Gain in current but not in voltage -transistor “voltage follower” set up












3















Suppose we have the circuit set up as shown in the image. Also suppose that $$V_s=overline{V_s}+v_S$$, where the smal v is for the variable component of the signal which varies much faster than the time constant of both capacitors. After some analisys we get that there's no gain in the variable component of the source voltage, that is, there's unitary gain, however from the equation of a bipolar transistor:
$$i_Eapprox i_c=beta i_s$$
thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to hava a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage? This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?












share|improve this question


















  • 2





    Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

    – Dave Tweed
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:16






  • 1





    @user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

    – Bidon
    Jan 6 at 13:22













  • The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

    – Geier
    Jan 6 at 20:34


















3















Suppose we have the circuit set up as shown in the image. Also suppose that $$V_s=overline{V_s}+v_S$$, where the smal v is for the variable component of the signal which varies much faster than the time constant of both capacitors. After some analisys we get that there's no gain in the variable component of the source voltage, that is, there's unitary gain, however from the equation of a bipolar transistor:
$$i_Eapprox i_c=beta i_s$$
thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to hava a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage? This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?












share|improve this question


















  • 2





    Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

    – Dave Tweed
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:16






  • 1





    @user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

    – Bidon
    Jan 6 at 13:22













  • The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

    – Geier
    Jan 6 at 20:34
















3












3








3








Suppose we have the circuit set up as shown in the image. Also suppose that $$V_s=overline{V_s}+v_S$$, where the smal v is for the variable component of the signal which varies much faster than the time constant of both capacitors. After some analisys we get that there's no gain in the variable component of the source voltage, that is, there's unitary gain, however from the equation of a bipolar transistor:
$$i_Eapprox i_c=beta i_s$$
thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to hava a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage? This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?












share|improve this question














Suppose we have the circuit set up as shown in the image. Also suppose that $$V_s=overline{V_s}+v_S$$, where the smal v is for the variable component of the signal which varies much faster than the time constant of both capacitors. After some analisys we get that there's no gain in the variable component of the source voltage, that is, there's unitary gain, however from the equation of a bipolar transistor:
$$i_Eapprox i_c=beta i_s$$
thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to hava a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage? This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?









transistors amplifier bipolar






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked Jan 6 at 13:08









BidonBidon

225




225








  • 2





    Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

    – Dave Tweed
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:16






  • 1





    @user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

    – Bidon
    Jan 6 at 13:22













  • The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

    – Geier
    Jan 6 at 20:34
















  • 2





    Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

    – Dave Tweed
    Jan 6 at 13:15











  • Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

    – user2233709
    Jan 6 at 13:16






  • 1





    @user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

    – Bidon
    Jan 6 at 13:22













  • The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

    – Geier
    Jan 6 at 20:34










2




2





Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

– user2233709
Jan 6 at 13:15





Hmmm… Looks like you have a strong misunderstanding of electricity. Anyway, if you connect a load resistor between $V_{textrm{out}}$ and ground it will drain some current. The current that is drained from $V_S$ may be significantly lower, hence the current gain.

– user2233709
Jan 6 at 13:15













The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

– Dave Tweed
Jan 6 at 13:15





The input impedance and output impedance are very different.

– Dave Tweed
Jan 6 at 13:15













Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

– user2233709
Jan 6 at 13:16





Moreover, you’d generally want to polarize your transistor’s base with a pair of resistors.

– user2233709
Jan 6 at 13:16




1




1





@user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

– Bidon
Jan 6 at 13:22







@user2233709 you're right about the misunderstanding of electricity. I don't understand how we can see current and voltage as two distinct things, on the one hand they are, but they are also so strongly connected by Ohm's law that I don't see how

– Bidon
Jan 6 at 13:22















The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

– Geier
Jan 6 at 20:34







The way Ohm's law is generally taught to beginners ($V = RI$) assumes that $R$ is constant, which is true for ideal resistors. Other components can change resistance (more general term: impedance) depending on pretty much anything: voltage, temperature, frequency, input on another pin, ...

