From the course: The Challenge of Scale: Semiconductor Innovation and Manufacturing
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Semiconductors as amplifiers
From the course: The Challenge of Scale: Semiconductor Innovation and Manufacturing
Semiconductors as amplifiers
(upbeat music) - So far, we have focused on transistors used for on/off switching, but they are actually non-linear circuit blocks, which can be used for amplification and other analog signal processing as well. One great example of a few transistors combined to form an analog circuit, instead of a digital circuit, is the operational amplifier, endearingly referred to as the op amp. As the name implies, the op amp is used to amplify voltages or occurrence applied across or through it, taking a weak signal and turning it into a strong one. However, the op amp really embodies five functions in one component. It can compare signal, strength, buffer, amplify, shift, or delay, or even invert signals, all depending on how they're wired into the surrounding circuit. Op amps are used across many applications ranging from radio front ends for wireless communication, power grids, sensor systems, microprocessors, everything but the kitchen sink. One challenge as we scale transistor technology…
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