Monday, February 22, 2016

Revision of Circuits and Electronics - Dependent Sources and Amplifiers (Lecture 8)

 Video:- http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/video-lectures/lecture-8/

Lecture Notes:- http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/lecture-notes/


Dependent sources can be linear or nonlinear.

A dependent source needs to have its voltage or current controlled by some other variable. A diamond symbol with a current through it  is a dependent current source. A 2 port device has a control port and an output port.

VCCS  - (Voltage Controlled Current Source) Current at the output port is a function of voltage at the input port.

First, an example with the independent source is done resulting in a result of V=IR.

The dependent source example is an abstracted view of the actual circuit. Node method is also used but probably not really necessary. The general result is still V=IR but I=K/V is used.

 The other types of dependent sources are CCVS, VCVS  and CCCS.

 In another dependent source example, v_O needs to be found as a function of v_IN.  The circuit is different from the previous one as there is an input voltage and a supply voltage V_S.

The drawing is simplified and the node method is used to find v_O.

v_O versus v_I curve can be plotted  for the dependent source example.

 When superposition theorem is used with dependent sources, all dependent sources are left in the circuit. Then, solve for one independent source at a time.

Why amplify? Signal amplification is the key to both analog and digital processing.  Amplification helps to make a signal larger but it can also aid in the process of tolerating noise during communication.

 Amplification is fundamental for the digital domain as well.  It is needed to make a digital device meet the static discipline. The minimum amplification needed is  (V_OH - V_OL)/(V_IH-V_IL)

An amplifier is a 3 ported device.  The power port is not often shown. All ports share a common reference point called ground.

How do we build one? It's already been done! It is the VCCS in the second dependent source example.

Where's the amplification? From the plot of v_O versus v_I ,  there is a region where there is gain.

But what happens in the region when v_O is more than 0 and when it is  less than zero?  . When v_O   is more than zero, the VCCS consumes power. When it is less than zero, the VCCS supplies power.

If VCCS consumes power, there is saturation at some point.




Thursday, February 18, 2016

Revision of Circuits and Electronics - Incremental Analysis (Lecture 7)




A small region of the transfer characteristic curve looks linear so we have to use this region for the circuit to work. The way to implement this is to boost and shrink the signal - shrink the signal of interest and add a dc offset to it. Here is where signal notation becomes important. The response i_d to small signal v_d is approximately linear.

What does this mean mathematically? The total variable i_D is a function of v_D. (Let delta v_D be equal to v_d.) Taylor's expansion  is used to expand this function. The higher order terms of delta v_D  are neglected.

Why is the small signal response linear? If we equate the DC component and the time varying component of the current with the expanded function, there will be a constant part for the time varying one. This constant part is the the slope of the transfer characteristic. The other constant part for the DC component  is the the operating point.

From the circuit view of the small signal model, where the original elements are replaced by their small signal models,  the LED behaves like a resistor.

To summarise, there are 3 steps for the small signal method:-

(1) Find the operating point using DC bias inputs from large signal circuit

(2) Develop small signal models for each of the elements around the operating point.

(3) Analyze the linearized circuit to get the small signal response.

The DC voltage source  behaves as a short to small signals.  The DC current source  behaves as an open to small signals.

For a voltage source containing both dc and small signal, the small signal model is the small signal part of the source.

For a resistor , the small signal model is the resistor itself.

For a non linear device , the small signal model is a resistor.

In the small circuit analysis example, i_d needs to be found.  For step  1,  with the large signal circuit model, nodal  analysis is  used to find V_D and I_D.  For step 2,   with the small signal circuit model,  R_D of the non-linear device needs to be found.  For step 3, i_d can be obtained from the linearized circuit.


Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Revision of Circuits and Electronics - Nonlinear Circuits (Lecture 6)

Non linear circuits can be analysed by the following methods

(1) Analytical method

(2) Graphical method

(3) Piecewise linear method - not a focus for the course

(4) Introduction to incremental analysis


How do we analyse them? It is possible to replace the linear part with the Thevenin equivalent.


