ANALOG ELECTRONIC CIRCUITS
FEEDBACK AMPLIFIERS
Syed. Athika Sultana
Assistant Professor
Narayana Engineering College, Nellore
Feedback Amplifiers
Feedback principle and concept
Types of feedback
Classification of amplifiers
Feedback topologies
Characteristics of negative feedback amplifiers
Generalized analysis of feedback amplifiers
Performance comparison of feedback amplifiers
Method of Analysis of Feedback Amplifiers.
Concept of feedback:
• Feedback is used in virtually all amplifier systems.
• Invented in 1928 by Harold Black – engineer in Western Electric
Company
– methods to stabilize the gain of amplifier for use in telephone
repeaters.
• In feedback system, a part of output signal is fed back to the input
and combined with the input signal to produce a desired system
response.
• At the input there are two signals
– Input signal
– Feedback signal
• The type of feedback mechanism is decided by whether the two
signals are in phase or out of phase.
• If input and feedback signal are in phase, then the feedback is called
positive feedback.
• If input and feedback signal are out of phase, then the feedback is
called negative feedback.
• The feedback system has many advantages especially in the control
of impedance levels, bandwidth improvement, and in rendering the
circuit performance relatively insensitive to manufacturing as well as
to environmental changes.
• These are the advantages of negative or degenerative feedback in
which the signal feedback from output to input is 180 out of phase
with the applied excitation. It increases bandwidth and input
impedance, and lowers the output impedance.
• There is another type of feedback called positive or regenerative
feedback in which the overall gain of the amplifier is increased.
Positive feedback is useful in oscillators and while establishing the
two stable states of flip-flop.
Fig: Block diagram of feedback amplifier
Sampling Network:
• There are two ways of sampling the output according to sampling
parameters, they are
– Voltage sampling
– Current sampling
Fig: Voltage sampling Fig: Current sampling
Mixer Network:
• There are two ways of mixing the feedback signal with input, they are
– Voltage mixing
– Current mixing
Fig: Voltage mixing Fig: Current mixing
• The parameters which are involved in the block diagram are
A – Gain of the basic amplifier
β – Feedback Ratio
Af – Gain of the feedback amplifier
Classification of amplifiers
• There are three categories of amplifiers depending on the property of
their output.
– Voltage Amplifier
– Current Amplifier
– Trans conductance amplifier
– Trans resistance amplifier
• 1. Voltage Amplifier:
Ri >> Rs ; V i = Vs
Ro << RL ; Vo ≈ Av Vi ≈ Av Vs
If the output voltage is independent of source
and load resistances, then the circuit is called
“Voltage Amplifier” .
• 2. Current Amplifier:
Ri << Rs ; I i = Is
Ro >> RL ; IL ≈ Ai Ii ≈ Ai Is
If the output current is independent of source
and load resistances and is proportional to
input signal current, then the circuit is called
“Current Amplifier” .
• 3. Trans conductance Amplifier:
Ri >> Rs ; V i = Vs
Ro >> RL ; IL ≈ Gm Vi ≈ Gm Vs
If the output current is independent of source
and load resistances and is proportional to
input signal voltage, then the circuit is called
“Tran conductance Amplifier” .
• 4. Trans resistance Amplifier:
Ri << Rs ; I i = Is
Ro << RL ; Vo ≈ Rm Ii ≈ Rm Is
If the output voltage is independent of
source and load resistances and
proportional to input source current, then
the circuit is called “Trans resistance
Amplifier” .
Ideal Amplifier characteristics
Generalized feedback amplifier:
• The generalized feedback amplifier is shown in the following figure
Loop gain:
The product -Aβ is called loop gain or return ratio.
The Difference between unity and loop gain is called return difference.
D = 1 – ( - Aβ ) = 1 + Aβ
The amount of feedback introduced into an amplifier is expressed in dB
as
Assumptions in feedback network:
Three conditions must be satisfied for the feedback network.
1. Input signal is transmitted to the output through the amplifier ‘A’
and not through β network.
2. Feedback signal is transmitted from the output to the input
through β network and not through amplifier.
3. The reverse transmission factor β of the feedback network is
independent of the load and source resistances.
Advantages of Negative Feedback Amplifier:
1. Increases the gain stability.
2. Decreases the frequency distortion.
3. Increases the linear range of operation.
4. Reduces the noise.
5. Increases in bandwidth.
6. Increase in input impedance.
7. Decrease in output impedance.
General characteristics of negative feedback
amplifiers:
1. Increases Gain stability:
2. Frequency distortion:
From the equation
If the feedback network does not contain any reactive
elements, the overall gain is not a function of frequency. Under such
conditions frequency distortion is reduced.
