Oscillators With LC Feedback

Circuits
For frequencies above 1 Mhz, Tuned Oscillators are
used. LC feedback use a parallel LC resonant
circuit (LC tank) to provide the oscillations.
There are two common types:

Colpitts The resonant circuit is an inductor and two

capacitors.

Hartley The resonant circuit is a tapped inductor or two

inductors and one capacitor.

The Colpitts oscillator achieves positive feedback

by using an inverting amplifier plus the 180
phase shift across a parallel resonant circuit. The
series capacitor combine to produce
C1C2
Ceq
C1 C2
so the resonant frequency is
1
w
LCeq

1
f
2 LCeq

FET based Colpitts Oscillator

Frequency of oscillations:
fo

1
2 LCeq

inductor in the drain

lead is a radiofrequency choke or RFC,
designed to retain its
inductance when a
reasonable DC current
passes through it.

HartleyTunedOscillatorCircuit
The Hartley
oscillator is
similar to the
Colpitts. The
tank circuit has
two inductors
and one
capacitor. The
calculation of
the resonant
frequency is the
same.

1
fo
2 LeqC

Leq=L1+L2+2M

HartleyTunedOscillatorCircuit

1
fo
2 LeqC

Leq=L1+L2+2M

CrystalOscillators
The crystal-controlled oscillator is the most stable
and accurate of all oscillators. A crystal has a
natural frequency of resonance. Quartz material can
be cut or shaped to have a certain frequency. We
can better understand the use of a crystal in the
operation of an oscillator by viewing its electrical
equivalent.

A crystal oscillator is basically a tuned oscillator using a

piezoelectric crystal as a resonant tank circuit.
The crystal (usually quartz) has a greater stability in holding
constant at whatever frequency the crystal is originally cut to
operate.
Crystal oscillator are used whenever great stability is
required, for example in communication transmitters and
receivers.

Characteristics of quartz crystal

Property of crystal piezoelectric effect
If there is mechanical stress across the faces of the
crystal, a difference of potential is developed across
opposite faces of the crystal.
Similarly, when a voltage is applied across one set of
faces of the crystal causes mechanical distortion in the
crystal shape.
When an alternating voltage is applied to a crystal,
mechanical vibrations are set up.
These vibrations having a natural resonant frequency
dependent on the crystal.

Although the crystal has electromechanical resonance, we can

represent on the crystal action by an equivalent electrical
resonant circuit.
L and C represent electrical equivalents of
crystal mass and compliance
R represent electrical equivalent of the
crystal structures internal friction.
Cm represents the capacitance due to
mechanical mounting of the crystal.
Quality factor is high (typically 20 000)
caused by the crystal losses represented by R.

 The crystal has two resonant frequencies.

1. The resonant condition occurs when the reactances
of the series RLC leg are equal. At this condition,
series resonant impedance is very low (equal to R).
2. The other resonant condition occurs at higher
frequency when the reactance of the series
resonant leg equal to the reactance of capacitor
Cm. This is called parallel resonance or anti
resonance condition of the crystal. At this
frequency, the crystal offers a very high impedance
z
to the external circuit.
Antiresonant
Series resonant

f1

f2

In order to use the crystal properly it must be connected in a

circuit so that its low impedance in the series-resonant operating
mode or high impedance in the anti-resonant operating mode is
selected.

SeriesResonantCrystalOscillator
To excite a crystal to operate in the series-resonant mode it may be
connected as a series element in a feedback path.
At the series-resonant frequency of the crystal its impedance is
smallest and the amount of (positive) feedback is largest.

From BJT circuit, R1, R2 and RE provide a voltage

divider stabilized dc bias circuit.
CE provide ac bypass of the emitter resistor and the
RFC coil provide for dc bias while decoupling any ac
signal on the power from affecting the output signal.
The voltage feedback from collector to base is a
maximum when the crystal impedance is minimum ( in
series-resonant mode).
Cc has negligible impedance at the circuit operating
frequency but blocks any dc between collector and
base.
The resulting circuit frequency is set, then, by the
series-resonant frequency of the crystal.
Changes in supply voltage, transistor device
parameters and so on have no effect on the circuit
operating frequency, which is held stabilized by the
crystal.

ParallelResonantCrystalOscillator
Parallel resonant impedance of a crystal is a
maximum value, so it is connected in shunt.
At the parallel-resonant frequency, a crystal appears
as an inductive reactance of largest value.
Maximum voltage is developed across the crystal at
its parallel-resonant frequency.
The voltage is coupled to the emitter by a capacitor
voltage divider, C1 and C2.