DIODES AND THEIR APPLICATIONS

DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVE

In this experiment, you will study the current-voltage characteristics of diodes, build
rectifier circuits and study small signal dynamic resistance of a diode.
RECTIFIERS
1. Connect the function generator to the circuit, as shown in Fig. 1. Use a sinusoidal voltage with a
freuency of 1 !"# and an amplitude of $%. &bserve both the generator and the resistor voltage
waveforms, using the two channels of the scope. 'e very careful with the grounds. ()he ground of the
scope should be attached to the grounded terminal of the function generator* otherwise, the generator
may be damaged.+ Use ,C input coupling on the scope for both channels. -ou need to thin! about how
you would trigger to obtain a stable display. .d/ust the time0div control so that you can observe several
cycles on the screen. Keep a record of the waveforms obtained. )he circuit you have /ust studied is a
rectifier.
1lot both waveforms2 the output from the function generator and v. 1ay more attention to the positive
semi cycle. ,o you see any difference3 4xplain
5. )o help !eep the output constant, add a 1 6F capacitor in parallel, as shown in Fig. 5. 4xplain what
you see. C.U)I&72 If a polarity is indicated on the capacitor available to you, be sure to deserve it.
8. 9hat is the average value of the waveform v3
$. 9hat is the ripple (variation+ of the waveform v in volts3
:. 9hat is the ripple as a percentage of the average value found in step 83
Fig. 2
Fig. 1
Small Signal Operation (Dynami Re!i!tane"
Fig.8 shows the theoretical circuit we want to implement. &ur wor! will be based on a practical
implementation of this, shown in Fig. $. )he &p-amps have been added to help maintain an
approximately ideal testing environment.
&p-amp U1 functions as a unity-gain buffer to isolate the unwanted effects of the signal generator;s
output impedance (which is typically :< &hms or greater+. It provides the input signal for the main
circuit at its output node.
&p-amp U5 is used in a similar manner2 diode current I, will be found by calculation from the
measured resistance of =' and the measured voltage drop across it for various settings of =$. 9ithout
U5, the effective resistance seen loo!ing bac! into this branch would change whenever resistance =$
was changed. &p-amp U5 provides the biasing ,C current through the resistor at its output node. %CC
and %44 should be somewhere between 1< and 1: %olts. >eep trac! of their actual values and ma!e
sure they remain stable as you go through the experiment. &nce set, try not to !eep turning them on and
off* rather, remove the interconnections when you want to de-energi#e things to ma!e changes. -ou
may also want to de-couple the power supply rails to avoid small-signal feedbac! paths through the
power supply leads. 1lace 1<< 6F (or larger+ capacitors from %CC and %44 to ground where
appropriate. -ou should have at least one to decouple %CC and one for %44 .
&p-amp U8 is configured as a non-inverting amplifier with a voltage gain of about 11. It provides
amplification of the small signal diode voltage v, so that the oscilloscope can read it. )a!e
measurements to determine the dynamic resistances r d of the diode at several ,C bias conditions. "ow
the dynamic resistance changes with ,C bias3 9hy3
=ecommended 1rocedure for part I%2
("int+ 'uild and test each amplifier separately before assembling the full circuit )his is a complicated
circuit, so assemble each of the three op-amp circuits before doing anything else. )est each one
separately before connecting them together. )his will help identify problems in parts of the circuit
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
when it is simple enough to identify the source of the problem.
1. ,etermine dynamic resistance rd at least three different bias points. Consider the formula rd?n%)0I,
where there is a n factor named ideality or emission factor. )his factor is usually ta!en eual to one.
. substitution procedure wor!s best to accurately determine the dynamic resistance rd . First, measure
=1 (nominal 1<< &hms+, =' (nominal 1!+ and one of the several resistances =, (between 1< and 1<<<
&hms+ that will be used to calibrate rd . @ubstitute =, in place of the diode and ad/ust the signal
generator for a small-signal sinusoidal output less than 1< m%pp at 1 !"# (: to A m% wor!s well+. )he
signal generators in the lab produce a minimum output voltage of :< m% pp so you must design
yourself a voltage divider to reduce the output voltage into the desired range. 'e sure to calibrate your
voltage divider (used here as an attenuator+ and chec! the voltage that you are actually applying using
the scope.
First, put a resistor =, in place of the diode with resistance between 1<-1<<< &hms (again measure its
actual resistance as the resistor values are different from resistor to resistor+. Beasure %C, the output
voltage of &p-amp U8. 7ow replace the resistor =, with the diode and ad/ust the current through the
diode until you get the same %C as you measured with the resistor in place. )he small signal resistance
of the diode will now be eual to the value of =, that you chose. -ou now !now that rd of the diode is
eual to =, and you can measure the current through it, I,. -ou now !now all the components of rd
given in the euation except for n, which you can now calculate. )he ideality factor n that you calculate
should be somewhere between 1 and 8. =epeat this procedure for 8 different =, calibration resistor
values. .re the values that you calculate for n all the same3 9hy might they be different3 .ssuming
that the n of the diode really is a constant, what is your best estimate of its value and how accurately do
you thin! that you !now it3
Investigate the effect of overdriving the diode, that is use a signal voltage of more than 1< m%pp, try it
and see what happens. It might provide insight into what is going on. )his is much easier done in the
lab by measurement or on a simulator than by hand calculationD