ETC LM1207AN

LM1205A/LM1207A
130 MHz/85 MHz RGB Video Amplifier System with
Blanking
General Description
The LM1205A/LM1207A is a very high frequency video amplifier system intended for use in high resolution RGB monitor applications. In addition to the three matched video amplifiers, the LM1205A/LM1207A contains three gated single
ended input black level clamp comparators for brightness
control, three matched DC controlled attenuators for contrast
control, and three DC controlled sub-contrast attenuators
providing gain trim capability for white balance. All DC control inputs offer high input impedance and an operation
range from 0V to 4V for easy interface to bus controlled
alignment systems. The LM1205A/LM1207A also contains a
blanking circuit which clamps the video output voltage during
blanking to within 0.1V above ground. This feature provides
blanking capability at the cathodes of the CRT. A spot killer is
provided for CRT phosphor protection during power-down.
Features
n Three wideband video amplifiers 130 MHz (LM1205A) @
−3 dB (4 VPP output)
n Matched ( ± 0.1 dB or 1.2%) attenuators for contrast
control
n ESD susceptibility above 3 kV
n Three externally gated single ended input comparators
for cutoff and brightness control
n 0V to 4V, high input impedance DC contrast control
( > 40 dB range)
n 0V to 4V, high input impedance DC drive control for
each video amplifier (−6 dB to 0 dB range)
n Spot killer, blanks output when VCC < 10.6V
n Capable of 7 VPP output swing (slight reduction in
bandwidth)
n Output stage blanking
n Output stage directly drives most hybrid or discrete CRT
drivers
Applications
n
n
n
n
High resolution RGB CRT monitors
Video AGC amplifiers
Wideband amplifiers with gain and DC offset controls
Interface amplifiers for LCD or CCD systems
Block and Connection Diagram
DS012866-1
FIGURE 1.
Order Number LM1205AN or LM1207AN, See NS Package Number N28B
© 1997 National Semiconductor Corporation
DS012866
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LM1205A/LM1207A 130 MHz/85 MHz RGB Video Amplifier System with Blanking
August 1996
Absolute Maximum Ratings
Thermal Resistance (θJA)
Junction Temperature (TJ)
ESD Susceptibility (Note 4)
ESD Machine Model (Note 15)
Storage Temperature
Lead Temperature
(Soldering, 10 sec.)
(Note 1)
If Military/Aerospace specified devices are required,
please contact the National Semiconductor Sales Office/
Distributors for availability and specifications.
Supply Voltage (VCC)
Pins 3, 11, 22, 23, 25 (Note 3)
Peak Video Output Source Current
(Any One Amp) Pins 17, 20 or 26
Voltage at Any Input Pin (VIN)
Power Dissipation (PD)
(Above 25˚C Derate Based on θJA
and TJ)
15V
28 mA
VCC ≥ VIN ≥ GND
Operating Ratings
50˚C/W
150˚C
3 kV
350V
−65˚C to 150˚C
265˚C
(Note 2)
Temperature Range
Supply Voltage (VCC)
−20˚C to 80˚C
10.8V ≤ VCC ≤ 13.2V
2.5W
DC Electrical Characteristics
See DC Test Circuit (Figure 2), TA = 25˚C; VCC1 = VCC2 = 12V. V12 = 4V; V14 = 0V; Vcut-off = 1.0V; V13 = 4V; Vdrive = 4V unless otherwise stated.
Symbol
Parameter
Conditions
VCC1 + VCC2, RL = ∞ (Note 7)
Typical
Limit
(Note 5)
(Note 6)
90
105
Units
IS
Supply Current
V4, 6, 9
Video Amplifier Input Bias Voltage
RIN
Video Input Resistance
Any One Amplifier
V14l
Clamp Gate Low Input Voltage
Clamp Comparators On
1.2
0.8
V14h
Clamp Gate High Input Voltage
1.6
2.0
V (min)
I14l
Clamp Gate Low Input Current
Clamp Comparators Off
V14 = 0V
−1
−5
µA (max)
I14h
Clamp Gate High Input Current
V14 = 12V
0.01
1.0
µA (max)
Iclamp
Clamp Cap Charge Current
Clamp Comparators On
± 750
± 500
µA (min)
Ibias
Clamp Cap Bias Discharge Current
Clamp Comparators Off
500
V13l
Blank Gate Low Input Voltage
Blank Gate On
1.2
0.8
V (max)
V13h
Blank Gate High Input Voltage
2.0
V (min)
Blank Gate Low Input Current
−8.5
−11.0
µA (max)
I13h
Blank Gate High Input Current
Blank Gate Off
V13 = 0V
V13 = 12V
1.6
I13l
VOL
Video Output Low Voltage
VOH
Video Output High Voltage
VO(1V)
Video Black Level Output Voltage
∆VO(1V)
Video ∆ Black Level Output Voltage
V
20
kΩ
V (max)
nA
0.01
1.0
µA (max)
Vcut-off = 0V
Vcut-off = 9V
Vcut-off = 1V
0.15
0.5
V (max)
7.5
7
V (min)
1.0
V
(Note 8)
Between Any Two Amplifiers,
Vcut-off = 1V
V13 = 0V
± 100
mV (max)
−250
10.4
VOL(blanked)
Video Output Blanked Voltage
I12, 15, 18 or 28
Contrast/Drive Control Input Current
I16, 19 and 27
Cut-Off Control Input Current (All Inputs)
Vcontrast = Vdrive = 0V to 4V
Vcut-off = 0V to 4V
Vspot
Spot Killer Voltage
VCC Adjusted to Activate
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mA (max)
2.8
2
35
70
mV (max)
nA
−500
nA
10.8
V (max)
AC Electrical Characteristics
(Note 14)
See AC Test Circuit (Figure 3 ) , TA = 25˚C; VCC1 = VCC2 = 12V. Manually adjust Video Output pins 17, 20, and 26 to 4V DC
for the AC test unless otherwise stated.
Symbol
AV max
Parameter
Video Amplifier Gain
∆AV 2V
Attenuation @ 2V
∆AV 0.25V
Attenuation @ 0.25V
∆Drive
Drive Control Range
AV match
Absolute Gain Match @ AV max
AV track1
Gain Change Between Amplifiers
THD
Video Amplifier Distortion
f (−3 dB)
Video Amplifier Bandwidth
(Note 11) (Note 12)
tr(Video)
tf(Video)
Video Output Rise Time (Note 11)
Video Output Fall Time (Note 11)
Conditions
V12 = 4V, VIN = 635 mVPP
Vdrive = 4V
Ref: AV max, V12 = 2V
VO = 4 VPP
VO = 4 VPP
VO = 4 VPP
Limit
(Note 6)
LM1205A
7.0
6.0
V/V (min)
15.6
dB (min)
dB
6
dB
± 0.3
± 0.1
dB
%
130
MHz
85
2.6
LM1207A
4.3
LM1205A
3.6
LM1207A
4.3
Video Amplifier 10 kHz Isolation
Video Amplifier 10 MHz Isolation
tr(Blank)
Blank Output Rise Time (Note 11)
V12 = 4V (Note 13)
V12 = 4V (Note 11) (Note 13)
Blank Output = 1 VPP
tf(Blank)
Blank Output Fall Time (Note 11)
Blank Output = 1 VPP
tpw(Clamp)
Min. Back Porch Clamp Pulse
Width
dB
1
LM1205A
Vsep 10 MHz
dB
−40
LM1207A
Vsep 10 kHz
Units
16.9
−6
Ref: AV max, V12 = 0.25V
Vdrive = 0V to 4V, V12 = 4V
V12 = 4V, Vdrive = 4V (Note 9)
V12 = 4V to 2V (Note 9) (Note 10)
VO = 1 VPP, f = 10 kHz
V12 = 4V, Vdrive = 4V,
Typical
(Note 5)
ns
ns
−70
dB
−50
dB
7
ns
7
ns
200
ns
Note 1: Absolute Maximum Ratings indicate limits beyond which damage to the device may occur.
Note 2: Operating Ratings indicate conditions for which the device is functional, but do not guarantee specific performance limits. For guaranteed specifications and
test conditions, see the Electrical Characteristics. The guaranteed specifications apply only for the test conditions listed. Some performance characteristics may degrade when the device is not operated under the listed test conditions.
Note 3: VCC supply pins 3, 11, 22, 23, 25 must be externally wired together to prevent internal damage during VCC power on/off cycles.
Note 4: Human body model, 100 pF discharged through a 1.5 kΩ resistor.
Note 5: Typical specifications are specified at +25˚C and represent the most likely parametric norm.
Note 6: Tested limits are guaranteed to National’s AOQL (Average Outgoing Quality Level).
Note 7: The supply current specified is the quiescent current for VCC1 and VCC2 with RL = ∞, see Figure 2 ’s test circuit. The supply current for VCC2 (pin 23) also
depends on the output load. With video output at 1V DC, the additional current through VCC2 is 8 mA for Figure 2 ’s test circuit.
Note 8: Output voltage is dependent on load resistor. Test circuit uses RL = 390Ω.
Note 9: Measure gain difference between any two amplifiers. VIN = 635 mVPP.
Note 10: ∆AV track is a measure of the ability of any two amplifiers to track each other and quantifies the matching of the three attenuators. It is the difference in
gain change between any two amplifiers with the contrast voltage (V12) at either 4V or 2V measured relative to an AV max condition, V12 = 4V. For example, at AV
max the three amplifiers’ gains might be 17.1 dB, 16.9 dB and 16.8 dB and change to 11.2 dB, 10.9 dB, and 10.7 dB respectively for V12 = 2V. This yields the measured typical ± 0.1 dB channel tracking.
Note 11: When measuring video amplifier bandwidth or pulse rise and fall times, a double sided full ground plane printed circuit board without socket is recommended. Video amplifier 10 MHz isolation test also requires this printed circuit board. The reason for a double sided full ground plane PCB is that large measurement
variations occur in single sided PCBs.
Note 12: Adjust input frequency from 10 MHz (AV max reference level) to the −3 dB corner frequency (f−3 dB).
Note 13: Measure output levels of the other two undriven amplifiers relative to the driven amplifier to determine channel separation. Terminate the undriven amplifier
inputs to simulate generator loading. Repeat test at fIN = 10 MHz for Vsep 10 MHz.
Note 14: During the AC tests the 4V DC level is the center voltage of the AC output signal. For example, if the output is 4 VPP the signal will swing between 2V DC
and 6V DC.
Note 15: Machine Model ESD test is covered by specification EIAJ IC-121-1981. A 200 pF cap is charged to the specified voltage, then discharged directly into the
IC with no external series resistor (resistance of discharge path must be under 50Ω).
