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Need for Multistage Amplifier

 Typical spec for a general purpose amplifier
 Input resistance ~ 1MΩ
Multistage Amplifiers  Output resistance ~ 100Ω
 Voltage gain ~ 100,000
 No single transistor amplifier can satisfy this specification
 Hence, cascading multiple stages of amplifiers is used
 Usually:
Lecture#4  An input stage to provide required input resistance
 A middle stage(s) to provide gain
 An output stage to provide required output resistance

ECE, CoE, AASTU 3

Multistage Amplifier Capacitively-Coupled Multistage Amplifier

 In multistage systems, the overall voltage gain, of cascaded amplifiers:

where n is the number of stages.

 Amplifier voltage gain is often expressed in decibels (dB) as :

 The overall voltage gain in dB is the sum of the individual voltage gains in dB.

4 ECE, CoE, AASTU 5

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Loading Effects DC Voltages

 Total input resistance of the second stage presents an ac load to the  Since both stages are identical, the dc voltages for Q1 and Q2 are the same.
first stage.  The dc base voltage for Q1 and Q2 is:
 Looking from the collector of Q1,
 signal at the collector of Q1 “sees” R3, R5, R6, and Rin(base2) of the

second stage all in parallel to ac ground.  The dc emitter and collector voltages are:
 The voltage gain of the first stage is reduced by the loading of the
second stage.
 This is due to the effective ac collector resistance of the first stage is less than
the actual value of its collector resistor, R3.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 6 ECE, CoE, AASTU 7

Voltage Gain Direct-Coupled Multistage Amplifiers

The base-to-collector voltage gain
 First Stage: of the first stage is:  There are no coupling or bypass capacitors in this
circuit.
 The dc collector voltage of the first stage provides
the base-bias voltage for the second stage.
 Second Stage:  Used to amplify low frequencies all the way down to
dc (0 Hz) without loss of voltage gain.
 The disadvantage is that small changes in the dc bias
voltages from temperature effects or power-supply
variation are amplified by the succeeding stages,
 Overall Voltage Gain: which can result in a significant drift in the dc levels
throughout the circuit. Fig. A basic two-stage direct-
coupled amplifier

Fig. AC equivalent of first stage

ECE, CoE, AASTU 8 ECE, CoE, AASTU 10
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Typical configuration for public addressing system

Power Amplifiers (PAs)

 Provides output stage amplification

 Small signal amplifier: small
portion of the ac load line is
used
 Usually voltage amplified
 Low Efficiency <25%
 Large signal amplifier: large portion of the ac load line is
used
 Deliver power: >1W
 More efficient >70%
 Divided into different classes (A, B, B-PushPull, AB, C)

Class-A PA Class-A PA : Q-Point

 When an amplifier is biased such that it always operates in the linear  Maximum class A output occurs when the Q-point is centered on the
region where the output signal is an amplified replica of the input ac load line.
signal, it is a class A amplifier.

 Class A power amplifiers are large-signal amplifiers with the

objective of providing power (rather than voltage) to a load.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 14 ECE, CoE, AASTU 15

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Class-A PA : Q-Point Class-A PA : Power Gain

 If the Q-point is not centered on the ac load line, the output signal is  A power amplifier delivers power to a load.
limited. signal power delivered to the load

signal power delivered to the amplifier

Where, & the voltage is expressed as rms!!!

 Recall from Chapter 3 that for a

 By substituting into above eqn, voltage-divider biased amplifier,

 for a CE or CC amplifier,
Q-point closer to cutoff. Q-point closer to saturation.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 16 ECE, CoE, AASTU 17

Class-A PA : DC Quiescent Power Class-A PA : Output Power

 The power dissipation of a transistor with no signal input  The output signal power is the product of the rms load current and
the rms load voltage.
 The maximum unclipped ac signal occurs when the Q-point is
centered on the ac load line.
 A signal will not increase the power dissipated by the transistor but
actually causes less total power to be dissipated.  For a CE amplifier with a centered Q-point, the maximum peak
voltage swing is:
 The only way a class A power amplifier can supply power to a load is
The rms value is 0.707Vc(max)
to maintain a quiescent current that is at least as large as the peak
current requirement for the load current.  The maximum peak current swing is:

The rms value is 0.707Ic(max)

ECE, CoE, AASTU 18 ECE, CoE, AASTU 19

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Class-A PA : Output Power & Efficiency Example:

 The maximum power out from a class A amplifier is : Determine the voltage gain, the power gain and efficiency of the class A power
amplifier in Fig. below Assume = 200 for all transistors.

