Common-mode rejection ratio

The common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) of a differential amplifier (or other device) measures the ability of the device to reject common-mode signals, those that appear simultaneously and in-phase on both amplifier inputs. An ideal differential amplifier would have infinite CMRR; this is not achievable in practice. A high CMRR is required when a differential signal must be amplified in the presence of a possibly large common-mode input. An example is audio transmission over balanced lines.

Theory

Ideally, a differential amplifier takes the voltages, $V_{+}$ and $V_{-}$ on its two inputs and produces an output voltage $V_{\mathrm {o} }=A_{\mathrm {d} }(V_{+}-V_{-})$, where $A_{\mathrm {d} }$ is the differential gain. However, the output of a real differential amplifier is better described as

${\displaystyle V_{\mathrm {o} }=A_{\mathrm {d} }(V_{+}-V_{-})+{\tfrac {1}{2}}A_{\mathrm {cm} }(V_{+}+V_{-})}$

where $A_{\mathrm {cm} }$ is the common-mode gain, which is typically much smaller than the differential gain.

The CMRR is defined as the ratio of the powers of the differential gain over the common-mode gain, measured in positive decibels (thus using the 20 log rule):

$\mathrm {CMRR} =\left({\frac {A_{\mathrm {d} }}{|A_{\mathrm {cm} }|}}\right)=10\log _{10}\left({\frac {A_{\mathrm {d} }}{A_{\mathrm {cm} }}}\right)^{2}dB=20\log _{10}\left({\frac {A_{\mathrm {d} }}{|A_{\mathrm {cm} }|}}\right)dB$

As differential gain should exceed common-mode gain, this will be a positive number, and the higher the better.

The CMRR is a very important specification, as it indicates how much of the common-mode signal will appear in your measurement. The value of the CMRR often depends on signal frequency as well, and must be specified as a function thereof.

It is often important in reducing noise on transmission lines. For example, when measuring the resistance of a thermocouple in a noisy environment, the noise from the environment appears as an offset on both input leads, making it a common-mode voltage signal. The CMRR of the measurement instrument determines the attenuation applied to the offset or noise.

See also

• Signal-to-noise ratio
• Balanced line
• XLR connector
• Tip ring sleeve

External links

• PowerPoint presentation on audio connectors