Rectifiers

AET 9

Courtesy of the United States Air Force

Unit 2 - Objective
2a. Identify power supply rectifier
operating principles
OVERVIEW
1. Purpose
Power Supply
Transformer
Rectifier
Filter
Voltage Regulator
AC Terms

Unit 2 - Objective
2a. Identify power supply rectifier
operating principles
OVERVIEW
2.

Characteristics
Half-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Bridge Rectifier

3.

Operation
Half-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Bridge Rectifier

Purpose
Before we get into rectifiers, we are going
to briefly discuss the entire power supply
AC
SOURCE

TRANSFORMER

RECTIFIER

FILTER

VOLTAGE
REGULATOR

TO
LOAD

The purpose of the power

supply is to convert AC voltage
into DC voltage, for use in
circuits where AC voltage is not
acceptable

Purpose
An AC sine wave is fed into the
transformer
AC
SOURCE

TRANSFORMER

RECTIFIER

FILTER

VOLTAGE
REGULATOR

The purpose of the transformer

is to step-up or step-down the
AC voltage or current

TO
LOAD

Purpose
The transformed AC sine wave is fed into
the rectifier
AC
SOURCE

TRANSFORMER

RECTIFIER

FILTER

VOLTAGE
REGULATOR

TO
LOAD

The purpose of the rectifier is to

change the AC into pulsating DC
It also determines the polarity
of the output voltage

Purpose
The pulsating DC is fed into the filter

AC
SOURCE

TRANSFORMER

RECTIFIER

FILTER

VOLTAGE
REGULATOR

The purpose of the filter is to

change the pulsating DC into a
smooth DC

TO
LOAD

Purpose
The Smooth DC is fed into the voltage
regulator
AC
SOURCE

TRANSFORMER

RECTIFIER

FILTER

VOLTAGE
REGULATOR

The purpose of the voltage

regulator is to keep the output
DC voltage constant under
changing input AC voltage or
load conditions

TO
LOAD

Rectifier Operating Principles

Load
Term used to describe the actual device that
draws current from the power supply
The load represents all of the circuits served
by the power supply
A large load means high current, and a low
circuit resistance

Sine Wave Terms

Sine wave
Peak voltage
Peak-to peak
voltage
Effective
voltage
Alternation
Formulas

POSITIVE
PEAK
VOLTAGE

EFFECTIVE VOLTAGE = PEAK VOLTAGE X .707

0V
PEAK VOLTAGE EFFECTIVE X 1.414

NEGATIVE
PEAK
VOLTAGE

POSITIVE

NEGATIVE

ALTERNATION

ALTERNATION
CYCLE

Sine Wave Terms

Sine Wave - A voltage or current that is
continually changing in amplitude, and
periodically changes polarity

Peak Voltage - The maximum amplitude of

the wave on either the positive or negative
alternation

Peak-to-Peak Voltage - The swing in

voltage from the maximum negative peak to
the maximum positive peak

Sine Wave Terms

Effective Voltage (RMS) - The
amount of alternating current or voltage
that produces the same heating effect an
equal amount of direct current or voltage

Alternation - The variation, either

positive or negative, of a waveform from
the reference (often zero volts) to
maximum and back to the reference

Sine Wave Terms

Formulas
Epk = x Epk-pk
Epk = 1.414 x Erms
Epk-pk = 2 x Epk
Epk-pk = 2.828 x Eeff
Eeff = .707 x Epk
Eeff = .3535 x Epk-pk

Characteristics
The next circuits we discuss will include the
first two parts of our power supply, the
transformer and the rectifier
We will cover three different types of rectifiers:

Half-wave
Full-wave
Full-wave Bridge

Characteristics
Half-wave - This circuit consists of one diode, which
will be biased by the secondary of the transformer.
There is a resistor (RL) in series with the diode, and is
used to develop the output voltage
Full-wave - This circuit consists of two diodes, biased
by a transformer with a center-tapped secondary.
There is a resistor (RL) in series with the diodes, and is
used to develop the output voltage
Full-wave Bridge - This circuit consists of four diodes,
biased by the secondary of the transformer. The
layout is normally shown in a diamond shaped
arrangement. There is a resistor (RL) in series with
the diodes, and is used to develop the output voltage