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Typical Performance Characteristics
VCC = 12V, TA = 25˚C unless otherwise specified
Attenuation vs Drive Voltage
Attenuation vs Contrast Voltage
DS012866-3
DS012866-2
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Typical Performance Characteristics
VCC = 12V, TA = 25˚C unless otherwise specified (Continued)
LM1205A Crosstalk vs Frequency
DS012866-4
LM1205A Contrast vs Frequency
DS012866-5
LM1205A Drive vs Frequency
DS012866-6
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Typical Performance Characteristics
VCC = 12V, TA = 25˚C unless otherwise specified (Continued)
LM1207A Crosstalk vs Frequency
DS012866-7
LM1207A Contrast vs Frequency
DS012866-8
LM1207A Drive vs Frequency
DS012866-9
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Testing Circuit
DS012866-10
FIGURE 2. LM1205AN/LM1207AN DC Test Circuit
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Testing Circuit
(Continued)
DS012866-11
FIGURE 3. LM1205AN/LM1207AN AC Test Circuit
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Evaluation Circuit
DS012866-12
FIGURE 4. LM1205AN/LM1207AN PCB Test Circuit
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example of an effective ground plane, yet using only a single
sided PCB layout. Here is a check list to make sure a PC
board layout has good grounding:
ESD and Arc-Over Protection
The ESD cells of the LM1205A/LM1207A are improved over
the original LM1205/LM1207 parts. The monitor designer
must still use good PC board layout techniques when designing with the LM1205A/LM1207A. The human body
model ESD susceptibility of these parts is rated at 3 kV (Note
4) . This is a 50% improvement over the original parts. However, many monitor manufacturers are now testing their
monitors to the level 4 of the IEC 801-2 specification. This requires the inputs to the monitor to survive an 8 kV discharge.
If the monitor designer expects to survive such levels he
MUST provide external ESD protection to the video pre-amp
inputs! PC board layout is just as important with these new
parts as with the original LM1205/LM1207 parts. The advantage given by the LM1205A/LM1207A will provide better protection against ESD and arc-over, but these improved parts
are not a substitute for good PCB layout.
All associated grounds with the video pre-amp are connected together through a large ground plane.
•
CRT driver ground is connected to the video pre-amp
ground at one point.
•
CRT and arc protection grounds are connected directly to
chassis, or the main ground. There is no arc-over current
flow from these grounds through the pre-amp or CRT
driver grounds.
If any one of the above suggestions are not followed, then
the LM1205A/LM1207A may become vulnerable to
arc-overs. Improper grounding is by far the most common
cause of a video pre-amp failure during arc-over.
Figure 5 shows the recommended input protection for a
video pre-amp. The two diodes at the video pre-amp input
and after the 30Ω series resistor offers the best protection
against ESD. When this protection is combined with a good
PCB layout, the video pre-amp will easily survive the IEC
801-2 level 4 (8 kV ESD) testing commonly done by monitor
manufacturers. If the protection diodes are moved to the
video input side of the 30Ω resistor, then the ESD protection
will be less effective. There is also the risk of damaging the
diodes since there is no resistor for current limiting. In such
a design a heavier duty diode, such as the FDH400, should
be used. It is strongly recommended that the protection diodes be added as shown in Figure 5. The 1N4148 diode has
a maximum capacitance of 4 pF. This would have little effect
on the response of the video system due to the low impedances of the input video.
Many monitor designers prefer to use a single zener diode
instead of the recommended two diodes at the video
pre-amp input. The required location of the zener diode is
shown in Figure 5. It is shown as a dashed line, indicating an
alternative to the two diode solution. The zener diode does
give the savings of one component, but now the protection is
less effective. To minimize capacitance, the zener diode
needs to have a zener voltage of 24V or higher. This is well
above the VCC voltage of the LM1205A/LM1207A. The zener
diode must be located at the video input for protection
against a low voltage surge. The 30Ω resistor is needed to
limit the current of such a voltage surge, protecting the video
pre-amp. Protection against ESD by using a zener diode is
about as effective as having the two diodes at the video input
(same location as the zener diode). A higher series resistor
may be necessary for protection against the zener voltage,
but this may also have an effect on the system bandwidth.
The new ESD cells of the LM1205A/LM1207A also increases its tolerance against arc-over. Once again the monitor designer must be careful in his PCB layout for good ESD
protection. In the video chain only the outputs of the CRT
driver are directly exposed to the voltages that may occur
during arc-over. A good PCB layout is the best protection for
the video pre-amp against arc-over. The pre-amp vulnerability is mainly through the ground traces on the PCB. For
proper operation all ground connections associated with the
video pre-amp, including the grounds to the bypass capacitors, must have short returns to the ground pins. A significant
ground plane should be used to connect all the pre-amp
grounds. Figure 16, the demo board layout, is an excellent
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•
DS012866-30
FIGURE 5. Recommended Video Input ESD Protection
10
During the back porch period of the video signal a negative
going clamp pulse from pin 14 is applied to the clamp comparator, turning on the comparator. This period is where the
black level of the video signal at the output of the LM1205A/
LM1207A is compared to the desired black level which is set
at pin 19. Figure 7 shows the timing of the clamp pulse relative to the video signal. The clamp capacitor is charged or
discharged by gm1, generating the correction voltage
needed at the inverting input of A2 to set the video output to
the correct DC level. Removing the clamp pulse turns off
gm1 with the correction voltage being maintained by the
clamp capacitor during active video. Both the clamp pulse
and the blank pulse at pin 13 are TTL voltage levels.
Functional Description
Figure 6 is a detailed block diagram of the green channel of
the LM1205A/LM1207A along with the recommended external components. The IC pin numbers are circled and all external components are shown outside the dashed line. The
other two video channels are identical to the green channel,
only the numbers to the pins unique to each channel are different. The input video is normally terminated into 75Ω. The
termination resistor depends on the impedance of the coax
cable being used, 75Ω being the most common impedance
used in video applications. The video signal is AC coupled
through a 10 µF capacitor to the input, pin 6. There is no
standard for the DC level of a video signal, therefore the signal must be AC coupled to the LM1205A/LM1207A. Internal
to the LM1205A/LM1207A is a 2.8V reference, giving the input video an offset voltage of 2.8V. This voltage was selected
to give the input video enough DC offset to guarantee that
the lowest voltage of the video signal at pin 6 is far enough
above ground to keep the LM1205A/LM1207A in the active
region. The 200Ω resistor at the input is for ESD protection
and for current limiting during any voltage surge that may occur at the input, driving pin 6 above VCC. The input video signal is buffered by −A1. In this circuit description an inverting
amplifier is shown with a “−” (minus sign) in front of the amplifier designation. The output of −A1 goes to the contrast
and drive attenuator sections.
