Syllabus

Power Supplies –Block diagram, Half-wave rectifier, Full-wave rectifiers and filters, Voltage
regulators, Output resistance and voltage regulation, Voltage multipliers.

Unit 1 Transistor: BJT structure and operation (npn), circuit symbol, configurations, relation between
transistor currents.

Power Supplies, Transistors, Amplifiers Amplifiers – Definition, Types of amplifier, gain, Input-Output Resistance, Multi-stage amplifier; BJT
as a switch: Cut-off and saturation modes.

Text Book Pre requisites

 Mike Tooley, ‘Electronic Circuits, Fundamentals & Applications’, 4th •Semiconductor basics
Edition, Elsevier, 2015. DOI https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315737980. •What is semiconductor?
eBook ISBN9781315737980. •Why do we need semiconductor?
 Basic Electronics- Devices, circuits and IT fundamentals- By Santiram •Types of semiconductor- Intrinsic and Extrinsic
Kal- PHI, 2012 •Extrinsic- Doping, p type, n type- trivalent and pentavalent

•Majority and minority charge carriers

 Unbiased Diode
• No voltage applied across the junction
Semiconductor diode • Majority holes on p side start diffusing
into n side
• Majority free electrons on n side start
•Two-terminal unilateral device which allows the flow of current in only one direction diffusing into p side
• Positive immobile ions are formed on n
•Anode and cathode are the two terminals
side and negative ions on p side near the
•Diode offers low resistance hence permits current flow from Anode to Cathode junction, this is called depletion region
• In equilibrium condition, depletion region
•It offers high resistance or restricts the flow of current from Cathode to Anode widens up to a point where no further
electrons or holes can cross the junction.
•It can be biased (applying voltage across terminals of diode) in two ways: Forward bias and Reverse This acts as a barrier.
bias • Potential difference across depletion
region is called barrier potential/junction
•Diode is a pn junction which permits current flow when forward biased and blocks current when potential/built-in voltage/cut-in potential
reverse biased • Net current in unbiased diode is Zero.

Forward biased diode Reverse biased diode

• P region is connected to negative and n region to positive of the dc voltage
• P region is connected to positive and n region is connected to • Negative of the battery attracts holes in p region and positive of the battery
negative of dc supply attracts electrons in n region
• Negative of the battery pushes free electrons across the • Majority charge carriers move away from the junction
• Depletion region widens and barrier potential increases
depletion region, provided the applied voltage exceeds barrier
• Resistance of diode is high
voltage. Similarly, negative of the battery pushes holes • Due to increased barrier potential, free electrons on p side are attracted
against barrier from p to n region towards positive while holes towards negative of the battery
• Barrier voltage for Si diode is 0.7V and Ge diode is 0.3V. • There is a very small reverse current due to the flow of minority carriers
• Due to this width of the depletion region reduces and barrier • Reverse current is constant though reverse voltage is increased upto a limit.
potential also reduces It is called reverse saturation current.
• Minority charge carriers are thermally generated hence this current is
• Majority carriers cross the junction
temperature dependant
• Hence current starts flowing from p to n side (Anode to • Reverse saturation current is in the order of micro amperes for Ge and few
cathode terminal)-Forward current nano amperes for Si diodes
 Current voltage or I-V
characteristics of diode Diode approximations
• First quadrant indicates the behaviour of diode
when forward biased Ideal diode model Constant voltage drop model
• Current is nearly zero when forward voltage is less
than knee or barrier voltage
• As forward voltage exceeds barrier voltage,
current increases exponentially
• Third quadrant indicates the characteristics of
reverse biased diode
• As the reverse voltage is increased, reverse
current increases initially but after a small voltage
becomes constant equal to reverse saturation
current. Though reverse voltage is increased the
reverse current remains constant.
• At reverse breakdown voltage, breakdown of
diode occurs and current increases sharply
damaging the diode.

DC power supply DC power supply

•Power supply is a device that supplies electric power to a load.
•The iron-cored step-down transformer feeds a rectifier arrangement (often based on a bridge
•A step-down transformer of appropriate turns ratio is used to convert high voltage from the mains to a low circuit).
voltage (9V, 12V, 15V, 20V, 30V). This is achieved by varying the turns ratio on the transformer.
•The output of the rectifier is then applied to a high-value reservoir capacitor. The capacitor helps to
•The a.c. output from the transformer secondary is then rectified using conventional silicon rectifier diodes to
produce an unsmoothed (sometimes referred to as pulsating d.c.) output. smooth out the voltage pulses produced by the rectifier.

