EEE 172–

Electronic Circuit
Analysis and Design

Engr. Thesa L. Vergara, MSEE

 Lecture

JFET Frequency Response

Learning Objectives
● Learn the use of logarithms, understand the concept of decibels,
and read logarithmic plot.
● Be acquainted with frequency response of BJT and JFET
amplifier.
● Learn what is a frequency plot and dB plot.
● Determine and find the cutoff frequencies and bandwidth based
frequency plot.
● Learn about Miller effect capacitance at the input and output of an
amplifier due to a feedback capacitor.

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Miller Effect Capacitance
• The Miller effect is usually used to describe a situation
where the capacitance between the input and output of an
amplifier appears as a larger capacitance at the input.
• The effect was first described by John M. Miller; “Thus the
apparent input capacity can become a number of times
greater than the actual capacities between the tube
electrodes…”
• In the figure, CBE appears as a capacitance to ground on
the input of the amplifier and CCE appears as a
capacitance to ground at the output.
• The voltage across CCB is (1 + K) VBE, where K is the
Figure. Common-emitter amplifier
amplifier gain. The current flowing through CCB will also be
with its parasitic capacitances
higher by the same factor.

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Miller Effect Input Capacitance (CMi)

• In the high-frequency region, the capacitive

elements of importance are the inter-
electrode (between-terminals) capacitances
internal to the active device and the wiring
capacitance between leads of the network.
• The amount of Miller Capacitance is
dependent on inter-electrode capacitance
from input to output of the device (Cf) and
the gain of the amplifier (Av).

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Miller Effect Output Capacitance (CMO)
• For any inverting amplifier, the input
capacitance will be increased by a
Miller effect capacitance sensitive to
the gain of the amplifier and the inter-
electrode (parasitic) capacitance
between the input and output terminals
of the active device.
• For noninverting amplifiers such as the
common-base and emitter-follower
configurations, the Miller effect
capacitance is not a contributing
concern for high-frequency
applications.

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High-Frequency Response of BJT Amplifier

• At the high-frequency end, there are two factors that define the 3-dB cutoff point:
1. network capacitance (parasitic and induced)
2. frequency dependence of current gain hfe (β).

• At high frequencies, the high cutoff frequency of a BJT circuit is affected by:
1. Interelectrode capacitance between base and emitter , base and collector, and collector
and emitter
2. Wiring capacitance at the input and output

• At increasing frequencies, the reactance XC will decrease in magnitude, resulting in a

shorting effect across the output and a decrease in gain.

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Network Parameters

Figure. Network of RC combination with capacitors that affect

the high-frequency response
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Network Parameters affecting frequency response

• At mid and high frequencies, Cs, Cc, and

Ce are assumed to be short circuits due
to their ver low impedances

• The input capacitance Ci includes Cwi,

Cbe, and Cmi

• The output capacitance includes Cwo,

Cce, and Cmo

• Typically, Cbe is the largest of the

parasitic capacitances while Cce is the
smallest

Figure. Network of RC combination with capacitors that affect

the high-frequency response

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High-Frequency Response of BJT Amplifier

Magnitude of the Gain:

Figure. RC combination that defines a high-cutoff frequency

Figure. Asymptotic plot defined by the gain equation

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High-frequency AC equivalent of the Network

Figure. High-frequency
ac equivalent model for
the network

Figure. Thévenin circuits

for the input and output
networks of the network

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High-frequency AC equivalent of the Network
Input Network Parameters:

• At high frequency end, the reactance of

capacitance Ci will decrease as the
frequency increases, this results to
reduction in total impedance at the input
side.

• This will further result to lower voltage

across Ci, thus lower base current and
lower voltage gain is observed.

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High-frequency AC equivalent of the Network
Output Network Parameters:

• At high frequency end, the reactance of

capacitance Co will decrease as the
frequency increases, resulting also in
reduction of total impedance at the output
side.

• This will further result to lower output

voltage and power gain.

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Gain-Bandwidth Product
• A Figure of Merit applied to amplifiers called the gain-bandwidth
Gain-Bandwidth Product (GBP) is commonly product:
used to initiate the design process of an amplifier.
• It provides important information about the
unity-gain
relationship between the gain of the amplifier and
frequency:
the expected operating frequency range.

