Electronic – MOSFET Differential Amplifier Bode Plot

Sorry about the MOS symbol confusion... Here's a better answer:

I think there are three reasons why you get a very similar voltage gain.

First off, your output resistance \$R_3\$ is quite low. The cascode transistor improves output impedance to allow a higher voltage gain, but there is no overall improvement since in the first circuit:

$$ r_{out} = R_3\parallel (r_{ds1}+10k) \approx R_3 $$

Adding a cascode transistor won't be able to improve this.

Secondly, the cascode bias voltage is probably too high. You want it to represent a large resistance. You can either alter the bias resistor network or use a diode coupled NMOS to ground (increasing it's length and adjust the current through it until you get a suitable setting).

Thirds, you should know you are limiting gain also with \$R_1\$. Effectively \$M_1\$ is acting like a source follower and the change in current through M1 is set by the voltage over \$R_1\$. Effectively you get the transconductance as \$g_m=1/R_1\$.

Summing this up voltage gain in both circuits should be approximately

$$ A_V=g_m r_{out} \approx R_3/R_1 $$

The pole formed by the gate resistor and the input capacitance would actually make the circuit less stable. This is because there will already be a pole in the opamp giving a 20db/decade gain change (up to 90 deg phase shift). If you add another pole in the loop you now potentially have 40dB/decade gain change with the phase shift being asymptotic to 180 deg.

I would add a resistor in the connection from the sense resistor to the opamp negative input and then add a capacitor from the output of the opamp to the negative input of the opamp. This can then give you a dominant pole that rolls off the gain before the phase shift in the output stage gives significant phase shift. It cane useful to put resistor in series with the feedback capacitor to give better gain at higher frequencies.

The resistor in the gate of the MOSFET can be useful for stopping high-frequency instability - a value of 22-100 ohms is appropriate there.