CHAPTER 2: FUNDAMENTALS OF ELECTRONICS

Objectives:
 Solve voltage, current, gain, and attenuation in decibels and apply these formulas in
applications involving cascaded circuits.
 Analyze the basic configuration of the different types of filters that are used in
communication networks
 Calculate bandwidth by using Fourier analysis.

Content:
A. Gain, Attenuation, and Decibels
B. Tuned Circuits
C. Filters
D. Fourier Theory

A. GAIN, ATTENUATION, AND DECIBELS

Most electronic circuits in communication are used to process signals, i.e., to

manipulate signals to produce a desired result. All signal processing circuits involve either
gain or attenuation.

Gain
Gain means amplification. If a signal is applied to a circuit such as the amplifier
shown Fig. 2.1 and the output of the circuit has a greater amplitude than the input signal, the
circuit has gain.

Figure 2.1 An Amplifier

Gain is simply the ratio of the output to the input. For input ( ��� ) and output ( ���� )
voltages, voltage gain (�� ) is expressed as follows:
������ ����
AV =
�����
= ���

Since most amplifiers are also power amplifiers, the same procedure can be used to calculate
power gain �� :
����
AP =
���

where ��� is the power input and ���� is the power output.

Example:
1. What is the voltage gain of an amplifier that produces an output of 750 mV for a 30 μV
input?
2. The power output of an amplifier is 6 watts (W). The power gain is 80. What is the input
power?
 When two or more stages of amplification or other forms of signal processing are
cascaded, the overall gain of the combination is the product of the individual circuit gains.

Figure 2.2 Cascaded Circuits

Fig. 2.2 shows three amplifiers connected one after the other so that the output of one is the
input to the next. The voltage gains of the individual circuits are marked.

To find the total gain of this circuit, simply multiply the individual circuit gains:
�� = �1 x �2 x �3 = 5 x 3 x 4 = 60.

Example:
3. Three cascaded amplifiers have power gains of 5, 2, and 17. The input power is 40 mW.
What is the output power?
4. A two-stage amplifier has an input power of 25 μW and an output power of 1.5 mW. One
stage has a gain of 3. What is the gain of the second stage?

Attenuation
Attenuation refers to a loss introduced by a circuit or component. Many electronic circuits,
sometimes called stages, reduce the amplitude of a signal rather than increase it. If the output
signal is lower in amplitude than the input, the circuit has loss, or attenuation. Like gain,
attenuation is simply the ratio of the output to the input. The letter A is used to represent
attenuation as well as gain:
������ ����
Attenuation A =
�����
= ���

Circuits that introduce attenuation have a gain that is less than 1. In other words, the output is
some fraction of the input. An example of a simple circuit with attenuation is a voltage divider
such as that shown in Fig. 2.3.

Figure 2.3 A Voltage Divider

When several circuits with attenuation are cascaded, the total attenuation is, again, the
product of the individual attenuations. The circuit in Fig. 2.4 is an example.

Figure 2.4

The attenuation factors for each circuit are shown. The overall attenuation is:
�� = �1 x �2 x �3

With the values shown in Fig. 2.4, the overall attenuation is

�� = 0.2 x 0.9 x 0.06 = 0.0108

Given an input of 3 V, the output voltage is

���� = �� ��� = 0.0108 (3) = 0.0324

It is common in communication systems and equipment to cascade circuits and

components that have gain and attenuation. For example, loss introduced by a circuit can be
compensated for by adding a stage of amplification that offsets it. An example of this is shown
in Fig. 2.5.

Figure 2.5 Gain exactly off sets the attenuation

Example:
5. A voltage divider such as that shown in Fig. 2.5 has values of R1 = 10 kΩ and R2 = 470 Ω.
a. What is the attenuation?
b. What amplifier gain would you need to have an overall gain of 2?

Decibels
The gain or loss of a circuit is usually expressed in decibels (dB), a unit of measurement that
was originally created as a way of expressing the hearing response of the human ear to
various sound levels. A decibel is one-tenth of a bel.
The formulas for computing the decibel gain or loss of a circuit are:

����
dB= 20 log ���
����
dB= 20 log ���
����
dB= 10 log ���

Example:
6. An amplifier has an input of 3 mV and an output of 5 V. What is the gain in decibels?
7. A filter has a power input of 50 mW and an output of 2 mW. What is the gain or attenuation
in decibel?