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

We apply the AC to the transformer
If a high voltage is required, a step-up transformer is
used; if a low voltage is required, a step-down
transformer is used
If we do not need a change in voltage level, a one-toone (1:1) transformer is used

T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

The transformer also helps to isolate the DC
output from the AC input
The phasing dots on this transformer signify
that the voltage polarities at these points are
the same

T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

When a diode is forward biased, its resistance
decreases, and majority current flows
When a diode is reverse biased, its resistance
is very large, and we have no majority current
flow

T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

A diode placed in series with an AC source and a load
resistor (RL) will have both forward and reverse bias
applied with every cycle
A forward biased diode allows current to flow, so we
have a pulse of DC in the output
RL represents all of the circuits that will draw current
from the rectifier
T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

We will start with the positive alternation
The voltage at the top of T1s primary is positive
The voltage on the top of the secondary is also
positive (because of the phase dots)
The secondary is functioning as the power source for
the rectifier and the load circuits
T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

The positive voltage felt on the anode of CR1 will
forward bias it
Majority current flows AGAINST the arrow
Current will flow from the bottom of the secondary,
through RL, through the diode, and back to the top of
the secondary
Since RL is very large, it will drop (develop) nearly all
the secondary voltage across RL, and it represents the
positive half of the AC input voltage
We disregard the voltage drop across the forward
biased CR1

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

When the input goes through the negative alternation,
the voltage at the top of T1s secondary is negative
This puts a negative potential on the anode of CR1,
reverse biasing it
The diodes resistance is so large that majority current
stops
T1
1:1

AC INPUT

CR1
OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

RL

0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

Even though minority current could flow, we consider it
to be negligible, and say that the output is zero
This circuit is called a half-wave rectifier because it
only allows majority current to flow for half of the input
AC waveform
This circuit produces a positive output
If a negative output is required, we can reverse the
diode, allowing current to flow in the opposite direction
The next slide compares the positive output rectifier to
one with a with a negative polarity output

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

In the first diagram, the positive alternation forward biases the
diode, while in the second diagram the negative alternation
forward biases the diode
T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

AC INPUT

CR1
+

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

T1
A1:1RECTIFIER
CR1

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

The direction of the diode determines the polarity of the output,
not the phasing of the transformer
As proof, our next slide will compare two circuits, with different
transformer phasing
T1
1:1

AC INPUT
+

AC INPUT

CR1
+

RL

T1
1:1

0V

CR1

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

During the positive alternation, the transformer in the first circuit
passes a positive to the anode (forward biasing it), while in the
second circuit, the transformer puts a negative potential on the
anode (because of the phase difference)

O
W
AC INPUT

1:2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
0V
OUTPUT

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

During the negative alternation, the transformer in the
first circuit will pass a negative to the anode (reverse
biasing it), while in the second circuit, the transformer
will put a positive potential on the anode (forward
biasing it)
The diode was facing in the same direction in both of
these circuits, but because of the phase difference
they receive different alternations
Transformer phase has no effect on output polarity

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

Now that weve seen how current flows and
how we develop an output in the half wave
rectifier, lets apply an AC voltage of definite
values
These same values and formulas will work no
matter if were using a positive output or
negative output rectifier

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

In this diagram, we have a positive output half-wave
rectifier with an input voltage of 200VAC (200 Veff)
The secondary is also 200VAC, or 282.8 Vpk
The positive alternation passes, leaving a positive
voltage output pulse of 282.8 Vpk
We disregard the voltage drop across the diode in our
calculations

AC INPUT
200 VAC

+282V

CR1

0V
200 VAC (EFF)
OR 282V PEAK

RL

282V

60 Hz
0V

AC INPUT
PEAK
VOLTAGE = +282V
AVERAGE
VOLTAGE = +90V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

We can measure the voltage peak across RL using an
oscilloscope
However, if we were to use a voltmeter, we would read
the average voltage
The average voltage of an unfiltered half-wave rectifier
is .318 x Peak output voltage
Therefore, a DC voltmeter would read about +90VDC
(.318 x +282.8 Vpk = +89.93VDC)
AC INPUT
200 VAC