3. Reduces non linear distortion:
Second harmonic component with and without feedback B2 and B2f .
The relationship between B2 and B2f is given by considering the
output contain the term -AβB2f .
βB2f comes from feedback to the input.
B2 - AβB2f = B2f
4. Noise reduction:
The noise reduced by dividing it with ‘D’.
5. Increase in bandwidth:
6. Increase in input impedance:
Because of this it does not load the preceding stage.
7. Decrease in output impedance:
Maximum power will be delivered to the load without loss
Feedback Topologies
• There are four basic amplifier types. Each of these is being
approximated by the characteristics of an ideal controlled source.
The four feedback topologies are as follows:
1. Voltage-series or series-shunt feedback
2. Voltage-shunt or shunt-shunt feedback
3. Current-series or series-series feedback
4. Current-shunt or shunt-series feedback
Voltage Series or Series Shunt feedback:
• The input voltage Vi of the basic amplifier is the algebraic sum of input signal Vs
and the feedback signal Vo , where Vo is the output voltage.
Voltage-Shunt or Shunt-Shunt Feedback
• The voltage-shunt or shunt-shunt feedback amplifier provides an output voltage Vo in
proportion to the input current Is.
Current-Series or Series-Series
Feedback:
• Trans-conductance feedback amplifier provides an output current Io which is proportional to
the input voltage Vs
Current-shunt or shunt series feedback
• The current-shunt feedback amplifier, supplies an output current Io which is proportional to
the input current Ii . This makes it a current amplifier.
• The voltage and current signals in feedback amplifiers is shown in
the following table
General analysis of feedback amplifiers:
1. Voltage Series feedback amplifier:
Input resistance:
Output resistance:
2. Voltage Shunt feedback amplifier:
Input resistance:
Output resistance:
3. Current Series feedback amplifier:
Input resistance:
Output resistance:
4. Current Shunt feedback amplifier:
Input resistance:
Output resistance:
Method of analysis of feedback amplifiers:
Feedback amplifiers has two blocks. They are amplifier and feedback.
By knowing A and β, we can calculate Af , Rif and Rof .
The basic amplifier configuration without feedback, but taking the
loading of the β into account is obtained by applying the following
rules.
To find the input circuit:
1. Set Vo = 0 for voltage sampling (short the output node)
2. Set Io = 0 for current sampling (open the output loop)
To find the output circuit:
1. Set Vi = 0 for shunt comparison (short the input node)
2. Set Ii = 0 for series comparison (open the input loop)
The above procedure will ensure the feedback is reduced to
zero without altering the loading on the basic amplifier.
The complete analysis of feedback amplifier is explained with the
following steps
1. Identify the topology
(a) Whether the feedback signal Xf is a voltage or current.
(b) Whether the sampled signal Xo is a voltage or current.
2. Draw the basic amplifier circuit without feedback, following the rules
listed above.
3. If Xf is a voltage then use Thevenins’s source and Xf is a current then
use Nortons source.
4. Replace each active device by proper model (using pi model of a
transistor by means of high frequencies or low frequencies).
5. Indicate Xf and Xo on the circuit obtained by carrying out steps 2,3&4.
Evaluate β = Xf / Xo
6. Evaluate A by applying KVL and KCL to the equivalent circuit obtained
after step4.
7. From A and β, find D, Af , Rif , Rof , and Rof’ .
Performance comparison of feedback amplifiers:
PRACTICAL IMPLEMENTATIONS
OF THE FEEDBACK TOPOLOGIES:
• 1) Voltage-series Feedback Using
Transistor:
• The emitter-follower
circuit, as shown in Fig. 9-11 is an
example of voltage-series
feedback. The feedback signal Vf
and the output signal Vo are both
voltage quantities.
Hybrid equivalent circuit of practical
voltage-series feedback amplifier:
• To determine the gain of the basic
amplifier without feedback we should consider Vo = 0
for the input loop and Ib = 0 for the output loop so
that we obtain the approximate hybrid equivalent
circuit, as given in Fig. 9-12.
Current-Series Feedback using transistor:
Voltage-Shunt Feedback Using Transistor:
• In the circuit given in Fig. 9-15, the input
current is proportional to the output voltage Vo.
Voltage-Shunt Feedback Using Transistor:
• To determine the gain of the basic amplifier we
consider that Rf is open-circuited and we can draw the
approximate h-parameter equivalent circuit as shown in Fig. 9-
16.
Voltage-Shunt Feedback Using Transistor:
Current-Shunt Feedback Using Transistor:
A simple current-shunt feedback amplifier is shown in Fig. 9-17.
Current-Shunt Feedback Using Transistor:
POINTS TO REMEMBER:
IMPORTANT FORMULAE:
