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Home / Ampli ers / Input Impedance of an Ampli er

Input Impedance of an Ampli er

The Input Impedance of an ampli er de nes its input characteristics with regards to current and voltage
looking into an ampli ers input terminals

Input Impedance, ZIN or Input Resistance as it is often called, is an important parameter in the design of a
transistor ampli er and as such allows ampli ers to be characterized according to their effective input and
output impedances as well as their power and current ratings.

An ampli ers impedance value is particularly important for analysis especially when cascading individual
ampli er stages together one after another to minimise distortion of the signal.

The input impedance of an ampli er is the input impedance “seen” by the source driving the input of the ampli er.
If it is too low, it can have an adverse loading effect on the previous stage and possibly affecting the frequency
response and output signal level of that stage. But in most applications, common emitter and common collector
ampli er circuits generally have high input impedances.

Some types of ampli er designs, such as the common collector ampli er circuit automatically have high input
impedance and low output impedance by the very nature of their design. Ampli ers can have high input
impedance, low output impedance, and virtually any arbitrary gain, but were an ampli ers input impedance is
lower than desired, the output impedance of the previous stage can be adjusted to compensate or if this is not
possible then buffer ampli er stages may be needed.

In addition to voltage ampli cation ( Av ), an ampli er circuit must also have current ampli cation ( Ai ). Power
ampli cation ( Ap ) can also be expected from an ampli er circuit. But as well as having these three important
characteristics, an ampli er circuit must also have other characteristics like high input impedance ( ZIN ), low
output impedance ( ZOUT ) and some degree of bandwidth, ( Bw ). Either way, the “perfect” ampli er will have
in nite input impedance and zero output impedance.

Input and Output Impedance

In many ways, an ampli er can be thought of as a type of “black box” which
has two input terminals and two output terminals as shown. This idea
provides a simple h-parameter model of the transistor that we can use to nd
the DC set point and operating parameters of an ampli er. In reality one of
the terminals is common between the input and output representing
ground or zero volts.

When looking from the outside in, these terminals have an input impedance, ZIN and an output impedance,
ZOUT. The input and output impedance of an ampli er is the ratio of voltage to current owing in or out of these
terminals. The input impedance may depend upon the source supply feeding the ampli er while the output
impedance may also vary according to the load impedance, RL across the output terminals.

The input signals being ampli ed are usually alternating currents (AC) with the ampli er circuit representing a
load, Z to the source. The input impedance of an ampli er can be tens of ohms, (Ohms Ω) to a few thousand
ohms, (kilo-ohms kΩ) for bipolar based transistor circuits up to millions of ohms, (Mega-ohms MΩ) for FET
based transistor circuits.

When a signal source and load are connected to an ampli er, the corresponding electrical properties of the
ampli er circuit can be modelled as shown.

Output and Input Impedance Model

Where, VS is the signal voltage, RS is the internal resistance of the signal source, and RL is the load resistance
connected across the output. We can expand this idea further by looking at how the ampli er is connected to
the source and load.

When an ampli er is connected to a signal source, the source “sees” the input impedance, Zin of the ampli er as
a load. Likewise, the input voltage, Vin is what the ampli er sees across the input impedance, Zin. Then the
ampli ers input can be modelled as a simple voltage divider circuit as shown.
Ampli er Input Circuit Model

The same idea applies for the output impedance of the ampli er. When a load resistance, RL is connected to the
output of the ampli er, the ampli er becomes the source feeding the load. Therefore, the output voltage and
impedance automatically becomes the source voltage and source impedance for the load as shown.

Ampli er Output Circuit Model

Then we can see that the input and output characteristics of an ampli er can both be modelled as a simple
voltage divider network. The ampli er itself can be connected in Common Emitter (emitter grounded), Common
Collector (emitter follower) or in Common Base con gurations. In this tutorial we will look at the bipolar
transistor connected in a common emitter con guration seen previously.

