EVERWIN VIDHYASHRAM SENIOR SEC.

SCHOOL
Kolathur, Chennai – 99. (Affiliated to the Central Board
of Secondary
Education, New Delhi)
PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT
To Construct an Amplifier Using a
Transistor

DONE BY
MOTI SANJAY M
XII-DYNAMIC
 CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that MOTI SANJAY M of XII
DYNAMIC has successfully completed the Physics
Investigatory Project titled To Construct an Amplifier
Using a Transistor Under the guidance of Ms. V. REENA
JOSHI VINCE and submitted for the practical
examination conducted by the CBSE board during the
year2023-2024.

INTERNAL EXTERNAL
EXAMINER EXAMINER
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I gratefully acknowledge my sincere thanks to our
Physics teacher Ms. V. REENA JOSHI VINCE
and our principal VIDHYAHARI for giving me an
opportunity and guiding me to complete the project
successfully.

MOTI SANJAY M
XII-DYNAMIC
SR NO. TOPICS PG NO.

1. INTRODUCTION 1-4

2. TRANSISTOR 4-7

INTRODUCTION
3. TO THE 8
PROJECT

4. EXPERIMENT 9-15

5. BIBLIOGRAPHY 16
INTRODUCTION:
What is an amplifier?
An amplifier is an electronic device that increases the voltage, current,
or power of a signal. Amplifiers are used in wireless communications
and broadcasting, and in audio equipment of all kinds. They can be
categorized as either weak-signal amplifiers or power amplifiers.

Types of amplifiers
• Weak-signal amplifiers are used primarily in wireless
receivers. They are also employed in acoustic pickups, audio
tape players, and compact disc players. A weak-signal
amplifier is designed to deal with exceedingly small input
signals, in some cases measuring only a few nanovolts (units
of 10-9 volt). Such amplifiers must generate minimal internal
noise while increasing the signal voltage by a large factor. The
most effective device for this application is the field-effect
transistor. The specification that denotes the effectiveness of a
weak-signal amplifier is sensitivity, defined as the number of
microvolts (units of 10-6 volt) of signal input that produce a
certain ratio of signal output to noise output (usually 10 to 1).
• Power amplifiers are used in wireless transmitters, broadcast
transmitters, and hi-fi audio equipment. The most frequently-
used device for power amplification is the bipolar transistor.
However, vacuum tubes, once considered obsolete, are
becoming increasingly popular, especially among musicians.
Many professional musicians believe that the vacuum tube
(known as a "valve" in England) provides superior fidelity.

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Two important considerations in power amplification are power
output and efficiency. Power output is measured in watts or kilowatts.
Efficiency is the ratio of signal power output to total power input
(wattage demanded of the power supply or battery). This value is
always less than 1. It is typically expressed as a percentage. In audio
applications, power amplifiers are 30 to 50 percent efficient. In wireless
communications and broadcasting transmitters, efficiency ranges from
about 50 to 70 percent. In hi-fi audio power amplifiers, distortion is
also an important factor. This is a measure of the extent to which the
output waveform is a faithful replication of the input waveform. The
lower the distortion, in general, the better the fidelity of the output
sound.

Characteristics of amplifiers:
Amplification: The amplification of the signal is the key to amplifying
the strength of the signal.

Input impedance: The input impedance is the resistance of the amplifier

towards the signal. It is measured in ohms.

Efficiency: The efficiency of the amplifier refers to the percentage of

the output power of the amplifier is converted to the input power of the
amplifier.

Stability: The stability of the amplifier is related to the ability of the

amplifier to maintain the output power without fluctuation.

Noise: Noise is the unwanted noise that is added to the signal by the
amplifier.

Output impedance: Output impedance is the resistance of the amplifier

towards the output of the signal.

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Output power: The output power of the amplifier is the output power
of the amplifier that is converted to the input power of the amplifier.

Output voltage: Output voltage is the amplitude of the output signal.

Power supply: Power supply is the supply of the power to the

amplifier.

Gain: The gain of the amplifier is the ratio of the strength of the output
signal to the strength of the input signal.

Response time: The response time of the amplifier is the time it takes
for the amplifier to respond to the input signal.

Threshold voltage: The threshold voltage is the minimum voltage at

which the amplifier can be activated.

Saturation voltage: The saturation voltage is the maximum voltage at

which the amplifier can be activated.

Threshold current: The threshold current is the minimum current at

which the amplifier can be activated.

Saturation current: The saturation current is the maximum current at

which the amplifier can be activated.

