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Bode plot
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Figure 1(a): The Bode plot for a first-order (one-pole) highpass filter; the straight-line approximations are
labeled "Bode pole"; phase varies from 90° at low frequencies (due to the contribution of the numerator, which
is 90° at all frequencies) to 0° at high frequencies (where the phase contribution of the denominator is −90°
and cancels the contribution of the numerator).
Figure 1(b): The Bode plot for a first-order (one-pole) lowpass filter; the straight-line approximations are
labeled "Bode pole"; phase is 90° lower than for Figure 1(a) because the phase contribution of the numerator
is 0° at all frequencies.

In electrical engineering and control theory, a Bode plot /ˈboʊdi/ is a graph of the
frequency response of a system. It is usually a combination of a Bode magnitude plot,
expressing the magnitude of the frequency response, and a Bode phase plot, expressing
the phase shift. Both quantities are plotted against a horizontal axis proportional to the
logarithm of frequency.

Overview
Among his several important contributions to circuit theory and control theory, engineer
Hendrik Wade Bode, while working at Bell Labs in the United States in the 1930s, devised
a simple but accurate method for graphing gain and phase-shift plots. These bear his
name, Bode gain plot and Bode phase plot. "Bode" is pronounced /ˈboʊdi/ BOH-dee
(Dutch: [ˈboːdə]).[1][2]

Bode was faced with the problem of designing stable amplifiers with feedback for use in
telephone networks. He developed the graphical design technique of the Bode plots to
show the gain margin and phase margin required to maintain stability under variations in
circuit characteristics caused during manufacture or during operation.[3] The principles
developed were applied to design problems of servomechanisms and other feedback
control systems. The Bode plot is an example of analysis in the frequency domain.

Definition
The Bode plot for a linear, time-invariant system with transfer function ( being the
complex frequency in the Laplace domain) consists of a magnitude plot and a phase
plot.

The Bode magnitude plot is the graph of the function of frequency (with
being the imaginary unit). The -axis of the magnitude plot is logarithmic and the
magnitude is given in decibels, i.e., a value for the magnitude is plotted on the axis at
.

The Bode phase plot is the graph of the phase of the transfer function
in degrees plotted logarithmically as a function of .

Examples

Highpass Filter

The one-pole highpass RC-filter has the transfer function

where is the inverse of the cut-off frequency .

Magnitude Plot

To obtain the Bode magnitude plot one calculates the magnitude of the transfer function
along the imaginary axis

The last equality is obtained using the rules for complex numbers. On the Bode
magnitude plot, decibels are used, and the plotted magnitude is:

Phase Plot

To obtain the Bode phase plot one calculates:

Care must be taken that the inverse tangent is set up to return degrees, not radians. The
resulting Bode plot is shown in Figure 1(a) for .

Lowpass Filter

A passive (unity pass band gain) lowpass RC filter has the following transfer function:

where, again, is the inverse of the cut-off frequency. The corresponding Bode Plot is
shown in Figure 1(b).

The magnitude and the phase of the transfer function are related. For minimum-phase
systems there is a unique relationship between the magnitude and the phase, the Bode
gain-phase relationship.[4]

If the transfer function is a rational function with real poles and zeros, then the Bode plot
can be approximated with straight lines. These asymptotic approximations are called
straight line Bode plots or uncorrected Bode plots and are useful because they can be
drawn by hand following a few simple rules. Simple plots can even be predicted without
drawing them.
The approximation can be taken further by correcting the value at each cutoff frequency.
The plot is then called a corrected Bode plot.

Frequency Response and Bode Plot

This section illustrates that a Bode Plot is a visualization of the frequency response of a
system.

Consider a linear, time-invariant system with transfer function . Assume that the
system is subject to a sinusoidal input with frequency ,

that is applied persistently, i.e. from a time to a time . The response will be of the form

i.e., also a sinusoidal signal with amplitude shifted in phase with respect to the input by a
phase .

It can be shown[4] that the magnitude of the response is

(1)

and that the phase shift is

(2)

A sketch for the proof of these equations is given in the appendix.

In summary, subjected to an input with frequency the system responds at the same
frequency with an output that is amplified by a factor and phase-shifted by
. These quantities, thus, characterize the frequency response and are shown
in the Bode plot.

Rules for handmade Bode plot

For many practical problems, the detailed Bode plots can be approximated with straight-
line segments that are asymptotes of the precise response. The effect of each of the
terms of a multiple element transfer function can be approximated by a set of straight
lines on a Bode plot. This allows a graphical solution of the overall frequency response
function. Before widespread availability of digital computers, graphical methods were
extensively used to reduce the need for tedious calculation; a graphical solution could be
used to identify feasible ranges of parameters for a new design.

The premise of a Bode plot is that one can consider the log of a function in the form:

as a sum of the logs of its poles and zeros:

This idea is used explicitly in the method for drawing phase diagrams. The method for
drawing amplitude plots implicitly uses this idea, but since the log of the amplitude of
each pole or zero always starts at zero and only has one asymptote change (the straight
lines), the method can be simplified.

Straight-line amplitude plot

Amplitude decibels is usually done using to define decibels. Given a

transfer function in the form

where and are constants, , , and is the transfer function:

at every value of s where (a zero), increase the slope of the line by

per decade.

at every value of s where (a pole), decrease the slope of the line by

per decade.

The initial value of the graph depends on the boundaries. The initial point is found by
putting the initial angular frequency into the function and finding .

The initial slope of the function at the initial value depends on the number and order of
zeros and poles that are at values below the initial value, and are found using the first
two rules.
To handle irreducible 2nd order polynomials, can, in many cases, be
approximated as .