The contrast and drive control sections are virtually identical.
Both sections take a 0V to 4V input voltage, 4V giving the
maximum gain for either the contrast or the drive. This is a
high impedance input, allowing for an easy interface to 5V
DACs. One may also use 100k potentiometers with no degradation in performance. The contrast control section is common to all three channels. It converts the input voltage at pin
12 to a couple of internal DC voltages that control the gain of
the contrast attenuator. Referring to the Attenuation vs Contrast Voltage under typical performance characteristics note
that a 4V control voltage results in no attenuation of the
video signal. A 0.25V control voltage results in an attenuation
of 40 dB. Again note that these internal control voltages are
common to all three channels. To minimize crosstalk, these
voltages go to pins 1 and 2. Minimizing crosstalk is done by
adding the RC network shown in the block diagram
(Figure 6).
The 0V to 4V drive control signal comes in on pin 18. Each
channel has its own drive section, therefore the crosstalk
compensation needed for the contrast control voltages is not
required for the drive control, thus no external pins for the
drive control. The drive attenuator gives an attenuation
range from 0 dB to −6 dB. A small gain adjustment range for
the drive attenuator is desirable and intentionally designed
because the drive is used only to balance the overall gain of
each color channel, giving the correct color temperature on
the CRT.
The output of the drive attenuator stage goes to A2, the amplifier in the DC restoration section. The video signal goes to
the non-inverting input of A2. The inverting side of A2 goes to
the output of gm1, the clamp comparator, and the clamp capacitor at pin 8.
There are actually two output sections, −A3 and −A4. Both
sections have been designed to be identical, except −A4 has
more current drive capability. The output transistor shown is
part of −A4, but has been shown separately so the user
knows the configuration of the output stage. −A3 does not go
to the outside world, it is used for feeding back the video signal for DC restoration. Its output goes directly to the inverting
input of the clamp comparator via the voltage divider formed
by the 500Ω and 4k resistors. −A4 will be close to the same
output as −A3 and will temperature track due to the similar
design of the two output stages. However, the current at the
output of −A4 will be ten times the current at the output of
−A3. To balance both outputs, a load resistance of 390Ω
needs to be connected from pin 20, the green video output
pin, to ground. Another input to −A4 is the blank pulse. When
a negative going blank pulse is applied to pin 13, the output
of the LM1205A/LM1207A is driven to less than 0.1V above
ground. Using the timing shown in Figure 7 for the blank
pulse, the output of the LM1205A/LM1207A will be less than
0.1V during the inactive portion of the video signal. This is a
“blacker than black” condition, blanking the CRT at the cathodes. By using the blank function of the LM1205A/LM1207A
no grid blanking is necessary. Note that the DC restoration is
done by feeding back the video signal from −A3, but blanking is done at −A4. By using the two output stages, blanking
can be done at the CRT cathodes, and at the same time activate the DC restoration loop.
VCC1 goes to pins 3, 11, and 25 (see Figure 1 ). These three
pins are all internally connected. For proper operation of the
LM1205A/LM1207A it is necessary to connect all the VCC1
pins to the input power to the PCB and bypass each pin with
a 0.1 µF capacitor. VCC2 is the input power at pins 22 and 23
for the three output stages. This is a separate power input
from VCC1, there are no internal connections between the
two different power inputs. There must be a connection on
the PCB between VCC1 and VCC2. Pins 22 and 23 must be
bypassed by a parallel connection of a 10 µF and 0.1 µF capacitors. The ground connections for the LM1205A/
LM1207A are at pins 7, 21, and 24. All three ground pins are
internally connected, and these pins must also be connected
externally to a good ground plane for proper operation of the
LM1205A/LM1207A.
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Functional Description
(Continued)
DS012866-14
FIGURE 6. Block Diagram of LM1205A/LM1207A Video Amplifier
components are shown outside the dashed line. The video
input is applied to pin 6 via a 10 µF coupling capacitor and a
30Ω resistor. The resistor is added to limit the current
through the input pin should an applied voltage surge rise
above VCC or drop below ground. The performance of the
LM1205A/LM1207A is not degraded by the 30Ω resistor.
However, if EMI is a concern this resistor can be increased to
well over 100Ω where the rise and fall times will start to become longer. DC bias to the input pin is provided by Q5 and
its associated input circuitry. Z1 is a 5.6V zener that generates the input bias voltage. Q1 is a buffer to the zener reference voltage with 5.0V generated at its emitter. Q3 and Q4
are connected as diodes. Q2 is close to being a diode in this
circuit. This configuration will give about 2.0V at the collector
of Q2. R2 and R3 are a voltage divider, setting the base of
Q5 to about 3.5V. This sets the emitter of Q5 to about 2.8V,
the bias voltage of the video input. This bias voltage is necessary to assure that the entire video signal stays within the
active operating region of the LM1205A/LM1207A. The bias
voltage goes through R6, a 20k resistor, to the video input at
pin 6. R4 and R6 are of the same value and R4 is used to
compensate for beta variations of the transistors. Note that
the bias voltage passes through three diode drops (Q5, Q6,
DS012866-15
FIGURE 7. Timing Diagram
Circuit Description
VIDEO AMPLIFIER INPUT STAGE
Figure 8 is a simplified schematic of one of the three video
amplifiers input stage along with the recommended external
components. The IC pin numbers are circled and all external
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12
Circuit Description
channel has its own drive control circuit. Increasing the voltage to the base of Q11 increases the video gain (drive) of the
LM1205A/LM1207A. R10 and R11 are of the same value,
but R10 is common to both Q10 and Q11. If all the current is
flowing through Q10, the video amplitude would only be half
of the maximum gain (all current flowing through Q11). This
gives the drive control a total gain adjustment range of 6 dB.
