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BY JOSEPH J.

CARR

Using the
CURRENT

DIFFERENCE
AMPLIFIER
The current-difference amplifier
is as easy to use as an op-amp,
and is better suited to certain applications.
T
he plication tions, we symbol, quite NPN of Q2 in contains
ope s. would except different output ohms and four
ratio One either that a , transistor Ig is the CDA de-
nal place have to "current however and the base bias
amplifier where bias the source" is , as can PNP driv- current of
Is familiar the CDA operation placed be seen er Q3 in mill
to most is more al between in Fig. 2. transistor amperes
readers useful amplifier the two The operate in Equati
because than the with an inputs. overall the on 1 is
it has a operatio external The circuit of emitter- used only
long and nal resistor symbol is a typical follower at or near
popular amplifier network, typically CDA is configurati normal
history in Is in provide a used for shown on. room
electronic circuits second several in Fig, Transistor temperat
s. One of that DC power products 2A, s Q4-Q6 ure (25C
the process supply or such as while an and 08 to 30C)
problems AC use a the alternat are because
with such signals, CDA, LM3900, e form connected 13 will
widespre but are The which is a of the to serve vary with
ad limited normal quad input as current wide
popularity to a circuit Norton/C circuit is sources. temperat
of one single- symbol for DA shown The input ure
device, polarity, the CDA amplifier. in Fig. transistor excursion
however, DC is shown You might 2B. is Q3, and s. For
is that it power in Fig. 1. sometime Transist it most
tempts us supply That s find or Q7 in operates common
to, For symbol schemati Fig. 2A in the applicatio
overlook example looks cs where forms common ns,
perfectly , in much like the op- the emitter however,
good auto- the amp output configurati the room-
solutions motive- regular symbol is tran- on. The temperat
to electroni op-amp used for sistor, base of ure
problems cs the CDA, while Q3 forms version of
that can equipme but the Q5 is the the
be nt symbol the inverting equation
offered by limited shown in driver. (-IN) input will
other to a Fig. 1 is Both the for the suffice.
linear, single technicall CDA. Data
integrated 12- y more The no sheets for
-circuit (actually accurate. inverting specific
designs. +12 to input of current-
One such +14.4) CDA the CDA difference
linear 1C volt DC Circuit (+IN) is amplifiers
amplifier battery formed give
Configur
is the power with a additional
current supply ations. "current- details for
The Fig. 1.
difference (and Here's the mirror" amplifiers
amplifier uses the input transistor, that must
circuit of schematic
(CDA), car symbol
Q1 operate
also chassis a CDA (transistor outside of
differs for the
called the for Q1 in Fig. the rela-
radically current-
Norton negative 2A is tively
Amplifier, common from the difference "diode narrow
That is a return). operation amplifier. connected temperat
non There al It " and ure range
operation are amplifier. resembles serves for the
al, linear, other Recall an op-amp exactly simplified
1C cases that op- with the the same room-
amplifier where amps use exception function temperat
that the a of a as diode ure
performs majority differentia current D1 in Fig. equation.
similarly of the l-input, source 2B). The Figure
to the op circuit common- between dynamic 3 shows
amp, but operate emitter resistance the pin-
the
not s from a amplifier offered by out for
inverting
exactly single, that is the the
driven and no
the same. DC inverting current LM3900,
The CDA power from a mirror which is
constant- inputs.
has supply, transistor among
certain but a current (Q2) is the most
features linear source given by: popular
that make 1C amp supplying CDA
it is also the R = 26/lB devices.
uniquely required collector- [Eq. 1] That chip
useful for . In emitter Where: R is a 14-
certain those current. is the pin DIP
ap- situa- The dynamic that
CDA is resistance
voltage source is merely the V+ supply
used for the CDA. In other cases,
however, some other potential might
be required, or alternatively the refer-
ence current is required to be regu-
lated more tightly (or with less noise)
than the DC power-supply voltage.
0 OUTPUT Ordinarily the reference current is set
to some convenient value between 5
A and 100 A. For V+ power-supply
values of +12 VDC, for example, it is
common to find a 1-megohm resistor
-INO used for RREF- In that case, the input
reference current is: IREF = (12 volts)/
+INO (1,000,000 ohms) = 12 A.
A constraint placed on CDAs is that
the input resistor (R1) used to set gain
must be high compared with the value
of the current-mirror dynamic resis-
tance. The CDA becomes nonlinear
(;'.e. distorts the input signal) if the in-
put-resistor value approaches the
current-mirror resistance, R. In that
case, the voltage gain is not - (R2/R1),
but rather:
-INO- Q1
AV = R2/(R1 + R) [Eq 3]
Where: AV is the voltage gain, R2 is
+INO- 02 the feedback resistance, R1 is the
input resistance, and R is the current-
mirror resistance.
I Equation 3 essentially reduces to
equation 2 when we can force R1 to
be much larger than R. That goal is
easily achieved in most circuits be-
Fig. 2. The internal circuitry of a typical current-difference amplifier integrated circuit is shown in
A; an alternate form of the input circuit (a current mirror) is shown in B.

