Electronic – Unkown DC offset of an isolation amplifier circuit design

couplingdc-offsetisolationltspicespice

I am designing an isolation amplifier that consists of the following blocks:

  • A comparator which produces a PWM signal
  • A coupling capacitor that achieves galvanic isolation
  • A voltage follower that acts like a buffer
  • A 2nd order LPF with cutoff frequency at ~20 kHz

At the output, the output signal can recover the input waveform with a slight phase shift. However the output signal also introduces an unkown DC offset (~1.85V). I have plotted the voltage waveforms at different nodes and found out that there is a DC offset at the buffer input. I think it is this DC offset at the buffer input that causes the DC offset at the output. But I have no idea what circuit component introduces such DC offset in my circuit.

I have attached my schematic as well as my simulation waveforms. I am designing my circuit using LTSpice and AD8513 as my opamps. Greatly appreciated if I can have any advice or help regarding this issue and how to improve my circuit design.

Circuit Schematic Screenshot
Circuit Simulation Waveform

Thank you for any advice in advance.

Best Answer

You have no DC path to ground on the AD8513 input. A resistor to ground or whatever other DC reference you want to use will provide that. The bias current of the 8513 is pA or nA over a reasonable temperature range, but it still needs a path. Also the (likely bigger) factor of the DC leakage through a 220uF capacitor needs to be dealt with. The resistor value needs to be low enough that the sum of the leakage and bias currents does not cause excessive offset.

220uF does not really provide isolation the way most would think of it, but I won't address that issue.

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