
84
zero pulse -generator output is
equivalent to a short across the
generator
input.
Referring back to Fig. 9, you can see that that
effectively places the voltage
directly across the resistor. The
positive plate of the
capacitor
is
brought to ground so the
output
goes negative
with
respect to ground. Since we let the
capacitor
charge
fully
to
+ 10 volts,
the
output
conversely
goes to -10
volts.
The capacitor then
begins
to discharge through the resistor.
The
discharge curve
looks
just like that shown earlier in Fig.
7.
In one time constant, the output voltage
drops to 36.8% of
the
initial capacitor
voltage
or .368
x -10
= -3.68
volts.
After
5 time
constants
or 1 mS,
the capacitor fully discharges to
zero. You can see the effect in Fig. 10. As you can see, the
differentiator produces
narrow
positive
and negative pulses at
the switching points of the input pulse. The width of those
pulses depends upon the time constant. If the time constant is
very
short compared to the input pulse width,
the capacitor
charges
and discharges, fast creating
very-
narrow output
pulses.
See
Fig. 10.
On the other hand, if the time
constant is long compared to
the
pulse duration of the input pulse, then the capacitor may
not fully
charge
or
discharge before the input pulse switches.
That condition is illustrated in Fig. 11.
Assume that the time
constant is long compared to the pulse width. During the
input pulse, the capacitor charges up to
+6 volts. The
resistor
voltage will
drop from
+
10 to
+4
volts as the figure
shows. Then, the input
switches
to zero. The capacitor is
connected
across
the output resistor as
described before.
But
it only has 6 volts on it so
the output switches to -6
volts.
Then the capacitor discharges through the resistor
to about
-2.4
volts
before the input pulse switches
again.
With
the pulse on again, the +10 input adds to the -2.4
volts on
the capacitor
giving
a
10-2.4 = 7.6 volt
output pulse.
The capacitor begins to charge to this
value
and again the
output
decreases.
With
larger time constants,
the capacitor never fully
charges or
discharges during the
input
pulse. As a result, the
output is not what
you could really
call
pulses.
It is instead
more of a distorted square wave. If you
make the time
constant
very
long compared
to the pulse duration, the capac-
itor
will
charge
very
little
and the output
will
be
very
nearly
the same
as the input as Fig. 11 shows.
To create short, narrow
pulses
as desired, the differentiator
must have
a
very short
time constant compared
to the pulse
duration.
If
we
call the pulse duration td and the
time constant
T,
then for a good differentiator:
T4td
or
td>T
where >means
much greater
than and
<
<means
much less
than. For a good differentiator,
the pulse
width
ought
to be at
least
ten times the time
constant.
Now, let's look at an integrator
circuit. It too is a simple
series
RC circuit except the output is
taken from across the
capacitor.
See
Fig.
12.
Let's again assume the input
pulses of Fig. 8A.
When
the
input switches
from
0 to +
10
volts,
the capacitor acts initially
as a short so the output
is zero. But then, the capacitor begins
to charge toward
+
10
volts.
The output rises with the shape
you saw back in Fig. 6.
If the pulse duration is long
enough.
the capacitor
will
fully charge before the pulse switches back
+10
0-
+10
o
INPUT PULSE
DURATION
VERY
LONG
TIME
CONSTANT
COMPARED TO
THE PULSE
DURATION
V e = 4V
-6v
+7.6V
Fig. 11 -Pulse
distortion is
easily created in
a
differentiator with a long
time constant. Notice how
the
voltage
does not
stabilize, but drifts
all over the place.
PULSEINPUT
o
R 10K
ANN-
C = .02µF
Fig. 12 -An integrator setup
is
similar to
that
of a
differentiator, except
the
output
is taken off the capacitor.
Its action
is therefore the
opposite
of a differentiator.
.10V
0 -
í -
Fig. 13 -The output of an
integrator is
a distortion of
the
input
pulse.
As
you
make the time
constant shorter
in
comparison
to the
pulse
duration, the output will begin to
resemble the input
more
and
more
closely.
to
zero.
In other words,
the time
constant is short compared
to
the
pulse duration.
When
the input
pulse switches
back
to zero,
the generator
acts
as a short. Therefore, the
capacitor
will
begin to dis-
charge. If
the time constant is short,
the capacitor
will
fully
discharge before the pulse
changes positive again.
Using the RC and pulse-
duration
values given
earlier, the
input
and output waveforms will
be as shown in Fig. 13. That
is not
a particularly useful
waveform.
It is just
a
distorted
form
of the input pulse. Making the time
constant even
shorter will
cause the capacitor to charge and discharge more
quickly so
that the output looks very
much like the input as
shown
by the dashed lines in Fig. 13.
(Continued
on page
106)
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