•The output is smoothed and filtered before being applied to a circuit which will regulate (or stabilize) the output •A stabilizing circuit (often based on a series transistor regulator and a Zener diode voltage
voltage so that it remains relatively constant in spite of variations in both load current and incoming mains reference) provides a constant output voltage.
voltage.
 A SIMPLE DC SUPPLY
RECTIFIERS
A rectifier is a device that converts alternating current (ac) to direct
current (dc).

13

Rectifiers
•Semiconductor diodes are commonly used to convert alternating current (a.c.) to direct current (d.c), Vrms – Root mean square voltage
in which case they are referred to as rectifiers.
Vm (= Vpeak) – peak voltage
•Types- Half-wave rectifier, Full-wave rectifier, Bridge rectifier
Vavg (= Vdc) – Average voltage
•Half-wave rectifier uses single diode and operates on only either positive or negative half-cycles of
the supply

•Full-wave rectifier uses two diodes with centre tap transformer and operates in both positive and
negative half cycles

•Bridge rectifier uses four diodes and operates in both positive and negative half cycles
Half-wave rectifier Half-wave rectifier- Working
•Mains voltage (220 to 240 V) is applied to the primary of • The switching action of D1 results in a pulsating output voltage which is developed across the load resistor (RL).
a step-down transformer (T1). • Mains supply and output developed across RL both have same frequency 50 Hz.

•The secondary of T1 steps down the 240 V r.m.s. to 12 V • During the positive half-cycle, the diode will drop the 0.6 V to 0.7 V forward threshold voltage normally associated
r.m.s. (the turns ratio of T1 will thus be 240/12 or 20:1). with silicon diodes.

•However, during the negative half-cycle the peak a.c. voltage will be dropped across D1 when it is reverse biased.
•D1 will be forward biased during each positive half-cycle This is an important consideration when selecting a diode for a particular application.
(relative to common) and will effectively behave like a
closed switch.

•D1 will be reverse biased during each negative half-cycle

and will effectively behave like a open switch.

Half-wave rectifier- Working Half-wave rectifier- Waveforms

•Assuming that the secondary of T1 provides 12 V r.m.s., the peak voltage output from the
transformer’s secondary winding will be given by: 17𝑉

•The peak voltage applied to D1 will thus be approximately 17 V. The negative half-cycles are blocked
by D1 and thus only the positive half-cycle appear across RL.

•Actual peak voltage across RL will be the 17 V positive peak being supplied from the secondary on 16.3𝑉
T1, minus the 0.7 V forward threshold voltage dropped by D1. Positive half-cycle pulses having a
peak amplitude of 16.3 V will appear across RL.
Problem 1 Reservoir and smoothing circuits
A mains transformer having a turns ratio of 44:1 is connected to a 220 V r.m.s. mains supply. If the •Improvement in Half-wave rectifier circuit is possible by
secondary output is applied to a half-wave rectifier, determine the peak voltage that will appear adding the capacitor, C1, to ensure that the output voltage
remains at, or near, the peak voltage even when the diode is
across a load. not conducting.
Ans: •When the primary voltage is first applied to T1, the first
positive half-cycle output from the secondary will charge C1
to the peak value seen across RL.
•Hence C1 charges to 16.3 V at the peak of the positive half-
cycle. Because C1 and RL are in parallel, the voltage across
RL will be the same as that across C1.
•The time required for C1 to charge to the maximum (peak)
level is determined by the charging circuit time constant (the
series resistance multiplied by the capacitance value).