+282V

CR1

0V
200 VAC (EFF)
OR 282V PEAK

RL

282V

60 Hz
0V

AC INPUT
PEAK
VOLTAGE = +282V
AVERAGE
VOLTAGE = +90V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

The output voltage of the half-wave rectifier is in the
form of pulses
In a half-wave rectifier, we get one pulse of output
voltage for every cycle of input AC; this means that the
frequency of the output is the same as the input
The output frequency of a rectifier is given in Pulsesper-Second (PPS); we call it the ripple frequency
(here, the input frequency is 60Hz, and the ripple
frequency is 60PPS)

AC INPUT
200 VAC

+282V

CR1

0V
200 VAC (EFF)
OR 282V PEAK

RL

282V

60 Hz
0V

AC INPUT
PEAK
VOLTAGE = +282V
AVERAGE
VOLTAGE = +90V

Operation - Half-Wave Rectifier

Notice that the output voltage in this circuit goes from
zero to 282V and back to zero
We call this peak voltage change of 282V the ripple
amplitude
The lower the ripple frequency, and the higher the
ripple amplitude, the more difficult it will be to change
this pulsating DC to a smooth DC

AC INPUT
200 VAC

+282V

CR1

0V
200 VAC (EFF)
OR 282V PEAK

RL

282V

60 Hz
0V

AC INPUT
PEAK
VOLTAGE = +282V
AVERAGE
VOLTAGE = +90V

Interim Summary
Half-wave Rectifier
Has one diode
Direction of diode determines polarity of output voltage
Output peak voltage determined by turns ratio of
transformer
Output ripple frequency (in PPS) equals input
frequency (in Hz)
Output ripple amplitude is the same as the transformer
secondary voltage
Average DC output voltage equals .318 times the peak

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

We apply the AC to the transformer
The phase dots signify that the voltage polarities at
these points are the same
The most noticeable difference is the center tap on the
secondary of the transformer

AC INPUT

T1
1:1

CR1

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
RL

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The center-tapped transformer divides the secondary
voltage into two equal amplitude voltages that will be
opposite in polarity with respect to the tap (ground)
The transformers center tap is also tied to one end of
RL providing a current path through the load resistor

AC INPUT

T1
1:1

CR1

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
RL

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The circuit could be drawn like this, creating
two half-wave rectifiers, producing an output
pulse for each of the alternations
Both of the pulses will be the same polarity
and amplitude
T1
1:1
AC INPUT

CR1
RL

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The positive voltage at the top of the
secondary (with respect to ground) will forward
bias CR1
The negative voltage at the bottom of the
secondary (with respect to ground) will reverse
bias CR2
AC INPUT

T1
1:1

CR1

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
RL

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

Ground is negative with respect to the top of the
secondary, so current flows from ground, up through
RL, through CR1 (against the arrow), and back to the
top of T1
Since CR2 is reverse biased, it is shut off during this
alternation

AC INPUT

T1
1:1

CR1

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
RL

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

This develops an output voltage across RL that is
positive with respect to ground
The peak amplitude of the output is the peak
secondary voltage because the secondary is center
tapped
We ignore the voltage drop across CR1

AC INPUT

T1
1:1

CR1

CR2

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
RL

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The negative alternation causes a negative voltage at
the top of the secondary (with respect to ground) will
reverse bias CR1
The positive voltage at the bottom of the secondary
(with respect to ground) will forward bias CR2

T1
1:1

CR1
RL

200 VAC
60 Hz

CR2

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

Ground is negative with respect to the bottom of the
secondary, so current flows from ground, through RL,
through CR2 (against the arrow), and back to the
bottom of T1
CR1 is reverse biased, so it is shut off

T1
1:1

CR1
RL

200 VAC
60 Hz

CR2

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The current flows through RL in the same direction for
both alternations of the input
This produces two pulses of the same polarity and
amplitude
Reversing both diodes will reverse the polarity of the
output pulses

T1
1:1

CR1
RL

200 VAC
60 Hz

CR2

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

Since we produce two pulses for every cycle,
the ripple frequency is two times the AC input
frequency (output in PPS equals 2 x input
frequency in Hz)
Also, since we have two pulses per cycle, well
compute the average voltage differently (the
formula will be .636 x Peak)
Remember, the peak is only of the full
secondary

