S(2,:))) title( 'Signal 2 (Real Part)' ) xlabel( 'Samples' ) ylabel( 'Amplitude' ) fprintf( 'Step 2: Source Signals Generated\n' ); %% Step 3: Construct Steering Matrix A = zeros(M,K); for k = 1:K A(:,k) = exp(-1j*2*pi*d*(0:M-1)'*sin(theta(k)*pi/180)); end fprintf( 'Step 3: Steering Matr...

Constellation Diagrams of M-ary QAM | M-ary Modulation

📘 Overview of QAM 🧮 MATLAB Code for m-ary QAM (4-QAM, 16-QAM, 32-QAM, ...) 🧮 Online Simulator for M-ary QAM Constellations 📚 Further Reading 📂 Other Topics on Constellation Diagrams of QAM configurations ... 🧮 MATLAB Code for 4-QAM 🧮 MATLAB Code for 16-QAM 🧮 MATLAB Code for m-ary QAM (4-QAM, 16-QAM, 32-QAM, ...) 🧮 Simulator for constellation diagrams of m-ary PSK 🧮 Simulator for constellation diagrams of m-ary QAM 🧮 Overview of Energy per Bit (Eb / N0) 🧮 Online Simulator for constellation diagrams of ASK, FSK, and PSK 🧮 Theory behind Constellation Diagrams of ASK, FSK, and PSK 🧮 MATLAB Codes for Constellation Diagrams of ASK, FSK, and PSK QAM Unlike M-ary PSK, where the signal is modulated with diffe...