Since the drive control is only used to balance the color of
each channel a small adjustment range is desirable. Q12
through Q17 are part of the final section shown in Figure 8.
DC restoration is done at this stage. The clamp comparator
(Figure 11) drives the clamp cap at pin 8 to a voltage that
sets the correct black level of the video signal. This cap is
also connected to the base of Q17. Q17 and Q16 are one
half of the darlington differential pair. The clamp cap voltage
establishes the current flow through R16, Q15, and R15.
With the bases of Q14 and Q15 held to the same voltage the
current through Q15 is mirrored into Q14 and the other half
of the differential pair, Q12 and Q13. By this current mirror
the voltage at the collector of Q14 is set to the correct DC
value for the video signal by controlling the voltage drop
across R13, completing the DC restoration.
(Continued)
and Q7) before setting the voltage across R9. Q2, Q3, and
Q4 also provide three diode drops to the bias voltage at the
base of Q5, temperature compensating for the diode drops
of Q5, Q6, and Q7. This insures that the bias voltage across
R9 remains very constant over temperature, providing an accurate bias current for the differential transistor pair Q8 and
Q9, thus assuring proper operation of the contrast control.
Q6 serves as a buffer to the input video signal. Its emitter
drives the base of Q7. Thus the video signal modulates the
current flowing through R9, which in turn modulates the currents through the differential pair formed by Q8 and Q9. The
current flow through Q8 and Q9 is controlled by a DC voltage
from the Contrast Control circuit. This DC voltage is common
to all three channels. Increasing the voltage to the base of
Q9 with respect to the base of Q8 increases the current flow
through Q9. A higher current flow through Q9 increases the
video gain (contrast) of the LM1205A/LM1207A. Q10 and
Q11 also form a differential pair at the collector of Q9. The
operation of this differential pair is similar to Q8 and Q9. The
DC control voltage is from the Drive Control circuits. Each
DS012866-16
FIGURE 8. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Video Amplifier Input Stage
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Circuit Description
transistors in the other two channels. In the balanced condition the voltage at pin 2 will also be two diode drops below
1⁄2V
CC, giving a well balanced drive to the differential pair
consisting of Q8 and Q9 in the video amplifier input stage.
With the contrast voltage set to 0V, the voltage at pin 2 will
increase by about 400 mV to 500 mV. A 4V contrast voltage
decreases the voltage at pin 2 by about 400 mV to 500 mV
from the balanced condition. Reviewing Figure 8 note that
decreasing the voltage at pin 2 will decrease the current flow
through Q8. Thus the current flow through Q9 increases, increasing the gain of the LM1205A/LM1207A. So increasing
the contrast control voltage at pin 12 increases the gain of
the LM1205A/LM1207A. The contrast control voltage from
Q46 and Q50 is common to all three channels. To minimize
crosstalk it is necessary to add a decoupling capacitor of
0.1 µF across R37 and R40. Since this can only be done externally, these two nodes are brought out to pins 1 and 2.
The 30Ω resistor is added in series with the capacitor for improving stability. To prevent a destructive current surge due
to shorting either pins 1 or 2 to ground R38 was added for
current limiting.
(Continued)
CONTRAST CONTROL
Figure 9 is a simplified schematic of the Contrast Control circuit. The output of this circuit is common to all three channels. A reference voltage is generated by Z2, Q34, Q35,
R30, and R31. Q36, Q39, and Q41 are all current sources
that are controlled by the reference voltage. The contrast
signal has a 0V to 4V range with its input at pin 12. R32 is
used for current limiting any voltage surge that may occur at
pin 12. Note that the input stage (Q37, Q38, and Q42) are all
PNP transistors. This configuration is necessary for operation down to near ground. At Q44 the input voltage is converted to a current by R33. The input stage will apply the
same voltage across R33 as is applied at the input and with
no temperature variations from the transistors. Q37 is connected to a current source (Q36) to keep a constant current
flow through Q37 and a predictable diode voltage for the
base-emitter of Q37. Q40 is connected as a diode and is biased by the current source Q39. The current through Q40 is
mirrored into Q43, giving a current bias for Q42. Again this is
done to give a predictable diode voltage for Q42. Q41 is a
current source for both Q38 and Q42. With the current
through Q42 already established, the rest of the current from
Q41 flows through Q38. As one can see the input voltage is
accurately reflected across R33 with no temperature coefficients from the input stage of the contrast control circuit.
Pin 1 of the contrast control output is held at a constant voltage two diode drops below 1⁄2VCC. To generate this reference the base of Q51 is held at exactly 1⁄2VCC. R44 and R45
form a voltage divider. With both Q53 and Q54 connected as
diodes the voltage at the junction of R44 and R45 is 1⁄2VCC
plus one diode drop. Q52 is a buffer to this reference voltage, generating exactly 1⁄2VCC at its emitter. Q51 is used to
drive the bases of Q49 and Q50 to one diode drop below the
reference voltage. Q50 is used to further buffer the reference
voltage to the base of Q9 (see Figure 8) and the corresponding transistors in the other channels. Q48 is used to bias the
collector of Q49 to 1⁄2VCC, the same voltage as the collector
of Q47 when the differential pair is balanced. This keeps the
characteristics of Q47 and Q49 well matched. Going back to
Q44 and R33; these parts set up a current source that varies
the current through R36. With a 2V contrast voltage the differential pair is balanced, meaning that the voltage drop
across R36 is 1⁄2VCC. Q45 buffers the voltage at R36, driving
the bases of Q46 and Q47. Q46 further buffers the voltage,
driving the base of Q8 (see Figure 8) and the corresponding
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DRIVE CONTROL
Figure 10 is a simplified schematic of the Drive Control circuit. Each channel has its own drive control circuit. This circuit is almost identical to Figure 9 , the contrast control circuit. It will be easier to cover the differences between the two
circuits instead of going through virtually the same circuit description. Note that the input stage is exactly the same. The
generation of the reference voltage at the right hand side of
Figure 10 is slightly different than the circuit in Figure 9. ln
the drive control circuit the reference voltage at the base of
Q72 is to be 2⁄3VCC. In the contrast control circuit the reference voltage at the base of Q51 was to be 1⁄2VCC. To generate the 2⁄3VCC R57 and R58 form a 2 to 1 voltage divider.
