LABORATORY EXPERIMENT #7 AN INTRODUCTION TO BIPOLAR JUNCTION TRANSISTORS

Discussion: A transistor is a semiconductor device that shows up in most electronic circuits in one form or another. For example, a transistor amplifier, such as one used in an AM radio, produces an output signal with more power in it than the input signal, so that it can drive a speaker. In this case, the additional power comes from an external power supply (which may be a battery or a DC bench supply). Integrated Circuits (ICs), such as the LM311 comparator or the LM741 op amp, have in large part replaced circuits constructed from discrete transistors. However, these ICs are themselves merely arrays of transistors and other components built from a single semiconductor chip. Since they are ubiquitous, showing up as electronic switches, amplifiers, and in ICs, it is important for us to have some basic understanding of their operation. As illustrated in Figure 1, a Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT) is a 3-terminal device, with the terminals labeled the Collector (C), Base (B), and the Emitter (E). With the arrow on the symbol pointing out of the Emitter, this BJT is termed an NPN device and the Emitter current will always flow in the direction of the arrow. Without getting into a lot of physics, the NPN implies that the Collector and Emitter regions have electrons as majority carriers while the base region has holes as majority carriers. By applying different voltages at the three terminals, we can force different behavior from the transistor. We can operate in the active region, the cutoff region, or the saturation region. We will explore each in this weeks lab.

IC VBC B IB VBE E IE C VCE

Figure 1. NPN Bipolar Junction Transistor Symbol

For all amplifier applications, the BJT is operated in the linear or active region. The active region is achieved when we satisfy the following three constraints on the transistor voltages:

VCE > 1V VBE > 0.6V VBC < 0V

How we achieve these inequalities has to do with the biasing process or how we go about adding external resistors and voltage source(s) to the three terminals of the BJT. If we bias the BJT in the active region, we find that IC = I B where , the current gain, assumes a value typically between 50 and 500 (depending on the device). Since the base-emitter junction voltage stays approximately between 0.6V and 0.7V in the active region, it is agreed that the circuit model illustrated in Figure 2 adequately represents the BJT in the active mode. It is not yet clear how this becomes an amplifier, but we do recognize that a small current flowing into the base controls a much larger current flowing into the collector.
C
IB

IB B 0.65V E ( +1)IB

Figure 2. BJT Equivalent Circuit in the Active Region To operate the BJT in the cutoff region, where it is essentially turned off, we need to achieve the following biasing conditions: VBE < 0.1V VBC < 0V

If the transistor is in the cutoff region, essentially no current will flow into the base or collector and out of the emitter. The final operating mode of interest is saturation, where we will bias the transistor so that it resembles a controlled electronic switch. The conditions necessary for saturation are: VBE > 0.6V VBC > 0.6V 0.1V < VCE < 1.0V

Here, the current gain reduces somewhat from the value achievable in the active region and the BJT is modeled as shown in Figure 3. The value for Rsat is typically between 10 and 200 ohms, but will attain the value necessary for the above collector-emitter voltage inequality to hold. We will next use some simple transistor circuits to illustrate the operating modes of the BJT and to gain some practice in making biasing calculations!

C IC R sat IB B 0.65V E
Figure 3. BJT Equivalent Circuit in the Saturation Region

Section A. Transistor as a Switch (the saturation region) Discussion: Consider the LED-lighting circuit illustrated in Figure 4. With the function generator voltage at zero, VBE = 0V , no base current flows, and so VBC = 15V . The BJT satisfies the conditions for the cutoff region. With I C = 0 A , the LED is dark. If the function generator voltage is increased to say 5V, a base current of IB = Vgen 0.65V RB

flows. If this base current is sufficiently large, the resultant drops across RL and the LED will be adequate to ensure that VCE < 1V and the BJT will be in saturation. Assume that Vgen will be about 5V in this mode and that we desire a base current of about 600 A , calculate the required resistor. RB = _________________ Provided that this is enough current, the BJT should be in saturation, so VCE 0.5V . Assuming that the LED voltage drop is 2.3V, calculate the resistor required to produce 20mA flowing through the LED.