– Geier
Jan 6 at 20:34












4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















3














Just because 2 quantities are related by an equation does not make them the same. For example, F=ma relatesd force and acceleration by a fixed parameter, mass, but they are still distinct concepts. Ohm's law is not a general rule, Kirchoff's laws are more general and do not imply that current and voltage are thje same: apply them to more complicated circuits than a single resistor and you would see this. Ohm's law has little to do with amplifiers. In the case of a voltage follwer, the output voltage is approximately the same as the input voltage but the available current is higher due to the current gain of the transistor. As already noted, the input resistance of the voltage follower is much higher than the output resistance so Ohm's law does not apply since these resistances are different.






share|improve this answer
























  • I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

    – Bidon
    Jan 6 at 14:16



















3















... thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to have a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage?




By having a change in impedance.



In very crude terms the base current sees a resistance of βRE whereas the output impedance is RE.




This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




No. A transistor isn't a resistor.






share|improve this answer































    1















    This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




    A transistor is an active device. It modulates the energy of an external power source to mimic the input signal. While Ohm's Law can be use to describe the behavior of certain aspects of active devices in some applications, keep in mind that it was derived to describe the relationships at play in a simple resistor. For anything beyond that you have to pay attention to the details.



    By its definition, a bipolar transistor delivers current gain only. It is the circuit architecture and components around the transistor that translate this into voltage gain- sometimes.






    share|improve this answer































      1














      Ic =hFE*Ib is then shared by both I(Re) and I(cout).



      However for DC control, I(Cout) can never take all of the current of Ic . As Re serves a purpose to DC pull down the emitter and so R load must always be greater than Re for full swing voltages.



      The result when overloaded, is the cap current pulls up the emitter so Vbe reduces then Ib reduces and the lower level signal cannot be reached.



      Ohm’s Law still works here.
      One simply uses Xc for the cap being much smaller so Rload must be greater than Re for linear operation



      also Vce must be Vce saturation where hFE drops significantly as a another condition.



      the power gain comes from hFE * Rb/Re equivalent loads






      share|improve this answer

























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        4 Answers
        4






        active

        oldest

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        4 Answers
        4






        active

        oldest

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        active

        oldest

        votes






        active

        oldest

        votes









        3














        Just because 2 quantities are related by an equation does not make them the same. For example, F=ma relatesd force and acceleration by a fixed parameter, mass, but they are still distinct concepts. Ohm's law is not a general rule, Kirchoff's laws are more general and do not imply that current and voltage are thje same: apply them to more complicated circuits than a single resistor and you would see this. Ohm's law has little to do with amplifiers. In the case of a voltage follwer, the output voltage is approximately the same as the input voltage but the available current is higher due to the current gain of the transistor. As already noted, the input resistance of the voltage follower is much higher than the output resistance so Ohm's law does not apply since these resistances are different.






        share|improve this answer
























        • I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

          – Bidon
          Jan 6 at 14:16
















        3














        Just because 2 quantities are related by an equation does not make them the same. For example, F=ma relatesd force and acceleration by a fixed parameter, mass, but they are still distinct concepts. Ohm's law is not a general rule, Kirchoff's laws are more general and do not imply that current and voltage are thje same: apply them to more complicated circuits than a single resistor and you would see this. Ohm's law has little to do with amplifiers. In the case of a voltage follwer, the output voltage is approximately the same as the input voltage but the available current is higher due to the current gain of the transistor. As already noted, the input resistance of the voltage follower is much higher than the output resistance so Ohm's law does not apply since these resistances are different.