Crossover frequency: The crossover frequency is the frequency at

which the input and output impedance are equal to each other.

Common mode rejection ratio: The common mode rejection ratio is the
ability of the amplifier to reject the common mode voltage.

Bandwidth: The bandwidth of the amplifier is the range of frequencies

of the input signal that the amplifier can amplify.

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Signal to noise ratio: The signal to noise ratio of the amplifier is the
ratio between the strength of the input signal and the noise produced by
the amplifier.

Noise figure: The noise figure of the amplifier is the ratio between the
noise power of the amplifier and the input power.

TRANSISTOR:
What is a transistor?
A transistor is a type of semiconductor device that can be used to
conduct and insulate electric current or voltage. A transistor basically
acts as a switch and an amplifier. In simple words, we can say that a
transistor is a miniature device that is used to control or regulate the
flow of electronic signals.
Transistors are one of the key components in most of the electronic
devices that are present today. Developed in the year 1947 by three
American physicists, John Bardeen, Walter Brattain and William
Shockley, the transistor is considered one of the most important
inventions in the history of science.

Parts of a Transistor
A typical transistor is composed of three layers of semiconductor
materials or, more specifically, terminals which help to make a
connection to an external circuit and carry the current. A voltage or
current that is applied to any one pair of the terminals of a transistor
controls the current through the other pair of terminals. There are three
terminals for a transistor. They are listed below:

• Base: This is used to activate the transistor.

• Collector: It is the positive lead of the transistor.
• Emitter: It is the negative lead of the transistor

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Types of Transistors
There are mainly two types of transistors, based on how they are used
in a circuit.

Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT):

The three terminals of BJT are the base, emitter and collector. A very
small current flowing between the base and emitter can control a larger
flow of current between the collector and emitter terminal.
Furthermore, there are two types of BJT, and they include:

 P-N-P Transistor: It is a type of BJT where one n-type material

is introduced or placed between two p-type materials. In such a
configuration, the device will control the flow of current. PNP
transistor consists of 2 crystal diodes which are connected in
series. The right side and left side of the diodes are known as
the collector-base diode and emitter-base diode, respectively.
 N-P-N Transistor: In this transistor, we will find one p-type
material that is present between two n-type materials. N-P-N
transistor is basically used to amplify weak signals to strong
signals. In an NPN transistor, the electrons move from the
emitter to the collector region, resulting in the formation of
current in the transistor. This transistor is widely used in the
circuit.

Field Effect Transistor (FET)

For FET, the three terminals are Gate, Source and Drain. The voltage
at the gate terminal can control a current between the source and the
drain. FET is a unipolar transistor in which N-channel FET or P-
channel FET are used for conduction. The main applications of FETs
are in low noise amplifiers, buffer amplifiers and analogue switches.

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Other Types
Apart from these, there are many other types of transistors which
include MOSFET, JFET, insulated-gate bipolar transistor, thin-film
transistor, high electron mobility transistor, inverted-T field-effect
transistor (ITFET), fast-reverse epitaxial diode field-effect transistor
(FREDFET), Schottky transistor, tunnel field-effect transistor, organic
field-effect transistor (OFET), diffusion transistor, etc.

Characteristics of Transistor
Characteristics of the transistor are the plots which can represent the
relation between the current and the voltage of a transistor in a
particular configuration.
There are two types of characteristics.

 Input characteristics: It will give us the details about the

change in input current with the variation in input voltage
by keeping output voltage constant.
 Output characteristics: It is a plot of output current with
output voltage by keeping the input current constant.
 Current transfer characteristics: This plot shows the
variation of the output current with the input current by
keeping the voltage constant.

Advantages of Transistor
 Lower cost and smaller in size.
 Smaller mechanical sensitivity.
 Low operating voltage.
 Extremely long life.
 No power consumption.
 Fast switching.
 Better efficiency circuits can be developed.
 Used to develop a single integrated circuit.

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Limitations of Transistors
Transistors have a few limitations, and they are as follows:

 Transistors lack higher electron mobility.

 Transistors can be easily damaged when electrical and
thermal events arise. For example, electrostatic discharge
in handling.
 Transistors are affected by cosmic rays and radiation.

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INTRODUCTION TO THE PROJECT:
An Amplifier is a device which is used for multiplying the Amplitude
of variation of alternating voltage or current or power. An Amplifier,
may have two inputs , one from the external world as a microphone or
an antenna or a TV camera, and another input obtained from its own
output. The input obtained from the output is normally small but the
input from the external world may be larger so that the output would
follow the form of the input from the eternal world to the amplifier,
unlike the oscillator which has an internal world of its own apart from
it energy supply system as all amplifiers need an external energy
supply. With amplifiers one needs to be careful what input to apply and
also how much and what polarity one applies feedback from the output
otherwise one can finish with, an oscillator, or a constant voltage or
constant current power supply and not a signal amplifier that gives out
a larger form or a quantity, proportional to waveform of the input.

