Filters

Twin-T Notch, Sallen and Key Lowpass, and Multiple Feedback Bandpass

Filters in General

There are numerous examples of filters in the other units, especially the ubiquitous RC low- and high-
pass filters that we considered in the unit on the time and frequency domains. A filter is a linear system
whose frequency response H() is its important property, used to modify a signal by the frequency
domain rule X() = H()Y() for a linear system. It is generally described in the frequency domain, but
it must be remembered that this implies certain time domain properties as well, which may be important.
For example, if waveform is to be preserved, its various frequency components must all have the same
delay in the filter. Also, square waves may exhibit overshoot, undershoot or ringing quite prominently
after going through a filter. In fact, looking at the square wave response is a good way to test a filter.

H() is described by plotting the magnitude in dB or the phase shift in degrees or radians against the
logarithm of the frequency. The resulting Bode plots are familiar to electronics engineers, and are much
more useful than linear plots, as we found in the case of RC circuits. A decade of frequency is a factor of
10, as from 1kHz to 10kHz. Gain in dB is given by 20 log (Vout/Vin), so a ratio of 1/2 is -6 dB. The 20 is
so that dB expresses the power ratio in the same resistance, and is conventional.

The gain and phase shift as a function of frequency can have any form, with very general relations
between them. Nevertheless, certain common forms of frequent use have been given descriptive names.
The meanings of lowpass, highpass, bandpass and band rejection or notch filters should be obvious. There
is nothing implied about the detailed shape of the response, only the general nature. A lowpass filter has a
pass band to indefinitely low frequencies, where the gain may vary somewhat, or even vary linearly, and
have bumps and sags. It has a stop band where the gain is very low, often decreasing continously as the
frequency increases, called rolloff. The two bands are separated by a knee, and the frequency of the knee
is often called the corner frequency. These parameters only have precise meanings when defined with
relation to a specific form of the response curve. The corner frequency is very often defined operationally
as the frequency at which the magnitude of the gain is 1/2 = 0.707, or -3 dB.

Passive filters are made up only of linear circuit elements R, L and C. Inductance is found usually only in
filters for high frequencies, where it is easy to supply without great size or weight. Resistance and
capacitance make up most passive filters for lower frequencies. One exception used to be the ripple filters
on power supplies, which used iron-core inductors, for good filtering without excessive capacitance,
which was expensive at high voltages. An example of a passive filter is, of course, an RC circuit, which is
a first-order filter, meaning that the response rolls off as 1/f, or 20 dB/decade. The order of a filter can be
estimated from the number of reactive elements it contains. An LC combination, for example, gives a
second-order filter. The reactive elements must play the principal role in the filtering, of course, not just
be around. Loading is always a problem with passive filters, either with respect to the source and load, or
to different parts of the same filter. One can cascade RC branches for added filtering, but the attenuation
is soon quite large.

The problem of loading is solved in active filters by including an amplifier. Active filters can be very
effective, even when quite simple, and are not difficult to design and construct. Let's now look at some
practical examples of passive and active filters.

Twin-T Notch Filter

Sometimes a filter to remove a certain frequency band is required. If this is a narrow band, the filter is
called a notch filter. A notch filter using only resistors and capacitors is shown at the left. It is really two
filters in parallel, the upper one lowpass and the lower one highpass, with the stop bands overlapping. The
 reason it is called "twin-T" should be obvious. It's a good example of a

10k and C = 0.01 F, fo = 1591 Hz. To block 60 Hz, R = 2.7k and C = 1 F

passive filter. The frequency of minimum gain is fo = 1 / 2RC. For R =

will be close to correct.

The largest problem with this filter is that the input resistance is low at high
frequencies, being approximately R/4. As with all passive filters, the source

with R = 10k and C = 0.01 F, and found the gain at fo to be around -42 dB,
and load affect its properties, unless the filter is buffered. I tested a filter

with a bad waveform. This is not bad for a passive notch filter of such simple design. The high frequency
gain was down because of the 600 output impedance of the function generator working into the high
frequency resistance of about 2.5K.

Estimate the bandwidth of the filter by adjusting the frequency until the gain is 0.707 at the high and low
points. This gives the frequencies fL and fH for the -3 dB points. The Q of the filter is fo/(fH - fL), the center
frequency divided by the bandwidth. This is only exactly true for certain response curves, but is good
figure of merit. For my filter, I found fH = 6485 Hz, fL = 377 Hz, so Q = 0.26, a rather low figure.
Usually, one wants a much higher Q, but this circuit has its uses.

Sallen and Key Lowpass Filter

An excellent and useful example of an active filter is shown at the

right, in the form of a second-order lowpass filter, a type very often
required. By interchanging resistors and capacitors, it becomes a
highpass filter with similar characteristics. The op-amp is used as a
buffer, holding the node at the inverting input at the output voltage Vo.
There is positive feedback in this circuit, but it never overcomes the
negative feedback, so the circuit is stable.

