MT-055

TUTORIAL

Chopper Stabilized (Auto-Zero) Precision Op Amps

CHOPPER AMPLIFIERS

For the lowest offset and drift performance, chopper-stabilized (auto-zero) amplifiers may be the
only solution. The best bipolar amplifiers offer offset voltages of 25 µV and 0.1 µV/ºC drift.
Offset voltages less than 5 µV with practically no measurable offset drift are obtainable with
choppers, albeit with some penalties.

A basic chopper amplifier circuit is shown in Figure 1 below. When the switches are in the "Z"
(auto-zero) position, capacitors C2 and C3 are charged to the amplifier input and output offset
voltage, respectively. When the switches are in the "S" (sample) position, VIN is connected to
VOUT through the path comprised of R1, R2, C2, the amplifier, C3, and R3. The chopping
frequency is usually between a few hundred Hz and several kHz, and it should be noted that
because this is a sampling system, the input frequency must be much less than one-half the
chopping frequency in order to prevent errors due to aliasing. The R1-C1 combination serves as
an antialiasing filter. It is also assumed that after a steady state condition is reached, there is only
a minimal amount of charge transferred during the switching cycles. The output capacitor, C4,
and the load, RL, must be chosen such that there is minimal VOUT droop during the auto-zero
cycle.
CHOPPER
SWITCH
S = SAMPLE
DRIVER
Z = AUTO-ZERO

VIN R1 R2 R3 VOUT
S C2 C3 S

AMP
Z Z

RL
C1 C4

Figure 1: Classic Chopper Amplifier

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AUTO-ZERO CHOPPER STABILIZED OP AMP

The basic chopper amplifier of Fig. 1 can pass only very low frequencies because of the input
filtering required to prevent aliasing. In contrast to this, the chopper-stabilized architecture
shown in Figure 2 is most often used in chopper amplifier implementations.
–IN _
VOUT
A1

+IN + NULL

S = SAMPLE
C1 S
Z = AUTO-ZERO

C2 Z
S Z
_
NULL
A2

Figure 2: Modern Auto-Zero (Chopper-Stabilized) Op Amp

In this circuit, A1 is the main amplifier, and A2 is the nulling amplifier. In the sample mode
(switches in "S" position), the nulling amplifier, A2, monitors the input offset voltage of A1 and
drives its output to zero by applying a suitable correcting voltage at A1's null pin. Note, however,
that A2 also has an input offset voltage, so it must correct its own error before attempting to null
A1's offset. This is achieved in the auto-zero mode (switches in "Z" position) by momentarily
disconnecting A2 from A1, shorting its inputs together, and coupling its output to its own null
pin. During the auto-zero mode, the correction voltage for A1 is momentarily held by C1.
Similarly, C2 holds the correction voltage for A2 during the sample mode. In modern IC
chopper-stabilized op amps, the storage capacitors C1 and C2 are on-chip.

Note in this architecture that the input signal is always connected to the output, through A1. The
bandwidth of A1 thus determines the overall signal bandwidth, and the input signal is not limited
to less than one-half the chopping frequency as in the case of the traditional chopper amplifier
architecture. However, the switching action does produce small transients at the chopping
frequency, that can mix with the input signal frequency and produce intermodulation distortion.

A patented spread-spectrum technique is used in the AD8571/AD8572/AD8574 series of single-

supply chopper-stabilized op amps, to virtually eliminate intermodulation effects. These devices
use a pseudorandom chopping frequency swept between 2 kHz and 4 kHz. Figure 3 compares the
intermodulation distortion of a traditional chopper stabilized op amp.

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The (AD8551/AD8552/AD8554, left) uses a fixed 4 kHz chopping frequency, and the
AD8571/AD8572/AD8574 (right) uses the pseudorandom chopping frequency.
AD8551/52/54 AD8571/72/74
FIXED CHOPPING FREQUENCY: PSEUDORANDOM CHOPPING FREQ:
4kHz 2kHz - 4kHz

VS = +5V VS = +5V
G = 60dB G = 60dB

INPUT SIGNAL = 1mV RMS, 200Hz

OUTPUT SIGNAL: 1V RMS, 200Hz
GAIN = 60dB

Figure 3: Intermodulation Product: Fixed Versus

Pseudorandom Chopping Frequency

A comparison between fixed and pseudorandom chopping on the voltage noise is shown in
Figure 4 below. Notice for the fixed chopping frequency, there are distinct peaks in the noise
spectrum at the odd harmonics of 4 kHz, whereas with pseudorandom chopping, the spectrum is
much more uniform, although the average noise level is higher.
AD8551/52/54 AD8571/72/74
FIXED CHOPPING FREQUENCY: PSEUDORANDOM CHOPPING FREQUENCY
4kHz 2kHz - 4kHz

VS = +5V VS = +5V
RS = 0Ω RS = 0Ω

Figure 4: Voltage Noise Spectral Density Comparison: Fixed Versus

Pseudorandom Chopping Frequency

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Another method for reducing the intermodulation effects the switching action of auto-zero
amplifiers is through a patented combination of auto-zeroing and chopping as used in the
AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 family. This unique topology allows these amplifiers to maintain
their low offset voltage over a wide temperature range and over their operating lifetime.

The AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 also optimize the noise and bandwidth over previous generations
of auto-zero amplifiers, offering the lowest voltage noise of any auto-zero amplifier by more
than 50%. Other designs use either auto-zeroing or chopping to add precision to the
specifications of an amplifier. Auto-zeroing results in low noise energy at the auto-zeroing
frequency, at the expense of higher low frequency noise due to aliasing of wideband noise into
the auto-zeroed frequency band. Chopping results in lower low frequency noise at the expense of
larger noise energy at the chopping frequency.

The AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 family uses both auto-zeroing and chopping in a patented "ping-
pong" arrangement to obtain lower low frequency noise together with lower energy at the
chopping and auto-zeroing frequencies, maximizing the signal-to-noise ratio for the majority of
applications without the need for additional filtering. The relatively high clock frequency of 15
kHz simplifies filter requirements for a wide, useful, noise-free bandwidth. The noise spectral
density of the family is shown in Figure 5.
DC TO 2.5kHz DC TO 25kHz

Figure 5: Voltage Noise Spectral Density of AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 Family

of Precision Zero-Drift, Auto-Zero Op Amps

The AD8628 is among the few auto-zero amplifiers offered in the 5-lead TSOT package. This
provides a significant improvement over the ac parameters of the previous auto-zero amplifiers.
The AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 have low noise over a relatively wide bandwidth (0 Hz to 10
kHz) and can be used where the highest dc precision is required. In systems with signal
bandwidths of from 5 kHz to 10 kHz, the AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 provide true 16-bit
accuracy, making them the best choice for very high resolution systems.

Key features of the AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 family are shown in Figure 6.

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‹ Single Supply: +2.7V to +5V

‹ 1µV Typical Input Offset Voltage
‹ 0.002µV/°C Typical Input Offset Voltage Drift
‹ 130dB Typical CMR, PSR
‹ 0.85mA Typical Supply Current/Amplifier
‹ 10µs Overload Recovery Time
‹ 22nV/√Hz Input Voltage Noise @ 1kHz
‹ Patented Auto-Zero and Chopper-Stabilized Technique @ 15kHz
Switching Frequency
‹ 2.5MHz Gain-Bandwidth Product
‹ AD8628 (Single) in TSOT and SOT-23 Packages
‹ AD8629 (Dual), AD8630 (Quad)

Figure 6: Key Features of the AD8628/29/30 Family of

Precision Auto-Zero Op Amps

It should be noted that extreme care must be taken when applying all of the chopper stabilized
devices. This is because in order to fully realize the full offset and drift performance inherent to
the parts, parasitic thermocouple effects in external circuitry must be avoided.

NOISE CONSIDERATIONS FOR CHOPPER-STABILIZED OP AMPS

It is interesting to consider the effects of a chopper amplifier on low frequency 1/f noise. If the
chopping frequency is considerably higher than the 1/f corner frequency of the input noise, the
chopper-stabilized amplifier continuously nulls out the 1/f noise on a sample-by-sample basis.
Theoretically, a chopper op amp therefore has no 1/f noise. However, the chopping action
produces wideband noise which is generally much worse than that of a precision bipolar op amp.

Figure 7 below shows the noise of a precision bipolar amplifier (OP177) versus that of the
AD8628/AD8629/AD8630 chopper-stabilized op amp. The peak-to-peak noise in various
bandwidths is calculated for each in the table below the graphs.

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INPUT VOLTAGE NOISE, nV / √Hz

30 60
Bipolar: OP177 Auto-Zero: AD8628/29/30
25 50

20 1/F CORNER 40
FC = 0.7Hz
15 30
vnw (WHITE)
10 20

5 10
0.1 1 10 100 0.01 0.1 1 10
FREQUENCY (Hz) FREQUENCY (Hz)

NOISE BW BIPOLAR (OP177) AUTO ZERO (AD8628/29/30)

0.1Hz to 10Hz 0.238µV p-p 0.5µV p-p
0.01Hz to 1Hz 0.135µV p-p 0.158µV p-p
0.001Hz to 0.1Hz 0.120µV p-p 0.050µV p-p
0.0001Hz to 0.01Hz 0.118µV p-p 0.016µV p-p

Figure 7: Noise: Bipolar Versus Auto-Zero Op Amp

Note from the data that as the frequency is lowered, the auto-zero amplifier noise continues to
drop, while the bipolar amplifier noise approaches a limit determined by the 1/f corner frequency
and its white noise. Notice that only at very low frequencies (<0.1Hz) is the chopper noise
performance superior to that of the bipolar op amp.

In order to take advantage of the chopper op amp's lack of 1/f noise, much filtering is required—
otherwise the total noise of a chopper will always be worse than a good bipolar op amp.
Choppers should therefore be selected on the basis of their low offset and drift—not because of
their lack of 1/f noise.

REFERENCES

1. Hank Zumbahlen, Basic Linear Design, Analog Devices, 2006, ISBN: 0-915550-28-1. Also available as
Linear Circuit Design Handbook, Elsevier-Newnes, 2008, ISBN-10: 0750687037, ISBN-13: 978-
0750687034. Chapter 1.

2. Walter G. Jung, Op Amp Applications, Analog Devices, 2002, ISBN 0-916550-26-5, Also available as Op
Amp Applications Handbook, Elsevier/Newnes, 2005, ISBN 0-7506-7844-5. Chapter 1.

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