BJT Frequency Response

EST 124 – ELECTRONICS CIRCUITS &
ITS APPLICATIONS
Engr. Thesa L. Vergara, MSEE

Lecture
BJT and 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.
Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

LOGARITHMS
Relationship between the variables of a logarithmic function following
the mathematical equation:
The variables a, b, and x are the same in each equation. If a is

determined by taking the base b to the x power, the same x will result
if the log of a is taken to the base b.

LOGARITHMS
For instance, if b=10 and x=2,
In other words, if you were asked to find the power of a number that would
result in a particular level such as
you could determine the level of x using logarithms. That is,

LOGARITHMS
Logarithms taken to the base 10 are referred to as common logarithms,
whereas logarithms taken to the base e are referred to as natural logarithms.
In summary:
The two are related by:

LOGARITHMS
Example 1: Using the calculator, determine the logarithm of the following
numbers to the base indicated:
a. log10 106
b. loge e3
c. log10 10-2
d. loge e-1
Answer: 6
Answer: 3
Answer: -2
Answer: 1

LOGARITHMS
Example 2: Using the calculator, determine the logarithm of the following
numbers:
a. log10 64
b. loge 64
c. log10 1600
d. log10 8000
Answer: a. 1.806;
Answer: b. 4.159;
Answer: c. 3.204;
Answer: d. 3.903

LOGARITHMS
Example 3: Using the calculator, determine the antilogarithm of the following
expression:
a. 1.6 = log10 a
b. 0.04 = loge a
Answer:
a. a = 101.6 Using the 10x key: a = 39.81
b. a = e0.04 Using the ex key: a = 1.0408

LOGARITHM PROPERTIES

LOGARITHMS
Example 4: Using the calculator, determine the antilogarithm of the following
expression:
a. 1.6 = log10 a
b. 0.04 = loge a
Answer:
a. a = 101.6 Using the 10x key: a = 39.81
b. a = e0.04 Using the ex key: a = 1.0408

LOGARITHMS
Example 5: Using a calculator, determine the logarithm of the following
numbers:
a. log10 0.5
!"""
b. log10 #$"
c. log10 (0.6 x 30)
Answer: a. -0.3
Answer: b. 1.204
Answer: c. 1.255

DECIBELS - Power Levels
● Decibel (Symbol: dB) is a logarithmic unit that indicates ratio or gain.
● Decibel is used to indicate the level of acoustic waves (sound level) and
electronic signals.
● The logarithmic scale can describe very big or very small numbers with
shorter notation.
● The dB level can be viewed as relative gain of one level vs. other level, or
absolute logarithmic scale level for well known reference levels.
● The ratio may be power, sound pressure, voltage or intensity or several other
things.

DECIBELS - Power Gain
● The term bel is derived from the surname of Alexander Graham Bell. For
standardization, the bel (B) is defined by the following equation relating two
power levels, P1 and P2 :
NOTE: 10 decibels = 1 bel

DECIBELS - Power Gain
● For a specified terminal (output) power (P2) there must be a reference power
level (P1). The reference level is generally accepted to be 1 mW.
● The resistance associated with the 1-mW power level is 600Ω chosen
because it is the characteristic impedance of audio transmission lines.

DECIBELS - Voltage Gain
● For electrical system and configuration described in the Figure below, the
equation can be derived as:
Figure 1: Electrical circuit configuration
Gain of a cascaded system:

DECIBELS - Examples
Example 6: Find the magnitude gain corresponding to a voltage gain of 100dB.

DECIBELS - Examples
Example 7: The input power to a device is 10,000W at a voltage of 1000V. The
output power is 500W and the output impedance is 20Ω.
a. Find the power gain in decibels.
b. Find the voltage gain in decibels.
c. Determine the value of input resistance.

DECIBELS - Examples
a. Find the power gain in decibels.

DECIBELS - Examples
b. Find the voltage gain in decibels.

DECIBELS - Examples
c. Determine the value of input resistance.

DECIBELS - Examples
Example 8: An amplifier rated at 40-W output is connected to a 10-Ω speaker.
a. Calculate the input power required for full power output if the power gain is
25dB.
b. Calculate the input voltage for the rated output if the amplifier voltage gain
is 40dB.

DECIBELS - Examples
Example 8: An amplifier rated at 40-W output is connected to a 10-Ω speaker.
a. Calculate the input power required for full power output if the power gain is
25dB.