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High-Frequency Response of FET Amplifier
• High frequency response analysis of FET is like that of BJT
• At the high frequency end, the high cutoff frequency (-3dB) of FET circuits is affected by the
network capacitance (parasitic and induced).
• The capacitances that affect the high frequency response of the circuit are:
- interelectrode capacitance between the gate and source, gate and drain, and drain and
source.
- wiring capacitance at the input and output of the circuit
• At high frequencies, the reactance of the electrode and wiring capacitance become
significantly low, resulting to a “shorting effect” across the capacitances.
• The shorting effect at the input and output of an amplifier causes a reduction in the gain of the
amplifier
• For common source FET, the Miller effect will be present since it is an inverting amplifier.

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Network Parameters affecting frequency response

Figure. Network of RC combination with capacitors that affect

the high-frequency response

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Network Parameters affecting frequency response
• At mid and high frequencies, Cg, Cs, and
Cc are assumed to be short circuits due to
their very low impedances

• The input capacitance Ci includes Cwi,

Cgs, and Cmi

• The output capacitance includes Cwo,

Cds, and Cmo

• Typically, Cgs and Cgd are higher than

Cds

• At high frequencies, Ci will approach a

short-circuit and Vgs will drop, resulting to
reduction in voltage gain.
Figure. Network of RC combination with capacitors that affect
the high-frequency response
• At high frequencies, Co will approach a
short-circuit and Vo will drop, resulting to
reduction in voltage gain

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High-frequency AC equivalent of the Network

Figure. High-frequency ac equivalent model for the network

Figure. Thevenin
equivalent circuit

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Network Parameters
The cutoff frequencies defined by the input and output circuits can be obtained by first finding
the Thévenin equivalent circuits for each section:

Input of the circuit: Output of the circuit:

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Multistage Frequency Effects
• If there are several stages in a cascaded amplifier system, the overall bandwidth of the
system will be lower than the individual bandwidth of each stage.

• In the high frequency region:

- the output capacitance must now include the wiring capacitance and parasitic capacitance
and the Miller effect of the next stage

- the input capacitance must now include the wiring capacitance and parasitic capacitance
and the Miller effect of the preceding stage

• The lower cutoff frequency of the entire system will be determined primarily by the stage having
the highest lower cutoff frequency

• The upper cutoff frequency of the entire system will be determined primarily by the stage having
the lowest higher cutoff frequency

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Multistage Frequency Effects
• For n stages having the same voltage gain and lower cutoff frequency, the overall lower cutoff
frequency can be computed as:

magnitude of this
factor for various values of n

Overall lower cutoff frequency Overall higher cutoff frequency

of the entire amplifier of the entire amplifier

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Square Wave Testing

• A square wave signal can be used to test the frequency

response of a single stage or multistage amplifier

• If an amplifier has poor low frequency response or poor high

frequency response, the output of an amplifier having a square
wave input will be distorted.

• A square wave is composed of fundamental frequency and

harmonics which are all sine waves.

• If an amplifier has poor low or high frequency response, some

low or high frequencies will not be amplified effectively, and the
output waveform will be distorted.

Figure. Square Wave

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Harmonics
Fourier series expansion for the square wave

Harmonic content of a square wave

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Harmonics

Figure:
(a) poor low-frequency
response;
(b) very poor low-frequency
response;
(c) poor high-frequency
response;
(d) very poor high-frequency
response.

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Square Wave Testing
The figures below show the effect of poor frequency response of an amplifier using a square wave input.

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Square Wave Testing
• The high cutoff frequency can be determined from the output waveform measuring the rise time of the
waveform.
• Rise time is between the point when the amplitude of the waveform if 10% of its highest value up to
the point when the amplitude is 90% of its highest value.
• The high cutoff frequency can be computed as:

• The lower cutoff frequency can be determined from the output waveform by measuring the tilt of the
waveform:

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Defining the rise time and tilt

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 End of Lecture

Next Topic:

Operational Amplifier