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Can anyone point me to a tutorial for electronic noobs that explains how to use op-amps and what I can do with them, besides amplification?

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11 Answers

up vote 14 down vote accepted

http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/Electronic/opampvar.html Hyperphysics has a pretty good section about opamps.

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+1 This is a great link... a definitive list of everything you can do with an op amp. Thanks. – BG100 Jan 4 '11 at 17:48
Hyperphysics in general is made of multiple flavors of win, with a sprinkling of awesome and a dash of genius. Between that and wikipedia the first 2 years of college are pretty much covered. – Joe Stavitsky Apr 4 '12 at 15:34
First two years of college except the sex. – Lightyear Buzz May 25 '12 at 15:18
up vote 11 down vote

I know it's not all online, but the Art of Electronic by Horowitz and Hill is fantastic. It's basically the only book you need for the first 2 years of learning electronics (especially if you don't have any math requirements). The second edition of the book was published back in the late 80s and a lot of the example circuits using op amps are spectacular examples.

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Horowitz and Hill not Howe – Shawn J. Goff Dec 10 '09 at 2:07
Ah, thank you Shawn. Right you are. – Chris Gammell Dec 10 '09 at 14:29
So edit it! :) – endolith Dec 15 '09 at 20:31
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Ah, thank you endolith. Right you are. – Chris Gammell Dec 15 '09 at 23:46
I also agree.Art of Electronics is fantastic. – Far McKon Mar 17 '10 at 19:37
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up vote 8 down vote

Try Opamps for Everyone (warning -- large pdf, and some TI bias)

It has lots to teach, covers beginning to somewhat advanced topics, and it's free.

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up vote 4 down vote

Op amp Cookbook

This book is considered to be a key text on the subject. I dont think there is an online version available... £30 (where I come from) is around the "reasonable" price range for such books.

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I will add my vote. It can be found on abebooks as well. Excellent book, covers how to do all manner of analog math with op-amps. Linearization, converting linear to logarithmic, etc. – wackyvorlon Dec 7 '09 at 1:38
up vote 4 down vote

Falstad Falstad Circuit index has an excellent Java applet that allows you to do virtual prototyping with various types of circuits.

Has a nice section on Op amps, whats great is the built in O'scope, volt and current meters. Right clicking on a template component in the applet brings up menu where you can experiment/substitute with different values, add remove components.

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I've just discovered this app. It's great ! – JonathanD Mar 13 '10 at 18:55
up vote 4 down vote

There are a couple of very good tutorials at Analog Devices and Texas Instruments. The TI one is called "Handbook of Operational Amplifiers".

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up vote 3 down vote

Check out: http://www.opencircuits.com/Op_amp

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up vote 2 down vote

This one helped me a lot for a Devices class which included op-amps. Really good animations, and covers most types (inverter, differentiator...) needed for a starting point.[link text]

http://electronics.wisc-online.com/Search.asp?search=op+amp

[1]

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up vote 1 down vote

Op Amps for Everyone (2.0 MB PDF) by Texas Instruments is a very good reference. It covers almost any aspect you might need. Even single supply opamp techniques.

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up vote 0 down vote

I always simulate my op amp and other analogue circuits with SPICE before building and testing them. Free SPICE implementations are available, and many PCB packages include it.

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It's no use simulating if you don't know how to use them. – Federico Russo Jun 11 '11 at 15:16
Why the downvote? It helps one learn how to use them without wasting time building hardware that doesn't work. SPICE packages generally have plenty of examples of op amp circuits. – Leon Heller Jun 11 '11 at 16:18
up vote 0 down vote

The "IC Opamp Cookbook" paperback was ~THE~ standard for hobbyist electronics back in the 80s. Still a good reference.

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