With the two to one ratio it is now necessary to have three
transistors connected as diodes, which are Q74, Q75, and
Q76. Q73 is the buffer for this voltage divider and its emitter
is exactly 2⁄3VCC with temperature compensation. R52 and
R53 also differ from their corresponding resistors in Figure 9,
R36 and R39. The value difference is so the base of Q66 is
also at 2⁄3VCC when the input drive voltage is at 2V. R38 in
Figure 9 was needed for current limiting at the output pins.
Since each channel has its own drive control circuit no filtering is required, eliminating the need for external pins. With
no external pins no current limiting is necessary, thus the 1k
resistor is not used in the drive control circuit.
14
Circuit Description
(Continued)
DS012866-17
FIGURE 9. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Contrast Control
DS012866-18
FIGURE 10. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Drive Control
15
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Circuit Description
of the circuit it discharges the clamp capacitor with 450 µA.
ln this balanced condition the charge and discharge current
are equal, thus the voltage across the clamp capacitor remains unchanged.
Going back to the input stages, note that both inputs, Q81
and Q92, are driven by a 50 µA current source. This keeps
both transistors turned on even when the differential pair,
Q85 and Q88, is turned off. Q82 and Q90 are added to help
drive the bases of Q85 and Q88 respectively. R64 and R72
are added to help discharge the charge stored in the bases
of Q85 and Q88 as these two transistors are turned off.
Since the input stage remains active the differential pair is
quickly turned off. The comparator can also be more quickly
turned on with the input stages remaining active. R67 is used
to assure that the potential difference across the differential
pair is minimal during turnoff. Without R67 there could be a
little extra charge or discharge of the clamp capacitor during
turnoff, creating an error in the black level of the video signal.
Now assume that the input to pin 19 is slightly higher than
the reference voltage to the negative input of the comparator. The voltage at the base of Q85 is now higher than the
base of Q88. This creates an increased current flow thru
Q85 and an equal decrease of current flow thru Q88. This
current change is multiplied by four in the increase of current
flow thru Q80. Likewise the current flow thru Q77 and Q91 is
decreased by four times the current change in Q88. ln the
extreme case the current flow thru Q80 can increase to
900 µA and there would be no current flow thru Q77. Q80
does charge the clamp capacitor, thus the voltage across the
capacitor will increase. The above is all reversed when the
input to Q92 rises above the input level of Q81. If the base of
Q86, the current source to the differential pair, is forced close
to ground, then there is no current flow thru Q86 and the differential pair, Q85 and Q88. With the current flow thru the differential pair set the zero, all the current mirrors would also
have no current flow. Thus the voltage on the camp capacitor
would remain constant, the desired result during active
video.
(Continued)
CLAMP COMPARATOR CIRCUIT
Figure 11 is a simplified schematic of the clamp comparator
circuit. Q85 and its input transistors, Q81 and Q82 are one
half of the differential pair. The base of Q81 is connected to
pin 19 via R62. This is the positive input to the comparator.
Q88 and its input transistors, Q90 and Q91 are the other half
of the differential pair. The base of Q92 is connected to the
junction of R19 and R20 in Figure 14 via R73. This is the
negative input to the comparator. R73 is included only to
match the input characteristics of the positive input, which
requires the 100Ω resistor. The negative comparator input is
the feedback from the output stage as briefly described in
the block diagram and covered in more detail in the output
stage circuit description. Q86 is the current source for the differential pair. It is turned on and off by the output of the clamp
gate circuit (Figure 12). Q102 of the clamp gate circuit has a
current flow of about 225 µA when it is turned on. This current is mirrored into Q86. Assume that the inputs to the comparator are equal, making the differential pair balanced. ln
this condition Q85 and Q88 each have a current flow of
113 µA. Looking at the Q85 side of the circuit, Q84 will also
have 113 µA of current flow. Q80 is set up as a current mirror
to Q84, but its emitter resistor is one fourth the emitter resistance of Q84. Thus the current flow for Q80 is four times the
current flow thru Q84, or 450 µA. Q83 has been added to
help drive the base of Q80, increasing the accuracy of the
current mirror. The collector of Q80 directly charges the capacitor as a current source of 450 µA. R65 is added to discharge the charge stored in the bases of Q80 and Q84. This
is necessary to quickly turn off the current charge of the
clamp capacitor as the comparator section is turned off.
Q87, Q89, and Q90 work in exactly the same way. However,
the collector of Q91 drives another current mirror with the
450 µA. This current flows thru Q78. Q77 is a current mirror
with Q78, thus 450 µA also flows thru Q77. Q79 has been
added to help drive the base of Q77, again adding to the accuracy of the current mirror. Since Q77 is on the ground side
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16
Circuit Description
(Continued)
DS012866-19
FIGURE 11. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Clamp Comparator Circuit
allows Q102 to turn on, turning on the clamp comparators of
the three video channels. Q103 is added to help drive the
base of Q86 in the clamp comparator, increasing the accuracy of the current mirror. Q101 drives R79 and R80. This
sets the current thru Q102, thus setting the current thru Q86
of the clamp comparator.
CLAMP GATE CIRCUIT
Figure 12 is a simplified schematic of the Clamp Gate circuit.