Human Auditory Response

GENERAL FREQUENCY CONSIDERATIONS
Effects of Frequency on Operation of Circuits
● The frequency of a signal can affect the response of circuits.
● The reactance of capacitors increases when the signal frequency decreases,
and its reactance decreases when the signal frequency increases.
● The reactance of inductors and winding of transformers increases when the
signal frequency increases, and its reactance decreases when the signal
frequency decreases.
● BJTs, FETs, resistors, and even copper wires have intrinsic capacitances,
whose reactance at high frequencies could change the response of circuits.
● Change in reactance of inductors and capacitors can affect the gain of
amplifiers at relatively low and high frequencies.

GENERAL FREQUENCY CONSIDERATIONS
Effects of Frequency on Operation of Circuits
● At low frequencies, capacitors can no longer be treated as short circuits,
because their resistance becomes large enough to affect the signal.
● At high frequencies, the reactance of intrinsic capacitance of devices
becomes low enough, that signals could effectively pass through them,
resulting to changes in the response of the circuit.
● At low frequencies, reactance of primary of transformers become low,
resulting to poor low frequency response. Change in magnetic flux at low
frequencies become low.
● At high frequencies, the stray capacitance of transformer winding reduces the
gain of amplifiers.

Low-Frequency Range
● A reactance of 1-µF is used to

demonstrate how larger coupling &
bypass capacitors affect frequency
response.
● The larger capacitors of a system will
have an important impact on the
response of a system in the low-
frequency range & can be ignored for
the high-frequency region.

High Frequency Range
● For the smaller capacitors that come
into play due to the parasitic
capacitances of the device or
network, the frequency range in
concern will be the higher
frequencies.
● The capacitors of a system will have
an important impact on the response
of a system in the high-frequency
range and can be ignored for the low-
frequency region.

Mid-Frequency Range
● The effect of capacitive elements is largely ignored and the amplifier
considered ideal and composed simply of resistive elements and
controlled sources, also when quantities like gain and impedance levels
are determined.

Effects of Frequency
Response
● Increase in the number of stages
affects the frequency response of a
system
● In general, the gain of amplifier
circuits decreases at low and high
frequencies
● The cutoff frequencies are the
frequencies when the power
delivered to the load of the circuit
becomes half of the power delivered
to the load at middle frequencies.

Effects of Frequency Response on Circuit Operation
● For the RC -coupled amplifier, the drop at low frequencies is due to the
increasing reactance of CC, CS, or CE , whereas its upper frequency limit is
determined by either the parasitic capacitive elements of the network or the
frequency dependence of the gain of the active device.
● For transformer-coupled amplifiers, the high-frequency response is controlled
primarily by the stray capacitance between the turns of the primary and
secondary windings.
● For the direct-coupled amplifier, there are no coupling or bypass capacitors to
cause a drop in gain at low frequencies.

Frequency Response of Amplifier Circuits



● The graph of frequency response of amplifier circuits can be plotted with a
normalized gain.
!!
𝑁𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑑 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 =
!!"#$
where: Av = voltage gain at frequency f

Avmid = voltage gain at middle frequency

● A decibel plot of the gain is represented in this equation:
!! !"
|𝑑𝐵 = 20𝑙𝑜𝑔𝐴 = = 𝑛𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑑 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑖𝑛 𝑑𝐵
!!"#$ !"#$%
where: Av = voltage gain at frequency f

Avmid = voltage gain at middle frequency

Capacitor-coupled amplifier circuit frequency response
● For capacitor coupled (also called RC-coupled) amplifiers:
- the drop in gain at low frequencies is due to the increasing reactance of the coupling
capacitors (Cc) and bypass capacitors (Cb, CE, and CS).
- the drop in gain at high frequencies is due to the parasitic capacitance of network and
active devices, and frequency dependence at the gain of BJTs, FETs, or vacuum tubes.

Transformer-coupled amplifier circuit frequency response
● For transformer coupled amplifier circuits:
- the drop in gain at low frequencies is caused by “shortening effect” of the input
terminals (primary) of the transformer at low frequencies. The reactance of the primary
becomes very low at low frequencies and becomes zero at 0Hz.
- At low frequencies, change in magnetic flux becomes low, resulting to lower output
voltage
- The drop in gain at high frequencies is due to the stray capacitance at the primary and
secondary of the transformer, and frequency dependence of gain of devices. At high
frequencies, the reactance of the stray capacitances becomes low enough that high
frequency signals are also “shorted out”.