Note that when the circuit has gain, the decibel figure is positive. If the gain is less than 1,
which means that there is an attenuation, the decibel figure is negative.

Now, to calculate the overall gain or attenuation of a circuit or system, you simply add the
decibel gain and attenuation factors of each circuit. An example is shown in Fig. 2.6, where
there are two gain stages and an attenuation block. The overall gain of this circuit is

Figure 2.6

Antilogs. To calculate the input or output voltage or power, given the decibel gain or
attenuation and the output or input, the antilog is used. The antilog is the number obtained
when the base is raised to the logarithm, which is the exponent:

Pout �� ����
dB = 10 log
Pin
and 10
= ���
���

���� �� ���� ��
and = ������� => ���−1
��� 10 ��� 10

Example:

8. A power amplifier with a 40-dB gain has an output power of 100 W. What is the input power?
9. An amplifier has a gain of 60 dB. If the input voltage is 50 μV, what is the output voltage?

dBm. When the gain or attenuation of a circuit is expressed in decibels, implicit is a

comparison between two values, the output and the input. When the ratio is computed, the
units of voltage or power are canceled, making the ratio a dimensionless, or relative, figure.
When you see a decibel value, you really do not know the actual voltage or power values. In
some cases, this is not a problem; in others, it is useful or necessary to know the actual
values involved. When an absolute value is needed, you can use a reference value to
compare any other value. An often used reference level in communication is 1 mW. When a
decibel value is computed by comparing a power value to 1 mW, the result is a value called
the dBm. It is computed with the standard power decibel formula with 1 mW as the
denominator of the ratio:
Pout (W)
dBm = 10 log
0.001 W

Example:
10. A power amplifier has an input of 90 mV across 10 kΩ. The output is 7.8 V across an 8-Ω
speaker. What is the power gain, in decibels? You must compute the input and output power
levels first.

dBc. This is a decibel gain attenuation figure where the reference is the carrier. The carrier is
the base communication signal, a sine wave that is modulated. Often the amplitude’s
sidebands, spurious or interfering signals, are referenced to the carrier. For example, if the
spurious signal is 1 mW compared to the 10-W carrier, the dBc is
Psignal
dBc = 10 log
Pcarrier
0.001
dBc = 10 log = − 40
10

B. TUNED CIRCUITS

Virtually all communication equipment contains tuned circuits, circuits made up of

inductors and capacitors that resonate at specific frequencies. In this section, you will review
how to calculate the reactance, resonant frequency, impedance, Q, and bandwidth of series
and parallel resonance circuits.

Reactive Components

All tuned circuits and many filters are made up of inductive and capacitive elements, including
discrete components such as coils and capacitors and the stray and distributed inductance
and capacitance that appear in all electronic circuits. Both coils and capacitors offer an
opposition to alternating current flow known as reactance, which is expressed in ohms (Ω).
Like resistance, reactance is an opposition that directly affects the amount of current in a
circuit. In addition, reactive effects produce a phase shift between the currents and voltages in
a circuit. Capacitance causes the current to lead the applied voltage, whereas inductance
causes the current to lag the applied voltage. Coils and capacitors used together form tuned,
or resonant, circuits.

Capacitors. A capacitor used in an ac circuit continually charges and discharges. A capacitor

tends to oppose voltage changes across it. This translates to an opposition to alternating
current known as capacitive reactance �� . The reactance of a capacitor is inversely
proportional to the value of capacitance C and operating frequency f. It is given by the familiar
expression
1
�� =
2���

Inductors. An inductor, also called a coil or choke, is simply a winding of multiple turns of wire.
When current is passed through a coil, a magnetic field is produced around the coil. If the
applied voltage and current are varying, the magnetic field alternately expands and collapses.
This causes a voltage to be self-induced into the coil winding, which has the effect of
opposing current changes in the coil. This effect is known as inductance.
The basic unit of inductance is the henry (H). Inductance is directly affected by the physical
characteristics of the coil, including the number of turns of wire in the inductor, the spacing of
the turns, the length of the coil, the diameter of the coil, and the type of magnetic core
material. Practical inductance values are in the millihenry (mH = 1�10−3 H), microhenry
(μH = 1�10−6 H), and nanohenry (nH = 1�10−9 H) regions.
In a dc circuit, an inductor will have little or no effect. Only the ohmic resistance of the wire
affects current flow. However, when the current changes, such as during the time the power is
turned off or on, the coil will oppose these changes in current. When an inductor is used in an
ac circuit, this opposition becomes continuous and constant and is known as inductive
reactance. Inductive reactance �� is expressed in ohms and is calculated by using the
expression
�� = 2���

Any wire or conductor exhibits a characteristic inductance. The longer the wire, the greater
the inductance. Although the inductance of a straight wire is only a fraction of a microhenry, at
very high frequencies the reactance can be significant. For this reason, it is important to keep
all lead lengths short in interconnecting components in RF circuits. This is especially true of
capacitor and transistor leads, since stray or distributed inductance can significantly affect the
performance and characteristics of a circuit. Another important characteristic of an inductor is
its quality factor Q, the ratio of inductive power to resistive power:

I2 XL XL 2πfL
Q = 2
= =
I R R R

This is the ratio of the power returned to the circuit to the power actually dissipated by the coil
resistance. For example, the Q of a 3-μH inductor with a total resistance of 45ohms at 90
MHz is calculated as follows:

Resistors. At low frequencies, a standard low-wattage color-coded resistor offers nearly pure
resistance, but at high frequencies its leads have considerable inductance, and stray
capacitance between the leads causes the resistor to act as a complex RLC circuit. To
minimize the inductive and capacitive effects, the leads are kept very short in radio
applications.

Many resistors are made from a carbon-composition material in powdered form sealed inside
a tiny housing to which leads are attached. The type and amount of carbon material
determine the value of these resistors. They contribute noise to the circuit in which they are
used. The noise is caused by thermal effects and the granular nature of the resistance
material. The noise contributed by such resistors in an amplifier used to amplify very low level
radio signals may be so high as to obliterate the desired signal.

To overcome this problem, film resistors were developed. They are made by depositing a
carbon or metal film in spiral form on a ceramic form. The size of the spiral and the kind of
metal film determine the resistance value. Carbon film resistors are quieter than carbon-
composition resistors, and metal film resistors are quieter than carbon film resistors. Metal
film resistors should be used in amplifier circuits that must deal with very low level RF signals.
Most surface-mount resistors are of the metallic film type.

Skin Effect. The resistance of any wire conductor, whether it is a resistor or capacitor lead or
the wire in an inductor, is primarily determined by the ohmic resistance of the wire itself.
However, other factors influence it. The most significant one is skin effect, the tendency of
electrons flowing in a conductor to flow near and on the outer surface of the conductor
frequencies in the VHF, UHF, and microwave regions. This has the effect of greatly
decreasing the total cross-sectional area of the conductor, thus increasing its resistance and
significantly affecting the performance of the circuit in which the conductor is used.

Tuned Circuits and Resonance

A tuned circuit is made up of inductance and capacitance and resonates at a specific

frequency, the resonant frequency. In general, the terms tuned circuit and resonant circuit are
used interchangeably. Because tuned circuits are frequency-selective, they respond best at
their resonant frequency and at a narrow range of frequencies around the resonant frequency.
Series Resonant Circuits. A series resonant circuit is made up of inductance, capacitance,
and resistance. Such circuits are often referred to as LCR circuits or RLC circuits. The
inductive and capacitive reactances depend upon the frequency of the applied voltage.
Resonance occurs when the inductive and capacitive reactances are equal.

