9/22/2016 BipolarJunctionTransistororBJT|NPNorPNPTransistorApplicationTheoryBiasingAmplifier|Electrical4u

BipolarJunctionTransistororBJT|NPNorPNPTransistor
ApplicationTheoryBiasingAmplifier
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In1947J.Barden,W.BratterinandW.Shockleyinventedtransistor.ThetermtransistorwasgivenbyJohnR.
Pierce.Throughinitiallyitwascalledthesolidstateversionofthevacuumtriode,butthetermtransistorhas
survived.Aswewillgothroughthetopic,wewillknowaboutthetransistor,mainlybipolarjunctiontransistoror
BJT.NowadaystheuseofBJTshasdeclinedtowardsCMOStechnologyinthedesignofICs.Thewordtransistor
isderivedfromthewordsTransferandResistoritdescribestheoperationofaBJTi.e.thetransferofaninput
signalfromalowresistancecircuittoahighresistancecircuit.Thistypeoftransistorismadeupofsemiconductors.
Weknowthatsilicon(Si)andGermanium(Ge)aretheexamplesofsemiconductors.Now,whythisiscalledjunction
transistor?Theanswerliesbehindtheconstruction.Wealreadyknowwhatisptypeandntypesemiconductors.

Now,inthistypeoftransistoranyonetypeofsemiconductorsissandwichedbetweentheothertypeof
semiconductor.Forexample,anntypecanbesandwichedbetweentwoptypesemiconductorsorsimilarlyonep
typecanbesandwichedbetweentwontypesemiconductors.Thesearecalledpnpandnpntransistors
respectively.Wewilldiscussaboutthemlater.Nowastherearetwojunctionsofdifferenttypesofsemiconductors,
thisiscalledjunctiontransistor.Itscalledbipolarbecausetheconductiontakesplaceduetobothelectronsaswell
asholes.

DefinitionofBJT
Abipolarjunctiontransistorisathreeterminalsemiconductordeviceconsistingoftwopnjunctionswhichisableto
amplifyormagnifyasignal.Itisacurrentcontrolleddevice.ThethreeterminalsoftheBJTarethebase,the
collectorandtheemitter.Asignalofsmallamplitudeifappliedtothebaseisavailableintheamplifiedformatthe
collectorofthetransistor.ThisistheamplificationprovidedbytheBJT.Notethatitdoesrequireanexternalsource
ofDCpowersupplytocarryouttheamplificationprocess.Thebasicdiagramsofthetwotypesofbipolarjunction
transistorsmentionedabovearegivenbelow.

Fromtheabovefigure,wecanseethateveryBJThasthreepartsnamedemitter,baseandcollector.JEandJC
representjunctionofemitterandjunctionofcollectorrespectively.Nowinitiallyitissufficientforustoknowthat
emitterbasedjunctionisforwardbiasedandcollectorbasejunctionsisreversebiased.Thenexttopicwilldescribe
thetwotypesofthistransistors.

NPNBipolarJunctionTransistor

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Asstartedbeforeinnpnbipolartransistoroneptypesemiconductorresidesbetweentwontype
semiconductorsthediagrambelowanpntransistorisshown

NowIE,ICisemittercurrentandcollectcurrentrespectivelyandVEBandVCBareemitterbasevoltageandcollector
basevoltagerespectively.Accordingtoconventioniffortheemitter,baseandcollectorcurrentIE,IBandICcurrent
goesintothetransistorthesignofthecurrentistakenaspositiveandifcurrentgoesoutfromthetransistorthen
thesignistakenasnegative.Wecantabulatethedifferentcurrentsandvoltagesinsidethenpntransistor.

Transistortype IE IB IC VEB VCB VCE

npn + + + +

PNPBipolarJunctionTransistor
Similarlyforpnpbipolarjunctiontransistorantypesemiconductorsissandwichedbetweentwoptype
semiconductors.Thediagramofapnptransistorisshownbelow

Forpnptransistors,currententersintothetransistorthroughtheemitterterminal.Likeanybipolarjunction
transistor,theemitterbasejunctionisforwardbiasedandthecollectorbasejunctionisreversebiased.Wecan
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tabulatetheemitter,baseandcollectorcurrent,aswellastheemitterbase,collectorbaseandcollectoremitter
voltageforpnptransistorsalso.

Transistortype IE IB IC VEB VCB VCE

pnp + +

WorkingPrincipleofBJT

Figureshowsannpntransistorbiasedintheactiveregion(Seetransistorbiasing),theBEjunctionisforward
biasedwhereastheCBjunctionisreversedbiased.ThewidthofthedepletionregionoftheBEjunctionissmallas
comparedtothatoftheCBjunction.TheforwardbiasattheBEjunctionreducesthebarrierpotentialandcauses
theelectronstoflowfromtheemittertobase.Asthebaseisthinandlightlydopeditconsistsofveryfewholesso
someoftheelectronsfromtheemitter(about2%)recombinewiththeholespresentinthebaseregionandflowout
ofthebaseterminal.Thisconstitutesthebasecurrent,itflowsduetorecombinationofelectronsandholes(Note
thatthedirectionofconventionalcurrentflowisoppositetothatofflowofelectrons).Theremaininglargenumberof
electronswillcrossthereversebiasedcollectorjunctiontoconstitutethecollectorcurrent.ThusbyKCL,
Thebasecurrentisverysmallascomparedtoemitterandcollectorcurrent.Here,themajority
chargecarriersareelectrons.Theoperationofapnptransistorissameasofthen
pn,theonlydifferenceisthatthemajoritychargecarriersareholesinsteadof
electrons.Onlyasmallpartcurrentflowsduetomajoritycarriersandmostofthe
currentflowsduetominoritychargecarriersinaBJT.Hence,theyarecalledasminoritycarrierdevices.

