Intermediate frequencies

(IF)amplifiers
IF and IF Amplifiers

• It is fixed frequency double-tunned or stagger-tunned

amplifier using BJT or FET or IC amplifier.
• IF amplifiers are used to amplify IF signal.
• IF amplifier usually has a flat-topped frequency response
with sharp slopes at its either end
• The overall bandwidth of IF amplifiers should be
around 10 kHz, as the AM radio stations are separated
by 10kHz.
Factors affecting choice of IF(455kHz):-
• Increasing IF causes a large poor selectivity and lower
attenuation at the adjacent channel.
• A high value of IF requires to use of crystal or
mechanical filters with sharp cutoff frequency. This is
necessary to achieve better selectivity and adjacent
channel rejection, but tracking becomes difficult.
• A very low value of IF causes poor image frequency
rejection and requires good AFC circuit. The receiver
become complex due to requirement of higher
selectivity and higher stable local oscillator.
• The IF should not be in the RF signal frequency at the
receiver input, otherwise possible to tune to frequency
band immediately adjacent to IF.
 IF Amplifier
• The IF amplifiers increases the voltage level of input signal.
• Transformer coupling is used for impedance matching. The
tuned circuit in two amplifiers are ‘stagger tuned ‘ in order to
improve overall bandwidth of the IF amplifier.
• The individual tuned circuit responses are independent of
other, hence resultant response of IF amplifier is addition of all
other responses.
IF amplifiers
A M DETECTORS
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8
9
10
 Detector working
• When successive positive peaks of the input waveform
are increasing  capacitor should hold its charge
between peaks  long time constant is needed
• When positive peaks are decreasing in amplitude 
Capacitor discharges between successive peaks to a
less value than the next peak short time constant is
needed
• Trade-off is needed!
• Slope of the envelop depends upon both
– The modulating signal frequency
– Modulation coefficient

11
 AM DETECTOR

Detected output
+

AM
Demodulated
input C R
output

IFT

Filter capacitor
-
AM wave

Simple diode detector WAVEFORMS

• In every positive half cycle of the input the detector diode is forward
biased. It will charge the capacitor C almost to the peak value of input
voltage.
• As the capacitor charges diode stops conducting .The capacitor will
discharge through R between the positive peaks.
• The time constant of the RC circuit should be large enough so that
capacitor discharges by small amount.
 DISTORTION IN DETECTOR OUTPUT
There are two types of distortions:
Actual output showing the diagonal
clipping

Diagonal Clipping :

Output without
diagonal clipping

This type of distortion occurs when the RC time constant of the load circuit is
too long. The time constant of the RC circuit should be high enough such that
capacitor discharge by small amount.
To avoid this %mod is less than 60. AM signal at input

Negative Peak Clipping : Carrier inside

This distortion occurs due to fact that the

modulation index on the output side of AF output
detector is higher than on its input side.
Due to this overmodulation take place at
the output. If the signal transmitted with
m=(Zm/Rc),-ve clipping does not occur. Negative peak
clipping
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 Peak Clipping

This plot shows us that the modulated

signal has a slope and the result of the R-C
filter will also have a slope.
We want the slope of the filtering to be
steeper than the envelope.
If it is NOT steeper, we’re not following the
modulating signal
If it’s TOO STEEP, we’re not filtering out
the carrier
Diagonal Clipping
• Basically, if the RC time constant is
too long then as the modulated signal
decreases the sampled point shown
simply falls off and “ignores” the stuff
below it.
• This is called “Diagonal Clipping” and
means that the envelop (e(t)) is not
followed by the circuit.

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 PRACTICAL DIODE DETECTOR
AGC output (DC)
R3 C3
R1 C2
IFT

AM C1
C R2 R4
signal To the AF
amplifier

Volume control
Detector diode

The diode is connected such that (-AGC) signal is available for gain control.
The capacitors C1,C2and resistors R1,R2form the’ low pass filter'. The low pass
filter bypasses high freq. carrier variations.
The blocking capacitor C2 blocks the dc component such that audio signal is
available across R4 and it is applied to audio amplifier.
AGC ckt consists of R3 and C3 having very high time constant. It filter outs
audio freq component such that –ve dc voltage is available for gain control.
If the strength of received carrier is more, more –ve AGC voltage is available
for gain control. The gain reduction is more ,such that volume can be stabilized.