Electronics Primer

• ohms law
• Kirchhoff's current node rule

• define resistor
• define capacitor

• high/low pass RC filters

• s = jw
j notation,
t ti w=2 2pii f
• filter transfer functions

Amplifiers and Analog Signal Processing

• Most bioelectric signals are small
• voltages in micro-volts range
• currents in pA and nA range common

• Small signals require amplification and filtering

• op-amp, resistors and capacitors
• integrated circuit and surface-mount technology

• Most modern signal processing tasks (filtering) are performed

on a digital signal processor.
• little change in amplification/filtering requirements over last 40 years
• but new interest in putting DSP algorithms into analog circuits
• due to demand for low power portable/implantable instruments

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 2

 Ideal Op-Amp
• Operational amplifier (op-amp) is a high-DC-gain differential
amplifier
ideal op-amp
• Design circuits assuming op-amps are ideal
• then verify/modify using simulations/prototyping A
vo  0
• Ideal op-amp model
Rd  
• “open loop” gain: A = 
• differential
diff ti l input
i t resistance:
i t Rd =  Ro  0
• output resistance: Ro = 0
• input current = 0
• output voltage:
• vo = 0 when v1-v2 = 0

ideal op-amp small signal model

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 3

Op-Amp Properties
• Properties
• open-loop gain: ideally infinite: practical values 20k-200k
• high open-loop gain  virtual short between + and - inputs
• input impedance: ideally infinite: CMOS opamps are close to ideal
• output impedance: ideally zero: practical values 20-100
• zero output offset: ideally zero: practical value <1mV
• gain-bandwidth
i b d idth product
d t (GB):
(GB) practical
ti l values
l ~MHz
MH
• frequency where open-loop gain drops to 1 V/V

• Commercial opamps provide many different properties

• low noise
• low input current
• low power
• high bandwidth
• low/high supply voltage
• special purpose: comparator, instrumentation amplifier

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 4

 Basic Op-Amp Principles

typical op-amp schematic symbol

vo, v1, v2 referenced to ground

• Open loop gain: vo = A (v2-v1)

• since A is very large, v1-v2 must be very small

• When the op-amp output is in its linear range

• two input terminals are at (essentially) the same voltage
• i.e., “virtual ground” between op-amp inputs
• rely
l on this
thi for
f DC/bias
DC/bi calculations
l l ti

• Single vs. Dual Supply Voltage

• most modern ICs use single supply
• “ground”
“ d” in a d
duall supply
l becomes
b VDD/2
/ in single
l supply
l
• mid way between VDD and Ground

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 5

Basic Opamp Configuration

• Voltage Comparator
• digitize input
• assumes veryy high
g DC gain
g
• Vcc = supply voltage
Vref

• Negative Feedback
• output tied back into negative input Vout = Vcc (sign(Vin-Vref))

terminal
• generally avoid positive feedback

• Voltage Follower
• buffer
• prevents input signal from being
loaded down by a low-resistance
load
Rin = 

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 6

 Inverting/Non-Inverting Configurations
• Inverting Amplifier (uses negative feedback)

vo  R f
A 
vi Ri

• Non-Inverting
N I ti A Amplifier
lifi (also
( l uses negative
ti feedback)
f db k)

vo R f Ri  R f
A  1 
vi Ri Rf

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 7

Transfer Function Derivation

• Ideal op-amp conditions (simplify derivation)
• virtual short at inputs (voltage at + same as at - )
• no current into input terminals
• Inverting amplifier gain transfer function
• write equations of operation from schematic using Ohms law
• VVx – Vin = R1 * i1
• Vout – Vx = R2 * i2
i2
• apply ideal op-amp conditions
• virtual short  Vx = 0
• no input current  i1 = i2 = i Vx
• thus i1

• -Vin = R1 * i  i = -Vin/R1
• Vout = R2 * i  i = Vout/R2
• and setting i = i…
•  -Vin/R1 = Vout/R2  Vout= -Vin (R2/R1)
 More Opamp Configurations
• Summing Amp
• weighted sum of
p inputs
multiple p
• inverting or non??

• Differential Amp
• match R1s and R2s
• inverting or non??