Method 1 uses nodal analysis. From the two equations, a solution can be obtained by  by trial and error. v_D needs to be found first and this is done by substituting v_D into the arranged equation until a constant value of v_D is obtained.

Method 2 also uses nodal analysis but the equation is rearranged so that i_D becomes the main subject of the equation.  With the two equations, the graph of i_D versus  v_D is plotted.  There will be two plots representing the two equations, which intersect at a point that gives the solution.

Method 3 involves determining which of the linear region applies for the non linear component. Linear region is 1/ R_D so the  component can be replaced with a resistance value of R_D.

Method 4 in this lecture introduces incremental analysis which is also known as the small signal method. It is  a special way to make a non linear circuit,  linear. An example is  a circuit that transmit music over a light beam. The circuit consists of an input music signal, an LED, a photoresistor and an amplifier. The problem lies with the conversion at the beginning which is non linear, as the LED is  a non linear component, resulting in a distorted sound. This can be seen when i_D, the output current is plotted using the transfer characteristic and the graph of the input voltage versus time. The I_D does not look like the plot of the input voltage or v_D. So in order to work, the non linear LED needs to be turned into a linear device.


Video:- http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/video-lectures/lecture-6

Lecture notes : -  http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/lecture-notes/


Sunday, February 14, 2016

Revision of Circuits and Electronics Part 1 - Inside The Digital Gate (lecture 5)

To build a digital gate, a switching device is needed.

The MOSFET device (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor) is a 3 terminal element that behaves like a switch with the gate being the control terminal.

If v_GS is less than a threshold voltage of say 1V then the switch is off. If v_GS is more than a threshold voltage  then the switch is on.

Looking at the simplified i_DS vs v_DS graph, it can be seen that when  i_DS flows (switch is on), v_DS=0, and when I_DS does not flow (switch is off), V_DS is recorded.

The MOSFET behaves like an inverter. The voltage transfer characteristic can be plotted - this is a graph of v_out vs v_in.

 There is a question about whether the inverter satisifies the static discipline for different thresholds. The lines for V_IL and V_IH need to be plotted first on the voltage transfer characteristic graph. The V_OL and V_OH lines need to be plotted next. Parts of the  transfer characteristic graph needs to lie within the green shaded areas to satisfy the static discipline.

The switch resistor  (SR) model of MOSFET is a more accurate MOSFET model.  When v_GS is more than a threshold voltage, the on state, there is some resistance between the drain and the source.

Under the more accurate model, the inverter satisfies the static discipline.


Video:- http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/video-lectures/lecture-5/


Lecture notes : - http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/lecture-notes/

Monday, February 8, 2016

Revision of Circuits and Electronics Part 1 - The Digital Abstraction (lecture 4)

Node method can be used in all cases.

Analog systems lack noise immunity.

So values need to be discretized - high and low ( 1 and 0)

If we take 2.5V to be the midpoint for 0 and 1 and if the voltage sent  is 2.5V , it won't work so a forbidden region is needed.

If we set a forbidden region between 2V and 3V, there will still be problems because of a lack of noise margin. So the solution is to set tougher standards for the sender. For example, between 4V and 5V for a 1  (V_oh)  and between 0V and 1V for a 0 (V_ol).

The rest of the lecture is on digital circuits which I am not going to cover much about as I am quite familiar enough about that topic.


Video:- http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/video-lectures/lecture-4

Lecture notes : - http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/electrical-engineering-and-computer-science/6-002-circuits-and-electronics-spring-2007/lecture-notes/ 

Monday, February 1, 2016

Other Side of the Screen Cover by me

Yep, I actually sang a song and it's in Youtube!

Thank you for the song -
Download/Buy Emily's song - https://emilyscholz.bandcamp.com

Watch Emily's official artist video!  - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5Vc1xWFKcQ

Support mSb!  - https://www.patreon.com/markipliersingsbadly