The total impedance of the circuit is given by the expression

Z = R2 + (XL − XC )²

When �� equals �� , they cancel each other, leaving only the resistance of the circuit to
oppose the current. At resonance, the total circuit impedance is simply the value of all series
resistances in the circuit. This includes the resistance of the coil and the resistance of the
component leads, as well as any physical resistor in the circuit. The resonant frequency can
be expressed in terms of inductance and capacitance. A formula for resonant frequency can
be easily derived. First, express �� and �� as an equivalence: �� = �� . Since
1
�� = 2��� � and �� = 2��� �

1 1
2��� � = , �� = 2�
2��� � ��

The basic resonant frequency formula can be rearranged to solve for either inductance and
capacitance as follows:
1 1
L =
4π²f²C
and C =
4π²f²L

Example:
11. What is the resonant frequency of a 2.7-pF capacitor and a 33-nH inductor?
12. What value of inductance will resonate with a 12-pF capacitor at 49 MHz?

As indicated earlier, the basic definition of resonance in a series tuned circuit is the point at
which XL equals XC. With this condition, only the resistance of the circuit impedes the current.
The total circuit impedance at resonance is Z = R. For this reason, resonance in a series
tuned circuit can also be defined as the point at which the circuit impedance is lowest and the
circuit current is highest. Since the circuit is resistive at resonance, the current is in phase
with the applied voltage. Above the resonant frequency, the inductive reactance is higher than
the capacitive reactance, and the inductor voltage drop is greater than the capacitor voltage
drop. Therefore, the circuit is inductive, and the current will lag the applied voltage. Below
resonance, the capacitive reactance is higher than the inductive reactance; the net reactance
is capacitive, thereby producing a leading current in the circuit. The capacitor voltage drop is
higher than the inductor voltage drop. The narrow frequency range over which the current is
highest is called the bandwidth. This area is illustrated in Fig. 2.7.

Figure 2.7 Bandwidth of a series resonant circuit

The upper and lower boundaries of the bandwidth are defined by two cutoff frequencies
designated �1 and �2 . These cutoff frequencies occur where the current amplitude is 70.7
percent of the peak current. The bandwidth BW of the tuned circuit is defined as the
difference between the upper and lower cutoff frequencies:
BW = f2 − f1
Q is the ratio of the inductive reactance to the total circuit resistance, which includes the
resistance of the inductor plus any additional series resistance:
XL
Q =
RT
Bandwidth is then computed as:
fr
BW =
Q
Since the bandwidth is approximately centered on the resonant frequency, �1 is the same
distance from �� as �2 is from �� . This fact allows you to calculate the resonant frequency
by knowing only the cutoff frequencies:
�� = �1 � �2

For a linear frequency scale, you can calculate the center or resonant frequency by using an
average of the cutoff frequencies.
�1 + �2
�� =
2
The cutoff frequencies can be calculated if the bandwidth and the resonant frequency are
known:
�� ��
�1 = �� − 2
and �2 = �� + 2

Example:
13. What is the bandwidth of a resonant circuit with a frequency of 28 MHz and a Q of 70?
14. The upper and lower cutoff frequencies of a resonant circuit are found to be 8.07 and 7.93
MHz. Calculate (a) the bandwidth, (b) the approximate resonant frequency, and (c) Q.
15. What are the approximate 3-dB down frequencies of a resonant circuit with a Q of 200 at
16 MHz?

Figure 2.8 Resonant step-up voltage in a series resonant circuit

When the reactances, the resistances, and the current are known, the voltage drops across
each component can be computed:

As you can see, the voltage drops across the inductor and capacitor are significantly higher
than the applied voltage. This is known as the resonant step-up voltage. The resonant step-
up voltage across the coil or capacitor can be easily computed by multiplying the input or
source voltage by Q:
�� = �� = ���
Example:
16. A series resonant circuit has a Q of 150 at 3.5 MHz. The applied voltage is 3 μV. What is
the voltage across the capacitor?

