Frequency Response of Amplifiers

Unit – III
Lecture - 2
 Frequency response of CE Amplifier
• Dependence of the gain of the BJT common-emitter amplifier of Fig. 3.1.1 on the
frequency of the input signal

Fig. 3.1.1 Capacitively coupled CE Amplifier

 Three Frequency Bands
• In small-signal analysis, it was assumed that coupling capacitors CC1 and CC2 and the
bypass capacitor CE were acting as perfect short circuits at all signal frequencies of
interest

• We also neglected the internal capacitances of the BJT

• That is, C and Cµ of the BJT high-frequency model were assumed to be sufficiently
small to act as open circuits at all signal frequencies of interest

• As a result of ignoring all capacitive effects, the gain expressions derived in small signal
analysis were independent of frequency

• In reality, however, this situation only applies over a limited, though usually wide, band
of frequencies
• This is illustrated in Fig. 3.1.2 which shows a sketch of the magnitude of the
overall voltage gain, |GV|, of the common emitter amplifier versus frequency

• Gain is almost constant over a wide frequency band, called the midband

Fig. 3.1.2 Magnitude of the gain of the CE amplifier versus frequency

• The value of the midband gain AM corresponds to the overall voltage gain Gv that we
derived in small signal analysis, namely,


( || ) (1)
( || )
• Figure 3.1.2 shows that the gain falls off at signal frequencies below and above the
midband

• Gain falloff in the low-frequency band is due to CC1, CC2, and CE

• Even though CC1, CC2, and CE are large capacitors (typically, in the µF range), as the
signal frequency is reduced their impedances increase; They no longer behave as short
circuits
• Gain falls off in the high-frequency band as a result of Cπ and Cµ,

• Though Cπ and Cµ are very small (in the fraction of a pF to the pF range),
their impedances at sufficiently high frequencies decrease; They can no longer
be considered as open circuits

• Frequency response of amplifiers is to study the mechanisms by which these two

sets of capacitances affect the amplifier gain in the low-frequency and the high-
frequency bands.

• To determine the frequencies fL and fH, which define the extent of the midband
• The midband is obviously the useful frequency band of the amplifier

• Usually, fL and fH are the frequencies at which the gain drops by 3 dB below
its value at midband

i.e at fL and fH, |gain| = |AM|/2

• The amplifier bandwidth or 3-dB bandwidth is defined as the difference between

the lower (fL) and upper or higher (fH) 3-dB frequencies

BW = fH-fL (2)

• Since usually fL < fH, BW  fH

• A figure-of-merit for the amplifier is its gain-bandwidth product, defined as

GB = |AM|BW
 High-Frequency Response
• To determine the gain, or the transfer function, of the amplifier of Fig. 3.1.1 at
high frequencies, and in particular the upper 3-dB frequency fH, we replace the
BJT with the high frequency model

• At these frequencies CC1, CC2, and CE will be behaving as perfect short circuits

• The result is the high-frequency amplifier equivalent circuit shown in Fig. 3.1.3

Fig. 3.1.3 Equivalent circuit for determining the high-frequency response of the CE amplifier
• Equivalent circuit can be simplified by

• Utilizing Thevenin theorem at the input side

• Combining the three parallel resistances at the output side

• Applying Thevenin theorem twice simplifies the resistive network at the input side
to a signal generator V’sig and a resistance R’sig

Fig. 3.1.4 Circuit of Fig. 3.1.3 simplified at both the input side and the output side
  (3)
 ( || )

 (4)

• R'sig is the resistance seen looking back into the resistive network between nodes
B' and E

• The circuit can be simplified further if we can find a way to deal with the bridging
capacitance that connects the output node to the "input" node, B’
• Load current is (gmV -Iµ) where gmV is the output current of the transistor
and Iµ is the current supplied through the very small capacitance Cµ

• In the vicinity of fH, which is close to the edge of the midband,

• it is reasonable to assume that Iµ is still much smaller than gmV with the result
that Vo can be given approximately by

   (5)

• Since V0 = Vce, Eqn. (3) indicates that the gain from B' to C is -gmR'L, the same
value as in the midband

