EXPERIMENT NO.

1
THE CLAPP OSCILLATOR

1. Objective(s):
The activity aims to introduce the Clapp Oscillator including its characteristics and operation.

2. Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs):

The students shall be able to:
1) Analyze the configuration of the Clapp Oscillator circuit
2) Discuss the characteristics of the Clapp Oscillator circuit
3) Evaluate the calculated total capacitor and frequency

3. Discussion:

Oscillator is a device that can convert a steady state signal into an oscillating signal. It produces
electrical oscillations of a desired frequency. Its simple circuit usually consist of an inductor and capacitor.
Moreover, there are also many different types of oscillators.

The Clapp Oscillator is one of the different kinds of oscillators. It is also known as an advanced
version of the Colpitts oscillator. It is distinguished from the Colpitts through its additional capacitor in
series with an inductor in the resonant feedback circuit.

Disregarding the transistor capacitive effect between the base and collector, the frequency of the
Clapp Oscillator can be determined through the net capacitance of the tank circuit. Since the third capacitor
(C3 ) is in series on the first (C1) and second (C2) capacitor, the total equivalent capacitance is:

CT= 1
1
1
+ +
1
𝐶1 𝐶2 𝐶3

Then, the frequency of the oscillation can be determined by:

f = 2𝜋√1𝐿𝐶 𝑇

C1 and C2 are kept constant while C3 is used for tuning purpose. The capacitance of C3 is usually
much smaller than C1 and C2, so the total equivalent capacitance C is approximately equal to C3, therefore
the frequency of Oscillation can be:

f = 2𝜋√1𝐿𝐶 3
 The following figure shows the basic circuit of a Clapp Oscillator. It is noticeable that apart from
the presence of an extra capacitor, all other components and connections remain similar to the Colpitts
oscillator.

Figure 1. Simple Clapp Oscillator Circuit

4. Resources:

Breadboard 1 unit
Connecting wires 1 set
NPN Transistor 1 pc
1mH Inductor 1 pc
2.2kΩ Resistor 1pc
47kΩ Resistor 1pc
10kΩ Resistor 1pc
0.68kΩ Resistor 1pc
10uF Capacitor 2 pcs
1uF Capacitor 2 pcs
22uF Capacitor 1pc
0.5uF Capacitor 1pc
1.5uF Capacitor 1pc
0.25uF Capacitor 1pc
0.1uF Capacitor 1pc
900nF Capacitor 1pc
 500nF Capacitor 1pc
100nF Capacitor 1pc
Multimeter 1 unit
Power Supply 1 unit
Oscilloscope 1 unit
5. Procedure:

Circuit Diagram:

Figure 2. Clapp Oscillator

1. Prepare the needed materials.

2. Build the following circuit for clap oscillator in figure 2 using the breadboard. It is also possible
to use the breadboard shown in figure 3 for reference. (Note: If there are no available
materials, this activity can also be done by a multi simulator for circuits.)
3. Get the peak to peak (the sum of the magnitude of the positive and negative peaks) output of
the circuit using the oscilloscope. Compute the DC (average) level of the output waveform.
Vavg =2𝑉𝑝
𝜋
Vp-p=________
Vave=________
4. Measure the emitter current and collector current of the transistor through a multimeter.
 Ic=__________ Ie=__________
5. Measure the current that flows in the tank circuit by a multimeter.
I=__________
6. Compute the total capacitance and frequency for each values of capacitor(C5) using the
formulas given in the discussion part.
7. Measure the current flowing in the tank circuit by a multimeter. Then, get the output waveform
through the use of oscilloscope. (Note: Don’t forget to draw the output waveform for each
experimented value of capacitor.) Complete the following table based from the measured
current in the tank circuit.
8. Compute the frequency from the measured period in the oscilloscope. Then, get the
percentage error between the computed frequency from oscilloscope and the calculated
frequency from the formula.
1
𝑓=
𝑇

6. Data and Results:

Capacitor (C5) values Total Capacitance Frequency

0.5uF 2.5x10^-7 f 10,065.84 Hz
1.5uF 3.75x10^-7 f 8218.73 Hz
0.25uF 1.67x10^-7 f 12315.78 Hz
0.1uF 8.33x10^-7 f 5514.4 Hz
900nF 3.2x10^-7 f 8897.03 Hz
500nF 2.5x10^-7 f 10065.84 Hz
100nF 8.33x10^-8 f 17438 Hz
Table 1. Capacitance and Frequency

Capacitor (C5) values Current in Tank Circuit

0.5uF
1.5uF
0.25uF
0.1uF
900nF
500nF
100nF
Table 2. Capacitance and Frequency
 Capacitor Period Frequencyoscilloscpe Frequencyformula Percentage
(C5) Error(%)
values
9.765 kHz (10000
0.5uF 50*2=100 us
Hz)
8.044 kHz
1.5uF 50*2.5=125 us
(7936.51 Hz)
11.886 kHz
0.25uF 50*1.70=85 us
(11764.71 Hz)
17.418 kHz
0.1uF 50*1.15=57.5 us
(17391.30 Hz)
50*2.25=112.5 8.675 kHz
900nF
us (8888.89 Hz)
9.765 kHz (10000
500nF 50*2=100
Hz)
17.418 kHz
100nF 50*1.15=57.5 us
(17391.30 Hz)

Total:

Table 3. Frequency

7. Observation

8. Interpretation
9. Question and Answer:

1. What is the main difference between the Colpitts and Clapp Oscillator in terms of their
configuration in the circuit?
- Colpitts oscillator uses a capacitive voltage divider network as its feedback source.
Colpitts is a good circuit for producing low distortion sine wave signals. Clapp oscillator is
a variation of Colpitts oscillator, there is just a capacitor added into the tank circuit in series
with the inductor. The connections and components are the same with the Colpitts
oscillator. The circuit is almost the same as the Colpitts which the feedback ratio regulates
a sustained oscillation.

2. What are the key advantages of Clapp Oscillator compared to Colpitts Oscillator?
- In Clapp Oscillator, there is an addition of capacitor that improves the frequency stability
and it eliminates the effect of transistor parameters on the operation in a circuit.

3. How does the circuit of Clapp Oscillator work?

- A clapp oscillator circuit consists of single stage amplifier and phase shift network. A single-
stage amplifier consist of voltage network divider.
A transistor is connected in the circuit which is supplied through the power source. The power
is supplied to the collector terminal of the transistor through the RFC Coil. A RFC coil is a kind of
inductor that allow DC current to pass but blocks AC current in radio frequency range.
The emitter terminal of the transistor os connected with resistor which improves the voltage
divider. The capacitor is connected in parallel with this emiter resistor to bypass the AC in the
 circuit.
Thus, the phase shift oscillator produces sine wave. It consists of an inverting amplifier elemebnt
such as transistor or op amp woth its output feb back to itsinput through the phase- shoft
network that consits of resistors and capacitor in ladder network.

4. What are the applications of Clapp Oscillator?

- Clapp oscillator possess high-frequency stability than other oscillators. The problem of
start capacitance is not severe in case of clapp oscillator. The increase of frequency
stability of clapp oscillator by enclosing the entire circuit in a constant temperature zone.
It is used to generate the sinusoidal output signals with a very high frequency, very wide
range of frequencies is involved. It is used in the radio and mobile communications. In
commercial purpose, many applications are used

10. Conclusion: