EMI: UNIT – IV

AC BRIDGES

• When the four resistive arms of the basic Wheatstone bridge are replaced by
impedances and the bridge is excited by an AC source, the result is an AC
Bridge.

• To balance the bridge, two conditions must be satisfied, the resistive (R) and
the reactive components (XC or XL). Once balanced, the AC Bridge indicates
a null.

• AC bridge circuits are also used for shifting phase, providing feedback paths
for oscillators and amplifiers, filtering out undesired signals, and measuring
the frequency of audio and radio frequency (RF) signals.

Bridge balance condition

In admittance form
 Polar form of impedance

Sub. The polar values in balance condition

1) Maxwell’s Inductance Bridge:
2) Maxwell’s Inductance Capacitance Bridge :

`
 Quality Factor:

Advantages of the Maxwell’s Bridges

The following are the advantages of the Maxwell bridges

1. The balance equation of the circuit is free from frequency.

2. Both the balance equations are independent of each other.
3. The Maxwell’s inductor capacitance bridge is used for the measurement of the
high range inductance.
Disadvantages of the Maxwell’s Bridge

The main disadvantages of the bridges are

1. The Maxwell inductor capacitance bridge requires a variable capacitor which is

very expensive. Thus, sometimes the standard variable capacitor is used in the
bridges.
2. The bridge is only used for the measurement of medium quality coils.

3) HAY’S BRIDGE
Advantages:

1. Suitable for measurement of inductance with high Q >10

2. Simple expression for Q interms of elements of bridge

3. Requires very low value resistor R1 to measure high Q

DISADVANTAGES:
Only suitable for measurement of high Q inductance .not suitable for low Q
inductances

4) Anderson's Bridge
• Need of Anderson's bridge though we have Maxwell bridge to measure
quality factor of the circuit.

• The main disadvantage of using Maxwell bridge is that, they are unsuitable
of measuring the low and high quality factor.
• However Maxwell Bridge is suitable for measuring accurately medium
quality factor respectively.

• So, there is need of bridge which can measure low quality factor and this
bridge is modified Maxwell's bridge and known as Anderson's bridge.

Convert star connected R2 , R4 , r into delta connected

Star to delta connection equivalent

Balance Equation
Sub. R5 and R6 values in the balance equation
5) Schering Bridge
This bridge is used to measure to the capacitance of the capacitor, dissipation
factor and measurement of relative permittivity.

Balance equation
7) Wagner Earth Connection
When performing measurements at high frequency, stray capacitances
between the various bridge elements and ground, and between the bridge
arms themselves, become significant. This introduces an error in the measurement,
when small values of capacitance and large values of inductance are measured.

An effective method of controlling these capacitances is to enclose the ele-

ments by a shield and to ground the shield. This does not eliminate the capacitance,
but makes it constant in value.

Another effective and popular method of eliminating these stray capacitances and
the capacitances between the bridge arms is to use a Wagner Earth Connection.
Figure shows a circuit of a capacitance bridge. C 1 and C2 are the stray
capacitances. In Wagner’s ground connection, another arm, consisting of Rw and
Cw forming a potential divider, is used. The junction of Rw and Cw is grounded and
is called Wagner Earth Connection. The procedure for adjustment is as follows

Wagner ground connection

The detector is connected to point 1 and R 1 is adjusted for null or minimum
sound in the headphones. The switch S is then connected to point 2, which
connects the detector to the Wagner Earth Connection. Resistor R w is now adjusted
for minimum sound. When the switch `S’ is connected to point 1, again there will
be some imbalance. Resistors R1 and R3 are then adjusted for minimum sound and
this procedure is repeated until a null is obtained on both switch positions 1 and 2.
This is the ground potential. Stray capacitances C 1 and C2 are then effectively
short-circuited and have no effect on the normal bridge balance.

The capacitances from point C to D to ground are also eliminated by the addition
of Wagner’s ground connection, since the current through these capacitors enters
Wagner’s ground connection.

8) Wein Bridge
Wien Bridge has a series RC combination in one and a parallel combination
in the adjoining arm. Wien's bridge shown below. Its basic form is designed to
measure
Frequency. It can also be used for the instrument of an unknown capacitor with
great accuracy. The impedance of one arm is

Wein bridge circuit diagram

Z2=R2

Z3=R3 parallel with C3

 The equation (1) gives the resistance ratio while the equation (3) gives
frequency of applied voltage.

Generally in wein bridge, the selection of the components is such that

R1=R2=R

And

C1=C2=C

R2/R1=2 and f= 1/2ПRC

Applications

The audio range is normally divided into 20 - 200 - 2 k - 20 kHz range In this case,
the resistances can be used for range changing and capacitors, and C3 for fine
frequency control.
The bridge can also be use for measuring capacitance. In that case, the frequency
of operation must be known.
The bridge is also used in a harmonic distortion analyzer, as a Notch filter, an in
audio frequency and radio frequency oscillators as a frequency determine element.
An accuracy of 0.5% - 1% can be readily obtained using this bridge.
9) Desauty Bridge
10) Modified Desauty Bridge