• Current Iµ can now be found from µ µ  µ  

µ µ  (6)
• In Fig. 3.1.4, the left-hand-side of the circuit, at XX', knows of the existence of Cµ only
through the current Iµ

• Therefore we can replace by an equivalent capacitance Ceq between B' and ground as long
as Ceq draws a current equal to Iµ

• That is (comparing equ 6 with  ),  µ µ  (7)

µ (8)

• Using Ceq enables us to simplify the equivalent circuit at the input side to that shown in
Fig. 3.1.5, which we recognize as a single-time-constant (STC) network of the low-pass
type
Fig. 3.1.5 Equivalent circuit with Cµ replaced at the input side with the equivalent capacitance Ceq
• Therefore we can express V in terms of V'sig as

 (9)
/

where  is the corner frequency of the STC network composed of Cin and

  (10)

where 𝒔𝒊𝒈 is the effective source resistance and Cin is the total input
capacitance at B’

  µ (11)
• Combining Eqns. (3), (5) and (9), give the voltage gain in the high-frequency band

as  (12)
 ( || )

• Quantity between the square brackets of Eqn. (12) is the midband gain, and except
for the fact that here rx is taken into account,

 (13)
 ( || )

• Thus, , from which we deduce that the upper 3-dB frequency fH must


be 𝑜 = (14)
𝐻 
• High-frequency response will be that of a low-pass STC network with a 3-dB
frequency fH determined by the time constant CinR'sig

• Fig. 3.1.6 shows a sketch of the magnitude of the high-frequency gain

Fig. 3.1.6 Frequency-response plot, which is that of a low-pass STC circuit

 Observations
• The upper 3-dB frequency is determined by the interaction of R'sig and Cin. If RB
>>Rsig and rx << Rsig, then R’sigRsigIIr. Thus the extent to which Rsig determines
fH depends on its value relative to r. If Rsig >> r, then R’sig  r; on the other
hand, if Rsig is on the order of or smaller than r, then it has much greater influence
on the value of fH.

• The input capacitance Cin is usually dominated by Ceq, which in turn is made large
by the multiplication effect that Cµ undergoes. Thus, although Cµ is usually very
small, its effect on the amplifier frequency response can be significant as a result
of its multiplication by the factor (1 + gmR'L), which is approximately equal to the
midband gain of the amplifier
• The multiplication effect that undergoes comes about because it is connected
between two nodes (B' and C) whose voltages are related by a large negative gain
(-gmR'L). This effect is known as the Miller effect, and (1 + gmR'L) is known as the
Miller multiplier. It is the Miller effect that causes the CE amplifier to have a large
input capacitance Cin and hence a low fH

• To extend the high-frequency response of a BJT amplifier, we have to find

configurations in which the Miller effect is absent or at least reduced

• The above analysis, resulting in an STC or a single-pole response, is a simplified

one. Specifically, it is based on neglecting Iµ relative to gmV, an assumption that
applies well at frequencies not too much higher than fH
Low frequency response of CE Amplifiers
• To determine the low frequency gain (or transfer function) of CE Amplifier

• Eliminate the dc sources for analysis

• Perform small-signal analysis on the circuit

• Ignore C and Cµ since at such low frequencies their impedances will be very high and
thus can be considered as open circuits

• Neglect ro since the effect of ro on the low-frequency amplifier gain is small

• Neglect rx which is usually much smaller than r, with which it appears in series

• Consider the effect of the three capacitors CC1, CE, and CC2 one at a time [i.e., when
finding the effect of CC1, we shall assume that CE and CC2 are acting as perfect short
circuits, and when considering CE, we assume that CC1 and CC2 are perfect short
circuits, and so on]
• Corner (or break) frequencies

𝑃1  – Effect of CC1

𝑃2  – Effect of CE

𝑃3 – Effect of CC2

• Amplifier low frequency gain

𝑽𝒐 𝒔 𝒔 𝒔
𝑽𝒔𝒊𝒈 𝑴 𝒔 𝑷𝟏 𝒔 𝑷𝟐 𝒔 𝑷𝟑

• Estimate for fL

fL  f 𝑷1 + f 𝑷2 + f 𝑷3
 Low frequency response

fL  f 𝑷1 + f 𝑷2 + f 𝑷3

Fig. 3.1.7 Sketch of the low-frequency gain

 Frequency response of CS Amplifiers
• Dependence of the gain of the MOSFET common-source amplifier on the
frequency of the input signal

Fig. 3.1.8 Capacitively coupled CS amplifier

 Three Frequency Bands

• In small-signal analysis of CS amplifiers, it was assumed that the coupling

capacitors CC1 and CC2 and the bypass capacitor Cs were acting as perfect short
circuits at all signal frequencies of interest

• We also neglected the internal capacitances of the MOSFET: that is, Cgs and Cgd of
the MOSFET high-frequency model were assumed to be sufficiently small to act
as open circuits at all signal frequencies of interest

• As a result of ignoring all capacitive effects, the gain expressions derived were
independent of frequency
• In reality, however, this situation applies over only a limited, though normally
wide, band of frequencies

• This is illustrated in Fig. 3.1.9, which shows a sketch of the magnitude of the
overall voltage gain, |Gv|, of the CS amplifier versus frequency

Fig. 3.1.9 Frequency response of the amplifier in Fig. 3.1.1 delineating the three
frequency bands of interest
• Gain is almost constant over a wide frequency band, called the midband

• The value of the midband gain AM corresponds to the overall voltage gain Gv
that is derived in small-signal analysis, namely,

 (15)

• Fig. 3.1.2 shows that the gain falls off at signal frequencies below and above the
midband

• The gain falloff in the low-frequency band is due to CC1, CC2, and CS

• Large capacitors (in the µF range)

• As the signal frequency is reduced, their impedances increase, and they no

longer behave as short circuits
• Gain falls off in the high-frequency band as a result of Cgs and Cgd,

• In the pF or fraction of pF range for discrete devices and much lower for IC
devices

• Though they are very small, their impedances at high frequencies decrease and
thus can no longer be considered as open circuits

• To study the mechanisms by which these two sets of capacitances affect the
amplifier gain in the low-frequency and the high-frequency bands

• In this way, we will be able to determine the frequencies fH and fL, which define
the extent of the midband
• Midband is obviously the useful frequency band of the amplifier

• Usually, fL and fH are the frequencies at which the gain drops by 3 dB below its
value at midband

• Amplifier bandwidth or 3-dB bandwidth is defined as the difference between the

lower (fL) and the upper or higher (fH) 3-dB frequencies,

BW = fH-fL (16)

and since, usually, fL < fH,

BW  fH

• A figure-of-merit for the amplifier is its gain-bandwidth product, which is defined

as GB = |AM|BW (17)
 High-Frequency Response

• To determine the gain, or the transfer function, of the amplifier of Fig. 3.1.8 at
high frequencies, and particularly the upper 3-dB frequency fH,

• Replace the MOSFET with its high-frequency model

• At these frequencies, CC1, CC2, and CS will be behaving as perfect short

circuits
Fig. 3.1.10 Equivalent circuit
• The equivalent circuit of Fig. 3.1.10 can be simplified by

• Utilizing the Thevenin theorem at the input side and by combining the three
parallel resistances at the output side

• The resulting simplified circuit is shown in Fig. 3.1.11

• This circuit can be further simplified if we can find a way to deal with the bridging
capacitor Cgd that connects the output node to the input side

• Toward that end, consider first the output node

• It can be seen that the load current is (gmVgs - Igd), where (gmVgs) is the output
current of the transistor and Igd is the current supplied through the very small
capacitance Cgd
• At frequencies in the vicinity of fH, which defines the edge of the midband, it is
reasonable to assume that Igd is still much smaller than (gmVgs), with the result
that V0 can be given approximately by

V0 = -(gmVgs)R'L = -gmR'LVgs (18)

where R'L=r0||RD||RL

• Since Vo = Vds, Eqn. (18) indicates that the gain from gate to drain is –gmR’L, the
same value as in the midband

• Current Igd can now be found as Igd = sCgd(Vgs-Vo) = sCgd[Vgs-(-gmR'LVgs)]

= sCgd(l + gmR'L)Vgs (19)

Fig. 3.1.11 Circuit of Fig. 3.1.10 simplified at the input and the output
• Now, the left-hand side of the circuit in Fig. 3.1.11, at XX’, knows of the existence
of Cgd only through the current Igd

• Therefore, we can replace Cgd by an equivalent capacitance Ceq between the gate
and ground as long as Ceq draws a current equal to Igd

sCeqVgs = sCgd(l + gmR'L)Vgs,

which results in Ceq = Cgd(l+gmR'L) (20)

• Using Ceq enables us to simplify the equivalent circuit at the input side to that
shown in Fig. 3.1.12
Fig. 3.1.12 Equivalent circuit with Cgd replaced at the input side with the equivalent capacitance Ceq
• We recognize the circuit of Fig. 3.1.12 as a single-time-constant (STC) circuit of
the low-pass type

• To express the output voltage Vgs of the STC circuit in the form

(21)
/

• where  is the corner frequency or the break frequency of the STC circuit,

 = 1/Cin R’sig (22)

with Cin = Cgs + Ceq = Cgs + Cgd( 1 + gmR’L) (23)

and R’sig = Rsig||RG (24)

• Combining eqns. (18) and (21) results in the following expression for the high-
frequency gain of the CS amplifier,

(25)
𝐿 /

which can be expressed in the form (26)


where the midband gain AM is given by Eqn. (15) and H is the upper 3-dB

frequency 𝐻 𝑜= (27)

and 𝑜 = (28)
𝐻 
 Observations
• Upper 3-dB frequency is determined by the interaction of R'sig = Rsig||RG and Cin =
Cgs + Cgd( 1 + gmRL’). Since the bias resistance RG is usually very large, it can be
neglected, resulting in R'sig = Rsig, the resistance of the signal source. It follows
that a large value of Rsig will cause fH to be lowered

• The total input capacitance Cin is usually dominated by Ceq, which in turn is made
large by the multiplication effect that Cgd undergoes. Thus, although Cgd is usually
a very small capacitance, its effect on the amplifier frequency response can be
very significant as a result of its multiplication by the factor (1 + gmR'L), which is
approximately equal to the midband gain of the amplifier
• The multiplication effect that Cgd undergoes comes about because it is connected
between two nodes whose voltages are related by a large negative gain (-gmR'L).
This effect is known as the Miller effect, and (1 + gmR'L) is known as the Miller
multiplier. It is the Miller effect that causes the CS amplifier to have a large total
input capacitance Cin and hence a low fH.

• To extend the high-frequency response of a MOSFET amplifier, we have to find

configurations in which the Miller effect is absent or at least reduced.

• The above analysis, resulting in an STC or a single-pole response, is a simplified

one. Specifically, it is based on neglecting Igd relative to gmVgs, an assumption that
applies well at frequencies not too much higher than fH.
Low frequency response of CS Amplifiers
• To determine the low-frequency gain or transfer function of the common-source amplifier

• Eliminate the dc sources (current source I open circuited and voltage source VDD short-
circuited)

• Perform the small-signal analysis directly on this circuit

• Ignore r0, since the effect of r0 on the low-frequency operation of this amplifier is minor

• Finding time-constant and break frequencies:

• Reduce Vsig to zero

• Consider each capacitor separately; that is, assume that the other two capacitors are acting as
perfect short circuits

• For each capacitor, find the total resistance seen between its terminals. This is the resistance
that determines the time constant associated with this capacitor
• Corner (or break) frequencies

𝑃1 – Effect of CC1

𝑃2 – Effect of CS

𝑃3 – Effect of CC2

• Overall low frequency transfer function of the amplifier

𝑽𝒐 𝑹𝑮 𝒔 𝒔 𝒔
𝑽𝒔𝒊𝒈 𝑹𝑮 𝑹𝒔𝒊𝒈 𝒎 𝑫 𝑳 𝒔 𝑷𝟏 𝒔 𝑷𝟐 𝒔 𝑷𝟑

• Estimate for fL

• Expression for P2 includes gm, P2 is usually higher than Pl and P3. If P2 is
sufficiently separated from Pl and P3, then

fL  fP2
 Low Frequency Response

fL  fp2

Fig. 3.1.13 Sketch of the low-frequency magnitude response of a CS amplifier