Chapter 3.

Single-stage
Transistor Amplifiers
Pham Duy Hung, PhD
Faculty of Electronics and Telecommunications,
VNU-University of Engineering and Technology
Email: hungpd@vnu.edu.vn
Outline
• Introduction
• Common – Emitter CE Amplifier without and with
• Common – Collector CC Amplifier
• Common – Base CB Amplifier

Chapter 6: Adel. S. Sedra, Kenneth C. Smith. Microelectronic Circuits. Oxford

University Press. 2011.
3.1. Introduction
• Signal amplification: , where A is amplifier gain.

• Transfer characteristic of a linear amplifier

• Power gain and Current gain

• Gain in Decibels
3.1. Introduction
• Gain in Decibels
3.1. Introduction
• Amplifier power supplies
 Power delivered to the load is greater than the power drawn from the signal
source. What is the source of this additional power?
 Amplifiers needs DC power supplies for their operation.
Amplifier Power efficiency
𝑃
𝜂= 100%
𝑃

Where 𝑃 is Power of signal source, 𝑃 is power delivered to the load,

and 𝑃 is power dissipated in the amplifier circuit
3.1. Introduction
• Amplifier Transfer Characteristic Amplifier Saturation

• Amplifier Frequency Characteristic

3.1 Introduction
• Basic concepts

Circuit Models for Amplifiers

𝑨𝑽 : Voltage Amplifier
𝐴
𝑉 𝑉 𝑨𝑰 : Current Amplifier
𝐺 𝑹𝒎: Transresistance Amplifier

𝑮𝒎 : Transconductance Amplifier
𝑅
𝐼 𝐼
𝐴
3.1 Introduction
• Voltage Amplifier
3.1 Introduction
• Current Amplifier
3.1 Introduction
• Transconductance Amplifier
3.1 Introduction
• Transresistance Amplifier
3.1 Introduction
• Typical parameters:  Open-circuit voltage gain:  Open-circuit overall voltage gain:
𝑣 𝑣
𝐴 = 𝐴 =
𝑣 𝑣
 Overall voltage gain:
 Voltage gain:
𝑣 𝑣
𝐴 = 𝐴 =
𝑣 𝑣
 Short-circuit current gain:
 Output resistance:
𝑖
 Input resistance: 𝐴 = 𝑣
𝑉 𝑖 𝑅 =
𝑅 = 𝑖
𝐼  Current gain:
 Input resistance without load: 𝑖
𝐴 =
𝑉 𝑖
𝑅 =
𝐼
Overall voltage gain:
𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝑅 𝑅
𝐴 = = ∗ = ∗
𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝑅 +𝑅 𝑅 +𝑅
3.2 Common-Emitter CE Amplifier
• Circuit scheme
3.2 Common-Emitter CE Amplifier
• Circuit scheme
3.2 Common-Emitter CE Amplifier
• DC and AC analysis
 • Small signal equivalent scheme

Overall voltage gain 𝒔

∥

( ∥ )

Exercise 3.1: Calculate the overall voltage gain of the common-emitter
amplifier. ; Q-Point is (1.45mA, 3.41V); ;
; ; The transistor is in the active region and the
signal amplitudes are low enough to be considered as small signals.
The output resistance is the Thevenin-equipment resistance
seen looking into the output with the input shorted
 Exercise 3.2
A CE amplifier utilizes a BJT with and , is biased at
mA and has a collector resistance k. Find , , and
(open-circuit voltage gain) If the amplifier is fed with a signal source
having a resistance of 5k, and a load resistance k is connected to
the output terminal, find the resulting (voltage gain) and (Overall
voltage gain). If is to be limited to 5 mV, what are the corresponding
and with the load connected?
 Further reading…
Analysis of CS Amplifier for JFET

𝑣 = −𝑔 𝑣 𝑅 𝑅 = 𝑅 //𝑟

𝑣
→𝐴 = = −𝑔 𝑅
𝑣
 Further reading…
CS Amplifier using MOSFET
3.3 CE Amplifier with at Emitter
• Circuit scheme
 3.3 CE Amplifier with at Emitter
• Circuit scheme

 𝑣 = −𝛽𝑖 𝑅
• AC analysis  𝑣 =𝑖 𝑟 + 𝛽+1 𝑖 𝑅
→ 𝐴 =− =− =−
( )
Calculate 𝐴 = ?
Because 𝛽 ≫ 1 → 𝐴 = −

Calculate overall voltage gain 𝐴 ?