Single-Ended
l d d Amplifier
l f Representation
noise
signal
Vout
V in V out Av 
gnd gnd Vin
Noise Amplification
• even smallll interference
f at input gets amplified
l f d at output

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 9

Differential vs. Common Mode Signal

• Define
• x+ = input at + terminal
• x- = input at – terminal
• c = common mode signal on both inputs
• Differential inputs Vout  x   x 

• Add common mode

d iinputt
• c rejected by differential amplifier (not amplified)
• c must be small enough to keep op-amp biased in linear operation
Vout  ( x   c)  ( x   c)
x x x  x
c
2
ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 10
 Noise in Differential Amplifiers
• Global interference (e.g., supply voltage variations)
• assumed to be located far away from amp. input terminals
• same interference on both the terminals
• appear as common mode disturbance.
• example: clock noise

• Differential amplifiers
• amplify only the difference
• reject the interference (common-mode)


Vin + -
Vout
- +
Vin 
Vout
common-mode g
gone at
input noise output

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 11

Desirable Properties of Amplifiers

• High differential gain, Av
Vin + -

Vout 
Vout 
 Vout
Av 
Vin
- + 
Vout Vin  Vin

• Low common mode gain, Acm

= high
hi h “common
“ mode
d rejection”
j ti ”
Common-mode signal Vin  Vin 
Vout 
 Vout
2 ACM 
  Vin  Vin
Vin + - Vout
2
- +
Vin  common mode rejection ratio: Av
Vout CMRR 
Acm

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 12

 3-Op-Amp Instrumentation Amplifier
• Differential amplifiers
• low common mode gain = Great!
• lower than ideal input resistance – Bad!

• 3-op-amp structure
• keeps
k llow common mode d gaini
• provides very high input resistance
• why?
• call “instrumentation
instrumentation amp
amp”
• will discuss in detail later

total differential gain 2 R2  R1

A
2 R  R1  R4  R1
Gd  2  
R1  R3 
Acom  1
ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 13

Comparator
• Compare an input voltage vi to a reference voltage vref
• Output digital value (hi/low)
• llow if vi > vref why
h low
l and
d nott hi?
• high if vi < vref
• Output voltage = supply voltage
• Op-amp comparator

• Add hysteresis to improve noise immunity

• hysteresis
y = rising
g transition point
p different that falling
g transition point
p
• R3 controls hysteresis

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 14

 Logarithmic Amplifiers
• Uses non-linear current-voltage relationship of BJT in feedback
path  IC 
VBE  k log 
 IS 

• Useful for computing logarithms and anti-logs

• for compressing and multiplying/dividing signals

A 10
A=10

A=1

A 1
A=1

A=10

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 15

Integrating/Differentiating Configurations
• Integrating Amp
t
1
v   i dt   2f
Co

• Differentiating Amp
dv
iC
dt

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 16

 Converting Configuration
• Current-to-Voltage

• Voltage-to-Current

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 17

Active Filters
• Passive low pass filter

If Z1 is a resistor (R) and Z2 is a capacitor (1/sC) then

• Active low pass filter

( Rf / jCf )
-3dB
3dB frequency
Vo ( j ) Z [(1 / jCf )  Rf ]
 f  0  1 R C
Vi ( j ) Zi Ri f f


Rf R
 f
1 =2f
(1  jRf Cf ) Ri Ri 1  s
0
Vo ( j ) Rf 1

Vi ( j ) Ri 1  jR f C f

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 18

 Active Filters
• Active high pass filter

Vo ( j ) R f jRi Ci

Vi ( j ) Ri 1  jRi Ci
0  1 R C
i i

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 19

Active Filters
Band Pass Filter
Vo ( j ) Rf jR f Ci

Vi ( j ) Ri (1  jR f C f )(1  jRi Ci )

2-stage Band Pass Filter

High Q (narrow frequency) Band Pass Filter

ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 20

 Non-ideal Characteristics
• Offset voltage
• output not zero when the inputs to the amplifiers are equal
• could be in order of millivolts
• cancel offset voltage by adding an external “nulling” potentiometer

• Temperature Drift
• offset voltage can drift by 0.1 microvolts over one degree variation

• Finite (lower than infinite) input impedance

• can cause errors at input
• High output impedance
• limits load driving capabilities

• Noise
• Thermal noise or high
high-frequency
frequency noise
• Flicker noise: low-frequency noise
ECE 445: Biomedical Instrumentation Ch3 Amplifier Basics. p. 21