Calculation of Third-Order Harmonic Distortion in an Operational Transconductance Amplifier

Due to its nonlinear behavior, operational transconductance amplifier causes substantial distortion in transfer conductance that weakens the intended signal. Analyzing Taylor series, this paper proposes a method to estimate third-order harmonic distortion. As a result, an equation to calculate output current is proposed. Moreover, third-order harmonic distortion is explained in an equation in terms of different parameters. Behavioral simulation was used to investigate harmonic distortion characteristics for the purpose of investigating the validity of the results. Final results show that analytical relationships and the simulation results are perfectly matched.