ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

In this lab you will investigate some of the characteristics of RLC resonant circuits. Remember the
impedance of the capacitor and inductor are dependent on the frequency and imaginary
.
1
Z L = jωL and ZC =
jωC

In an ideal series RLC circuit, Fig. 1, there exists only one frequency where the magnitude of the
impedance of the inductor is equal to the magnitude of the impedance of the capacitor. At this
frequency

(1)

L C R

Vs Ideal Induc tor I d e a l C a p a c it o r I d e a l R e s is t o r

Figure 1: Ideal series RLC circuit.

We call this frequency the resonant frequency of the circuit. The input voltage and current are in-
phase at resonance. The inductor and capacitor impedance are equal in magnitude as suggested in
equation 1. The phase however is not equal. The phases are opposite. This means the imaginary
impedance of the capacitor cancels the imaginary impedance of the inductor. Or stated another way,
the impedance of the whole series circuit is purely resistive (0 phase) equal to R Ω’s at resonance.
This presents an easy way to find resonance. A peak in voltage across the resistor with a 0 phase
shift.

This also means that at the resonant frequency the circuit has the minimum value of impedance,
purely resistive, and a maximum value of input current. So what is the current at resonance? That
one is pretty easy. By inspection we have a voltage V S and a resistance R which sets the current at I
= VS/R. The inductor and capacitor have no influence on the current at the resonant frequency. They
do at every other frequency but not at resonance. So at what frequency does resonance occur?

The resonant frequency ωS and fS are given by:

1 1
ωS= f S=
√ LC 2π √ LC
, and (2)

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

What happens at the other frequencies? Let’s pick some easy frequencies. 0 Hz or DC: An inductor
has an impedance of 0Ω and a capacitor has an impedance of ∞Ω. How about ∞ Hz? An inductor has
an impedance of ∞Ω and a capacitor has an impedance of 0Ω. So a series resonant RLC circuit has
an infinite impedance at DC and at light (very high ∞ frequency). Not real interesting. The interesting
stuff occurs at resonance as we’ve already seen.

The impedance of the series RLC circuit is smallest at resonance and slowly or quickly increases as
the frequency moves away from ωS, depending on the R, L, and C values. As you move towards DC
the capacitor increases in impedance. As you move towards light the inductor increases in
impedance. The R, L, and C parameters of the circuit tell us how quickly the impedance changes.
The circuit has a quality factor or Q. It is similar to the Q of an inductor as seen in ECE 270 which is
defined as:

√
fS ωS ωS L 1 L
Q= = = =
Δf Δω R R C
(3)

where: Δω = ω2 - ω1 , the bandwidth of the circuit.

Bandwidth is defined as the difference of the half power frequencies ω 1 and ω2. We know that the
maximum power will be dissipated at resonance because this is where the smallest impedance
occurs. Half power will occur off resonance.

At what frequencies? The half power frequencies are defined as the frequencies where the power
dissipated is one half the maximum power dissipated at resonance. This occurs where the resistor
current or voltage is 0.707 of its maximum value. Why 0.707? Because resistive power is given by I 2R
or V2/R and 0.7072 = 0.5 or ½!

For the resistor we can look at the current versus frequency or the voltage versus frequency and
expect to see the same curve shape with a magnitude difference of R. It is easier for us to measure
voltage so we will concentrate on this quantity for our theoretical discussion. The quantities of f S = f0,
f1 and f2 are shown in Fig. 2. This curve shows the voltage generated across the resistor of an RLC
circuit. In figure 2 the y axis is VR/VS which means it is normalized by the source voltage, VS. Once
again this is the same curve as the current through the RLC but with the magnitude change of V S/R.
This yields VR/VS * VS/R = VR/R = IR = IC = IL.

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

Voltage Transfer Function

1

0.9
f0
0.8 f1
f2
0.7

0.6
VR/VS

0.5

0.4

0.3

0.2

0.1

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Frequency KHz

Figure 2: Voltage or Current vs frequency of series RLC resonant circuit.

If we also look at a plot of the voltages across the three elements in the circuit, Fig. 3, as a function of
frequency, we observe the following: the voltage across the resistor has the same shape as the
current (since Ohm’s law holds) with a maximum occurring at the resonant frequency. The voltages
across the capacitor and inductor are equal at resonance. The finite maximum voltage across L
occurs at a frequency slightly above resonance while the finite maximum voltage across the C occurs
slightly below the resonant frequency. The voltage scale is normalized by V S as in Fig. 3. A value less
than 1 means there is proportionally less voltage appears across the component than V S supplies to
the circuit. We see this type of behavior all the time with resistor dividers. A value of 1 indicates that
exactly VS appears across the component being plotted. A value greater than 1 means there is more
voltage across the component than V S is supplying. Can that really happen? You will see. Remember
that the impedance of the capacitor is ∞Ω at 0 Hz. This means that all of the source voltage appears
across the capacitor (infinite maximum). You see this in Fig.3 at DC because the V C/VS curve is unity
at DC. The same would hold true if we plotted V L/VS out to the frequency of light. The V R/VS is unity
with 0 phase shift at resonance because the influence of L and C cancel each other at f S.

