LABORATORY ACTIVITY NO.

2
THE COMMON EMITTER AMPLIFIER

Objective
The objective of this activity is to examine the characteristics of a common emitter amplifier, specifically voltage
gain, input impedance and output impedance. A method for experimentally determining input and output impedance is
investigated along with various potential troubleshooting issues.

Theory Overview
An ideal common emitter amplifier simply multiples the input function by a constant value while also inverting the signal.
The voltage amplification factor, Av, is largely a function of the AC load resistance at the collector and the internal
emitter resistance, r’e. This internal resistance is, in turn, inversely proportional to the DC emitter current. Therefore, if the
underlying bias is stable with changes in beta, the voltage gain will also be stable. The circuit will appear as an impedance
to the signal source, Zin. This impedance is approximately equal to the base biasing resistor(s) in parallel with the
impedance seen looking into the base (Zin(base)) which is approximately equal to β r’e. Consequently, the amplifier’s input
impedance may experience some variation with beta. In contrast, the circuit’s output impedance as seen by the load is
approximately equal to the DC collector biasing resistor.

From a practical standpoint, input and output impedance cannot be measured directly with an ohmmeter. This is because
ohmmeters measure resistance by sending out a small “sensing” current. The DC bias and AC signal currents will
interact with this current and produce an unreliable result. Instead, impedances can be measured indirectly through a
voltage divider effect. That is, if the voltages of both legs of a voltage divider can be measured and the resistance of one
of the legs is known, the remaining resistance may be determined using Ohm’s Law or the voltage divider rule.

Schematics

Figure 1
 Figure 2

DC Circuit Voltages

1. Consider the circuit of Figure 1 using Vcc = 15 volts, Vee = -12 volts, Rs = 10 kΩ, Rb = 33 kΩ, Re = 22 kΩ, Rc = 15
kΩ, Rload = 20 kΩ, C1 = C2 = 10 μF and C3 = 470 μF.

Using the approximation of a negligible base voltage, determine the theoretical DC voltages at the base, emitter, and
collector along with the collector current, and record these in Table 1.

2. For experiment, build the circuit of Figure 1 using Vcc = 15 volts, Vee = -12 volts, Rs = 10 kΩ, Rb = 33 kΩ, Re = 22
kΩ, Rc = 15 kΩ, Rload = 20 kΩ, C1 = C2 = 10 μF and C3 = 470 μF.

Make sure that the AC source is turned off or disconnected. Measure the experimental DC voltages at the base, emitter,
and collector along with the collector current, and record these in Table 1.

Vb Thry Ve Thry Vc Thry Ic Thry Vb Exp Ve Exp Vc Exp Ic Exp

15 V 271 mV 260 mv 2 µA 13.049 V 271.985 mV 259.159 mV 2.676 µA

Table 1
AC Circuit Voltages

3. Based on the calculated collector current, determine the resulting theoretical r’ e, Av, Zin and Zout, and record these in
Table 2. Assume a beta of approximately 150 for the Zin calculation.

Table 2.
r’e Av Zin Zout
Re = 22 kΩ −β βRe Re || Ro
ℜ( β +1)
150(22)
−150 =3.3 kΩ
22(150+1)

= -0.0451

Troubleshooting

4. Consider each of the individual faults listed in Table 3 and estimate the resulting AC load voltage. Introduce each of
the individual faults in turn and measure and record the load voltage in Table 3.

Table 3.
Rb Short

C1 open
Rc short

Rc Open
Re Open
C2 Open

C3 Open
Vce Open
Simulation

4. One issue with amplifiers is noise and ripple on the power supply. This will be directly coupled to output of the
circuit via the collector resistor. Worse, this noise or ripple may be coupled into the base and then amplified along with
the desired input signal. This can be an issue with amplifiers that use a voltage divider bias.

One way to reduce this effect is to decouple the voltage divider from the base. This modification is shown in the circuit of
Figure 2. Cb effectively shorts R2, sending power supply noise and ripple to ground instead of into the base. By itself this
would also short the desired input signal so an extra resistor, R3 is added between the capacitor and the base. The input
impedance of the circuit is approximately equal to R3 in parallel with β r’ e.

To show the effectiveness of this technique, build the circuit of Figure 2 in Multisim. Use Vin = 20 mV peak at 1 kHz,
Vripple = 20 mV peak at 120 Hz, Vcc = 12 volts, Rs = 1 kΩ, R1 = 10 kΩ, R2 = 3.3 kΩ, R3 = 22 kΩ, Re = 4.7 kΩ, Rc =
3.3 kΩ, Rload = 1 kΩ, Cin = Cout = 10 μF, Cb= 100 μF and Ce = 470 10 μF.

Run a Transient simulation and look at the load voltage. A very small low frequency variation should be noted. This is
the 120 Hz ripple coupled in through the collector resistor. Alter the circuit by removing Cb and R3 to produce the basic
voltage divider circuit (or more simply, set Cb and R3 to extremely small values such as pF and mΩ). Rerun the
simulation. The load voltage should now show a much more obvious ripple contribution, thus showing how effective the
power supply decoupling components can be.
Cb and R3 removed
Questions

1. Does the common emitter amplifier produce a considerable amplification effect and if so, are the
results consistent across transistors?

2. Does the value of the transistor beta play any role in setting the input impedance? Was a considerable variation
in input impedance apparent?