Fig. 3. Here's the pin out of a common current-difference amplifier 1C, the LM3900.

vices operating from a single ground Fig. 4. Here a CDA is used much like an op-
and DC power terminal. Other than feedback to the input resistor: amp in an inverting follower circuit.
the power lines, however, the four
devices (A, B, C, and D) are AV = - (R2/R1) [Eq, 2]
completely independent. Where: AV is the voltage gain, R2 is
the feedback resistance, and R1 is
CDA Inverting Follower Circuits. the input resistance. The minus sign
Like operational amplifiers, the CDA indicates that a 180 degree phase
can be configured in either inverting reversal occurs between input and
or no inverting follower configura- output signals.-'
tions. The inverting follower is shown We must provide a bias to the cur-
in Fig. 4. In many respects, that rent mirror transistor (Q2 in Fig. 2A),
circuit is very similar to operational so resistor RREF is connected in
amplifiers. The voltage gain of the series with the no inverting input of
circuit is set approximately by the the CDA and a reference voltage Fig. 5. Here is a no inverting follower built
ratio of the source, VREF In many practical around a current-difference amplifier.
circuits the reference
cause R is typically very small.
The output voltage of the CDA will
have a DC-offset potential even when
the AC input signal is zero. That
potential is given by:
Vo=((VREF X R2 / RREf) + 1)
-(R2 / RREF) [Eq.4]
Where: VQ is the output in volts, VREF
Is the reference potential In volts
(usually V+), R2 is the feedback
resistance in ohms, RREF is the
current-mirror bias resistance in
ohms, and is a temperature-
dependent factor (0.70 volts for room Fig. 6. In applications where larger than normal voltage gains are needed, this super gain CDA-
temperature). based amplifier can be used.
The capacitor in series with the in- Where: A, is the voltage gain, R1 and
put circuitry has the effect of limiting R2 are in ohms, and IREF(mA) is the
the low-end frequency response. The bias current in mill amperes (mA).
- 3-dB cutoff frequency is a function of The reference current, l^p, is set to
the value of that capacitor and the a value between 5 pA and 100 pA Un-
input resistance, R1. That cutoff fre- like the situation in the inverting ampli-
quency, f. is given by: fier, the value of that current is
f= 1,000,000/(2nR1C1) [Eq.5] partially responsible for setting the
gain of the circuit. Some clever
Where: f is the lower end - 3-dB fre- Fig. 7. Though intended/or use in single- designers have even used that current
quency in hertz (Hz), R1 is in ohms, ended-supply applications, the CDA can be as a limited gain control for some CDA
and C1 is in microfarads, configured/or use with a bipolar supply. stages. The value of the resistor that
In some CDA circuits there is also = c3 C1 R1 provides the reference current (RREF)
a capacitor in series with the output .1 6-8 10K is set by Ohms
terminal. The purpose of that V^o)hW
capacitor is to prevent the DC offset law, considering the required value of
that Is inherent in this type of circuit
from affecting following circuits. The
output capacitor will also limit the low-
end frequency response, The same
form of equation 5 is used to
determine that frequency, but the
input resistance of the load is used in
place of R1.
As is often the case with equations
presented In electronics books, equa-
tion 5 is not necessarily in the most
useful form. In most cases, you will
know the input resistance (R1) from Fig. 8. Here is a practical 20-dB gain AC amplifier built using the LM3900 CDA.
the application, It is typically not less
than ten times the source impedance, C1. Using elementary arithmetic: reference current and the reference
and forms part of the gain equation, voltage, VREF- In most common ap-
In general, the driving source C1 = 1,000,000/(2reR1<) [Eq. 6] plications, the reference voltage is
impedance and voltage gain tends to merely one of the supply voltages,
determine the value of R1. The No inverting Amplifier Circuits. The value of RREF is determined
required low-end frequency response The no inverting amplifier CDA con- from:
is usually determined from the figuration is shown in Fig. 5. That
application. You generally know (or RREF = VREF/'REF [Eq. 8]
circuit retains the reference-current Where: RREF is the reference resistor
can find out) the frequency range of bias applied to the no inverting input,
the intended input signals. From the in ohms, VREF is the reference
but rearranges some of the other potential in volts, and lREF is the
lower limit of that frequency range components. As in the case of the
you can determine the value of f. In reference current in amperes.
inverting amplifier configuration, the The value of input impedance is
short, the values of rand R1 are no inverting amplifier uses R2 to
usually set by considerations other approximately equal to R1, provided
provide negative feedback between that R1 Is much higher than the dy-
than the circuit itself. Therefore, to be the output terminal and the inverting
truly useful, you need a version of namic resistance of the current mirror
input. Unlike the inverting-CDA inside the CDA (which is typically the
