Clipping Circuits
Clipping circuits are circuits that shape the waveform of an input signal by
removing (or clipping) a portion of it. They can remove signal voltages above or
below a specified level. Clippers are widely used in radar, digital, and other
electronic systems. There are many types of clipping circuits, but we will focus on
diode clippers. Diode clippers use diodes to control the output waveform. Diodes
allow current to flow when they are forward biased, and block current when they
are reverse biased.
Types of Diode Clippers
There are three main types of diode clippers:
Positive clipper: This clipper removes the positive half-cycles of the input
voltage. The circuit consists of a diode in series with the load. During the
positive half-cycle, the diode is forward biased and conducts heavily.
Therefore, the voltage across the diode (and the load) is zero. The output
voltage during the positive half-cycle is zero. During the negative half-cycle,
the diode is reverse biased and behaves as an open. In this condition, the
circuit behaves as a voltage divider with an output given by:
−R L
V out = V
R+ R L m
Generally, R L is much greater than R. Therefore, the output voltage is
approximately equal to the negative peak input voltage, -V m. If it is desired to
remove the negative half-cycle of the input, the only thing to be done is to reverse
the polarity of the diode in the circuit. Such a clipper is then called a negative
clipper.
Biased clipper: This clipper removes a small portion of the positive or
negative half-cycle of the signal voltage. The circuit consists of a diode in
series with the load and a battery in parallel with the diode. The polarity of
the battery determines which half-cycle is clipped. A portion of each
positive half-cycle will be clipped if the battery is positive with respect to
the diode. However, the negative half-cycles will appear as such across the
load. Such a clipper is called a biased positive clipper. The circuit action is
as follows. The diode will conduct heavily as long as the input voltage is
greater than the battery voltage, +V . When the input voltage is greater than
+V , the diode behaves as a short and the output equals +V . The output will
stay at +V as long as the input voltage is greater than +V . During the period
the input voltage is less than +V , the diode is reverse biased and behaves as
an open. Therefore, most of the input voltage appears across the output. In
this way, the biased positive clipper removes input voltage above +V .
During the negative half-cycle of the input voltage, the diode remains
reverse biased. Therefore, almost entire negative half-cycle appears across
the load. If it is desired to clip a portion of the negative half-cycles of the
input voltage, the only thing to be done is to reverse the polarity of the diode
or the battery. Such a circuit is then called a biased negative clipper.
Combination clipper: This clipper is a combination of biased positive and
negative clippers. With a combination clipper, a portion of both positive and
negative half-cycles of the input voltage can be removed or clipped. The
circuit consists of two diodes in inverse parallel, each with a battery in
parallel. The circuit action is as follows. When the positive input voltage is
greater than +V 1, diode D1 conducts heavily while diode D2 remains reverse
biased. Therefore, a voltage +V 1 appears across the load. This output stays at
+V 1 as long as the input voltage exceeds +V 1. On the other hand, during the
negative half-cycle, the diode D2 will conduct heavily and the output stays at
−V 2 as long as the input voltage is greater than −V 2. Note that +V 1 and −V 2
are less than +V m and −V m respectively. Between +V 1 and −V 2 neither diode
is on. Therefore, in this condition, most of the input voltage appears across
the load. It is interesting to note that this clipping circuit can give square
wave output if V m is much greater than the clipping levels.
Examples
Example 1: A diode is connected in series with a load of R L = 1 k Ω. The
input voltage is a sinusoidal wave of peak value V m = 12 V. Find the output
voltage and the voltage across the diode.
Solution: When the diode is connected in series with the load, it is called a series
clipper. Since it is a negative clipper, it will remove the negative portion of the
input a.c. signal. During the positive half-cycle of the input signal, the diode is
forward biased. As a result, the diode will conduct. The output voltage is
V out ( peak )=V ¿ ( peak )−0.7=12−0.7=11.3V
During the negative half-cycle of the input signal, the diode is reverse biased and
consequently it will not conduct. Therefore, V out =0. Note that under this condition,
the entire input voltage will appear across the diode.