Circuit analysis, using 1/jC for the impedance of a capacitor, gives V = Vo + jCVoR = Vo(1 + jCR).
In the same way, Vi = V + [jCVo + jC(V - Vo)] = V(1 + jCR). Therefore, Vo/Vi = 1 / (1 + jCR)2.
This response is second-order because it contains the square of the frequency in the denominator. At high
enough frequencies, the gain will vary as f-2, or 40 dB per decade, twice the slope of a simple RC filter.
The frequency fo = 1/2RC is called the pole frequency. The tangent of the phase angle is -2(f/fo) / (1 -
(f/fo)2). Therefore, the phase angle will lead by 90 when f = fo, and by 180 at high frequencies, twice the
phase shift of a first-order circuit.

Construct a filter with R = 10k and C = 0.01 F, which should give a pole frequency of about 1591 Hz.
Use any op-amp, such as the 411, and a bipolar supply so the input and output can swing around ground.
At this frequency, the voltage gain, which is simply 1 / (1 + f/fo)2 is 0.5, or -6 dB. Measure the gain of the
filter at frequencies from 100 Hz to 10 kHz, and plot dB against log f. Observe that the rolloff is at 40
dB/decade, and that the -6 dB point is near 1590 Hz. The phase difference between the output and input
can also be measure. The Lissajous figure gives an ellipse with vertical and horizontal axes at this
frequency, which means 90 phase shift.

Multiple Feedback Bandpass Filter

We should look at a bandpass filter, so we can find out the

significance of Q, and design a filter with a reasonable value of it.
A suitable circuit is shown at the right. Feedback is taken from the
output to two points in the input network. There is only one node
of unknown voltage, so the solution is easy. Any current in C1
comes from the output via R2, and is, in fact, just Vo/R2. This has
to go through the impedance of C1, so V = -Vo/jwC1R2. The
current thorugh C2 is (Vo - V)jC2. These two currents unite to
flow through R1, and this gives us Vi in terms of Vo. This kind of analysis is not hard, and a little practice
will develop considerable skill with it.

The next step is to solve for Vo/Vi = -jC1R2 / [1 - 2C1C2R1R2 + jR1(C1 + C2)]. This is a general
expression for the gain. Now we let C1 = C2 = C for simplicity, define k to be (R2/R1), and fo = 1 /
2C(R1R2). A little simplification gives - jkffo / [fo2 - f2 + 2jffo/k] for the gain. At this point we make an
approximation. When f is near fo, the gain curve is almost symmetrical, and we now make an

things remain complicated and obscure in the algebra. Let f = fo - f, and then the difference of squares
approximation that renders it exactly symmetrical, and gives us a simple expression. If we don't do this,

becomes 2fof, and everywhere else we put f = fo.

We now get Vo/Vi = - j(k2/2) / [j + kf/fo]. This shows us that if we take Q = k/2, then fo/Q will be the
width between the -3 dB points, as it is usually defined. Then, Vo/Vi = -2jQ2 / [j + 2Qf/fo]. This is the
simple expression that gives the response near the maximum. To find the amplitude response, multiply
this expression by its complex conjugate and take the square root. We find |Vo/Vi| = 2Q2/[1 + (2Qf/fo)1/2.
Similarly, the phase is given by tan = 2Qf/fo. This is quite a long route, but a detailed map has been
given to enable you to follow it.

We now know the Q and fo in terms of the resistance and capacitance values, and the form of the
response. The maximum gain of 2Q2 occurs at fo, and the -3 dB points are a distance fo/2Q on either side
of the maximum. The phase changes from 45 at the lower -3 dB point, fL to -45 at the upper -3 dB
point, fH. If you ask what happens on the skirts of the response, the answer must be taken from the
original full expression, not the approximation we use near the maximum. It is seen that the response falls
to zero on either side, ultimately at -20 dB/decade, and the phase angle is 0 at low frequency, and 180 at
high frequency. As for any second-order filter, the total rolloff is -40 dB/decade (here half on each side),
and the total phase change is 180.

I made a filter with Q = 1.9 and fo = 411 Hz by taking C = 0.01 F, R1 = 10k, and R2 = 150k, and using a
411 op-amp with 12 V supplies (to allow for the gain of about 8 at the maximum). If you do this, find fo
by changing the frequency until the output on the scope is a maximum. Then find fH and fL the same way,
looking for 0.707 of the maximum. Finally, measure the gain at a few points on each skirt, from 10 Hz to
10kHz, so you can estimate the slopes. I measured fo = 400 Hz and Q = 1.9, which are very close to the
calculated values. It is very instructive to plot the response curve and see what it looks like. It is much
sharper than the minimum for the twin-T notch filter, because of the larger value of Q.

References

Filter design is a very well-developed, large and complex field. Horowitz and Hill give excellent practical
information and advice on designing active filters for various uses in Chapter 5. There is also Don
Lancaster's Active Filter Cookbook (Indianapolis, IN: Howard Sams, 1975, 1985) with a large amount of
well-presented information. As usual, it isn't a "cookbook" but rather a careful treatment of the
fundamentals, directed towards understanding.