Power Gain Stages for Monolithic Amplifiers

Overview

Authored by Jim Williams, this application note describes techniques for increasing the output power of monolithic amplifiers using external gain stages or boosters. Because standard ICs are limited by processing techniques to a few hundred milliwatts, these stages are used within the feedback loop to provide additional current and voltage while maintaining the IC's stability and low drift. The document provides detailed circuit designs including 150mA buffers using the LT1010, 3A high-current discrete stages, and an ultrafast feed-forward booster with slew rates exceeding 1000V/μs. It also explores rail-to-rail voltage gain stages using CMOS logic inverters and complementary common-emitter configurations.

Referenced Parts