Parallel Resonant Circuits. A parallel resonant circuit is formed when the inductor and
capacitor are connected in parallel with the applied voltage, as shown in Fig. 2.9 (a). In
general, resonance in a parallel tuned circuit can also be defined as the point at which the
inductive and capacitive reactances are equal. The resonant frequency is therefore calculated
by the resonant frequency formula given earlier. If we assume lossless components in the
circuit (no resistance), then the current in the inductor equals the current in the capacitor:
�� = ��

Figure 2. 9 Parallel resonant circuit currents. (a) Parallel resonant circuit. (b) Current
relationships in parallel resonant circuit

At resonance, a parallel tuned circuit appears to have infinite resistance, draws no current
from the source and thus has infinite impedance, and acts as an open circuit. However, there
is a high circulating current between the inductor and capacitor. Energy is being stored and
transferred between the inductor and capacitor. Because such a circuit acts as a kind of
storage vessel for electric energy, it is often referred to as a tank circuit and the circulating
current is referred to as the tank current.

At resonance, where �� = �� , the impedance of the inductive branch of the circuit is higher
than the impedance of the capacitive branch because of the coil resistance. The capacitive
current is slightly higher than the inductive current. Even if the reactances are equal, the
branch currents will be unequal and therefore there will be some net current flow in the supply
line. The source current will lead the supply voltage. Nevertheless, the inductive and
capacitive currents in most cases will cancel because they are approximately equal and of
opposite phase, and consequently the line or source current will be significantly lower than
the individual branch currents. The result is a very high resistive impedance, approximately
equal to:
Vs
Z =
IT
The equivalent inductance Leq and resistance Req are calculated with the formulas:
� (�² + 1)
��� =
�²
and ��� = �� (�² + 1)
and Q is determined by the formula
XL
Q =
RW
where RW is the coil winding resistance.

If Q is high, usually more than 10, ��� is approximately equal to the actual inductance value L.
The total impedance of the circuit at resonance is equal to the equivalent parallel resistance:
Z = Req
If the Q of the parallel resonant circuit is greater than 10, the following simplified formula can
be used to calculate the resistive impedance at resonance:
L
Z = CR
w

Example:
17. What is the impedance of a parallel LC circuit with a resonant frequency of 52 MHz and a
Q of 12? L = 0.15 μH.
18. Calculate the impedance of the circuit given in Example 17 by using the formula
Z = L/C�� .

At the resonant frequency, the impedance of the circuit peaks. This means that the line
current at that time is at its minimum. At resonance, the circuit appears to have a very high
resistance, and the small line current is in phase with the applied voltage. Note that the Q of a
parallel circuit, which was previously expressed as Q = XL /Rw can also be computed with the
expression
RP
Q =
XL

where RP is the equivalent parallel resistance, Req in parallel with any other parallel resistance,
and XL is the inductive reactance of the equivalent inductance Leq . You can set the bandwidth
of a parallel tuned circuit by controlling Q. The Q can be determined by connecting an
external resistor across the circuit. This has the effect of lowering RP and increasing the
bandwidth.

Example:
19. What value of parallel resistor is needed to set the bandwidth of a parallel tuned circuit to
1 MHz? Assume XL = 300 Ω, RW = 10 Ω, and fr = 10 MHz.

C. Filters

A filter is a frequency-selective circuit. Filters are designed to pass some frequencies and
reject others. There are numerous ways to implement filter circuits. Simple filters created by
using resistors and capacitors or inductors and capacitors are called passive filters because
they use passive components that do not amplify. In communication work, many filters are of
the passive LC variety, although many other types are used. Some special types of filters are
active filters that use RC networks with feedback in op amp circuits, switched capacitor filters,
crystal and ceramic filters, surface acoustic wave (SAW) filters, and digital filters implemented
with digital signal processing (DSP) techniques. The five basic kinds of filter circuits are as
follows:

Low-pass filter. Passes frequencies below a critical frequency called the cutoff frequency and
greatly attenuates those above the cutoff frequency.
High-pass filter. Passes frequencies above the cutoff but rejects those below it.
Bandpass filter. Passes frequencies over a narrow range between lower and upper cutoff
frequencies.
Band-reject filter. Rejects or stops frequencies over a narrow range but allows frequencies
above and below to pass.
All-pass filter. Passes all frequencies equally well over its design range but has a fixed or
predictable phase shift characteristic.