 The efficiency of any amplifier is the ratio of the output signal power
supplied to a load to the total power from the dc supply.
Where average power supply current, =
the total dc power and the supply voltage ≥

 The maximum efficiency, of a capacitively coupled class A amplifier is:

The maximum efficiency of a capacitively coupled
class A amplifier cannot be higher than 25%, and, in
practice, is usually considerably less ( ≥10%)
ECE, CoE, AASTU 20 ECE, CoE, AASTU 21

Solution: Solution:
 First stage: The ac collector resistance of the first stage is RC in parallel with the input resistance  Total input resistance of the first stage:
to the second stage.
,
( ) = ,
ℎ ( ) || || = ||
 Voltage gain of the first stage with the loading of
 Second stage: Voltage gain of Darlington
the second stage taken into account.
emitter follower:

 Overall amplifier gain:  Output Power :

 Current in the output stage:

 Power Gain:

 Input Power :

Voltage-divider Darlington voltage

Negative sign is for inversion biased CE with RE follower(CC)
ECE, CoE, AASTU 22 ECE, CoE, AASTU 23
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Solution: Class-B PA : Operation

 Power from DC source:

 Efficiency:

 Efficiency of 4%
 Illustrates why class A is not usually a good choice for a power amplification.
 More efficient than a class A amplifier
− More difficult to implement the circuit
in order to get a linear reproduction of
Fig. CC class-B Amplifier
the input waveform.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 24 ECE, CoE, AASTU 25

Class-B Push-Pull Class-B Push-Pull: Transformer Coupled

Two Coupling transformers Two class-B amplifiers with
 The circuit in Fig. above only conducts for the positive half of the on the input and output Identical npn transistors
cycle.
 To amplify the entire cycle, it is necessary to add a second class B
amplifier that operates on the negative half of the cycle.
 The combination of two class B amplifiers working together is called
push-pull operation.
Output taken from
 Two common approaches for using push-pull amplifiers to reproduce collector in both case
CE Configuration
the entire waveform:
 Transformer coupling
Center-tapped secondary Combines the signals by
 Complementary symmetry transistors produce phase inversion permitting current in both
directions.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 27 ECE, CoE, AASTU 28

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Class-B Push-Pull: Complementary symmetry transistors Class-B Push-Pull: Crossover Distortion

Two npn and pnp type
transistors used to allow
one half-cycle at a time Emitter follower
configuration

When dc base voltage is

zero, both transistors
are off and the input
signal voltage must
exceed VBE before a
transistor conducts

Fig. crossover distortion in a class B

push-pull amplifier

ECE, CoE, AASTU 31 ECE, CoE, AASTU 34

Biasing Push-Pull Amplifier for Class AB Operation Class-C PA: Operation

R1 and R2 are of equal value, as are
Drop across D1 equals the VBE of the positive and negative supply
Q1, and the drop across D2 equals voltages. More efficient than either class A
the VEB of Q2 or push-pull class B and class AB

When characteristics of D1 and D2 The diode current will be ICQ:

are closely matched to that of BEJ,
the current in the diodes and the
current in the transistors are the
same; this is called a current mirror
This small current required of
class AB operation eliminates the It is biased below cutoff with conduction occurs for
crossover distortion the negative VBB supply much less than 180

Fig. Biasing the push-pull amplifier with current-mirror diode bias to eliminate crossover distortion.

ECE, CoE, AASTU 36 ECE, CoE, AASTU 41

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Comparison of amplifier classes

End of Lecture #4 on BJT

Q&A?

ECE, CoE, AASTU 43 ECE, CoE, AASTU 44