Department of Electrical Engineering: Application of Diodes (Zener &limiter Circuits 2)
Department of Electrical Engineering: Application of Diodes (Zener &limiter Circuits 2)
The primary purpose of this lab is to develop additional practical knowledge of diodes. Diodes can
be used in specialized circuits which include voltage limiters, level shifter or clampers, voltage
multipliers especially voltage doubler or tripler circuits. In the previous lab, we looked at some
applications of diode, now we will look at some more applications which would show the versatility
of this simple two terminal device.
Required Resources
The following components, test equipment and software would be required.
a) PN Diode
b) Oscilloscope
c) Function Generator
d) Resistors
e) Capacitors
f) Power Supply
g) PSpice Simulation Software.
The Experiment
The experiment is broken down in two parts; each part is divided into further two parts namely:
implementation and simulation. You are required to observe and record the
simulation/implementation results and answer the given questions. Include your answers in your
lab reports.
In the previous lab exercise you worked with some limiter circuits. In this lab, we will take the
basic limiter circuit and modify come up with modified Vo vs. Vin curve. The second limiter circuit
will be using Zener diodes.
Procedure
a) Using ORCAD PSpice software, draw the circuit diagram as shown in figure
1A.
b) Generate an appropriate the simulation profile and obtain the graphs showing
time domain variation of Vo and Vin on the same chart. Kindly make sure that
the recorded graphs are clear and readable.
c) In addition to the above graphs, get a plot of Vo vs. Vin; make use of axis
variables and traces, do not use Sweep analysis, since we’re only interested
in observing the behavior of Vo as input sine wave varies in time from -10V to
10V.
d) Once the graphs are obtained after simulating the above circuit with the
appropriate simulation profile, answer the questions given at the end of this
part.
Part B:
Procedure:
Patch-up the circuit shown in figure 1B above.
Using a function generator give an input sinusoidal signal as shown in the figure-
1B. Measure the output waveform between the anode of D7 and ground.
Save the waveforms and include these in your report.
Manually draw (use MS Word for curve generation to attach hand drawn curves)
Vo vs. Vin response for this circuit using manual calculations. Include this curve and
all the relevant calculations in your report.
Can you generate the Vo vs. Vin response on the oscilloscope? Explain the
procedure to that you will use and generate the required response on the
oscilloscope and record the result.
Observations/Measurements
Answer the following questions and include them in your report. Support your answers by
mathematical equations where necessary.
a. Using 1N4002 diodes design a circuit that would generate a Vovs Vin response
similar to the one that was obtained using circuit given in figure-1B.
b. Draw the circuit and prove by using relevant equations that your designed circuit
has the required response. Draw a manual plot of Vovs Vin of the designed circuit.
c. Explain logically which circuit is better and more appropriate for practical use.
Lab Report:
Each student group has to submit detailed lab report with proper outputs and
results obtained by performing experiment. The format of the report should be as
explained by the course instructor. Your lab report is due before the