Common Emitter Ampli er

The so called classic common emitter con guration uses a potential divider network to bias the transistors Base.
Power supply Vcc and the biasing resistors set the transistor operating point to conduct in the forward active
mode. With no signal current ow into the Base, no Collector current ows, (transistor in cut-off) and the
voltage on the Collector is the same as the supply voltage, Vcc. A signal current into the Base causes a current to
ow in the Collector resistor, Rc generating a voltage drop across it which causes the Collector voltage to drop.

Then the direction of change of the Collector voltage is opposite to the direction of change on the Base, in other
words, the polarity is reversed. Thus the common emitter con guration produces a large voltage ampli cation
and a well de ned DC voltage level by taking the output voltage from across the collector as shown with resistor
RL representing the load across the output.

Single Stage Common Emitter Ampli er

Hopefully by now we are able to calculate the values of the resistors required for the transistor to operate in the
middle of its linear active region, called the quiescent point or Q point, but a quick refresher will help us
understand better how the ampli ers values were obtained so that we can use the above circuit to nd the input
impedance of the ampli er.

Firstly lets start by making a few simple assumptions about the single stage common emitter ampli er circuit
above to de ne the operating point of the transistor. The voltage drop across the the Emitter resistor,
VRE = 1.5V, the quiescent current, IQ = 1mA, the current gain (Beta) of the NPN transistor is 100 ( β = 100 ),
and the corner or breakpoint frequency of the ampli er is given as: ƒ-3dB = 40Hz.

As the quiescent current with no input signal ows through the Collector and Emitter of the transistor, then we
can say that: IC = IE = IQ = 1mA. So by using Ohms Law:

With the transistor switched fully-ON (saturation), the voltage drop across the Collector resistor, Rc will be half
of Vcc – VRE to allow for maximum output signal swing from peak-to-peak around the center point without
clipping of the output signal.
Note that the DC no signal voltage gain of the ampli er can be found from –RC/RE. Also notice that the voltage
gain is negative in value due to the fact that the output signal has been inverted with respect to the original input
signal.

As the NPN transistor is forward biased, the Base-Emitter junction acts like a forward biased diode so the Base
will be 0.7 volts more positive than the Emitter voltage ( Ve + 0.7V ), therefore the voltage across the Base
resistor R2 will be:

If the two biasing resistors are already given, we can also use the following standard voltage divider formula to
nd the Base voltage Vb across R2.

The information given stated that the quiescent current is 1mA. Thus the transistor is biased with a Collector
current of 1mA across the 12 volt supply, Vcc. This Collector current is proportional to the Base current as
Ic = β*Ib. The DC current gain, Beta ( β ) of the transistor was given as 100, then the Base current owing into
the transistor will be:

The DC bias circuit formed by the voltage divider network of R1 and R2 sets the DC operating point. The Base
voltage was previously calculated at 2.2 volts then we need to establish the proper ratio of R1 to R2 to produce
this voltage value across the 12 volt supply, Vcc.

Generally, for a standard voltage divider DC biasing network of a common emitter ampli er circuit, the current
owing through the lower resistor, R2 is ten times greater than the DC current owing into the Base. Then the
value of resistor, R2 can be calculated as:
The voltage dropped across resistor R1 will be the supply voltage minus the Base bias voltage. Also if resistor
R2 carries 10 times the Base current, upper resistor R1 of the series chain must pass the current of R2 plus the
transistors actual Base current, Ib. In other words, 11 times the Base current as shown.

For a common emitter ampli er, the reactance Xc of the Emitter bypass capacitor is usually one tenth (1/10th)
the value of the Emitter resistor, RE at the cut-off frequency point. The ampli ers speci cations gave a -3dB
corner frequency of 40Hz, then the value of capacitor CE is calculated as:

Now we have the values established for our common emitter ampli er circuit above, we can now look at
calculating its input and output impedance of ampli er as well as the values of the coupling capacitors C1 and
C2.

