Operational Amplifiers

B.Tech 4th Semester

Subject: Analog Circuits
 Op-Amp Introduction
• Op-amps (amplifiers/buffers in general) are drawn as
a triangle in a circuit schematic
• There are two inputs
– inverting and non-inverting
• And one output
• Also power connections (note no explicit ground)

divot on pin-1 end

V +

2 7
inverting input  6
output
non-inverting input +
3 4

V

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 The ideal op-amp
• Infinite voltage gain
– a voltage difference at the two inputs is magnified infinitely
– in truth, something like 200,000
– means difference between + terminal and  terminal is
amplified by 200,000!
• Infinite input impedance
– no current flows into inputs
– in truth, about 1012  for FET input op-amps
• Zero output impedance
– rock-solid independent of load
– roughly true up to current maximum (usually 5–25 mA)
• Infinitely fast (infinite bandwidth)
– in truth, limited to few MHz range
– slew rate limited to 0.5–20 V/s

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 Op-amp without feedback
• The internal op-amp formula is:
Vout = gain(V+  V)
• So if V+ is greater than V, the output goes positive
• If V is greater than V+, the output goes negative

V 
Vout
V+ +

• A gain of 200,000 makes this device (as illustrated

here) practically useless

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 Infinite Gain in negative feedback
• Infinite gain would be useless except in the self-
regulated negative feedback regime
– negative feedback seems bad, and positive good—but in
electronics positive feedback means runaway or oscillation,
and negative feedback leads to stability
• Imagine hooking the output to the inverting terminal:
• If the output is less than Vin, it shoots positive
• If the output is greater than Vin, it shoots negative
– result is that output quickly forces itself to be exactly Vin

negative feedback loop


Vin +

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 Even under load
• Even if we load the output (which as pictured wants
to drag the output to ground)…
– the op-amp will do everything it can within its current
limitations to drive the output until the inverting input reaches
Vin
– negative feedback makes it self-correcting
– in this case, the op-amp drives (or pulls, if Vin is negative) a
current through the load until the output equals Vin
– so what we have here is a buffer: can apply Vin to a load
without burdening the source of Vin with any current!

 Important note: op-amp output terminal

+ sources/sinks current at will: not like
Vin
inputs that have no current flow

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 Positive feedback
• In the configuration below, if the + input is even a
smidge higher than Vin, the output goes way positive
• This makes the + terminal even more positive than
Vin, making the situation worse
• This system will immediately “rail” at the supply
voltage
– could rail either direction, depending on initial offset

Vin 
+
positive feedback

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 Op-Amp “Golden Rules”
• When an op-amp is configured in any negative-
feedback arrangement, it will obey the following two
rules:

– The inputs to the op-amp draw or source no current (true

whether negative feedback or not)

– The op-amp output will do whatever it can (within its

limitations) to make the voltage difference between the two
inputs zero

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 Inverting amplifier example
R2

R1
Vin 
Vout
+

• Applying the rules:  terminal at “virtual ground”

– so current through R1 is If = Vin/R1
• Current does not flow into op-amp (one of our rules)
– so the current through R1 must go through R2
– voltage drop across R2 is then IfR2 = Vin(R2/R1)
• So Vout = 0  Vin(R2/R1) = Vin(R2/R1)
• Thus we amplify Vin by factor R2/R1
– negative sign earns title “inverting” amplifier
• Current is drawn into op-amp output terminal
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 Non-inverting Amplifier
R2

R1

Vout
Vin +

• Now neg. terminal held at Vin

– so current through R1 is If = Vin/R1 (to left, into ground)
• This current cannot come from op-amp input
– so comes through R2 (delivered from op-amp output)
– voltage drop across R2 is IfR2 = Vin(R2/R1)
– so that output is higher than neg. input terminal by Vin(R2/R1)
– Vout = Vin + Vin(R2/R1) = Vin(1 + R2/R1)
– thus gain is (1 + R2/R1), and is positive
• Current is sourced from op-amp output in this example

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 Summing Amplifier
Rf
R1
V1


R2
Vout
V2 +

• Much like the inverting amplifier, but with two input

voltages
– inverting input still held at virtual ground
– I1 and I2 are added together to run through Rf
– so we get the (inverted) sum: Vout = Rf(V1/R1 + V2/R2)
• if R2 = R1, we get a sum proportional to (V1 + V2)
• Can have any number of summing inputs
– we’ll make our D/A converter this way

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 Differencing Amplifier
R2

R1
V 
Vout
V + +
R1
R2

• The non-inverting input is a simple voltage divider:

– Vnode = V+R2/(R1 + R2)
• So If = (V  Vnode)/R1
– Vout = Vnode  IfR2 = V+(1 + R2/R1)(R2/(R1 + R2))  V(R2/R1)
– so Vout = (R2/R1)(V  V)
– therefore we difference V and V

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 Differentiator (high-pass)
R

C
Vin 
Vout
+

• For a capacitor, Q = CV, so Icap = dQ/dt = C·dV/dt

– Thus Vout = IcapR = RC·dV/dt
• So we have a differentiator, or high-pass filter
– if signal is V0sint, Vout = V0RCcost
– the -dependence means higher frequencies amplified more

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 Low-pass filter (integrator)
C

R
Vin 
Vout
+

• If = Vin/R, so C·dVcap/dt = Vin/R

– and since left side of capacitor is at virtual ground:
dVout/dt = Vin/RC
– so

– and therefore we have an integrator (low pass)

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Reference
•Introductory Electronic Devices and Circuits By
Robert T. Paynter
•Electronics Devoces and Circuit Theory by Robert L.
Boylestad.

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