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

If we use our earlier example of a 200VAC (282.8 Vpk)
input, and a 1:1 transformer, we get a voltage across
the full secondary of 282.8 Vpk
The center tap puts of this voltage available for
each diode (141.4 Vpk)

T1
1:1

CR1
RL

200 VAC
60 Hz

CR2

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

We now use our formula (.636 x Epk) to get
the resulting average voltage:
.636 x 141.4 Vpk = 89.93 VDC

T1
1:1

CR1
RL

200 VAC
60 Hz

CR2

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

You can see that both the half wave and
full wave rectifiers can have the same
Average voltage (as long as the input
amplitude and transformer turns ratio is
the same)
When compared to a half wave rectifier,
we find that the full-wave has a higher
ripple frequency
This allows us to easily filter the output of
a full-wave rectifier

Operation - Full-Wave Rectifier

The ripple amplitude of the unfiltered fullwave rectifier may be smaller than that of
the half-wave, only because the peak
output of the full-wave rectifier is half the
peak of the secondary
In order for the half-wave and the fullwave rectifiers to have the same peak
outputs, the transformer of the full-wave
must have double the turns ratio of the
half wave

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The bridge rectifier is a type of full wave
rectifier
It differs from the previous full-wave rectifier in
that a center-tapped transformer is not used,
and it requires four diodes
1:1
CR1
200 VAC
60 Hz

282 V
PEAK

CR3
CR4
CR2

RL

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

This rectifier, like the previous full-wave,
allows both the positive and negative
alternations of the sine wave to be used
Our next slides will show how this is possible

1:1
CR1
200 VAC
60 Hz

282 V
PEAK

CR3
CR4
CR2

RL

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The positive alternation forward biases CR3 and CR4
CR2 is reverse biased (has a negative voltage applied
to its anode)
CR1 is reverse biased (has a positive voltage applied
to its cathode

1:1

+
CR1
282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

282V

CR4

+
CR2

RL

+282V
0V

CR3

AC
INPUT

+282V
0V

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

Current flows from the transformer, through CR4 to the
ground
The ground is attached to one end of RL, so current
flows up through RL
From the top of RL, current flows through CR3 back to
the transformer
+

1:1

+
CR1
282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

282V

CR4

AC
INPUT

+
CR2

+282V
0V

CR3

RL

+282V
0V

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

Current flows through the diodes against the
arrows
You see that the voltage at the top of RL is
positive with respect to ground
+

1:1

+
CR1
282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

282V

CR4

AC
INPUT

+
CR2

+282V
0V

CR3

RL

+282V
0V

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The negative alternation forward biases CR1
and CR2
CR3 and CR4 are reverse biased

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

Current flows from the transformer, through
CR1 to the ground
Current flows up through RL
From the top of RL, current flows through CR2
back to the transformer

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

You see that the voltage at the top of RL is positive
with respect to ground
The direction of the diodes determines the polarity of
the output voltage (direction of current through RL

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The Bridge rectifier produces two output
pulses for each input cycle (output freq in PPS
= 2 x input freq in Hz)

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

Since both alternations produce a pulse, and
the voltage of the entire secondary is used,
then the average voltage equals .636 x peak
of the secondary

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The unfiltered bridge rectifier has a higher
average voltage that either the half or full wave
rectifiers

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The ripple frequency is higher than that of a
half wave, which makes it easier to change the
pulsating DC to smooth DC

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

The ripple amplitude of the bridge rectifier will
be the same as that of the half wave

1:1

CR1

CR3

282 V
PEAK

200 VAC
60 Hz

+
CR4

0V
282V

CR2

+282V
AC
INPUT

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

+282V
0V

RL

OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

AQR30020010-9307-1380

Rectifier Summary

Unit 2 - Objective
2a. Identify power supply rectifier
operating principles
1. Purpose
Power Supply
Transformer
Rectifier
Filter
Voltage Regulator
AC Terms

Unit 2 - Objective
2a. Identify power supply rectifier
operating principles
2. Characteristics
Half-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Bridge Rectifier
3. Operation
Half-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Rectifier
Full-wave Bridge Rectifier