Differentiator and Integrator

Op amp as an Integrator
Another major application of Op-amp is its use in mathematical applications. An Operational Amplifier can be
configured to perform the mathematical operations of Integration and Differentiation. As a matter of fact, the
name ‘Operational Amplifier’ came from the fact that it is used for performing mathematical operations. In this
tutorial, we will learn and analyze the working of an Operational Amplifier as Integrator.

Operational amplifier can be configured to perform calculus operations such as differentiation and
integration. In an integrating circuit, the output is the integration of the input voltage with respect
to time. A passive integrator is a circuit which does not use any active devices like op-amps or
transistors but only passives like resistors and capacitors.

An integrator circuit, which consists of active devices is called an Active Integrator. An active
integrator provides a much lower output resistance and higher output voltage than it is possible
with a simple RC circuit.

Op-amp differentiating and integrating circuits are basically inverting amplifiers, with appropriately
placed capacitors. Integrator circuits are usually designed to produce a triangular wave output from
a square wave input.
Integrating circuits have frequency limitations while operating on sine wave input signals.
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Ideal Operational Amplifier Integrator Circuit
An operational amplifier integrator circuit produces an output voltage which is proportional to
the area (amplitude multiplied by time) contained under the waveform.

An ideal op-amp integrator uses a capacitor Cf, connected between the output and the op-amp
inverting input terminal, as shown in the figure below.
 Limitations of Ideal Integrator
At low frequencies, the feedback capacitor behaves like an open-circuit, so there is no feedback from the
output to the inverting input of the op-amp. Now, the circuit behaves like an open-loop inverting amplifier
with very high gain.
This will result in the saturation of the output voltage. As the input frequency increases, the capacitor gets
charged. At higher frequencies, the capacitor acts like a short circuit.

Due to open loop bandwidth of ideal integrator is very small

Practical Integrator
1
Op-amp Integrator Applications
•Op-amp integrating amplifiers are used to perform
calculus operations in analogue computers.

•Integrating circuits are most commonly used in analogue-

to-digital converters, ramp generators and also in wave
shaping applications.

•Another application would be to integrate a signal

representing water flow, producing a signal representing
the total quantity of water that has passed by the flow
meter. This application of an integrator is sometimes
called a totalizer in the industrial instrumentation trade.
Differentiators have frequency limitations while operating on sine wave inputs; the circuit attenuates all low
frequency signal components and allows only high frequency components at the output. In other words, the
circuit behaves like a high-pass filter.

Ideal Op-Amp Differentiator Circuit

An op-amp differentiating amplifier uses a capacitor in series with the input voltage source, as
shown in the figure below.
For DC input, the input capacitor C1, after reaching its
potential, cannot accept any charge and behaves like an
open-circuit.

The non-inverting input terminal of the op-amp is

connected to ground through a resistor Rcomp, which
provides the input bias compensation, and the inverting
input terminal is connected to the output through the
feedback resistor Rf.
When the input is a positive-going voltage, a current I flows into the capacitor C1, as shown in the
figure. Since the current flowing into the op-amp’s internal circuit is zero, effectively all of the
current I flows through the resistor Rf. The output voltage is,

Vout = – (I * Rf)
Here, this output voltage is directly proportional to the rate of change of the input voltage. From
the figure, node ‘X’ is virtually grounded and node ‘Y’ is also at ground potential i.e.,
VX = VY = 0 .
 From the input side, the current I can be given as:
I = C1 {d(Vin – VX) / dt} = C1 {d(Vin) / dt}

From the output side, the current I is given

as:
I = -{(Vout – VX) / Rf} = -{Vout / Rf}
Equating the above two equations of current we get:

C1 {d(Vin) / dt} = -Vout / Rf

Vout = -C1 Rf {d(Vin) / dt}

Above equation indicates that the output is C1 Rf times the differentiation of

the input voltage.

The product C1 Rf is called as the RC time constant of the differentiator circuit.