RC Filters

A low-pass filter allows the lower-frequency components of the applied voltage to

develop output voltage across the load resistance, whereas the higher-frequency components
are attenuated, or reduced, in the output.
A high-pass filter does the opposite, allowing the higher-frequency components of the
applied voltage to develop voltage across the output load resistance. RC filters use
combinations of resistors and capacitors to achieve the desired response. Most RC filters are
of the low-pass or high-pass type. Some band-reject or notch filters are also made with RC
circuits. Bandpass filters can be made by combining low-pass and high-pass RC sections, but
this is rarely done.

Low-Pass Filter. A low-pass filter is a circuit that introduces no attenuation at frequencies

below the cutoff frequency but completely eliminates all signals with frequencies above the
cutoff. Low-pass filters are sometimes referred to as high cut filters. The cutoff frequency is
determined by using the formula
1
��� =
2���

High-Pass Filter. A high-pass filter passes frequencies above the cutoff frequency with little or
no attenuation but greatly attenuates those signals below the cutoff. The cutoff frequency for
this filter is the same as that for the low-pass circuit and is derived from setting �� equal to R
and solving for frequency:
1
��� =
2���

A high-pass filter can also be implemented with a coil and a resistor, as shown in. The cutoff
frequency is
�
��� =
2��

RC Notch Filter. Notch filters are also referred to as bandstop or band-reject filters. Band-
reject filters are used to greatly attenuate a narrow range of frequencies around a center point.
Notch filters accomplish the same purpose, but for a single frequency.The center notch
frequency is computed with the formula
1
�����ℎ =
2���

LC Filters

RC filters are used primarily at the lower frequencies. They are very common at audio
frequencies but are rarely used above about 100 kHz. At radio frequencies, their passband
attenuation is just too great, and the cutoff slope is too gradual. It is more common to see LC
filters made with inductors and capacitors. Inductors for lower frequencies are large, bulky,
and expensive, but those used at higher frequencies are very small, light, and inexpensive.

Example
20.What is the cutoff frequency of a single-section RC low-pass filter with R = 8.2 kΩ and C =
0.0033 μF?
21.What values of capacitors would you use in an RC twin-T notch filter to remove 120 Hz if R
= 220 kΩ?

Filter Terminologies:

1. Passband. This is the frequency range over which the filter passes signals. It is the
frequency range between the cutoff frequencies or between the cutoff frequency and zero (for
low-pass) or between the cutoff frequency and infinity (for high-pass).
2. Stop band. This is the range of frequencies outside the passband, i.e., the range of
frequencies that is greatly attenuated by the filter. Frequencies in this range are rejected.
3. Attenuation. This is the amount by which undesired frequencies in the stop band are
reduced. It can be expressed as a power ratio or voltage ratio of the output to the input.
Attenuation is usually given in decibels.
4. Insertion loss. Insertion loss is the loss the filter introduces to the signals in the passband.
Passive filters introduce attenuation because of the resistive losses in the components.
Insertion loss is typically given in decibels.
5. Impedance. Impedance is the resistive value of the load and source terminations of the
filter. Filters are usually designed for specific driving source and load impedances that must
be present for proper operation.
6. Ripple. Amplitude variation with frequency in the passband, or the repetitive rise and fall of
the signal level in the passband of some types of filters, is known as ripple. It is usually stated
in decibels. There may also be ripple in the stop bandwidth in some types of filters.
7. Shape factor. Shape factor, also known as bandwidth ratio, is the ratio of the stop
bandwidth to the pass bandwidth of a bandpass filter. It compares the bandwidth at minimum
attenuation, usually at the 23-dB points or cutoff frequencies, to that of maximum attenuation
and thus gives a relative indication of attenuation rate or selectivity. The smaller the ratio, the
greater the selectivity. The ideal is a ratio of 1, which in general cannot be obtained with
practical filters.
8. Pole. A pole is a frequency at which there is a high impedance in the circuit. It is also used
to describe one RC section of a filter. For LC low- and high-pass filters, the number of poles is
equal to the number of reactive components in the filter. For bandpass and band-reject filters,
the number of poles is generally assumed to be one-half the number of reactive components
used.
9. Zero. This term refers to a frequency at which there is zero impedance in the circuit.
10. Envelope delay. Also known as time delay, envelope delay is the time it takes for a
specific point on an input waveform to pass through the filter.
11. Roll-off. Also called the attenuation rate, roll-off is the rate of change of amplitude with
frequency in a filter. The faster the roll-off, or the higher the attenuation rate, the more
selective the filter is, i.e., the better able it is to differentiate between two closely spaced
signals, one desired and the other not.

