Damping and the Natural Response in RLC Circuits

Damping is caused by the resistance in the circuit. It determines whether or not the
circuit will resonate naturally. Circuits which will resonate in this way are described
as underdamped and those that will not are overdamped.
Damping attenuation, denoted by symbol , is measured in nepers per second.
However, the unitless damping factor, denoted by symbol (zeta), is often a more
useful measure, which is related to by
=

where
0=

1
LC

There are 3 types of damping in the RLC circuits:

Over-damping ( >1
This happens when >

and the ODE has two distinct solutions.

Under-damping ( <1
This happens when <

and the ODE has real and equal solutions.

Critical-damping ( =1
This happens when =

and the ODE has complex solutions.

For critical-damping, = 1 and represents the case of a circuit that is just on the
border of oscillation. It is the minimum damping that can be applied without causing
oscillation.
Through these analysis, we can manipulate the magnitude of resistance, R,
inductance, L, and capacitance, C, in the circuit such that we can achieve fast
switching and prevent overshooting damage in the circuit