equation 5 that assumes knowledge circuit, however, Input-resistor R1 Is
of R1 and f and instead calculates the case). As was true In the inverting fol-
connected in series with the no lower case, the input capacitor (C1)
value of inverting input. The gain of the no sets the low-end frequency response
inverting CDA amplifier is given by: of the amplifier. The - 3-dB frequency
Ay = R2/((26R1)/lREF(mA) [Eq. 7] is given by exactly the same equation
signed primarily for single polarity easily obtained. The input and output
D1 R3 power supply circuits. In most cases, terminals are capacitor coupled.
22V 220Q the CDA will operate with a V+ DC Those capacitors, and their
F^l power supply in which one side is associated resistors, form high-pass
: R1 K grounded. We can, however, operate filters that set the lower end - 6-dB
'500K C1 '=' the CDA in a circuit with a bipolar DC points in the frequency response
'r 3 [^ 14 .1 power supply using a circuit such as characteristic. In each case, the
the one in Fig. 7. The reference frequency is;
CD" '>4-^ resistor, RREF is connected from the
no inverting input to ground. The V- f = 1/(2RC)
R2 9 IT ^r
10K; :* 1 and V+ power supplies are each The last capacitor in the circuit (C3)
is used to decouple the DC power
P^l ground referenced and of equal
potential, Thus, the 5- to 100-pA bias supply line, As shown in Fig. 9, that
current is found from (V+)/REF. capacitor is a 0.1F unit, and must be
Fi'g. 9. This variable-voltage source can mounted as close as possible to the
provide between 0.6 to 20 volts, depending on Applications Projects. The CDA de- body of the LM3900.
the setting of R1. vice is very useful, and has almost as
many applications as the operational CDA-based Variable Voltage
as for the inverting case (see amplifier. Unlike the op-amp, how- Source. Figure 9 shows the circuit of
equations 5 and 6), ever, the CDA is happy operating a variable voltage source that pro-
from a single, DC power supply Thus, duces outputs of 0.6 to 20 volts, de-
Super Gain Amplifier. There is a it is popular in automotive and pending on the setting of potentiom-
practical limit to voltage gain using portable equipment designs. In this eter R1. That circuit can also be used
standard resistor values and section, we will take a look at some as a fixed voltage source by replacing
standard circuit configurations (a representative application circuits in the potentiometer with a fixed resistor
similar problem also exists for the form of some small projects. of appropriate value. Like the other
operational amplifiers). In Figure 6 circuits discussed thus far, it Is based
we see a means for overcoming the 20-dB Gain CDA AC Amplifier. This on the LM3900.
limitations. That super gain amplifier project is an inverting amplifier with The maximum voltage that is pro-
circuit forms a non inverting follower an AC gain of 100 (/.e. 20 dB) and an duced depends on the Zener voltage
in a manner similar to the earlier input impedance of at least 10,000 of the Zener reference diode (D1). In
circuit, except that feed back resistor ohms. An appropriate circuit built the case shown here, the Zener is a
R2 is driven from an output voltage around the LM3900 CDA is shown in 22-volt unit, so the maximum output
divider network rather than directly Fig. 8, voltage will be something between 20
from the output terminal of the CDA. The reference resistor is set to 1 and 22 volts. Lower values of max-
The voltage gain of the circuit of Fig. megohm. The gain (AJ is set by the imum output voltage can be accom-
6 is given by: ratio of the feedback and input re- modated by using a diode with a lower
sistors: R2/R1. Because the input im- Zener voltage tor D1.
AV = (R2/R1)*((R3 + R4)/R3) [Eq, 9] pedance needs to be at least 10,000
Capacitor C1 is set using the same ohms, we set R1 = 10,000 ohms. The CDA Based Audio Mixer. An audio
equation (equation 6) that was used gain is 100, so the feedback resistor mixer is a handy circuit that will com-
previously while C2 is set to have a must be: bine two or more audio signal sources
capacitive reactance of R4/10 at the into one signal channel. Figure 10
lowest frequency of operation (in R2 = AV * RI shows an audio mixer that is built
other words, the low end -3-dB The DC power supplies are set to around the LM3900 CDA. The crux of
point). 12 volts, a common value that is this circuit is the three input networks,
principally R3, R4. and R5. Those re-
Using Bipolar DC Power Supplies. sistors are connected to different input
The current-difference amplifier is sources (labeled VIN1, VIN 2, and
de VIN3). Those three resistors all
connect to the inverting input of the
CDA. The gain is approximately:
AV=R2/Rx
Where Rx is the value of any one
input resistor. The output voltage is:
VO = R2((VIN 1/R3) + (vIN 2/R4)
+ (vIN3/R5))
If resistor R2 is mode variable, then
the potentiometer used for R2 will
serve as a master gain control for the
audio mixer.

Fig. 10. This CDA-based audio mixer will take the signals from up to three channels and
combine them into one channel. Once again, it is built around the L-M3900.

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