Abstract
This chapter provides an overview of op-amps (operational amplifiers) and comparators, with a tailpiece on voltage references. The op-amp is the basic building block for analog circuits, and progress in op-amp performance is the “litmus test” for linear IC technology in much the same way as progress in memory devices is for digital technology. There are bewildering varieties of devices available; op-amps are divided into a few broad categories based on their application, in which the trade-offs are altered in different directions. Microprocessor control has allowed new analog techniques to be developed and one of these is the nulling of input amplifier offsets. The significance of input bias and offset currents is twofold: they determine the steady-state input impedance of the amplifier and they result in added voltage offsets. The input impedance of the non-inverting configuration is determined by the change in input voltage divided by the change in bias current due to it. The performance of an op-amp at high frequency is described by a motley collection of parameters, each of which refers to slightly different operating conditions, such as large-signal bandwidth, or full-power response.
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