EXPERIMENT Frequency Response of

AC Circuits

FREQUENCY RESPONSE OF
8 AC CIRCUITS

Structure
8.1 Introduction
Objectives
8.2 Characteristics of a Series-LCR Circuit
8.3 Frequency Responses of a Resistor, an Inductor and a
Capacitor
8.4 Frequency Response of a Series-LCR Circuit
8.5 Dependence of Quality Factor on Resistance

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 Experiments with
Electrical and 8.1 INTRODUCTION
Electronic Circuits
In your 10+2 physics curriculum, you have learnt about a resistor, an inductor
and a capacitor. You now know how these are used as passive elements in an
electrical circuit. For instance, a resistor is used to control current in an
electric iron; a capacitor filters ac component and an inductor and a capacitor
are combined to tune to a particular frequency in a radio circuit. These
Component Impedance Reactance elements are said to be passive since they cannot provide any power
Resistor ZR = R XR =R amplification to a signal. Basically all these components offer opposition to
j 1
flow of current through them.
Capacitor ZC = − XC =
ωC
ωC
The measure of opposition to current in a dc circuit is specified in terms of
Inductor ZL =jωL XL = ωL
resistance and for an ac circuit, we use the term impedance. The impedance
of a resistor is independent of frequency. The impedances offered by a
You may recall that in capacitor and an inductor are frequency dependent and are respectively
case of R, the current expressed in terms of their reactances (capacitive and inductive). Due to the
and voltage are in phase
with each other. But frequency dependence reactances, L and C play an important role in ac
while in case of L, the circuits when placed individually, together or in combination with R. In this
voltage leads the current
in phase by π/2, in case experiment, you will get an opportunity to study the behaviour of these
of C, it lags by π/2, as components with variable frequency signals. You will also study the frequency
shown in Fig. 8.1.
responses of these components individually as well as when all of them are
connected in series.

In case of a series-LCR circuit, the frequency response curve exhibits a

resonance frequency with a spread around it. And the spread, determined by
the total circuit impedance, is a measure of the quality factor, Q of the circuit.
It is defined as the ratio of the resonance frequency and the bandwidth of the
resonance curve (at half-power points). In this experiment, you will also study
the dependence of Q on R in a series-LCR circuit.

Objectives
After performing this experiment, you should be able to:

• study frequency responses of a resistor, an inductor and a capacitor;

• draw the frequency response of a series-LCR circuit;
• calculate the quality factor of a series-LCR circuit; and
• study the dependence of Q on R in a series-LCR circuit.

8.2 CHARACTERISTICS OF A SERIES-LCR

CIRCUIT
From your earlier classes, you may recall that combination of RC, RL and LC
Fig. 8.1: Phase responses of
a) R; b) L; and c) C, are used to filter out unwanted frequencies from a desired signal. A frequency
respectively in a very narrow band can be selected by an LCR series or parallel
combination. To understand this, refer to Fig. 8.2, where we have depicted
frequency dependence of reactances of R, L and C. Note that at lower
frequencies, capacitive reactance XC is large and inductive reactance XL is
small. Most of the voltage-drop in a circuit containing L, C and R in series
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combination is then across the capacitor. At high frequencies, the inductive Frequency Response of
reactance is large but the capacitive reactance is low and most of the voltage AC Circuits

drop is then across the inductor. In-between these two extremes, there is a
frequency at which the capacitive and inductive reactances are exactly equal
but act in opposition and cancel each other. This frequency is called
resonance frequency. We have denoted it by fr.

Fig. 8.2: Frequency dependence of reactance for a) R; b) L; and c) C

The resonance frequency is defined by

1
fr = . (8.1)
2π LC At resonance frequency,
the maximum power in a
series-LCR circuit is given
In resonance condition, the impedance is minimum as only the resistance R in by
the circuit opposes the flow of current. The current at resonance frequency is 2
Pmax = i max / R (i)
equal to the applied voltage divided by the circuit resistance, and thus can be
very large if the resistance is low. and output power is
2
For a fixed applied voltage, the expected qualitative variation in circuit current Po = i o /R . (ii)
with frequency is shown in Fig. 8.3. Note that current is maximum at the At half power points, we
resonance frequency and decreases on both sides around it, giving a can write
bell-shaped curve. 1
Po = Pmax .
2

On combining (i) and (ii),

we get
2
2 i max
io =
2
or
i
max
io =
2

= 0.707 i
max

That is, the current in an

LCR-series circuit at half
power points is 0.707 times
the maximum current at
Fig. 8.3: Resonance curve for a series-LCR circuit. fr and ∆f (= fH − fL ) respectively resonance frequency.
denote resonance frequency and bandwidth. fH and fL are the higher and lower
frequencies respectively of the bandwidth.
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 Experiments with At resonance frequency, the maximum power in the circuit is given by
Electrical and
Electronic Circuits
i2 i2

m
a
x

m
a
x
P = = . (8.2)

m
a
x
Z R

From Fig. 8.3, you may conclude that a series-LCR circuit will sustain only
those frequencies which fall within the width of the bell-shape. This
phenomenon facilitates frequency selectivity, which is quantified in terms of
the bandwidth of the circuit. It is defined as the range of frequencies
corresponding to half-power points. Physically, it means that the LCR-circuit
operates and delivers more than half the maximum power in this frequency
range. In Fig. 8.3, the half-power points correspond to 0.707 times the value of
maximum current.

The frequency difference ∆f = fH − fL is a measure of the bandwidth of the

resonance curve. In terms of resonance frequency fr and bandwidth ∆f, we
characterise the quality of a circuit by defining the Quality Factor as Q = fr /∆f.
As such, Q determines the sharpness of resonance. Q is usually used in
designing electronic circuits in communication engineering and the typical
values are of the order of 102 to 105 .

A series-LCR circuit is also called a series resonant circuit. It enables us to

select the signals of only one frequency and reject all the others. The sharper
is the i-f curve of an LCR circuit, the more selective it is for a particular
frequency. The selectivity of an LCR series resonant circuit depends on the
Fig.8.4: Dependence of Q resistance in the circuit. In Fig. 8.4, we have compared i-f curves for two
on resistance
values of R. You will note that the curve corresponding to smaller R is
sharper. That is, the bandwidth is smaller and frequency selectivity would be
better in a low resistance ac circuit.

We use a series-LCR circuit in the antenna circuit of radio and TV receivers.

By suitably adjusting the values of L and C, we tune to the desired radio or TV
station.

Spend SAQ 1 : Tuning using LCR circuit

3 min.
You want to tune your radio to listen to IGNOU programmes. The
frequency of Gyan Vani radio station is located in a densely populated
frequency range that is being used by many broadcasters. What type
of series-LCR circuit should it have: one with a low or a high value of
R? Justify your answer, giving reason.

8.3 FREQUENCY RESPONSES OF A

RESISTOR, AN INDUCTOR AND A
CAPACITOR
You may have realised that while using the alternating current, three
quantities may change in an ac circuit: voltage, current and frequency,
26 depending on the nature of passive element. To study frequency responses of
different circuit components, we must have a suitable variable frequency Frequency Response of
source. For this, in a physics laboratory, we normally use an audio oscillator, AC Circuits

which generates signals of frequencies in the range 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. For

studying the frequency responses of R, L and C, we keep the current constant
and measure voltages VR, VL and VC across R, L and C, respectively for
different values of f. For studying the frequency response of a series-LCR
circuit, we keep the voltage fixed and measure current for different values of f.

An audio oscillator usually has a number of knobs. The three knobs with which
you will work in this experiment are the voltage selector, the range selector
and the frequency selector. The voltage selector determines the voltage of the
oscillator, while the other two knobs deal with frequency. When the frequency
of the output current is varied, the voltage also changes. For keeping the
output voltage fixed, it is safer to vary only frequency and that too in the range
100 Hz to 10,000 Hz. Before starting the experiment, it is important that you
familiarise yourself with its various knobs and input and output leads. To fully
convince yourself, you could also consult your counsellor.

Now, let us list the apparatus required to perform this experiment.

Apparatus

Audio frequency (AF) oscillator, resistors, inductors (in mH range),

capacitors (in µF range), and ac milliammeter, an ac voltmeter, connecting
wires and sand paper.

Procedure

1. Place the oscillator on the table and connect with it the resistor and
milliammeter, as shown in Fig. 8.5a. V is an ac voltmeter, which is
connected across the resistor to measure output voltage.

Fig. 8.5: Circuit diagram for studying frequency responses of a) R; b) L; and c) C

2. Connect the power supply cord of AF oscillator to the ac mains supply.

3. Switch on the main supply. Fix the output voltage at a (low) value so that
current i in the circuit is within the mA range. This may be determined by
using Ohm’s law.
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Experiments with 4. Note the value of current i in the circuit from the milliammeter and record it
Electrical and
Electronic Circuits in Observation Table 8.1. You should keep this value of current
unchanged in this part of the experiment.

5. Now for a frequency f, measure the voltage VR across the resistor R.

Record both f and VR in Table 8.1. Repeat the process for at least ten
different frequencies.
Observation Table 8.1: Frequency response of a resistor
Value of resistance =......................Ω
Current through the resistor, i =......................mA
Voltage across the resistor, VR
S. No. Frequency, f (Hz)
(V)
1.
2.
3.
.
.
10.

6. Replace R by an inductor L (Fig. 8.5b) and repeat steps 3-5. Note that the
output voltage has to be low so as to limit the flow of current through the
inductor circuit. Record your readings in Observation Table 8.2.
Observation Table 8.2: Variation of voltage across an inductor with
frequency
Value of self inductance =.......................mH
Current through the inductor, i =.......................mA
S. No. Frequency, f (Hz) Voltage across the inductor, VL (V)
1.
2.
3.
.
.
10.

7. Replace the inductor L by a capacitor C (Fig. 8.5c) and repeat steps 3-5
taking the same precautions. Record your readings in Observation
Table 8.3.
Observation Table 8.3: Variation of voltage across a capacitor with
frequency
Value of capacitance =…………………..µF
Current through capacitor, i =……………….…..mA
S. No. Frequency, f (Hz) Voltage across the capacitor, Vc (V)
1.
2.
3.
.
.
10.

8. Plot VR versus f, VL versus f and VC versus f .

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How does the nature of frequency response curve change for different passive Frequency Response of
elements in an ac circuit? Do your graphs match with the plots in Fig. 8.2? If AC Circuits
not, discuss your results with your counsellor.

8.4 FREQUENCY RESPONSE OF A

SERIES-LCR CIRCUIT
You have studied the frequency responses of individual circuit components in
Sec. 8.3. Let us now investigate the behaviour of a circuit obtained by series
combination of L, C and R, as shown in Fig. 8.6. Choose the values of L and
C such that the resonance frequency fr lies between 100 Hz and 10,000Hz.
You can calculate fr using Eq. (8.1).

Fig. 8.6: Circuit diagram for studying the frequency response of a series-LCR circuit

Connect the circuit as shown in Fig. 8.6 and note down the values of L, C and
R. Now you can start the experiment. Start with the frequency of 100 Hz and
record the corresponding circuit current in Observation Table 8.4.
Observation Table 8.4: Variation of current with frequency in a series
LCR circuit
Value of resistance R in the circuit =......................Ω
Value of self-inductance L of the coil =......................mH
Value of capacitance C of the capacitor =.......................µF
S. No. Frequency, f (Hz) Current, i (mA)
1.
2.
3.
.
.
10.
Resonance frequency fr =.....................Hz
Resonance current imax =......................mA
Frequencies corresponding to half power points (i = 0.707 imax):
fH =......................Hz, and fL =......................Hz
Bandwidth, ∆f = fH − fL =......................Hz
fr
Quality factor Q = =......................
∆f
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Experiments with You must keep voltage constant during the whole experiment. Vary f and
Electrical and
Electronic Circuits measure current in the circuit for each value of f. You will note that current in
the circuit increases initially, attains a maximum value and begins to decrease
thereafter. Plot f along the x-axis and i along y-axis. Is the curve bell shaped?

Determine the maximum current imax corresponding to resonance frequency fr

from the graph. Record the values of fH and fL corresponding to i = 0.707 imax,
on both sides of the resonance peak. Calculate the bandwidth ∆f = fH – fL
from the graph. You can now calculate the quality factor Q of the resonance
circuit from the ratio of fr and ∆f.

8.5 DEPENDENCE OF QUALITY FACTOR ON

RESISTANCE
Now let us study the effect of R on the bandwidth and effectively the quality
factor of the series-LCR circuit. For this purpose, you should use at least
three different values of resistance and take the observations of circuit current
with frequency variation as in Sec. 8.4. Record your readings in Observation
Table 8.5.
Observation Table 8.5: Frequency response of a series-LCR circuit for
different resistances
Value of self-inductance L =.....................mH
Value of capacitance C =.....................µF
Current (i) in the circuit (mA)
S.No. Frequency, f (Hz)
R1 = …. Ω R2 = …. Ω R3 = …. Ω
1.
2.
3.
.
.
10.

Plot frequency versus current graph for all three cases. Next, note down the
values of fr , fH and fL for each curve and calculate quality factor in each case.
What is your conclusion about the dependence of Q on R?

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