        share|improve this answer
























        • I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

          – Bidon
          Jan 6 at 14:16














        3












        3








        3







        Just because 2 quantities are related by an equation does not make them the same. For example, F=ma relatesd force and acceleration by a fixed parameter, mass, but they are still distinct concepts. Ohm's law is not a general rule, Kirchoff's laws are more general and do not imply that current and voltage are thje same: apply them to more complicated circuits than a single resistor and you would see this. Ohm's law has little to do with amplifiers. In the case of a voltage follwer, the output voltage is approximately the same as the input voltage but the available current is higher due to the current gain of the transistor. As already noted, the input resistance of the voltage follower is much higher than the output resistance so Ohm's law does not apply since these resistances are different.






        share|improve this answer













        Just because 2 quantities are related by an equation does not make them the same. For example, F=ma relatesd force and acceleration by a fixed parameter, mass, but they are still distinct concepts. Ohm's law is not a general rule, Kirchoff's laws are more general and do not imply that current and voltage are thje same: apply them to more complicated circuits than a single resistor and you would see this. Ohm's law has little to do with amplifiers. In the case of a voltage follwer, the output voltage is approximately the same as the input voltage but the available current is higher due to the current gain of the transistor. As already noted, the input resistance of the voltage follower is much higher than the output resistance so Ohm's law does not apply since these resistances are different.







        share|improve this answer












        share|improve this answer



        share|improve this answer










        answered Jan 6 at 13:39









        BarryBarry

        9,86711415




        9,86711415













        • I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

          – Bidon
          Jan 6 at 14:16



















        • I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

          – Bidon
          Jan 6 at 14:16

















        I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

        – Bidon
        Jan 6 at 14:16





        I think I see where my mistake was, I was not accounting for the difference in impedance.

        – Bidon
        Jan 6 at 14:16













        3















        ... thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to have a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage?




        By having a change in impedance.



        In very crude terms the base current sees a resistance of βRE whereas the output impedance is RE.




        This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




        No. A transistor isn't a resistor.






        share|improve this answer




























          3















          ... thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to have a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage?




          By having a change in impedance.



          In very crude terms the base current sees a resistance of βRE whereas the output impedance is RE.




          This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




          No. A transistor isn't a resistor.






          share|improve this answer


























            3












            3








            3








            ... thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to have a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage?




            By having a change in impedance.



            In very crude terms the base current sees a resistance of βRE whereas the output impedance is RE.




            This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




            No. A transistor isn't a resistor.






            share|improve this answer














            ... thus there's a gain in current, how is it possible to have a gain in current, and consequently a gain in power, but not in voltage?




            By having a change in impedance.



            In very crude terms the base current sees a resistance of βRE whereas the output impedance is RE.




            This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




            No. A transistor isn't a resistor.







            share|improve this answer












            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer










            answered Jan 6 at 14:03









            TransistorTransistor

            81.5k778176




            81.5k778176























                1















                This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




                A transistor is an active device. It modulates the energy of an external power source to mimic the input signal. While Ohm's Law can be use to describe the behavior of certain aspects of active devices in some applications, keep in mind that it was derived to describe the relationships at play in a simple resistor. For anything beyond that you have to pay attention to the details.



                By its definition, a bipolar transistor delivers current gain only. It is the circuit architecture and components around the transistor that translate this into voltage gain- sometimes.






                share|improve this answer




























                  1















                  This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




                  A transistor is an active device. It modulates the energy of an external power source to mimic the input signal. While Ohm's Law can be use to describe the behavior of certain aspects of active devices in some applications, keep in mind that it was derived to describe the relationships at play in a simple resistor. For anything beyond that you have to pay attention to the details.



                  By its definition, a bipolar transistor delivers current gain only. It is the circuit architecture and components around the transistor that translate this into voltage gain- sometimes.






                  share|improve this answer


























                    1












                    1








                    1








                    This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




                    A transistor is an active device. It modulates the energy of an external power source to mimic the input signal. While Ohm's Law can be use to describe the behavior of certain aspects of active devices in some applications, keep in mind that it was derived to describe the relationships at play in a simple resistor. For anything beyond that you have to pay attention to the details.



