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Electronics => Beginners => Topic started by: advark on September 10, 2020, 09:30:06 pm

Title: BJT transistor current calculation
Post by: advark on September 10, 2020, 09:30:06 pm
Hi everyone,

I'm having some problem solve this circuit and I'm wondering what am I missing. Assuming Vbe is 0.7V and Hfe is 100. I want to calculate Ib and Ic.
First off, I get VR3

VR3 = Vcc *( R3 / ( R3 +R2 ))
       = 12 *( 1K / ( 1K +10K ))
       = 1.09V
VR2 = Vcc - VR3
       = 12 - 1.091
       = 10.91 V

Since Vbe is 0.7V and VR3 is 1.091V then VR4 must/should be 0.391V, because VR4 +Vbe should equals VR3.
So Ib (which is the same as IR4) must be 0.391 mA (VR4/R4).
The same goes for IR3 = VR3/R3 = 1.01 mA
Then again, IR2 = VR2/R2 = 1.091 mA

According to Mr. Kirchkoff, IR2 = IR3+ IR4 but 1.091 = 1.01 +0.391 is false...  :wtf:

What am I missing here??? My guest is that because R3 is in parallel with R4 my initial formula is wrong. But how can I account for the Vbe drop in that formula (or is there another formula)?  :-//

Thanks for any hints.
Title: Re: BJT transistor current calculation
Post by: ledtester on September 10, 2020, 10:02:18 pm
Quote
VR3 = Vcc *( R3 / ( R3 +R2 ))
       = 12 *( 1K / ( 1K +10K ))

That's just an approximation. It doesn't account for the current through the base resistor.

Here's a simulation of the transistor biasing with the assumption that Vbe = 0.75V -- you can redo the calculation for a more conventional value of 0.6 or 0.7:

[attach= 1]

Just create variables for the voltage and current for each node, write out the relationships between them and then solve the system of equations.
Title: Re: BJT transistor current calculation
Post by: John B on September 10, 2020, 10:21:46 pm
Yeah some textbooks just assert that the voltage at the base node will be the same as a voltage divider rule, but that is only approximately close when the current through the resistors is orders of magnitude greater than the base current, therefore introducing only a small error.