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

Voltage Transfer Function

5
Vx=VR
4.5 Vx=VL
Vx=VC
4

3.5

3
Vx/Vs

2.5

1.5

0.5

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Frequency KHz

Figure 3: R, L and C normalized voltage versus frequency.

One simple way to look at the voltage transfer functions of a series RLC circuit as plotted above is as
follows: The circuit forms a simple voltage divider involving the R, L and C in series. See Fig. 1. In the
case of VR/VS the impedance of the R divided by the impedance of the R, L and C gives VR/VS. The
same holds true for VL and VC.

VR R
=
VS 1 VL
SL+ R+ SL 1
SC =
VS 1 VC SC
SL+ R+ =
VR SR SC VS 1
= SL+ R+
VS 2 1 SC
S L+ SR+ VL 2
S L 1
C =
VS 2 1 VC C
S L+SR+ =
R C VS 1
VR
S S2 L+SR+
L C
= VL S
2
VS R 1 =
S2 + S + VS R 1
L LC 2
S +S +
L LC
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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

1
VC LC
=
VS R 1
S2 + S +
L LC
The equations above have the standard second order forms of Band pass for VR/VS, High pass for VL/VS and Low pass for
VL/VS. These three forms are shown in Fig. 3 above. S = jω.

terms
The denominators for all three are identical and are : 2 ωS 2 where ωS is the resonant frequency of the RLC
S + S + ωS
Q

√
1 1 L as was given in eqs. 2 and 3. Here S = jω, so S2 becomes –ω2. When
circuit. This yields ω S= , and Q=
√ LC R C
ωS
ω=ωS the S2 and ωS2 sum to 0 leaving only S left in the denominator. That makes it easy to evaluate the
Q
transfer functions at resonance.

R R
S S
VR L L
( ω )=
VS S R 1
=
R
=1
S2 + S + S
L LC L

VL SL ω S L
| |
2 2
S S
(ω )=
VS S R 1
=
R R
= =
R with a 90° phase shift.
2
S +S + S
L LC L

1 1
VC
(ω )=
VS S 2
LC
R
S +S +
1
=
LC
S
R
=
1
SCR
=
ω
1
S CR
| |
with a -90 phase shift.

L LC L
As R goes to 0 both VL/VS and VC/VS go to ∞ and so does the Q of the RLC circuit.

Physical Components:
The discussion above is for ideal components. Not all components are ideal. For this lab we will be
using a signal generator, an inductor, a capacitor and a resistor. The signal generator, C and the R
are very close to ideal for the frequencies we will use in this lab. The L is not. Figure 1 shows the
ideal circuit and Fig 4. shows a more realistic circuit for the components we are using.

Rs L RL C R

Vs Real R eal Induc tor R e a l C a p a c it o r R e a l R e s is t o r

Source V1
GND

Figure 4: Real RLC circuit.

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

The inductor is usually made of wire, lots of wire, and it has a significant resistive impedance denoted
RL. Every signal source has an output impedance. The Analog Discovery for all practical purposes
has a 0Ω output impedance.

Measuring the magnitude of capacitance and inductance without an LRC meter:

Most of the time we don’t have a meter to “conveniently” measure inductance and capacitance. So
what do we do? The magnitude of the impedance of an L or C is given in equation 1. Knowing the
magnitude of the impedance and the frequency at which the magnitude was measured allows us to
calculate the capacitance or inductance. So how can we find the magnitude? We know that for
resistance impedance is V/I. The same is true for inductors and capacitors too. We can easily
measure the voltage across a resistor and calculate I. I=V/R for a resistor. The current through all
components in a series circuit is the same current in magnitude and phase for all components.

Figure 5: Measurement setup for determining Unknown Values of L and C

For V1 you need to specify a frequency and voltage. For convenience pick a frequency that results in
VR about equal to VL or VC. You may wish to pick a frequency that results in a frequency that results in
XL >> RL to minimize the effects of RL when determining the value of L. You can calculate this.
Measure R and VR_PP (A1) to get IPP. Note VRMS is fine too. Measure the voltage across the inductor or
capacitor, VC_PP.