Half-wave rectifier with capacitor Half-wave rectifier with capacitor

filter filter
•The series resistance comprises the secondary winding resistance together with the forward • C1 is referred to as a reservoir capacitor. It stores charge during the
positive half-cycles of secondary voltage and releases it during the
resistance of the diode and the (minimal) resistance of the wiring and connections. Hence C1 negative half-cycles.
charges very rapidly as soon as D1 starts to conduct. • C1 will discharge by a small amount during the negative half-cycle periods
from the transformer secondary.
•The time required for C1 to discharge is, in contrast, very much greater. The discharge time constant
• Small variation in dc output voltage is ripple
is determined by the capacitance value and the load resistance, RL.
• Since ripple is undesirable we must take additional precautions to reduce
•In practice, RL is very much larger than the resistance of the secondary circuit and hence C1 takes it. One obvious method of reducing the amplitude of the ripple is that of
simply increasing the discharge time constant.
an appreciable time to discharge.
• Discharge time constant can be increased by increasing the value of C1 or
•During this time, D1 will be reverse biased and will thus be held in its non-conducting state. As a by increasing the resistance value of RL. Usually RL cant be changed.

consequence, the only discharge path for C1 is through RL. • Increasing the value of C1 is a more practical alternative and very large
capacitor values (often in excess of 4,700 μF) are typical.
 Refinement to the circuit to reduce
ripple (use of R-C smoothing filter) Problem 2
•This circuit employs two additional components, R1 and C1, which The R–C smoothing filter in a 50 Hz mains operated half-wave rectifier circuit consists of R1 = 100 Ω and C
act as a filter to remove the ripple. 2 = 1,000 μF. If 1 V of ripple appears at the input of the circuit, determine the amount of ripple appearing
at the output.
•The value of C1 is chosen so that the component exhibits a
negligible reactance at the ripple frequency (50 Hz for a half-wave Ans:
rectifier or 100 Hz for a full-wave rectifier)

•The amount of ripple is reduced by an approximate factor equal to:

Full-wave rectifiers Bi-phase rectifier circuits

•A better rectifier arrangement would make use of both positive and negative half-cycles. •Mains voltage (240 V) is applied to the primary of the step-
down transformer (T1) which has two identical secondary
•Improvement over half-wave rectifiers windings, each providing 12 V r.m.s. (the turns ratio of T1
will thus be 240/12 or 20:1 for each secondary winding).
•They are not only more efficient but are significantly less demanding in terms of the reservoir and
smoothing components. •On positive half-cycles, point A will be positive with respect
to point B. Similarly, point B will be positive with respect to
•Two types: phase type and the bridge rectifier type. point C. In this condition D1 will allow conduction while D2
will not allow conduction.

•On negative half-cycles, point C will be positive with respect

to point B. Similarly, point B will be positive with respect to
point A. In this condition D2 will allow conduction while D1
will not allow conduction.
Equivalent circuits during positive Bi-phase rectifier circuits with
and negative half-cycle capacitor filter
•The current is routed through the load in the same direction on
successive half-cycles.

•Pulsating output voltage being developed across the load resistor

(RL). Frequency of the output is 100 Hz. This doubling of the ripple
frequency allows us to use smaller values of reservoir and smoothing
capacitor to obtain the same degree of ripple reduction.

•Peak voltage produced by each of the secondary windings will be

approximately 17 V and the peak voltage across RL will be 16.3 V

•If C1 is added at the output, it charges to approximately 16.3 V at the

peak of the positive half-cycle and holds the voltage at this level when
the diodes are in their non-conducting states.

OPERATION OF BI-PHASE RECTIFIER OPERATION OF BI-PHASE RECTIFIER

D1 FWD Biased D1 REV Biased

Vin T1 A + + VL vin T1 A - + vout

RL RL
-
B - B + -
t + t -
-
C C
+
D2 REV Biased D2 FWD Biased
 Bi-phase rectifier circuits-
waveforms Bridge rectifier circuits
• The time required for C1 to charge to the maximum (peak) level is •This arrangement avoids the need to have two separate secondary
determined by series resistance which comprises of secondary windings. It uses 4 diodes.
winding resistance together with the forward resistance of the diode
and the (minimal) resistance of the wiring and connections. Hence C1 •Mains voltage (240 V) is applied to the primary of a step-down
charges very rapidly as soon as either D1 or D2 starts to conduct.
transformer (T1). The secondary winding provides 12 V r.m.s.
• The time required for C1 to discharge is, in contrast, very much (approximately 17 V peak) and has a turns ratio of 20:1
greater.
•On positive half-cycles, point A will be positive with respect to point B.
• The discharge time contrast is determined by the capacitance value In this condition D1 and D2 will allow conduction while D3 and D4 will
and the load resistance, RL which is large.
not allow conduction.
• C1 takes an appreciable time to discharge.
•On negative half-cycles, point B will be positive with respect to point
•During this time, D1 and D2 will be reverse biased and held in a non- A. In this condition D3 and D4 will allow conduction while D1 and D2
conducting state, thus only discharge path for C1 is through RL. will not allow conduction.

