ANALOG ADVENTURES
Hopefully, since our last installment, you’ve taken the opportunity to toss together and test a very simple op-amp-centered amplifier without releasing too much magic smoke. (Don’t worry if you did happen to release some magic smoke; it’s probably the best way to learn how to make electronic circuits work. Truth be told, my very personality is largely the result of having inhaled solder fumes and released magic smoke for several decades. Far be it from me to deprive any new ham of such an enriching experience).
Today, we will talk a bit about amplifying DC signals. As uninspiring as that may sound, it is an extremely useful skill to learn, and actually a lot more interesting than you may have thought.
Traditionally, electronics courses have divided electrical and electronic circuits into two basic categories, DC and AC. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with this tradition, it does tend to create something of an artificial distinction between the two technologies.
Instead, I like to look at DC as being 0 Hz AC.
Zero is a Number, Too!
One fine evening, when our middle daughter Jessica was about four years old, she came into the living room with a plate of cookies. She handed me cookie from the plate. I said, “You know I hate odd cookies.” She grabbed my lone cookie back and said, “Zero is an even number, too.”