                    By its definition, a bipolar transistor delivers current gain only. It is the circuit architecture and components around the transistor that translate this into voltage gain- sometimes.






                    share|improve this answer














                    This seems to contradict Ohm's law, shouldn't a current gain be accompanied by a voltage gain?




                    A transistor is an active device. It modulates the energy of an external power source to mimic the input signal. While Ohm's Law can be use to describe the behavior of certain aspects of active devices in some applications, keep in mind that it was derived to describe the relationships at play in a simple resistor. For anything beyond that you have to pay attention to the details.



                    By its definition, a bipolar transistor delivers current gain only. It is the circuit architecture and components around the transistor that translate this into voltage gain- sometimes.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered Jan 6 at 14:41









                    AnalogKidAnalogKid

                    1,64125




                    1,64125























                        1














                        Ic =hFE*Ib is then shared by both I(Re) and I(cout).



                        However for DC control, I(Cout) can never take all of the current of Ic . As Re serves a purpose to DC pull down the emitter and so R load must always be greater than Re for full swing voltages.



                        The result when overloaded, is the cap current pulls up the emitter so Vbe reduces then Ib reduces and the lower level signal cannot be reached.



                        Ohm’s Law still works here.
                        One simply uses Xc for the cap being much smaller so Rload must be greater than Re for linear operation



                        also Vce must be Vce saturation where hFE drops significantly as a another condition.



                        the power gain comes from hFE * Rb/Re equivalent loads






                        share|improve this answer






























                          1














                          Ic =hFE*Ib is then shared by both I(Re) and I(cout).



                          However for DC control, I(Cout) can never take all of the current of Ic . As Re serves a purpose to DC pull down the emitter and so R load must always be greater than Re for full swing voltages.



                          The result when overloaded, is the cap current pulls up the emitter so Vbe reduces then Ib reduces and the lower level signal cannot be reached.



                          Ohm’s Law still works here.
                          One simply uses Xc for the cap being much smaller so Rload must be greater than Re for linear operation



                          also Vce must be Vce saturation where hFE drops significantly as a another condition.



                          the power gain comes from hFE * Rb/Re equivalent loads






                          share|improve this answer




























                            1












                            1








                            1







                            Ic =hFE*Ib is then shared by both I(Re) and I(cout).



                            However for DC control, I(Cout) can never take all of the current of Ic . As Re serves a purpose to DC pull down the emitter and so R load must always be greater than Re for full swing voltages.



                            The result when overloaded, is the cap current pulls up the emitter so Vbe reduces then Ib reduces and the lower level signal cannot be reached.



                            Ohm’s Law still works here.
                            One simply uses Xc for the cap being much smaller so Rload must be greater than Re for linear operation



                            also Vce must be Vce saturation where hFE drops significantly as a another condition.



                            the power gain comes from hFE * Rb/Re equivalent loads






                            share|improve this answer















                            Ic =hFE*Ib is then shared by both I(Re) and I(cout).



                            However for DC control, I(Cout) can never take all of the current of Ic . As Re serves a purpose to DC pull down the emitter and so R load must always be greater than Re for full swing voltages.



                            The result when overloaded, is the cap current pulls up the emitter so Vbe reduces then Ib reduces and the lower level signal cannot be reached.



                            Ohm’s Law still works here.
                            One simply uses Xc for the cap being much smaller so Rload must be greater than Re for linear operation



                            also Vce must be Vce saturation where hFE drops significantly as a another condition.



                            the power gain comes from hFE * Rb/Re equivalent loads







                            share|improve this answer














                            share|improve this answer



                            share|improve this answer








                            edited Jan 7 at 1:41

























                            answered Jan 6 at 14:04









                            Sunnyskyguy EE75Sunnyskyguy EE75

                            63.4k22194




                            63.4k22194






























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