Note on the Oscilloscope you can only measure TP1 (CH1) and TP2 (CH2) with respect to GND. To
get VR you need to use math. CH1-CH2 gives VR. VC or VL are directly measured with CH2.

For the capacitor:

|XC| = |VC_PP/IPP| = 1/(ωC). So C = 1/(|XC|ω). (4)

All these measurements can be done using the Analog Discovery board. Note the voltage and
currents don’t have to be Peak to Peak since we are taking the ratio to get impedance. They just have
to be in the same units. Peak to peak, peak, RMS etc.

The inductor can be determined in a similar manner. One caveat is the real inductor has a significant
resistance. See fig. 6:

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

VL VL
|Z Lreal|= RMS
= VPP
= √|X L|2 + R2L= √ ( ωL)2 + R2L
I RMS I VPP (5)

This means to get L you must remove the effects of RL from the VL_PP measurement. A little complex
algebra and we can get L from VL_PP. Remember VL_XXX is the voltage across the physical inductor.

|Z LPHYSICAL|2 −R2L
2
L=
|Z LPHYSICAL|2 =(ωL)2 +R 2L (ωL)2=|Z LPHYSICAL|2−R 2L ω2

L=
√|Z LPHYSICAL|2−R 2L
ω (6)

RL can be ignored if RL is small compared to |XL|. Then it is as easy as the capacitor measurement.
This isn’t always the case so keep track of RL and |XL|. Remember |XL| is greater at high frequencies
compared to low frequencies.

Instructional Objectives

1. Run a Spice simulation in the prelab.

2. Measure L and C without an LC meter.
3. Calculate and measure the resonant frequency for a series resonant circuit.
4. Measure and plot the voltages of circuit elements as a function of frequency for a series
resonant circuit
5. Show input impedance is at a minimum at the resonant frequency for a series resonant circuit
6. Demonstrate the relationship between circuit Q and bandwidth

Procedure

0. Parts List: 1-49.9Ω 1% 1/4W resistor, 1-1KΩ 5% 1/4W resistor, 1-0.1uF Film capacitor and 1-
10mH Inductor.
1. Measure the value of the resistance of the 10mH inductor using your DVM. Measure the value
of the 1KΩ resistor You don’t need to use 1K. Any value close but you need to measure the
value. Determine the inductance of the 10mH inductor and the capacitance of the 100nF
capacitor. Use the 1 KΩ test resistor to determine the L and C as described above. Use table
1 to record this data. X is C or L.

Measuring Resistance Frequenc VRTEST IRTEST VX ZX X

y
L 27.8Ω 16 kHz 3.5 V 0.0035 A
1018.9 3.57 V 0.0101H
C NA 1.5 kHz 3.6 V 0.0036 A
1025 3.69 V 0.104uF
1
Table 1: RTEST = ___0.999 KΩ________ Helpful equations Z L = jωL and ZC =
jωC

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

2. Set up the circuit as shown in Fig. 7 on a breadboard. Note that the resistor is connected to
ground. Remember RS and RIND are built into the source and Inductor respectively

Figure 7: RLC circuit configuration

3. What is the approximate resonance frequency you get by calculation using the equations given
in the theory section? fS = __4910____ Hz.
You should use the estimated resonant frequency to set the frequency range for the next
measurements.

4. Measure Fs on the Oscilloscope: Refer to Fig. 7.

 Set VS to 5VPP near resonance.
 Connect the CH1 probe to display VS (CH1 to TP1 and GND).
 Connect the CH2 probe to display VR1 (CH2 to TP3 and GND).

Adjust the frequency of VS to find resonance. I suggest you get close to resonance with the
frequency adjust in coarse mode then switch to fine adjustment.
When VR1 is at a max and in phase with VS you have found resonance.

You can measure phase with the scope.

 Find the Phase measurement.
 Set the Source1 to CH1.
 Push the settings button to set Source2 to CH2.
 Push the Back button (Far left below the screen) and add the Phase measurement.
This will give the phase between Vs and VR1. Phase VS to VR1 _____0.7 ⁰____.

Now calculate the ratio of voltage across R1 compared to VS at the inductor.

 Set VS = 5VPP. It won’t be 5VPP when you measure it.
 Find FS.
 Measure VR1. VR1 = _____2.0____ VPP
 Measure VS. VS = ______3.3______VPP
 Calculate the Gain: VR1/VS ________0.606__________ .

5. Measure VL, VC and VR:

Set up the circuit as shown in Fig. 8. This is the same as Fig. 7 redrawn here for convenience.

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

Figure 8: Circuit to measure VR with the Scope.