Basic Emitter Ampli er Model

The generalised formula for the input impedance of any circuit is ZIN = VIN/IIN. The DC bias circuit sets the DC
operating “Q” point of the transistor and as the input capacitor, C1 acts as an open circuit and blocks any DC
voltage, at DC (0Hz) the input impedance (ZIN) of the circuit will be extremely high. However when an AC signal
is applied to the input, the characteristics of the circuit changes as capacitors act as short circuits at high
frequencies and pass AC signals.

The generalised formula for the AC input impedance of an ampli er looking into the Base is given as ZIN = REQ||
β(RE+ re). Where REQ is the equivalent resistance to ground (0v) of the biasing network across the Base, and re
is the internal signal resistance of the forward biased Emitter layer. Then if we short out the 12 volt power
supply, Vcc to ground because Vcc appears as a short to AC signals, we can redraw the common emitter circuit
above as follows:
Ampli er Circuit Model

Then we can see that with the supply voltage shorted, there are a number of resistors connected in parallel
across the transistor. By taking the input side of the transistor ampli er only and treating capacitor C1 as a
short circuit to AC signals, we can redraw the above circuit to de ne the input impedance of the ampli er as:

Input Impedance of Ampli er

We said in the previous Common Emitter Ampli er tutorial that the internal signal resistance of the Emitter
layer was equal to the product of 25mV ÷ Ie with this 25mV value being the internal volt drop and IE = IQ.
Then for our ampli er circuit above the equivalent AC resistance value re of the Emitter diode is given as:

Emitter Leg Signal Resistance

Where re represents a small internal resistor in series with the Emitter. Since Ic/Ib = β, then the value of the
transistors Base impedance will be equal to β*re. Note that if bypass capacitor CE is not included within the
ampli ers design, then the value becomes: β(RE+ re) signi cantly increasing the input impedance of the
ampli er.

In our example bypass capacitor, CE is included, therefore the input impedance, ZIN of the common Emitter
ampli er is the input impedance “seen” by the AC source driving the ampli er and is calculated as:
Input Impedance Equation

This 2.2kΩ is the input impedance looking into the input terminal of the ampli er. If the impedance value of the
source signal is known, and in our simple example above it is given as 1kΩ, then this value can be added or
summed with ZIN if required.

But lets assume for one minute that our circuit has no bypass capacitor, CE connected. What would be the input
impedance of the ampli er without it. The equation would still be the same except for the addition of RE in the
β(RE+ re) part of the equation as the resistor will no longer be shorted at high frequencies. Then the
unbypassed input impedance of our ampli er circuit without CE will be:

Input Impedance without Bypass Capacitor

Then we can see that the inclusion of the Emitter leg bypass capacitor makes a huge difference to the input
impedance of the circuit as the impedance goes down from 15.8kΩ without it to 2.2kΩ with it in our example
circuit. We will see later that the addition of this bypass capacitor, CE also increases the ampli ers gain.
In our calculations to nd the input impedance of the ampli er, we have assumed that the capacitors in the
circuit have zero impedance (Xc = 0) for AC signal currents, as well as in nite impedance (Xc = ∞) for DC
biasing currents. Now that we know the bypassed input impedance of the ampli er circuit, we can use this value
of 2.2kΩ to nd the value of the input coupling capacitor, C1 required at the speci ed cut-off frequency point
which was given previously as 40Hz. Therefore:

Input Coupling Capacitor Equation

Now that we have a value for the input impedance of our single stage common Emitter ampli er circuit above,
we can also obtain an expression for the output impedance of the ampli er in a similar fashion.

Output Impedance of an Ampli er

The Output Impedance of an ampli er can be thought of as being the impedance (or resistance) that the load
sees “looking back” into the ampli er when the input is zero. Working on the same principle as we did for the
input impedance, the generalised formula for the output impedance can be given as: ZOUT = VCE/IC.

But the signal current owing in the Collector resistor, RC also ows in the load resistor, RL as the two are
connected in series across Vcc. Then again, by taking the output side of the transistor ampli er only and treating
the output coupling capacitor C2 as a short circuit to AC signals, we can redraw the above circuit to de ne the
output impedance of the ampli er as:

Output Impedance of Ampli er

Then we can see that the ampli ers output impedancee is equal to RC in parallel with RL giving us an output
resistance of:

Output Impedance Equation

Note that this value of 833Ω results from the fact that the load resistance is connected across the transistor. If
RL is omitted, then the output impedance of the ampli er would be equal to the Collector resistor, RC only.

