LECTURE 3

BJT and FET Frequency Response

Logarithms

Power Gain
If the output power is 15W and the input power
is 0.5W.

DECIBEL GAIN

1 bel = 1- decibel
1-mW Reference: If the power is 2W, then:

Relation of Power and Voltage Gain: The power gain from input
to output equals:

Since the ratio V2/V1 is the voltage gain A, The power gain is:
Power Gain

EXAMPLE 1.
Find the magnitude gain corresponding to a voltage gain of 100
dB.

EXAMPLE 2
Input power to a device is 10,000 W at a voltage of 100 V.
Output power is 500 W and the output impedance is 20 ohms.
A. Find the power gain in decibels
B. Find the voltage gain in decibels
 General Frequency Considerations

The frequency response of an amplifier refers to the frequency

range in which the amplifier will operate with negligible effects from
capacitors and device internal capacitance. This range of
frequencies can be called the mid-range.

• At frequencies above and below

the midrange, capacitance and any
inductance will affect the gain of
the amplifier.
• At low frequencies the coupling and
bypass capacitors lower the gain.
• At high frequencies stray
capacitances associated with the
active device lower the gain.
• Also, cascading amplifiers limits
the gain at high and low frequencies.
Cutoff Frequencies
The mid-range
frequency range of an
amplifier is called the
bandwidth of the
amplifier.

The bandwidth is
defined by the lower
and upper cutoff
frequencies.

Cutoff – any frequency

at which the gain has
dropped by 3 dB.

What is Cutoff Frequency?

1
The formula for cutoff frequency is: f c=
2 πRC
Example
A. Determine the break frequency
B. Sketch the asymptotes and locate the 3dB point

BJT Amplifier Low-Frequency Response

At low frequencies,
coupling capacitor (CS, CC)
and bypass capacitor (CE)
reactances affect the
circuit impedances.

Coupling Capacitor (CS)

The cutoff frequency due to

CS can be calculated by
1
f LS =
2 π (R S + Ri )C s

Where:
Ri=R 1∨¿ R2∨¿ β ℜ
Coupling Capacitor (CC)

The cutoff frequency due to

CC can be calculated with
1
f LC =
2 π (R o+ R L )C C

Where:
Ro =RC ∨¿ R o

Bypass Capacitor (CE)

The cutoff frequency due

to CE can be calculated with

1
f ¿=
2 π Re CE

Where

R' S
Re =R E ∨¿( +r e )
β

And

R ' s=Rs ∨¿ R1∨¿ R2

Bandwidth

BJT Amplifier Low-Frequency Response

The Bode plot indicates

that each capacitor
may have a different
cutoff frequency.

It is the device that has

the highest lower
cutoff frequency (fL)
that dominates the
overall frequency
response of the
amplifier.

FET Amplifier Low-Frequency Response

At low frequencies, coupling capacitor (CG, CC) and bypass

capacitor (CS) reactances affect the circuit impedances.
Coupling Capacitor (CG)

The cutoff frequency due

to CG can be calculated
With

Coupling Capacitor (CC)

The cutoff frequency due to CC

can be calculated with
Bypass Capacitor (CS)
The cutoff frequency due to
CS can be calculated with

FET Amplifier Low-Frequency Response

The Bode plot indicates that

each capacitor may have a
different cutoff frequency.

The capacitor that has the

highest lower cutoff frequency
(fL) is closest to the actual
cutoff frequency of the
amplifier.
Miller Capacitance

Any p-n junction can develop capacitance. In a BJT amplifier,

this capacitance becomes noticeable across:

• The base-collector junction at high frequencies in common-emitter

BJT amplifier configurations
• The gate-drain junction at high frequencies in common-source FET
amplifier configurations.

These capacitances are represented as separate input and

output capacitances, called the Miller Capacitances.
Miller Input Capacitance (CMi)

Note that the amount of

Miller capacitance is
dependent on interelectrode
capacitance from input to output
(Cf) and the gain (Av).

Miller Output Capacitance (CMo)

If the gain (Av) is

considerably greater
than 1, then
BJT Amplifier High-Frequency Response

Capacitances that affect the

high-frequency response are

• Junction capacitances
Cbe, Cbc, Cce
• Wiring capacitances
Cwi, Cwo
• Coupling capacitors
CS, CC
• Bypass capacitor
CE

Input Network (fHi) High-Frequency Cutoff

Where

And
Output Network (fHo) High-Frequency Cutoff

High-frequency AC equivalent model for

the network of BJT Amplifier
 High-frequency AC equivalent model for
the network of BJT Amplifier

BJT Amplifier Frequency Response

Note: The highest lower
cutoff frequency (fL) and
the lowest upper cutoff
frequency (fH) are
closest to the actual
response of the amplifier
FET Amplifier High-Frequency Response

Capacitances that affect the

high-frequency response are

• Junction capacitances
Cgs, Cgd, Cds
• Wiring capacitances
Cwi, Cwo
• Coupling capacitors
C G, C C
• Bypass capacitor
CS

Input Network (fHi) High-Frequency Cutoff

Output Network (fHo) High-Frequency Cutoff

Multistage Frequency Effects

Each stage will have its own frequency response, but the output
of one stage will be affected by capacitances in the subsequent stage.
This is especially so when determining the high frequency response. For
example, the output capacitance (Co) will be affected by the input Miller
Capacitance (CMi) of the next stage.