The negative sign indicates the output is out of phase by 1800 with respect to
the input.

The main advantage of such an active differentiating amplifier circuit is the

small time constant required for differentiation.
Input and Output Waveforms

Let us now see the output waveforms for different input

signals. When a step input (DC Level) with amplitude Vm is
applied to an op-amp differentiator, the output can be
mathematically expressed as,
Vout = – C1 Rf {d(Vm) / dt}

For simplicity, assume the product C1 Rf is unity.

Therefore, Vout = 0 , because the amplitude Vm is constant and

d(Vm) / dt = 0.

But practically, the output is not zero since the input step
wave takes a finite amount of time to rise from 0 volts to
Vm volts. Hence, the output appears like a spike at time t = 0,
as shown in the figure below.
If the input to the differentiator is changed to a square wave, the output will be a waveform consisting of
positive and negative spikes, corresponding to the charging and discharging of the capacitor, as shown
in the figure below.
 For sine wave input, which is mathematically
represented as V (t) = Vm sin ωt, where Vm is the
amplitude of the input signal and t is the period,
the output of the differentiator is given as,

Vout = – C1 Rf {d(Vm sin ωt) / dt}

For simplicity, let us assume the product C1 Rf is

unity.

Vout = – Vm. ω. cos ωt

Thus, the output of a differentiator for a sine wave

input is a cosine wave and the input-output waveforms
are shown in the figure below.
Frequency Response of Ideal Differentiator

The gain of an op-amp differentiator is directly dependent on the frequency of the input signal. Hence, for DC
inputs where f = 0, the output is also zero. As the frequency of the input signal increases, the output also
increases. The frequency response of an ideal differentiator is as shown in the figure below.

The frequency f1 is the frequency for which the gain

of the differentiator becomes unity.

It can be seen from the figure that for frequency

less than f1, the gain is less than unity.

For f1, the gain becomes the unity (0 dB) and beyond
f1, the gain increases at 20dB per decade.
Practical Op-amp Differentiator Circuit

For an ideal differentiator, the gain

increases as frequency increases. Thus,
at some higher frequencies, the
differentiator may become unstable and
cause oscillations which results in noise.

These problems can be avoided or

corrected in a practical differentiator
circuit, which uses a resistor R1 in series
with the input capacitor and a capacitor
Cf in parallel with the feedback resistor,
as shown in the figure below.
 The output voltage of the practical op-amp differentiating amplifier circuit is
given as,
Vout = – C1 Rf {d(Vin) / dt}

i.e., the output voltage is C1 Rf times the differentiation of the input voltage.
The addition of resistor R1 and capacitor Cf stabilizes the circuit at higher
frequencies, and also reduces the effect of noise on the circuit.
Frequency Response of Practical Differentiator

The gain of the practical differentiator increases with

increasing frequency and at a particular frequency,
f1, the gain becomes the unity (0 dB). The gain
continues to increase at a rate of 20dB per decade
till the input frequency reaches a frequency, f2.

Beyond this frequency of the input signal, the gain of

the differentiator starts to decrease at a rate of 20dB
per decade. This effect is due to the addition of the
resistor R1 and capacitor Cf. The frequency response
curve of a practical differentiator is as shown in the
figure below.
Applications of Op-amp Differentiator
•Differentiating amplifiers are most commonly designed to operate on triangular and rectangular
signals.
•Differentiators also find application as wave shaping circuits, to detect high frequency components
in the input signal.
Designing of Differentiator
For a square wave input say 1V peak and 1KHz, the output waveform will consist of positive and
negative spikes of magnitude Vsat which is approximately 13V for +- 15V op-amp power supply

During the time periods for which input is constant at +1V, the differential output will be zero .
However when input transits between positive to negative 1V levels, the slope of the input is
infinite for an ideal square wave. The output therefore gets clipped to about +Ve and –Ve 13V
for a +- 15V op-amp power supply