CIRCUITS AND

6.002 ELECTRONICS

Amplifiers --
Small Signal Model

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Review

„ MOSFET amp
VS
RL
vO

vI iDS

„ Saturation discipline — operate

MOSFET only in saturation region
„Large signal analysis
1. Find vO vs vI under saturation discipline.
2. Valid vI , vO ranges under saturation discipline.

Reading: Small signal model -- Chapter 8

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Large Signal Review

1 vO vs vI

K
vO = VS − (vI − 1)2 RL
2
valid for vI ≥ VT
and
vO ≥ vI – VT
K 2
(same as iDS ≤ vO )
2

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Downloaded on [DD Month YYYY].

6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Large Signal Review
2 Valid operating ranges

vO
VS
5V
corresponding vO > vI − VT
interesting vO = vI − VT
region for vO vO < vI − VT

1V
vI
VT
1V 2V
“interesting” region
for vI . Saturation
discipline satisfied.

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Downloaded on [DD Month YYYY].

6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 But…
vO
VS
5V

vO = vI − VT

vO 1V vI
vI
VT
1V 2V
Demo

Amplifies alright,
vI but distorts
vO
t

Amp is nonlinear … /
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Small Signal Model
vO
~ 5V VS Focus on this line segment

(VI , VO )

~ 1V
vI
VT
1V~ 2V
K (vI − VT )
2
vO = VS − RL
2
Amp all right, but nonlinear!
Hmmm … So what about our linear amplifier ???

Insight:
But, observe vI vs vO about some
point (VI , VO) … looks quite linear !
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Downloaded on [DD Month YYYY].

6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Trick vo looks
linear
ΔvO VO vi
(VI ,VO )

VI
ΔvI

™ Operate amp at VI , VO
Æ DC “bias” (good choice: midpoint
of input operating range)
™ Superimpose small signal on top of VI
™ Response to small signal seems to be
approximately linear

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Downloaded on [DD Month YYYY].

6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Trick vo looks
linear
ΔvO VO vi
(VI ,VO )

VI
ΔvI
™ Operate amp at VI , VO
Æ DC “bias” (good choice: midpoint
of input operating range)
™ Superimpose small signal on top of VI
™ Response to small signal seems to be
approximately linear
Let’s look at this in more detail —
I graphically next
II mathematically week
III from a circuit viewpoint
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 I Graphically
We use a DC bias VI to “boost” interesting input
signal above VT, and in fact, well above VT .

VS

interesting RL
input signal
vO
ΔvI +
–
VI +–
Offset voltage or bias

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Graphically VS

interesting
RL
input signal vO
ΔvI +
–
VI +–

vO
VS operating
point
VO VI , VO

vO = vI − VT
vI
0 VT

VI
Good choice for operating point:
midpoint of input operating range
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Small Signal Model
aka incremental model
aka linearized model

Notation —
Input: vI = VI + vi
total DC small
variable bias signal (like ΔvI)
bias voltage aka operating point voltage

Output: vO = VO + vo

Graphically,
vI vO
vi vo
VI
VO

0 t 0 t
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 II Mathematically
(… watch my fingers)

RL K
vO = VS − (vI − VT ) VO = VS − RL K (VI − VT )2
2

2 2
“
substituting vI = VI + vi vi << VI
RL K
vO = VS − ( [VI + vi ] − vT )2
2
RL K
= VS − ( [VI − VT ] + vi )2
2

= VS −
RL K
2
(
[VI − VT ]2 + 2 [VI − vT ]vi + vi 2 )
RL K
VO + vo = VS − (VI − VT )2 − RL K (VI − VT ) vi
2
From “,

vo = − RL K (VI − VT ) vi
gm related to VI

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Mathematically

vo = − RL K (VI − VT ) vi
gm related to VI

vo = − g m RL vi

For a given DC operating point voltage VI,

VI – VT is constant. So,

vo = − A vi

constant w.r.t. vi

In other words, our circuit behaves like a linear amplifier

for small signals

Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 Another way
RL K
vO = VS − (vI − VT )2
2

⎡
⎢VS −
R K
L
2
v −V
I T
2 ⎤
⎥ ( )
d ⎢⎣ ⎥⎦
vo = ⋅ vi
dv
I
v =V
I I

slope at VI

vo = − RL K (VI − VT ) ⋅ vi

g m = K (VI − VT )
A = − g m RL amp gain

Also, see Figure 8.9 in the course notes

for a graphical interpretation of this result
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
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6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10

 More next lecture …
iDS
Demo
load line
input signal response
operating point
VI

vO
VO

How to choose the bias point:

1. Gain component g m ∝ VI
2. vi gets big Æ distortion.
So bias carefully
3. Input valid operating range.
Bias at midpoint of input operating
range for maximum swing.
Cite as: Anant Agarwal and Jeffrey Lang, course materials for 6.002 Circuits and Electronics, Spring 2007. MIT
OpenCourseWare (http://ocw.mit.edu/), Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Downloaded on [DD Month YYYY].

6.002 Fall 2000 Lecture 10