Operation of Bridge Rectifier Operation of Bridge Rectifier

A-
vin T1 A + D4 + vin T1 FWD
REV D4
D1 FWD D1 REV

t D2 + vout t + vout
B D2
FWD - D3 REV D3
- REV RL t B+ FWD RL
- - t
 Equivalent circuits during positive Bridge rectifier circuits with
and negative half cycles reservoir capacitor
•Once again, the result is that current is routed through the load in the same direction on successive half- •Reservoir capacitor (C1) can be added to
cycles. maintain the output voltage when the
diodes are not conducting.
•Once again, the peak output voltage is approximately 16.3 V (i.e. 17 V less the 0.7 V forward threshold
voltage). •C1 charges to approximately 16.3 V at the
peak of the positive half-cycle and holds
the voltage at this level when the diodes
are in their non-conducting states.
•R–C and L–C ripple filters can be added to
bi-phase and bridge rectifier circuits in
exactly the same way as those shown for
the half-wave rectifier arrangement

What is a Voltage Regulator?

Voltage regulators
A voltage regulator provides a constant DC output voltage that •Regulator circuit using Zener diode
•Rs is included to limit the zener current to a safe value
is independent of AC line voltage variations, load current and when the load is disconnected

temperature. •When a load (RL) is connected, the zener current (IZ) will
fall as current is diverted into the load resistance
•(it is usual to allow a minimum current of 2 mA to 5 mA in
The input to a voltage regulator comes from the filtered output order to ensure that the diode regulates).
of a rectifier derived from an AC voltage. •The output voltage (VZ) will remain at the zener voltage
until regulation fails at the point at which the potential
divider formed by RS and RL, produces a lower output
voltage that is less than VZ.
 Equations Problem 3
A 5 V zener diode has a maximum rated power dissipation of 500 mW. If the diode is to be used in a simple
regulator circuit to supply a regulated 5 V to a load having a resistance of 400 Ω, determine a suitable value of
series resistor for operation in conjunction with a supply of 9 V.
where VIN is the unregulated input voltage.

Output resistance and voltage

regulation Problem 4
• In a perfect power supply, the output voltage would remain constant regardless of the current taken by the load, but in practice
The following data were obtained during a test carried out on a d.c. power supply:
output voltage falls as the load current increases.
(i) Load test: Output voltage (no-load) = 12 V, Output voltage (2 A load current) = 11.5 V
• Power supply has internal resistance (ideally this should be zero). This internal resistance appears at the output of the supply.
(ii) Regulation test: Output voltage (mains input, 220 V) = 12 V, Output voltage (mains input, 200 V)
= 11.9 V

• The regulation of a power supply is given by the relationship: Determine (a) the equivalent output resistance of the power supply and (b) the regulation of the
power supply.

Ans:
• Ideally, the value of regulation should be very small. Simple shunt zener diode regulators are capable of producing values of
regulation of 5% to 10%. More sophisticated circuits based on discrete components produce values of between 1% and 5%
and integrated circuit regulators often provide values of 1% or less.
 Voltage multipliers: Voltage OPERATION OF VOLTAGE DOUBLER
doubler
D FWD
•Increasing the output of simple half-wave rectifier
1 Biased
vi T
•C1 will charge to the positive peak secondary voltage n + 1 +
while C2 will charge to the negative peak secondary
voltage. V
+C
•Since the output is taken from C1 and C2 connected in p -1
series the resulting output voltage is twice that
t -
produced by one diode alone. C
2
-
D REV
2 Biased

Operation of Voltage Doubler OPERATION OF VOLTAGE DOUBLER

D REV D REV
1 Biased 1 Biased
vi T vi T
n + 1 + n + 1 + vou
2 t
V
+C V
+C Vp
p -1 p -1
t - t - t
V +C V +C
p -2 p -2
- -
D FWD D FWD
2 Biased 2 Biased
Voltage tripler Voltage tripler
 During the first positive half cycle of AC, Diode D1 get forward biased and capacitor C1 get charged
through the D1. Capacitor C1 get charged up to the peak voltage of AC i.e. Vpeak.