EquivalentCircuitofBJT

Apnjunctionisrepresentedbyadiode.Asatransistorhastwopnjunctions,itisequivalenttotwodiodes
connectedbacktoback.ThisiscalledasthetwodiodeanalogyoftheBJT.

BipolarJunctionTransistorsCharacteristics
ThethreepartsofaBJTarecollector,emitterandbase.Beforeknowingaboutthebipolarjunctiontransistor
characteristics,wehavetoknowaboutthemodesofoperationforthistypeoftransistors.Themodesare

1.CommonBase(CB)mode
2.CommonEmitter(CE)mode
3.CommonCollector(CC)mode

Allthreetypesofmodesareshownbelow

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NowcomingtothecharacteristicsofBJTtherearedifferentcharacteristicsfordifferentmodesofoperation.
Characteristicsisnothingbutthegraphicalformsofrelationshipsamongdifferentcurrentandvoltagevariablesof
thetransistor.Thecharacteristicsforpnptransistorsaregivenfordifferentmodesanddifferentparameters.

CommonBaseCharacteristics

InputCharacteristics

Forpnptransistor,theinputcurrentistheemittercurrent(IE)andtheinputvoltageisthecollectorbasevoltage
(VCB).

Astheemitterbasejunctionisforwardbiased,thereforethegraphofIEVsVEBissimilartotheforward
characteristicsofapndiode.IEincreasesforfixedVEBwhenVCBincreases.

OutputCharacteristics

TheoutputcharacteristicsshowstherelationbetweenoutputvoltageandoutputcurrentICistheoutputcurrentand
collectorbasevoltageandtheemittercurrentIEistheinputcurrentandworksastheparameters.Thefigurebelow
showstheoutputcharacteristicsforapnptransistorinCBmode.

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AsweknowforpnptransistorsIEandVEBarepositiveandIC,IB,VCBarenegative.Thesearethreeregionsinthe
curve,activeregionsaturationregionandthecutoffregion.Theactiveregionistheregionwherethetransistor
operatesnormally.Heretheemitterjunctionisreversebiased.Nowthesaturationregionistheregionwhereboth
theemittercollectorjunctionsareforwardbiased.Andfinallythecutoffregionistheregionwherebothemitterand
thecollectorjunctionsarereversebiased.

CommonEmitterCharacteristics

InputcharacteristicsIB(BaseCurrent)istheinputcurrent,VBE(BaseEmitterVoltage)istheinputvoltageforCE
(CommonEmitter)mode.So,theinputcharacteristicsforCEmodewillbetherelationbetweenIBandVBEwithVCE
asparameter.Thecharacteristicsareshownbelow

ThetypicalCEinputcharacteristicsaresimilartothatofaforwardbiasedofpndiode.ButasVCBincreasesthe
basewidthdecreases.OutputCharacteristicsOutputcharacteristicsforCEmodeisthecurveorgraphbetween

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collectorcurrent(IC)andcollectoremittervoltage(VCE)whenthebasecurrentIBistheparameter.The
characteristicsisshownbelowinthefigure.

LiketheoutputcharacteristicsofcommonbasetransistorCEmodehasalsothreeregionsnamed(i)Activeregion,
(ii)cutoffregions,(iii)saturationregion.Theactiveregionhascollectorregionreversebiasedandtheemitter
junctionforwardbiased.Forcutoffregiontheemitterjunctionisslightlyreversebiasedandthecollectorcurrentis
nottotallycutoff.Andfinallyforsaturationregionboththecollectorandtheemitterjunctionareforwardbiased.

ApplicationofBJT
BJT'sareusedindiscretecircuitdesignedduetoavailabilityofmanytypes,andobviouslybecauseofitshigh
transconductaneandoutputresistancewhichisbetterthanMOSFET.BJT'saresuitableforhighfrequency
applicationalso.Thatswhytheyareusedinradiofrequencyforwirelesssystems.AnotherapplicationofBJTcan
bestatedassmallsignalamplifier,metalproximityphotocell,etc.

BipolarJunctionTransistorAmplifier

TounderstandtheconceptofBipolarJunctionTransistorAmplifier,weshouldlookthroughthediagramofap
nptransistorfirst.

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Nowastheinputvoltageischangedalittle,sayVioftheemitterbasevoltagechangesthebarrierheightandthe
emittercurrentbyIE.ThischangeinemittercurrentdevelopsavoltagedropVOacrosstheloadresistanceRL,
where,VO=RLICV Ogivestheoutputvoltageoftheamplifier.Thereisanegativesignbecauseofthecollector
currentgivesavoltagedropacrossRLwithpolarityoppositetothereferencepolarity.ThevoltagegainA Vforthe
amplifierisgiventheratiobetweentheoutputvoltagesVOtotheinputvoltageVi,so,IC/I E=A Iiscalledthe
currentgainratioofthetransistor.Fromthefigurediagramshownabovewe
canseethatanincreaseintheemittervoltagereducestheforwardbiasatthe
emitterjunctionthusdecreasesthecollectorcurrent.Itindicatesthattheoutput
voltageandtheinputvoltageareinphase.Now,finallythepowergainApof
thetransistoristheratiobetweentheoutputpowerandtheinputpower

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