Abstract:
A general-purpose instrumentation amplifier must be dc-coupled and has a differential input to handle both differential and single-ended input signals. It must also exhib...Show MoreMetadata
Abstract:
A general-purpose instrumentation amplifier must be dc-coupled and has a differential input to handle both differential and single-ended input signals. It must also exhibit low input noise in both voltage and current to accommodate a wide range of signal source impedances. Additionally, having a differential output is desirable to allow direct connection to current high-resolution analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), which have differential inputs. There are commercially available devices with e_n voltage noise spectral densities as low as 1~\mathrm{nV} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} but present high current noise spectral densities i_n of a few \mathrm{pA} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} . On the other hand, there are also devices with i_n as low as a few \mathrm{fA} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} but presenting e_n around 10~\mathrm{nV} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} . To obtain low values of both e_n and i_n , a fully differential circuit topology combining discrete junction field transistors (JFETs) and operational amplifiers (OAs) is proposed. Design equations, stability analysis, and experimental results are presented. As an example, a fully differential instrumentation amplifier has been designed, built, and tested showing e_n < 1~\mathrm{nV} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} at 1 kHz and i_n < 10~\mathrm{fA} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}} at 1 kHz. The proposed topology finds applications, such as front ends for measuring and testing instruments, industrial instrumentation, and audio circuits.
Published in: IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement ( Volume: 73)