On the Oscilloscope:
1. Set the Amplitude of the Signal Generator to a 5.0VPP Sine at the frequency of fS.
2. Connect CH1 to TP1 and GND. Turn on CH1.
3. Connect CH2 to TP2 and GND. Turn on CH2.
4. Connect CH3 to TP3 and GND. Turn on CH3.
5. Turn Math on and setup CH1 – CH2 to give VL.
6. Set the sensitivity (V/Div) of all channels to make sure no signals are clipping.
7. Record VS which should be CH1. VS ________3.3_________ VPP.
8. Record VR1 which should be CH3. VR1 ________2.0_________VPP.
9. Record VPP across the inductor (MATH). VL = _______12.3_____VPP
10. Setup math to CH2 – CH3.
11. Record VPP across the capacitor. (MATH) VC = ______12.3______VPP

Do the traces you see on the screen make sense according to theory? ___yes___ Why and/or
why not?

The traces for the inductor are ~90 degrees out of phase with Vs and the traces for the
capacitor are ~-90 degrees out of phase with Vs. At resonant this means their voltages cancel
each other to get the most real power out of the circuit.

How can there be more than VS volts across the L and C?

Their impedance includes an imaginary component, therefore allowing the voltage across the
inductor/capacitor to be greater than Vs in total, but not in the real axis.

7. In a series resonant circuit like we have here the voltage across the inductor added to the
voltage across the capacitor should add to 0 at resonance. Equation 1 says that the voltages
are supposed to be equal in magnitude and opposite in phase.

Change the frequency up and down around resonance to minimize VL+VC (the MATH signal).

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

On the Oscilloscope:
Display CH1 (VS) and VL. (Math Ch1 – CH2).
Measure VL (MATH) _______12.3_____ VPP.
Measure Phase from CH1 to VL. Phase VS to VL ___81.9_____
Change MATH to VC. (Ch2 – CH3).
Measure VC (MATH) ____12.3________ VPP.
Measure Phase from CH1 to VC. Phase VS to VC ____-80.9____
Set MATH to CH1-CH3 which is the voltage across both the L and C.
Measure VL+CPP (MATH) _______1.5 V__________
Measure Phase from VS to VL+C. Phase VS to VL+C ____0.5_____ .

Could you get VL+VC to 0? Why or why not? (Hint: real components)
I could not get the Vl+Vc measurement to 0 because of the inductors real resistance due to
the wire coil within it.

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

Exploring the Quality factor of the resonant circuit.

Remember from above Q = FRES/Δf when Δf comes from the voltage across the resistor. We can
calculate the fake Q using the voltage across the inductor. It is not really the Q but it behaves in a
similar fashion. With a high Q circuit the fake Q value is higher than with a low Q circuit.

Is this still an RLC circuit if we short out the 49.9Ω resistor? __yes___.

√
fS ωS ωS L 1 L
Q= = = =
From above Δf Δω R R C
(3)

where: Δω = ω2 - ω1 , the bandwidth of the circuit.

You are going to measure VL with 2 different Q (R) values. Remember at resonance(ωS):

VL SL ω S L
| |
2 2
S S
(ω )=
VS S R 1
=
R R
= =
R with a 90° phase shift.
2
S +S + S
L LC L

Oscilloscope: Measure the voltage across the inductor at resonance. VLRES _____12.3__________

Find the frequencies where the voltage across the inductor is 0.707 times the voltage at resonance.
One frequency is above resonance and one is below resonance. f1 ____7.05 kHz____ f2 ___4.22
kHz_____

Calculate QFAKE = FRES/(f2-f1) ______1.734_______

Short out or remove the 49.9 ohm resistor. Re-measure those 3 voltages.

VLRES0 ______20.0______ f1_0 _______5.80_______ f2_0 ______4.35________.

Calculate QFAKE0 = FRES/(f2_0 - f1_0) _______3.379______

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ECE 271 Lab #1 R-L-C Resonant Circuits

The Q changed when you shorted out the 49.9Ω resistor. Why does the Q change and which one has
a higher Q?

The resistance drops when the resistor is shorted, and according to how Q is calculated this will
increase Q. Less real power is dissipated with less resistance.

Additional Questions

1. According to theory VR/VS at fS (resonance) should be 1. Justify the actual value you
measured.

The values we measured does not show Vr/Vs at resonance to be equal to one because a real
inductor has a significant resistance to it that will drop some voltage over it. Due to this, not all
of the voltage will be across just the resister but also somewhat across the inductor.

2. What does the Q indicate?

Q seems to indicate the efficiency of a circuit. Where a circuit with a high Q value will have a
larger bandwidth, leading to less efficiency and a steeper drop from resonance. When the Q
value is lower, the bandwidth is not as wide and therefore there is a less steep drop off in real
power/voltage across the resistor.

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