Now that we have a value for the output impedance of our ampli er circuit above, we can calculate the value of
the output coupling capacitor, C2 as before at the 40Hz cut-off frequency point.

Output Coupling Capacitor Equation

Again the value of coupling capacitor C2 can be calculated either with or without the inclusion of load resistor
RL.

Common Emitter Voltage Gain

The voltage gain of a common emitter circuit is given as Av = ROUT/REMITTER where ROUT represents the
output impedance as seen in the Collector leg and REMITTER is equal the the equivalent resistance in the Emitter
leg either with or without the bypass capacitor connected.

Without the bypass capacitor CE connected, (RE+ re).

and with the bypass capacitor CE connected, (re) only.

Then we can see that the inclusion of the bypass capacitor within the ampli er design makes a dramatic change
to the voltage gain, Av of our common emitter circuit from 0.5 to 33. It also shows that the common emitter gain
does not go to in nity when the external emitter resistor is shorted by the bypass capacitor at high frequencies
but instead the gain goes to the nite value of ROUT/re.

We have also seen that as the gain goes up the input impedance goes down from 15.8kΩ without it to 2.2kΩ
with it. The increase in voltage gain can be considered an advantage in most ampli er circuits at the expense of a
lower input impedance.

Input Impedance Summary

In this tutorial we have seen that the input impedance of a common emitter ampli er can be found by shorting
out the supply voltage and treating the voltage divider biasing circuit as resistors in parallel. The impedance
“seen” looking into the divider network (R1||R2) is generally much less that the impedance looking directly into
the transistors Base, β(RE+ re) as the AC input signal changes the bias on the Base of the transistor controlling
the current ow through the transistor.

There are many ways to bias the transistor. Thus, there are many practical single transistor ampli er circuits
each with their own input impedance equations and values. If you require the input impedance of the whole
stage plus source impedance, then you will need to consider Rs in series with the base bias resistors as well,
(Rs + R1||R2).

The output impedance of a common emitter stage is just equal to the collector resistor in parallel with the load
resistor (RC||RL) if connected otherwise its just RC. The voltage gain, Av of the ampli er is dependant upon
RC/RE.

The emitter bypass capacitor, CE can provide an AC path to ground for the Emitter by shorting out the emitter
resistor, RE at high frequencies and thus leaving only the signal Emitter resistance, re in the Emitter leg circuit.
The effect of this results in an increase in the voltage gain of the ampli er (from 0.5 to 33) as the signal
frequency increases. However, this also has the effect of decreasing the ampli ers input impedance value, down
from 18.5kΩ to 2.2kΩ as shown.

With this bypass capacitor removed, the ampli ers voltage gain, Av decreases and ZIN increases. One way to
maintain a xed amount of gain and input impedance is to include an additional resistor in series with CE to
create what is called a “split-emitter” ampli er circuit that is a trade-off between an unbypassed and a fully
bypassed ampli er circuit. Note that the addition or removal of this bypass capacitor has no effect on the
ampli ers output impedance.
Then we can see that the input and output impedances of an ampli er can play an important role in de ning the
transfer characteristics of an ampli er with regards to the relationship between the output current, Ic and the
input current, Ib. Knowing an ampli ers input impedance can help to graphically construct a set of output
characteristics curves for the ampli er.

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someone
Maybe I’m misunderstanding something here but unless an ampli er was faulty 12V would never be
shorted to ground right? So only R2 between base and collector usually right because R1 isn’t shorted to
ground to make a connection between one end of it and the base and the other end and the ground? So
usually it’s just R2 in impedance because 12V and R1 are not shorted to ground?