A voltage reference is setup by Z3 and by Q104 and Q105
connected as diodes, generating a 7V base drive to Q94,
Q99 and Q101. Q94 is used to bias the input stage. This
stage is designed to accept TTL levels at pin 14. Q95 and
Q97 form a differential pair. The base of Q97 is set to 2.1V by
Q99 driving the voltage divider formed by R77 and R78. In a
balanced condition the base of Q95 is also at 2.1V. Q96 is
connected as a diode and the current flow thru it is mirrored
into Q98. Also the input to pin 14 would be one diode drop
below 2.1V, or around 1.4V. R74 is added to the input for current limiting during any possible voltage surge at pin 14. With
no resistors at the emitters of Q96 and Q98 this circuit will
quickly switch. Below 1.4V (1.2V typical) Q95 is turned on
and Q97 is turned off. Above 1.4V (1.6V typical) Q97 is
turned on and Q95 is turned off. With Q97 turned on Q100 is
also turned on. This pulls the current thru R79 to ground,
turning off Q102 and Q103. Remember Q102 is a current
mirror to Q86 in the clamp comparator. With Q102 turned off,
the clamp comparator is also turned off. When the input signal goes below 1.2V, Q97 and Q100 will be turned off. This
17
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Circuit Description
spot from occurring when the monitor is turned off, preserving the phosphor of the CRT. The CRT will also have its
beam current cut off during the time the monitor is first turned
on. This is not a critical period for the CRT since the filaments have not warmed up to generate a current flow.
The comparator along with R89, R90, and Q115 all form the
spot killer circuit. Q115 acts the same as Q106. When Q115
has a high signal at its base it is turned off and the outputs of
the LM1205A/LM1207A are in the normal operating mode. A
low signal at the base of Q115 turns on this transistor, blanking the outputs of the LM1205A/LM1207A. Q115 is driven by
the output of the comparator. The inverting input of the comparator is connected to an internal 1.2V reference. The
non-inverting side is connected to a resistor divider network,
R89 and R90. When VCC is above 10.6V the non-inverting
input is above the 1.2V reference, therefore the output of the
comparator is high. This high output turns off Q115. Once the
VCC drops below 10.6V the comparator’s output goes low,
turning on Q115 which forces the outputs into the blanking
mode.
(Continued)
BLANK GATE CIRCUIT
Figure 13 is a simplified schematic of the Blank Gate circuit.
With the exception of the simple output stage and the spot
killer circuit, this circuit is almost identical to the clamp gate
circuit. The only difference is that the output stage is driven
from the opposite side of the differential pair. Thus Q111 is
connected as a diode instead of Q109. With the input at pin
13 at a low level Q108 is turned on, also turning on Q29, the
output transistor. Q29 is part of the blanking circuit in the output stage shown in Figure 14. When Q29 is turned on the
output is clamped to a blanking level that is “blacker than
black”, allowing blanking to be done on the cathodes of the
CRT.
The spot killer circuit is used to force the outputs of the
LM1205A/LM1207A into blanking when the VCC drops below
10.6V. Forcing the outputs to a blacker-than-black level will
drive the cathode driver stage well above the black level, cutting off the beam current in the CRT. This prevents the bright
DS012866-20
FIGURE 12. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Clamp Gate Circuit
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18
Circuit Description
(Continued)
DS012866-21
FIGURE 13. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Blank Gate Circuit
isolation between Q33 and the internal circuits of the
LM1205A/LM1207A, adding to the stability of the device.
Q33 also has R29 in its emitter for isolation from capacitive
loads and current limiting from any possible voltage surges.
R28 is at the collector of Q33 is also for current limiting from
voltage surges and minimizing crosstalk between the three
channels through the VCC line. To match the loading of the
feedback section the output at pin 20 should have a load of
390Ω. To minimize power consumption the feedback section
uses resistor values 10 times larger than those at pin 20. The
current source at the emitter of Q33 provides for the capability to set the black level as low as 0.5V.
VIDEO AMPLIFIER OUTPUT STAGE WITH BLANK
CIRCUIT
Figure 14 is a simplified schematic of the Video Amplifier
Output Stage including the blanking circuit. Q18 serves as a
buffer between the DC restoration stage shown in Figure 8
and the output stage. A current source is used to fix the current flow thru Q18 keeping it well within its operating range.
The emitter of Q18 drives the bases of Q19 and Q24 with the
current thru Q24 being twice that of Q19. Q19, along with
Q20 thru Q23 duplicate the actual output stage going to pin
20. Q19 inverts the video signal (note that the video signal
was inverted at Q7 in Figure 8). With two internal inversions
of the video signal in the LM1205A/LM1207A, the output is
non-inverted. The collector of Q19 gives a gain of −10 to the
video signal and drives the base of Q20. Q21 through Q23
are all connected as diodes with the emitter of Q23 driving
R19 and R20. The junction of R19 and R20 is connected to
the base of Q92 via R73 (shown in Figure 11), this being the
feedback to the negative input of the clamp comparator. This
stage is independent of the actual output stage at pin 20, but
is where the feedback is done for DC restoration. Therefore
it is possible to blank the actual output stage below the black
level without affecting the DC restoration feedback loop. Q24
is the equivalent part of Q19 in the actual output stage. It
also inverts the video signal with a gain of −10 and drives the
base of Q30. Q30 thru Q32 each give a diode drop to the
level of the video signal, similar to being connected as diodes. Being connected as emitter-followers these transistors
also give current gain to the signal. Q33 comes close to also
giving a diode drop to the signal, the voltage drop across
R27 being insignificant. R27 has been added to give some
The video signal does go thru a number of diode drops at the
output stage. One may be concerned that the tracking over
temperature could be a problem. The feedback section has
been designed to temperature track the output stage. The
feedback for DC restoration eliminates the temperature coefficients of the diode junctions. The remaining section to be
covered is the blanking section. This section comprises of
Q25 thru Q29. Q26 thru Q28 are connected as diodes. Q25
provides current gain to this stage to adequately pull down
the base of Q30 during blanking and also adding another diode potential. During blanking the base of Q30 will be four diode drops above ground, plus the saturation voltage of Q29.