RL = __________________ 1. With your function generator, produce a 300Hz square-wave with a DC offset so that it ranges from 0V up to 5V. Verify the waveform on the scope (make sure that it is a square-wave and has a 50% duty cycle). 2. Reduce the frequency of the function generator so that it is approximately 0.3Hz. 3. Build the circuit illustrated in Figure 4. For RB and RL use the closest standard value 5% resistor. Use the proto-board supply for the 15V source. The pin-out for the NPN BJT provided to you (model 2N2222) is as follows: the leg next to the tab is the emitter (E), the leg next to that is the base (B), and the leg farthest from the tab is the collector (C). Have the instructor verify your circuit and calculations BEFORE you apply the function generator input. INSTRUCTOR VERIFICATION: ___________________
+15V RL Green C IB RB B

Vgen

Figure 4. BJT Switch Example 4. Activate the proto-board supply. Apply the function generator input. The LED should be flashing. Record the period of the flashing. Observed Period: _________________ 5. Adjust the function generator frequency knob to show that the frequency of the flashing can be increased. Set the frequency to about 2Hz and use the oscilloscope to measure the resulting collector-to-emitter voltage. Sketch the waveform and indicate where in the cycle the LED is on and where it is off. 6. Remove the function generator circuit, power down the proto-board, and disassemble the circuit. We next need to consider the BJT in active mode!

Section B. Transistor as a Current Source (the active region) Discussion: We will now explore how to bias a transistor so that it can maintain a constant current flowing through a variable-resistance load. To illustrate how such a current source operates, consider the circuit of Figure 5. Assume we wish to have 1mA flow through the load, implying that I C = 1mA . In the active region with large, the desired emitter current would also be approximately 1mA. With the resistor attached to the emitter set to 1 k-ohm, this implies that the voltage across it would be 1V. Again in the active region, the voltage from base-toemitter is approximately 0.65V, so that the voltage at the base (across R2 ) must then be 1.65V. How does this ensure 1mA flows through the load for different values of load resistance? As the load resistance increases, the voltage drop across it increases. The voltage VCE is equal to the supply voltage (15V), minus the emitter resistance drop (1V), minus the load resistance drop. Thus as discussed previously, the BJT remains in the active mode as long as the collector-toemitter voltage is greater than about 1V. Therefore, VCE adjusts to maintain the load voltage at the value necessary to maintain 1mA flowing.
+15V 1mA R1 RL C B

E 1.65V R2 1V R E =1k

Figure 5. BJT Current Source Circuit To illustrate how we go about choosing the biasing resistors, consider the circuit depicted in Figure 6. In Figure 6a, we illustrate the circuit with the transistor representation in the active mode inserted. In Figure 6b, the components on the left are reduced to their Thevenin Equivalent. Note also that since the current through the emitter resistance is equal to ( + 1) I B , the bottom portion of the circuit can be modeled as in Figure 6c which yields the following analysis result

+15V

+15V

+15V

RL

RL

R1 IB 0.65V R2

IB

IB

R th=R 1|| R 2 ( +1)IB RE R2 Vth=15 R 1+R 2 IB ( +1)IB RE Vth

R th 0.65V IB 0.65V ( +1)RE

(a)

(b)

(c)

Figure 6. Equivalent Circuits for the BJT-Based Current Source Vth 0.65V ( + 1) RE + Rth

IB =

If we can make Rth << ( + 1)RE , then the above gives

( + 1) I B =

Vth 0.65V = IE RE

so that the emitter current (and thus the load current) becomes less immune to changes or variations in the current gain . Also by making Rth << ( + 1)RE , the voltage drop across Rth will be times smaller than the emitter-resistor drop (1V) and can be safely neglected. Therefore, the Thevenin voltage must be set to 1.65V or Vth = R2 15V = 1.65V R1 + R2

1. With RE set to 1k-ohm, lets choose R1 + R2 = 4.3k . This should guarantee that Rth << ( + 1)RE since is on the order of 200 for this transistor. Solve the above Thevenin relationship for the required value for R2 R2 = _____________ Then, calculate the required value for R1 R1 = _____________

2. Build the circuit illustrated in Figure 5. Use the closest standard 5% resistor values for R1 and R2 . The proto-board power supply should be used for the +15V source and the resistance substituter box will serve as the variable load resistance. Given a programmed collector current of 1mA and the point at which transistor saturation begins dictated by VCE 1.0V , estimate the largest value of load resistance that will allow for the BJT to be in the active mode. Largest Load Resistance: __________________ Before energizing your circuit, have the instructor verify your calculations and the circuit setup. INSTRUCTOR VERIFICATION: _________________ 3. Energize the circuit. Set up the Keithley DMM meter to measure the voltage across the variable resistor. Choose ten values of load resistance ranging from zero to the largest load resistance identified above, measure the corresponding voltage across the load, and calculate the actual current flowing. Compare these values against the desired 1mA. R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________