𝑅 ∥𝑅 𝒈𝒎 𝑹𝑳 ∥
𝑣 = 𝑣 𝐴 = −𝟏 𝒈𝒎 𝑹𝑬 ( ∥ )
𝑅 + (𝑅 ∥ 𝑅 )
 𝑣 CE Amplifier with 𝑅 at Emitter
𝑅 = = 𝑟 + 𝛽 + 1 𝑅 ≅ 𝑟 (1 + 𝑔 𝑅 )
𝑖
→𝑅 =𝑅 ∥𝑅 = 𝑅 ∥ 𝑟 (1 + 𝑔 𝑅 )

and

𝑔 𝑟𝑅
𝑅 ≅ 𝑟 (1 + ) (because 𝑟 + 𝑅 ≫ 𝑅 )
𝑟 +𝑅
(because 𝑟 ≫ 𝑅 )
 Exercise 3.3
A CE amplifier utilizes a BJT with and , is biased at
mA and has a collector resistance k. The amplifier is fed with a signal
source having a resistance of 5k, and a load resistance k is connected
to the output terminal. What value of is needed to raise to a value four
times that of ? With included, find (Open-circuit voltage gain), ,
(voltage gain) and (Overall voltage gain). Also, if is limited to 5 mV,
what are the corresponding values of and ?
3.4 Frequency Response
 Frequency Response

Influent of the limited coupling capacitances

Summary for CE amplifiers

(𝐴 )

(𝐴 )
Impact of the AC-negative feedback
Choose Positive or Negative Feedback?
Good? Not good?
• Increase the stability
• Reduce the gain times
• Increase the bandwidth times
• Increase the input resistance times
• Decrease the output resistance times
3.5 Common-Collector CC Amplifier
• Circuit scheme

Buffer
 CC Amplifier
AC analysis
• Calculate the terminal voltage gain

RB = R1||R2

 𝑣 = 1+𝛽 𝑖 𝑅
 𝑣 = 𝑖 𝑟 + (1 + 𝛽)𝑖 𝑅
• Overall voltage gain
𝑣 (1 + 𝛽)𝑅 𝑔 𝑅 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣
→ 𝐴 = = ≅ 𝐴 = = =𝐴
𝑣 𝑟 + (1 + 𝛽)𝑅 1+𝑔 𝑅 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣 𝐴 =𝐴
Due to 𝑔 𝑅 ≫ 1 → 𝑨𝒗 ≈ 𝟏
 CC Amplifier

Input resistance
𝑣
𝑅 = = 𝑟 + (𝛽 + 1)𝑅 →𝑅 =𝑅 ∥𝑅
𝑖

Output resistance

1
≅
𝑔

𝑅 =𝑅 ∥𝑅
 CC Amplifier

Terminal current gain is the ratio of the load current

to the current supplied by the Thevenin source
Summary for CC amplifiers

(𝑟 + 𝛽 + 1 𝑅 ) ∥ 𝑅
 Further reading…
CD amplifier used MOSFET
3.6 Common-Base CB Amplifier
• Circuit scheme:
 CB Amplifier
AC analysis

Terminal voltage gain

Input resistance
𝑅 = = ≅ (note: ) →𝑅 =𝑅 ∥𝑅

Overall voltage gain

 CB Amplifier
Output resistance: can be calculated from the result of CE amplifier

𝑅 =𝑟 1+ replaced by 𝑅 = 𝑟 (1 + )
Because 𝛽 = 𝑔 𝑟 → 𝑅 ≅ 𝑟 1 + 𝑔 𝑅 ∥ 𝑟 ≅ 𝜇 𝑅 ∥𝑟
→𝑅 = 𝑅 ∥ 𝑅 because 𝑅 ≫ 𝑅 → 𝑅 =𝑅

Terminal current gain

𝑖 current flows through emitter then 𝑖 = 𝛼 𝑖

𝑖
→𝐴 = =𝛼 ≅1
𝑖
Summary for CB amplifier
 Further reading…
CG amplifier used MOSFET
Summary of single-stage amplifiers
Further reading…