OBJECTIVE:

To design and simulate a Clipper circuit.

THEORY :
A circuit which removes the peak of a waveform is known as a clipper. A clipper circuits clips a fraction of its input signal keeping the remaining part of the signal unchanged. The circuit limits an input voltage to certain minimum and maximum values. A clipping circuit consists of linear elements like resistors and non-linear elements like junction diodes or transistors, but it does not contain energy- storage elements like capacitors. A negative clipper is shown in the figure below.

During the positive half cycle of Vin, the diode is reverse biased. The diode does not conduct. It is as if the diode were not there. The positive half cycle is unchanged at the output wave. Since the output positive peaks actually overlays the input sine wave Vin, the input has been shifted upward in the plot for clarity. Let Vin is 5 Vp and frequency is 1Khz. The input and output are shown in one figure:

During the negative half cycle of the sine wave (Vin), the diode is forward biased, that is conducting. The negative half cycle of the sine wave is shorted out. The negative half cycle of output wave would be clipped at 0 V for an ideal diode. But the waveform is clipped at -0.7 V due to the forward voltage drop of the silicon diode. Germanium or Schottky diodes clip at lower voltages.