4. Next, accurately identify the point at which the transistor goes into saturation and the current source approximation begins to degenerate. Measured Resistance for Saturation: ______________

Confirm for higher values of load resistance that the BJT remains in saturation. Record three such measurements here. R = __________ R = __________ R = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ V across Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ I thru Load = __________ Our last topic will be

5. De-energize the power supply. Disassemble the circuit. investigating the transistor as a voltage amplifier.

Section C. Transistor as an Amplifier Discussion: A common-emitter amplifier circuit is depicted in Figure 7. Note its similarity to the current source circuit with a fixed resistor acting as the load. In the case illustrated, the baseside biasing resistors have been chosen so that 1.65V is at the base. Therefore, with a 1k-ohm emitter resistor, an emitter current of 1mA flows and 10V is established from collector to ground. Next, consider that we couple in a signal to the base through a capacitor. The capacitor blocks the DC power supply from seeing the AC source, so the DC bias point is not disturbed. In terms of the AC source, the capacitor essentially provides a very low impedance path to the base. Thus the base voltage consists of the DC level of 1.65V plus the applied AC signal (by superposition). Vbase = Vdc + vac The AC voltage should be reasonably small so that it may be thought of as causing a slight wiggle in the base voltage. The change in base voltage then causes the emitter resistor voltage to change proportionately: Ve = vac Thus we introduce a variation in the emitter current given by I E = Ve vac = RE RE

With a large current gain, the collector current is essentially equal to the emitter current and we induce a similar change in collector current

+20V

R 1=110k 0.1 F

R C =10k

B Output VC 1.65V

Input Signal Vac R 2=10k

Ve = 1V

R E =1k

Figure 7. Common Emitter Amplifier

I C = Since the collector-to-ground voltage is given by

vac RE

VC = VCC I C RC the variation in collector current leads to the following change in collector voltage VC = I C RC = RC vac RE

Thus, the small input AC signal shows up at the output as a signal scaled by the ratio of the collector to emitter resistors. Further, the minus sign indicates that the voltage amplifier provides a phase shift of 180 degrees. This is called a common-emitter amplifier with emitter degeneration. 1. Lets consider designing and building such an amplifier to illustrate its operation. Assuming that we will use the +15V proto-board supply, calculate the required value of R1 so that the DC base voltage is set to 1.65V (assume R2 is fixed at 10 k-ohm. R1 = ____________

2. Next, assume that the emitter resistor RE is set to 1 k-ohm so that the nominal emitter current is 1mA. Choose the collector resistor RC so that the nominal voltage from collector to ground is 7.5V. RC = ___________ 3. Build the amplifier using standard 5% resistor values as close to the calculated values as possible. 4. Estimate the voltage gain of the resulting amplifier: GAIN = _____________ 5. Have the instructor verify your circuit and calculations. INSTRUCTOR VERIFICATION: _______________ 6. Using the Tektronix Function Generator and scope, establish a 200mVpp, 2kHz sinusoid with no DC offset. 7. Energize the proto-board power supply. Use a 0.1uF capacitor provided by the instructor to couple the Function Generator signal to the base, but DO NOT yet connect the AC signal to the amplifier. Measure the DC voltage at the collector to verify that we have approximately 7.5V established.

8. Apply the function generator signal to the capacitor input to the amplifier. Use CH1 of the scope to measure the Function Generator signal and CH2 to measure the collector voltage. AC couple the CH2 measurement to eliminate the 7.5V DC offset. Record the peak-peak signal amplitudes and calculate the actual gain: Input Voltage Peak-to-Peak: ___________________ Output Voltage Peak-to-Peak: ___________________ Actual Gain: _______________ 9. Store the oscilloscope waveform and generate a hardcopy as shown in Lab #1. 10. Disconnect the Function Generator signal. De-energize the proto-board. Disassemble the circuit and return all components to their proper bin drawer. Return all measurement and proto-typing equipment to the proper storage cabinet.

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