Types of Filters

The major types of LC filters in use are named after the person who discovered and
developed the analysis and design method for each filter. The most widely used filters are
Butterworth, Chebyshev, Cauer (elliptical), and Bessel. Each can be implemented by using
the basic low- and high-pass configurations shown previously. The different response curves
are achieved by selecting the component values during the design.

Butterworth. The Butterworth filter effect has maximum flatness in response in the pass band
and a uniform attenuation with frequency. The attenuation rate just outside the passband is
not as great as can be achieved with other types of filters.
Chebyshev. Chebyshev (or Tchebyschev) fi lters have extremely good selectivity; i.e., their
attenuation rate or roll-off is high, much higher than that of the Butterworth filter. The
attenuation just outside the passband is also very high—again, better than that of the
Butterworth. The main problem with the Chebyshev filter is that it has ripple in the passband,
as is evident from the figure. The response is not flat or constant, as it is with the Butterworth
filter. This may be a disadvantage in some applications.
Cauer (Elliptical). Cauer filters produce an even greater attenuation or roll-off rate than do
Chebyshev filters and greater attenuation out of the passband. However, they do this with an
even higher ripple in the passband as well as outside of the passband.
Bessel. Also called Thomson filters, Bessel circuits provide the desired frequency response
(i.e., low-pass, bandpass, etc.) but have a constant time delay in the passband.

Mechanical Filters. An older but still useful filter is the mechanical filter. This type of filter uses
resonant vibrations of mechanical disks to provide the selectivity. The signal to be filtered is
applied to a coil that interacts with a permanent magnet to produce vibrations in the rod
connected to a sequence of seven or eight disks whose dimensions determine the center
frequency of the filter.

Bandpass Filters. A bandpass filter is one that allows a narrow range of frequencies around a
center frequency �� to pass with minimum attenuation but rejects frequencies above and
below this range.

Band-Reject Filters. Band-reject filters, also known as bandstop filters, reject a narrow band
of frequencies around a center or notch frequency.
Active Filters

Active filters are frequency-selective circuits that incorporate RC networks and amplifiers with
feedback to produce low-pass, high-pass, bandpass, and bandstop performance. These
filters can replace standard passive LC filters in many applications. They offer the following
advantages over standard passive LC filters.

1. Gain. Because active filters use amplifiers, they can be designed to amplify as well as filter,
thus offsetting any insertion loss.
2. No inductors. Inductors are usually larger, heavier, and more expensive than capacitors
and have greater losses. Active filters use only resistors and capacitors.
3. Easy to tune. Because selected resistors can be made variable, the filter cutoff frequency,
center frequency, gain, Q, and bandwidth are adjustable.
4. Isolation. The amplifiers provide very high isolation between cascaded circuits because of
the amplifier circuitry, thereby decreasing interaction between filter sections.
5. Easier impedance matching. Impedance matching is not as critical as with LC filters.

D. Fourier Theory

Information signals are typically more complex voice and video signals that are essentially
composites of sine waves of many frequencies and amplitudes. Information signals can take
on an infinite number of shapes, including rectangular waves (i.e., digital pulses), triangular
waves, sawtooth waves, and other nonsinusoidal forms. Such signals require that a non–sine
wave approach be taken to determine the characteristics and performance of any
communication circuit or system. One of the methods used to do this is Fourier analysis,
which provides a means of accurately analyzing the content of most complex nonsinusoidal
signals. Although Fourier analysis requires the use of calculus and advanced mathematical
techniques beyond the scope of this text, its practical applications to communication
electronics are relatively straightforward.