Posted on December 13th 2020 | 4:28 am

 Reply

Wayne Storr
You are correct, to a point, that for DC biasing of an ampli er circuit the power supply would not
be shorted unless faulty, but for AC analysis purposes in determining input and output
impedances, all current sources are open-circuited and all voltage sources are short-circuited
(as for any circuit analysis). Thus resistor R1 effectively becomes connected between the base
and ground, as given in the tutorial

Posted on December 13th 2020 | 1:15 pm

 Reply

Franklin
Can you help in solving my problems

Posted on March 09th 2020 | 5:04 pm

 Reply

Franklin
Am new here I want get involve more and with more solution

Posted on March 09th 2020 | 5:01 pm

 Reply

Sabunor Jonathan Amartey

Nice to meet you here.

Posted on March 07th 2020 | 7:08 am

 Reply

saif sawan
Hi
What does the presence of resistance above (Re) place (Ie) affect the solution in the question under the
heading (Single Stage Common Emitter Ampli er) ??

Posted on January 03rd 2020 | 4:53 pm

 Reply

Anirvan
If an audio ampli er circuit (say Tda2003) is connected to an audio source (say a mobile phone) and
volumes of both source and ampli er is turned to maximum, and the audio ampli er output sound becomes
distorted heavily, then what could be the reason behind this ? Is the input impedance of audio ampli er
responsible for the distortion/Clipping or something else ?
What should be done in this case to stop distortion ?

Posted on September 29th 2019 | 2:30 pm

 Reply

Wayne Storr
Turn down the input signal

Posted on September 29th 2019 | 4:25 pm

 Reply

Abu Michael
It’s a very comprehensive write up kudos to the personnel’s involved…how do you calculate the input
impedance when there is no voltage divider network at the base..just the input and a resistor at the
emitter..I am referring to an emitter follower circuit

Posted on September 28th 2019 | 5:43 am

 Reply

Devendra Kumar
That’s very nice and interesting answer of ampli er…

Posted on June 14th 2019 | 7:24 am

 Reply

c.karunaratne
very helpful

Posted on January 29th 2019 | 4:37 am

 Reply

Abhishek Kishore
For a transistor ampli er β =50, load resistance RL = 1000 Ω, and its input resistance Ri = 200Ω. Calculate
its voltage gain.

Posted on January 04th 2019 | 11:12 am

 Reply

Gautam kumar
Best

Posted on December 18th 2018 | 2:22 am

 Reply
Naidupavankalyan
More explanation

Posted on September 03rd 2018 | 4:40 pm

 Reply

Akshith
yes you make a vaild point

Posted on July 24th 2018 | 3:20 pm

 Reply

Tiago Hissengo
How does negative feedback effect on the I/O impedance of the ampli er?

Posted on July 14th 2018 | 8:47 pm

 Reply

Terrance Bond
Can you show more work on the Zin please my calculations are coming out wrong

Posted on July 06th 2018 | 11:32 pm

 Reply

Zaheer Khan
Hi i like to learn electronics i have sound problem on tv and music set i do not have an ossilloscope ,how can
i check for input signal to an amp ic.

Posted on June 17th 2018 | 1:49 am

 Reply

Brahmaji
I am eager to learn about electronics. So how can get the basic material from yours.
Are you or your team will support me on learning

Posted on June 05th 2018 | 2:52 pm

 Reply

David Bridgen
I tried to send a message through your Contact facility but it didn’t work.

In you description of the common emitter transistor stage you say “Also notice that the gain is negative in
value as the output signal is inverted. i.e. 180o out-of-phase with the input signal.”

There is no phase shift, there is only inversion. They are not the same thing at all. This incorrect statement
is often accompanied by showing the base and collector waveform when a sine wave is applied. Now, draw
a similar diagram with a sawtooth applied. The 180° point is halfway along the ramp.

Do you still think there’s a phase shift?

Posted on March 29th 2018 | 11:23 pm

 Reply

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Mandy
I need for MOSFET ampli er

Posted on November 15th 2017 | 3:57 am

 Reply
DK
Good

Posted on October 01st 2017 | 8:22 am

 Reply

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