Transformer-coupled amplifier circuit frequency response
● For transformer coupled amplifier circuits:

Direct-coupled amplifier circuit frequency response
● For direct coupled amplifier circuits:
- There are no coupling or bypass capacitors, or transformers to cause a drop
in the gain at low frequencies. The gain at low frequencies is typically the
same as that at middle frequencies.
- The drop in the gain at high frequencies is due to stray capacitance of the
circuit and the frequency dependence of the gain of active devices.

Frequency Analysis of High Pass Resistor Capacitor (RC) Circuit






Bode plot for low frequency region
• The approach was developed by Professor Hendrik Bode in the 1940s
• A change in frequency by a factor of two, equivalent to one octave, results in a
6-dB change in the ratio, as shown by the change in gain from fL/2 to fL.
• For a 10:1 change in frequency, equivalent to one decade, there is a 20-dB
change in the ratio, as demonstrated between the frequencies of fL>10 and fL.
The gain at any frequency can

be determined from the
frequency plot in this equation:
The phase angle of θ is

determined from:

The piecewise linear plot of the asymptotes and associated breakpoints is called a
Bode plot of the magnitude versus frequency.



Bode plot of BJT Amplifier – low frequency response
• The Bode plot indicates that
each capacitor may have a
different cutoff frequency.
• It is the device that has the
highest lower cutoff frequency
(fL) that dominates the overall
frequency response of the
amplifier.

Roll-off Rate (-dB/Decade)
• -dB/decade refers to the
attenuation for every 10-
fold change in frequency.
• For attenuations at the low
frequency end, it refers to
the loss in gain from the
lower cutoff frequency to a
frequency that is one-tenth
the cutoff value.

Roll-off Rate (-dB/Octave)
• -dB/decade refers to the
attenuation for every 2-fold
change in frequency.
• For attenuations at the
lowfrequency end, it refers to the
loss in gain from the lower cutoff
frequency to a frequency one-half
the cutoff value.

Example:

Defining the Low Cutoff Frequency
In the low-frequency region of the single-stage BJT or FET amplifier, it
is the RC combinations formed by the network capacitors CC, CE, and
CS and the network resistive parameters that determine the cutoff
frequencies.
Input impedance of the network


As the frequency increases, the capacitive For the special case where XC=R ,
reactance decreases, and more of the input
voltage appears across the output terminals.
At the frequency for which XC=R,

the output will be 70.7% of the
input for the network of Fig. 9.14
.
Gain equation using the

frequency above:
Gain in logarithmic form:

Loaded Voltage Divider BJT Amplifier
The analysis of this section will employ the

loaded (RL) voltage-divider BJT bias
configuration.
For the network of Fig.9.25, the capacitors CS,

CC, and CE will determine the low-frequency
response.

Impact of CS on the frequency response: Voltage-divider rule:
Cut-off frequency:
Voltage gain:

Impact of CC on the frequency response:
Cut-off frequency:
Output resistance:

Impact of CE on the frequency response:

Impact of CE on the frequency response:
Effect of CE on the gain:

Example: Determine the cutoff frequencies for the network using the ff. parameters.



Impact of RS on BJT Low-Frequency Response
This investigates the impact of the source resistance on the various cutoff frequencies. A signal source
and associated resistance have been added. The gain will now be between the output voltage Vo and
the signal source Vs .
Impact of CS on the frequency response:

cutoff frequency:
voltage-divider rule:
Gain for the midband frequencies:

Impact of CC on the frequency response: Impact of CE on the frequency response:

Example:

Example:

End of Lecture
Next Topic:
FET Frequency Response

BJT Frequency Response

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EST 124 – ELECTRONICS CIRCUITS &

Engr. Thesa L. Vergara, MSEE

BJT and JFET Frequency Response

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

The variables a, b, and x are the same in each equation. If a is

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

you could determine the level of x using logarithms. That is,

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

The two are related by:

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

NOTE: 10 decibels = 1 bel

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Figure 1: Electrical circuit configuration

Gain of a cascaded system:

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

● A reactance of 1-µF is used to

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

where: Av = voltage gain at frequency f

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

where: Av = voltage gain at frequency f

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

● For transformer coupled amplifier circuits:

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

The gain at any frequency can

The phase angle of θ is

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology

Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering and Technology