Lab 1: Comparators and Oscillators Introduction/Purpose: The goals of this lab were to use the LM311 comparator chip

to create and investigate the functionality and characteristics of comparators, Schmitt triggers, and RC oscillators. MultiSim I also used in this lab to design and plan circuits before being built, and to demonstrate ideal vs. experimental results. Procedure: Section A:
12V

5 BAL

6 B/STB

U1
7

R3 4.7k Vout

R2 Vin 20k R1 20k

VS+ 2 3 VS4

GND 1

LM311H

-12V GND

In this section of the lab, the above circuit was constructed according to the diagram in the lab manual. The parallel input resistors were used because there were no more 10kohm resistors left. Also due to a lack of BNC to alligator clips, a creative configuration of BNC-BNC cables with their various additions was used to connect Vin and measure Vout. Rising slew rate was measured from the time when the output voltage began changing, to when it reached its maximum value. The 10% settling time was measured from the point where the input wave became negative (where it should have triggered a response in the circuit) to the point where the voltage reached 90% of its maximum value. The bandwidth and approximated 3dB point were measured through the creation of a Bode plot from 1kohm to1.4Mohms, and measured to G=-3.10 dB. These results were then compared to the attached data sheet for the LM311 chip. Section B:

12V

5 BAL

6 B/STB

U2
7

R6 4.7k Vout

R5 Vin 20k R4 20k

VS+ 2 3 VS4

GND 1

LM311H GND

-12V R7 10k GND

R8 100k

In this section the Schmitt trigger was constructed according to the above circuit diagram, once again with the interesting configuration of cables. The hysteresis voltage was measured using a 40 Hz input signal with 1.0 kHz noise, and measuring the input voltages where the LM311 began to change value. The propagation time was measured by inputting a square wave at 10 kHz and measuring the point after the input wave changed value and became valid and stable, to when the output responded and became valid and stable. Section C:

12V R11 4.7k 50%

6 B/STB 7

50k Key=A
8 5 BAL

U3 Vout

X
2 3

VS+

C1 10nF

VS4

GND 1

LM311H

-12V R12 10k GND

R13 100k

The circuit was built according to the diagram shown above, and in the lab manual. The range of frequencies was found by adjusting the 50 kohm potentiometer with a screwdriver. Section D:

R3 VSS 1.5M 5V 2.5V

2 3 VS4 GND 1 8 VS+ 5 BAL 6 B/STB 7

VSS 5V U2 R5 10k R1 10k LM311H C1 10nF

2 3 VS4 GND 1 8 VS+ 5 BAL 6 B/STB 7

VSS 5V U1 R6 10k R2 10k LM311H C2 10nF R7 10k R13 10k

VS4 GND 1

8 VS+ 2 3

5 BAL

6 B/STB

U3
7

R4 180k

Vout C3 10nF

LM311H

GND

The buffered phase-shift oscillator shown above was constructed according to the attached TI Sine Wave Oscillator document that detailed several different oscillator circuits. It was initially chosen because the design diagram shown fits the limitations of this question, but the circuit did not work with that setup. A supply voltage of 5V was needed for each of the comparators, and pull-up resistors were needed so that too much current could not flow from the voltage source.

Since this circuit only outputs a single frequency for a given RC value, the capacitor components were changed to measure the range and quality of frequencies the buffered phase-shift oscillator could produce. Data and plots: Section A: Rising slew rate 10% settling time Bandwidth ~3dB point Literature Experimental .125 V/us 3.63 V/us 2.00 us 630kHz ~630kHz G(dB) Corrected -2.91 -3.04 -3.17 -3.17 -3.26 -3.30 -3.86 -4.25 -4.56 -4.74 -4.80 -5.00 -5.03

frequency 1 10 100 1000 10000 100000 200000 300000 400000 500000 525000 550000 575000 600000

G(db) 14.95 14.95 14.95 14.95 14.95 14.88 14.44 13.74 13.01 12.20 12.87 12.63 12.55 12.30

G(dB) Corrected 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.07 -0.51 -1.21 -1.94 -2.75 -2.08 -2.32 -2.40 -2.65

frequency 625000 630000 635000 650000 675000 700000 800000 900000 1000000 1100000 1200000 1300000 1400000

G(db) 12.04 11.91 11.78 11.78 11.69 11.65 11.09 10.70 10.39 10.21 10.15 9.95 9.92

Gain of Schmitt Trigger

0.00 1 -1.00 10 100 1000 10000 100000 1000000 10000000

-2.00

-3.00

-4.00

-5.00

-6.00

log(frequency) Section B: Vlim 2.12V Vhysteresis 2.60V Propagation Time Ascending Descending 1.280us 3.040us

Section C: Rise time Starting Frequency Experiment 1.350us 114.7 Hz Range of frequencies 20% Output Change Significant Attenuation 350 Hz 5.285 kHz

Section D: Range of Frequencies Buffered Phase-Shift Oscillator 2.110 kHz 12.7 kHz 89 kHz R value (part of the RC filter) 10 kohm 1 kohm 1 kohm C value (part of the RC Filter 10nF 10 nF 0.8 nF Distortion of YOSO Output

Rg value 180kohm 15kohm 15kohm

Analysis/Discussion: Questions: Section A: 2. When a high frequency wave is applied to the circuit, the open-loop gain decreases greatly. This is because of the bandwidth cutoff point, and the balance between gain and bandwidth also known as the unity gain bandwidth, of the circuit 3. The oscillatory behavior showsa normal square wave output with the exception of a large noise signal preceding the pulse where the comparator is making up its mind. Section B: 1. The positive feedback resistor applies a voltage to the non-inverting input creating higher and lower threshold voltages for comparator switching. This creates a noise margin that can be adjusted by changing the ratio of the voltage divider in the positive feedback. 4. Connecting pin 1 from ground to the negative supply voltage sets the Low output of the trigger at -12V. The square wave still looks the same, the Low output is now just at -12V. Also there is now a threshold voltage for the Low output, where there was not a noticeable one before because V(non-inv.)=R2/(R1+R2)*Vsupply. Section C: 1. The voltage at point X resemberles a triangular wave which shows that the capacitor is charging and discharging, thus oscillating between +/-2V. This shows that when the output is high the capacitor charges with respect to the ratio in the negative feedback loop. The potentiometer is the resistance which the necessary voltage is dropped across, so the oscillation frequency can change as the potentiometer changes because f=1/(2*pi*RC) 2. Doubling the capacitor causes a decrease in frequency because as the equation shows above, frequency is inversely proportional to capacitance. 3. In the MultiSim circuit, the frequency was similar but higher than that in this lab due to the smaller resistor used. Summary/Conclusions This lab showed the characteristics of the LM311 comparator used in several different circuits and showed the basic concepts of how RC oscillators work, and how Schmitt triggers provide cleaner signal than a basic comparator. I had great difficulty finding the necessary values in an LM311 datasheet, so I could not compare these values to the actual data. I also did not know how to measure distortion in an oscillators output, but there was a definite increase in the width of the signal, thus implying noise, with an increase in frequency. This lab would be improved by teaching the oscillator concept in class before the pre-lab is due.