 During the negative half cycle of the AC, Diode D2 conducts and D1 reverse biased. D1 blocks the
discharging of capacitor C1. Now the capacitor C2 charge with the combined voltage of capacitor C1
(Vpeak) and the negative peak of the AC voltage (Vpeak). So the capacitor C2 charge up to 2Vpeak.

 During the second positive half cycle, D2 gets reverse biased and D3 conducts. So capacitor C2 charges the
capacitor C3 up to the same voltage as itself, which is 2Vpeak. Meanwhile, Diode D1 conducts to charge
Capacitor C1 up to Vpeak.

 Now the capacitor C1 and C3 are in series and voltage across C1 is Vpeak and voltage across C3 is 2Vpeak,
so the voltage across the series connection of C1 and C3 is Vpeak+2Vpeak = 3Vpeak, that’s how we get the
triple voltage of the peak value of AC.

Transistors
BJT – BIPOLAR JUNCTION TRANSISTORS
 flow
Since the sandwiched p-type material is very thin and has a low conductivity, a very small
number of these carriers will take this path of high resistance to the base terminal.
From eq.(2), neglecting ICBO ,
Ic = αIE
From eq (1) ,
Ic = α(Ic+Ib)
Ic = (α/1-α)IB
Ic =βIB
Where, β= (α/1-α) (where β is called as common emitter current gain and typically it ranges
b/w 25 to 300)

Calculate α and β if IC is measured as 1mA and base

In a common emitter transistor circuit, if β = 100 and IB =
current is 25µA. Also determine the new base current to
50μA, compute the values of α, IE and IC.
give IC of 5mA.
A emitter current of transistor in Common base The following current measurements are made on
configuration is IE=25mA and IC=23mA. Calculate base transistor: IC= 12.42mA, IB= 200µA. Determine a new IC
current, common base dc current gain and common level when IB is 150 µA.
emitter dc current gain.

Common-base configuration
The input signal is applied between the transistors base and the emitter
terminals, while the corresponding output signal is taken from between the
base and the collector terminals as shown.
 Common-emitter configuration Common-collector configuration
The input signal is applied The input signal is applied
between the base and the between the base and the
emitter, while the output is taken collector, while the output is
from between the collector and taken from between the emitter
the emitter as shown. and the collector as shown.

BJT – Regions of operation

Transistor as a switch
When the base emitter junction is open or reverse biased (i.e., IB=0) no collector current(IC)
flows, the transistor is said to be OFF.

• The input and Base are grounded ( 0V )

• Base-Emitter voltage VBE < 0.7V
• Base-Emitter junction is reverse biased
• Base-Collector junction is reverse biased
• Transistor is “fully-OFF” ( Cut-off region )
• No Collector current flows ( IC = 0 )
• VOUT = VCE = VCC = ”1″
• Transistor operates as an “open switch”
Transistor as a switch Amplifiers
When the base emitter junction is forward biased, IB flows which results in IC. At some point
•Amplifiers are electronic circuits that increase the strength of a signal
of IB , IC becomes saturated, i.e., it does not increase further and becomes independent of
(voltage/current/power)
IB. At this point, the transistor may be treated as fully ON as it is conducting in saturation
region. •It uses electric power from a power supply to increase the amplitude of a signal applied
•The input and Base are connected to VCC to its input terminals, producing a proportionally greater amplitude signal at its output.
• Base-Emitter voltage VBE > 0.7v
• Base-Emitter junction is forward biased •The amount of amplification provided by an amplifier is measured by its gain: the ratio
• Base-Collector junction is forward biased of output voltage, current, or power to input.
• Transistor is “fully-ON” ( saturation region )
• Max Collector current flows ( IC = Vcc/RL ) •Amplification is fundamental to modern electronics, and amplifiers are widely used in
• VCE = 0 ( ideal saturation ) almost all electronic equipment.
• VOUT = VCE = ”0″
• Transistor operates as a “closed switch”

Types of amplifier Types of amplifier

•AC coupled amplifiers: stages are coupled together in such a way that DC levels are isolated and •Wideband amplifiers: capable of amplifying a very wide range of frequencies, typically from a few tens of
only the AC components of a signal are transferred from stage to stage. hertz to several megahertz. Wideband amplifiers are usually untuned; that is, their ac load is resistive.