There are also four diode drops from the base of Q30 to the
output, pin 20. Therefore during blanking pin 20 will be less
than 100 mV above ground, enabling the designer to blank
at the cathode of the CRT. R23 is added to quickly turn off
Q25 by discharging its base when the blanking signal is removed.
19
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Circuit Description
onstration board. Note that the schematic shown in Figure
15 is almost identical to the schematic shown in Figure 4.
The only difference between the two schematics is that in
Figure 15 each channel has individual adjustments for both
drive and cutoff, making this circuit a good design for monitor
applications. Each CRT will have a slightly different cutoff
voltage for each color, making it necessary to provide separate adjustments in order to accurately set the cutoff for each
color. The gain of each color of the CRT is also slightly different; if the color temperature of the display is to be accurately
set then each channel of the LM1205A/LM1207A must have
individual gain adjustments. Thus each channel has its own
drive control. Once the drive control is set, the gain between
the three color channels will closely track as the contrast is
adjusted. All the jumpers needed to design a single sided PC
board are shown in the schematic. The resistors and jumpers with no reference designation are the connections between the PC board and the connectors mounted on the PC
board. CN1 thru CN8 are BNC connectors.
(Continued)
Figure 14 also shows the power and ground pins to the
LM1205A/LM1207A. All the VCC1 pins (pins 3, 11, 25) are all
internally connected together. A 0.1 µF bypass capacitor
must be located close to each pin and connected to ground.
Further bypassing is done by a 100 µF capacitor. This capacitor needs to be located on the board close to the
LM1205A/LM1207A. Pins 22 and 23 are the VCC2 pins. A
10 µF and a 0.1 µF bypass capacitors must be located close
to pins 22 and 23. Correct bypassing of pins 22 and 23 is
very important . If the bypassing is not adequate then the
outputs of the LM1205A/LM1207A will have ringing, or even
worse they may oscillate. The ground side of the bypass capacitors at pins 22 and 23 must be returned to a ground
plane with no interruptions from other traces between these
capacitors and the ground pins 21 and 24 of the LM1205A/
LM1207A.
Applications of the
LM1205A/LM1207A
Figure 15 is the schematic of the demonstration board designed at National. Figure 16 is the actual layout of the dem-
DS012866-22
FIGURE 14. Simplified Schematic of LM1205A/LM1207A Video Amplifier Output Stage with Blank Circuit
is limited by the 30Ω resistors, preventing a potential catastrophic failure. A 100Ω resistor is added to the Blank Gate
and Clamp Gate inputs. These two resistors also limit the
current during a voltage surge. A larger resistor is required
because these inputs are DC coupled, allowing the current
to continuously flow into these inputs before the monitor is
A 30Ω resistor is in series with each of the video inputs. A
voltage surge may occur at these inputs when either the inputs are first connected to another system, or when the system is powered up before the monitor is turned on. If this
voltage surge exceeds the supply voltage (at ground potential if the monitor is not powered up) of the LM1205A/
LM1207A, or goes below ground, current will flow through
the parasitic devices of the LM1205A/LM1207A. This current
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20
Applications of the
LM1205A/LM1207A
shoot will subsequently be filtered out by the loading effects
of the CRT driver stage and the CRT itself. When the
LM1205A/LM1207A is designed into a video board one must
keep the ground to the CRT driver stage separate from the
ground of the LM1205A/LM1207A, connecting the two
grounds together only at one point. National Semiconductor
also manufactures a line of CRT drivers. Please contact National for additional information. These drivers greatly simplify the driver design allowing for shorter design cycles. Of
course the LM1205A/LM1207A can also be designed with a
discrete driver stage. Figure 21 shows a design using a
simple cascode CRT driver. The LM1205A/LM1207A block
would be the same schematic as shown in Figure 15 .
(Continued)
turned on. 100Ω resistors are not recommended at the video
inputs because this resistance value will start to roll off the
frequency response of the LM1205A/LM1207A.
Note that the layout shown in Figure 16 does have a very extensive ground plane. One must remember that the
LM1205A/LM1207A is a 130 MHz/85 MHz part and a single
sided board is difficult to successfully design. A ground plane
similar to the layout shown in Figure 16 must be provided for
good performance of the LM1205A/LM1207A when using either a single sided or double sided board. The layout of this
board demonstrates the importance of grounding. The results of this layout are shown in Figure 17 through Figure 20.
In these photographs the LM1205A rise time was 2.25 ns
and its fall time was 3.00 ns. For the LM1207A, the rise time
was 4.10 ns and the fall time 3.85 ns. The output was a 4
VPP signal and the cutoff voltage was set to 2V. The over-
REFERENCES
Zahid Rahim, “Guide to CRT Video Design,” Application
Note 861, National Semiconductor Corp., Jan. 1993
Ott, Henry W. Noise Reduction Techniques in Electronic
Systems, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1976
DS012866-23
*Note: All video inputs MUST have a series 30Ω resistor for protection against EOS (Electrical Over Stress).
FIGURE 15. Demonstration Board Schematic
21
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Applications of the LM1205A/LM1207A
(Continued)
DS012866-24
FIGURE 16. Demonstration Board Layout
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22
Applications of the LM1205A/LM1207A (continued)
DS012866-26
DS012866-25
FIGURE 19. LM1205A Fall Time
FIGURE 17. LM1205A Rise Time
DS012866-28
DS012866-27
FIGURE 20. LM1207A Fall Time
FIGURE 18. LM1207A Rise Time
DS012866-29
FIGURE 21. LM1205A/LM1207A Typical Application
23
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LM1205A/LM1207A 130 MHz/85 MHz RGB Video Amplifier System with Blanking
Physical Dimensions
inches (millimeters) unless otherwise noted
Order Number LM1205AN or LM1207AN
NS Package Number N28B
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