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AIM:
To construct amplifier using n-p-n transistor and study its current gain
and identify its active region.

THEORY:
An Amplifier is a device which is used for multiplying the Amplitude
of variation of alternating voltage or current or power.
Here’s a diagram of how an amplifier works:

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A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify or switch
electronic signals and electrical power. It is composed of
semiconductor material with three terminals for connection to an
external circuit.
Emitter (E): It is the left hand side thick layer of the transistor which
is heavily doped;

Collector (C): It is the right hand side thick layer of the transistor which
is moderately doped;
A p-n-p junction transistor is obtained by growing a thin layer of thin
layer of n-type semi-conductor in between two relatively thick layers
of p-type semi-conductor.
A n-p-n junction transistor is obtained by growing a thin layer p-type
semi-conductor in between two relatively thick layers of n-type semi-
conductor.
In this experiment, we will use a n-p-n transistor.
The common-emitter amplifier is designed so that a small change in
voltage (Vin) changes the small current through the base of the
transistor; the transistor's current amplification combined with the
properties of the circuit mean that small swings in Vin produce large
changes in Vout.

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Various configurations of single transistor amplifier are possible, with
some providing current gain, some voltage gain, and some both.
From mobile phones to televisions, vast numbers of products include
amplifiers for sound reproduction, radio transmission, and signal
processing. The first discrete-transistor audio amplifiers barely
supplied a few hundred milliwatts, but power and audio fidelity
gradually increased as better transistors became available and amplifier
architecture evolved.
Modern transistor audio amplifiers of up to a few hundred watts are
common and relatively inexpensive.

MATERIAL REQUIRED:
1. A n-p-n transistor
2. Two battery eliminators
3. Two High resistance Rheostats
4. Connecting Wires
5. Two One Way keys
6. Two Ammeters
7. Two Voltmeters

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CIRCUIT DIAGRAM:

PROCEDURE:
 Connect the apparatus accordingly as shown in the circuit
diagram.
 Determine the least count and the zero errors of voltmeters
and ammeters.
 Keep the potential of the battery Vb at a low voltage
 Make all the connections neat, clean and tight.

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  Note the input current at this point.
 Now increase the input current by changing the resistance of
rheostat and record the corresponding output current.
 Ensure that the input voltage does not exceed 1 V (input and
output voltage will change correspondingly).
 Plot the readings of the current taken in the graph of Current
(inp) vs Current (out).

OBSERVATIONS:
VOLTMETER
1. Least count of Voltmeter (Vi)= 0.2 V
2. Range of Voltmeter (Vi)= 10 V
3. Zero Error of voltmeter (Vi)= 0 V
4. Least count of Voltmeter (Vo)= 0.2 V
5. Range of Voltmeter (Vo)= 10 V
6. Zero Error of Voltmeter (Vo)= 0 V
AMMETER
1. Least count of Milliammeter (inp)= 2 mA
2. Range of Milliammeter (inp)= 100 mA
3. Zero error of Milliammeter (inp)= 0 mA
4. Least count of Milliammeter (out)= 10 mA
5. Range of Milliammeter (out)= 500 mA
6. Zero error of Milliammeter (out)= 0 Ma

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Tabulations:

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RESULT:
1. As seen from the graph, the active region with maximum current
amplification is from 0.41A to 2.0A.
2. Current gain(amplification)(β) =

CONCLUSION:
With the experiments carried out in the laboratory to study the
characteristics of the NPN transistor proved the aim defined in the
report. The NPN transistor has got current amplification in the tune of
8.5 in the region of 0.4 to 2 ma.

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REFERENCE/BIBLIOGRAPHY:
This project would be nearly incomplete if I have not used the
information given in the following websites.
My special thanks for the uploader of information on these
websites.
If considered, I have used everything that google shows
me……

https://www.seminarsonly.com/
https://www.colorado.edu/physics/phys3330/PDF/Experiment7.pdf
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor#Transistor_as_an_amplifier
http://230nsc1.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Electronic/npnce.html
https://www.tedpavlic.com/teaching/osu/ece327/lab1_bjt/lab1_bjt_transisto
r_basics.pdf
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Solids/trans.htm

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