Basic Concepts

Figure 2.10 Sine Wave and Cosine Wave

Fig. 2.10(a) shows a basic sine wave with its most important dimensions and the equation
expressing it. A basic cosine wave is illustrated in Fig. 2.10(b). Note that the cosine wave has
the same shape as a sine wave but leads the sine wave by 90°. A harmonic is a sine wave
whose frequency is some integer multiple of a fundamental sine wave. For example, the third
harmonic of a 2-kHz sine wave is a sine wave of 6 kHz. Fig. 2.11 shows the first four
harmonics of a fundamental sine wave.
 Figure 2.11 A sine wave and its harmonics

What the Fourier theory tells us is that we can take a nonsinusoidal waveform and break it
down into individual harmonically related sine wave or cosine wave components. The classic
example of this is a square wave, which is a rectangular signal with equal duration positive
and negative alternations. In the ac square wave in Fig. 2.12, this means that �1 is equal to �2 .
Another way of saying this is that the square wave has a 50 percent duty cycle D, the ratio of
the duration of the positive alteration �1 to the period T expressed as a percentage:
t1
D = x 100
T

Figure 12. A square wave

Fourier analysis tells us that a square wave is made up of a sine wave at the fundamental
frequency of the square wave plus an infinite number of odd harmonics. For example, if the
fundamental frequency of the square wave is 1 kHz, the square wave can be synthesized by
adding the 1-kHz sine wave and harmonic sine waves of 3 kHz, 5 kHz, 7 kHz, 9 kHz, etc.

The implication of this is that a square wave should be analyzed as a collection of

harmonically related sine waves rather than a single square wave entity. This is confirmed by
performing a Fourier mathematical analysis on the square wave. The result is the following
equation, which expresses voltage as a function of time:

where the factor 4V/π is a multiplier for all sine terms and V is the square wave peak voltage.
The first term is the fundamental sine wave, and the succeeding terms are the third, fifth,
seventh, etc., harmonics. Note that the terms also have an amplitude factor. In this case, the
amplitude is also a function of the harmonic. For example, the third harmonic has an
amplitude that is one-third of the fundamental amplitude, and so on. The expression could be
rewritten with f = 1/T. If the square wave is direct current rather than alternating current, the
Fourier expression has a dc component:

In this equation, V/2 is the dc component, the average value of the square wave. It is also the
baseline upon which the fundamental and harmonic sine waves ride.
A general formula for the Fourier equation of a waveform is

where n is odd. The dc component, if one is present in the waveform, is V/2.

Fig. 2-13 gives the Fourier expressions for some of the most common nonsinusoidal
waveforms. The triangular wave in Fig. 2-13(b) exhibits the fundamental and odd harmonics,
but it is made up of cosine waves rather than sine waves. The sawtooth wave in Fig. 2-13(c)
contains the fundamental plus all odd and even harmonics. Fig. 2-13(d) and (e) shows half
sine pulses like those seen at the output of half and full wave rectifiers. Both have an average
dc component, as would be expected. The half wave signal is made up of even harmonics
only, whereas the full wave signal has both odd and even harmonics. Fig. 2-13( f ) shows the
Fourier expression for a dc square wave where the average dc component is ��0 /T.
Figure 2.13 Common nonsinusoidal waves and their Fourier equations. (a) Square wave. (b)
Triangle wave. (c) Sawtooth. (d) Half cosine wave. (e) Full cosine wave. (f ) Rectangular
pulse.

Signals and waveforms in communication applications are expressed by using both time-
domain and frequency-domain plots, but in many cases the frequency-domain plot is far more
useful. This is particularly true in the analysis of complex signal waveforms as well as the
many modulation and multiplexing methods used in communication.

Test instruments for displaying signals in both time and frequency domains are readily
available. You are already familiar with the oscilloscope, which displays the voltage amplitude
of a signal with respect to a horizontal time axis. The test instrument for producing a
frequency-domain display is the spectrum analyzer. Like the oscilloscope, the spectrum
analyzer uses a cathode-ray tube for display, but the horizontal sweep axis is calibrated in
hertz and the vertical axis is calibrated in volts or power units or decibels.

Example
20. An ac square wave has a peak voltage of 3 V and a frequency of 48 kHz. Find (a) the
frequency of the fifth harmonic and (b) the rms value of the fifth harmonic.