•DC coupled amplifiers: stages are coupled together in such a way that stages are not isolated to DC •Radio frequency amplifiers: operate in the band of frequencies that is normally associated with radio
potentials. Both AC and DC signal components are transferred from stage to stage. signals (e.g. from 100 kHz to over 1 GHz). They are frequency selective. They are restricted to narrow band
of frequencies. Narrowband amplifiers are usually tuned RF amplifiers, which means
•Large-signal amplifiers: Large-signal amplifiers are designed to cater for appreciable voltage and/or that their ac load is a high-Q resonant tank tuned to a radio station or television channel.
current levels (typically from 1 V to 100 V or more). Example: Power amplifiers (audio)

•Small-signal amplifiers: Small-signal amplifiers are designed to cater for low-level signals (normally •Low-noise amplifiers: Low-noise amplifiers are designed so that they contribute negligible noise (signal
less than 1 V and often much smaller). Small-signal amplifiers have to be specially designed to disturbance) to the signal being amplified. These amplifiers are usually designed for use with very small
combat the effects of noise. Example: instrumentation amplifiers signal levels (usually less than 10 mV or so).

•Audio frequency amplifiers: operate in the band of frequencies that is normally associated with
audio signals (e.g. 20 Hz to 20 kHz).
 Amplifier characteristics - Input and
Amplifier characteristics - Gain output resistance
• It indicates amount of amplification •Input resistance is the ratio of input voltage to input current and it is expressed in ohms. It is
• Gain is simply the ratio of output voltage to input voltage, output current to input current, or output power to input resistive in the mid band frequency band. In other cases it is complex quantity, then it is referred as
power input impedance considering the effect of capacitance in parallel with it.

•Output resistance is the ratio of open-circuit output voltage to short-circuit output current and is
measured in ohms. In the presence of reactive component it is referred to as output impedance.

•Input and output resistance are internal to the amplifier

Problem 5 Assignment
1. An amplifier produces an output voltage of 5 V for an input of 20 mV. If the input and
An amplifier produces an output voltage of 2 V for an input of 50 mV. If the input and output
currents in this condition are, respectively, 4 mA and 200 mA, determine: (a) the voltage gain; (b) output currents of the amplifier are 5mA and 200mA respectively. Determine voltage gain
the current gain; (c) the power gain. and power gain in dB.

2. The following measurements were made during a test on an amplifier:

Vin = 250 mV, Iin = 2.5 mA, Vout = 10 V, Iout = 400 mA

Determine: (a) the voltage gain; (b) the current gain; (c) the power gain; (d) the input
resistance.

3. An amplifier has a power gain of 13.79dB and identical input and output resistances of
600 Ω. Determine the input voltage required to produce an output of 10 V.
Multi-stage amplifiers R–C coupling
•The stages are coupled together using capacitors having a low reactance at the signal frequency
•In order to provide sufficiently large values of gain, it is frequently necessary to use a number of and resistors. Can be used in audio applications.
interconnected stages within an amplifier.
•As it uses cheaper coupling devices such as resistors, capacitors, it is low-cost and economical.
•The overall gain of an amplifier with several stages (i.e. a multi-stage amplifier) is simply the product
of the individual voltage gains. •The main disadvantage is it has very poor impedance matching characteristics. It provides low
voltage and power gain.

•Bandwidth of a multistage amplifier will be less than the bandwidth of each individual stage.

•An increase in gain can only be achieved at the expense of a reduction in bandwidth.

L–C coupling Transformer coupling

•Inductors have a high reactance at the signal frequency. This type of coupling is generally only used • Transformers are used to couple the different stages of amplifier. Transformer coupling is used in
in RF and high-frequency amplifiers. (helps in tuning and impedance matching) high power audio amplifiers.

•It provides a very good impedance matching property. These amplifiers have high efficiency and low
losses.

•These amplifiers are costly because of using the transformer as a coupling device. These amplifiers
have poor frequency response, the gain decreases with an increase in frequency.
Direct coupling
•Direct coupling: DC levels are preserved
• This circuit can amplify both the AC and DC signals. It does not use any coupling elements and hence the
circuit is very simple and easy to make. The cost is very low.
• It has a very low bandwidth. The operating point is not stable.