Note that zeros and poles happen when is equal to a certain or . This is because the
function in question is the magnitude of , and since it is a complex function,
. Thus at any place where there is a zero or pole involving the term
, the magnitude of that term is .

Corrected amplitude plot

To correct a straight-line amplitude plot:

at every zero, put a point above the line,

at every pole, put a point below the line,

draw a smooth curve through those points using the straight lines as asymptotes (lines
which the curve approaches).

Note that this correction method does not incorporate how to handle complex values of
or . In the case of an irreducible polynomial, the best way to correct the plot is to actually
calculate the magnitude of the transfer function at the pole or zero corresponding to the
irreducible polynomial, and put that dot over or under the line at that pole or zero.

Straight-line phase plot

Given a transfer function in the same form as above:

the idea is to draw separate plots for each pole and zero, then add them up. The actual
phase curve is given by .

To draw the phase plot, for each pole and zero:

if is positive, start line (with zero slope) at

if is negative, start line (with zero slope) at

if the sum of the number of unstable zeros and poles is odd, add 180 degrees to that
basis
at every (for stable zeros – ), increase the slope by

degrees per decade, beginning one decade before (E.g.: )

at every (for stable poles – ), decrease the slope by

degrees per decade, beginning one decade before (E.g.: )

"unstable" (right half plane) poles and zeros () have opposite behavior

flatten the slope again when the phase has changed by degrees (for a zero) or
degrees (for a pole),

After plotting one line for each pole or zero, add the lines together to obtain the final
phase plot; that is, the final phase plot is the superposition of each earlier phase plot.

Example
To create a straight-line plot for the lowpass filter, introduced above, one considers the
transfer function in terms of the angular frequency:

The above equation is the normalized form of the transfer function. The Bode plot is
shown in Figure 1(b) above, and construction of the straight-line approximation is
discussed next.

Magnitude plot

The magnitude (in decibels) of the transfer function above, (normalized and converted to
angular frequency form), given by the decibel gain expression :

then plotted versus input frequency on a logarithmic scale, can be approximated by two
lines and it forms the asymptotic (approximate) magnitude Bode plot of the transfer
function:

for angular frequencies below it is a horizontal line at 0 dB since at low frequencies the
term is small and can be neglected, making the decibel gain equation above equal to
zero,

for angular frequencies above it is a line with a slope of −20 dB per decade since at high

frequencies the term dominates and the decibel gain expression above simplifies to

which is a straight line with a slope of per decade.

These two lines meet at the corner frequency. From the plot, it can be seen that for
frequencies well below the corner frequency, the circuit has an attenuation of 0 dB,
corresponding to a unity pass band gain, i.e. the amplitude of the filter output equals the
amplitude of the input. Frequencies above the corner frequency are attenuated – the
higher the frequency, the higher the attenuation.

Phase plot

The phase Bode plot is obtained by plotting the phase angle of the transfer function
given by

versus , where and are the input and cutoff angular frequencies respectively. For input

frequencies much lower than corner, the ratio is small and therefore the phase angle

is close to zero. As the ratio increases the absolute value of the phase increases and
becomes –45 degrees when . As the ratio increases for input frequencies much
greater than the corner frequency, the phase angle asymptotically approaches −90
degrees. The frequency scale for the phase plot is logarithmic.

Normalized plot

The horizontal frequency axis, in both the magnitude and phase plots, can be replaced by
the normalized (nondimensional) frequency ratio . In such a case the plot is said to be
normalized and units of the frequencies are no longer used since all input frequencies
are now expressed as multiples of the cutoff frequency .

An example with pole and zero

Figures 2-5 further illustrate construction of Bode plots. This example with both a pole
and a zero shows how to use superposition. To begin, the components are presented
separately.

Figure 2 shows the Bode magnitude plot for a zero and a low-pass pole, and compares
the two with the Bode straight line plots. The straight-line plots are horizontal up to the
pole (zero) location and then drop (rise) at 20 dB/decade. The second Figure 3 does the
same for the phase. The phase plots are horizontal up to a frequency factor of ten below
the pole (zero) location and then drop (rise) at 45°/decade until the frequency is ten
times higher than the pole (zero) location. The plots then are again horizontal at higher
frequencies at a final, total phase change of 90°.

Figure 4 and Figure 5 show how superposition (simple addition) of a pole and zero plot is
done. The Bode straight line plots again are compared with the exact plots. The zero has
been moved to higher frequency than the pole to make a more interesting example.
Notice in Figure 4 that the 20 dB/decade drop of the pole is arrested by the
20 dB/decade rise of the zero resulting in a horizontal magnitude plot for frequencies
above the zero location. Notice in Figure 5 in the phase plot that the straight-line
approximation is pretty approximate in the region where both pole and zero affect the
phase. Notice also in Figure 5 that the range of frequencies where the phase changes in
the straight line plot is limited to frequencies a factor of ten above and below the pole
(zero) location. Where the phase of the pole and the zero both are present, the straight-
line phase plot is horizontal because the 45°/decade drop of the pole is arrested by the
overlapping 45°/decade rise of the zero in the limited range of frequencies where both
are active contributors to the phase.

Example with pole and zero

Figure 2: Bode magnitude plot for zero and low-pass pole;

curves labeled "Bode" are the straight-line Bode plots
 Figure 3: Bode phase plot for zero and low-pass pole;
curves labeled "Bode" are the straight-line Bode plots

Figure 4: Bode magnitude plot for pole-zero combination;

the location of the zero is ten times higher than in Figures
2&3; curves labeled "Bode" are the straight-line Bode plots

Figure 5: Bode phase plot for pole-zero combination; the

location of the zero is ten times higher than in Figures 2&3;
curves labeled "Bode" are the straight-line Bode plots

Gain margin and phase margin

See also: Phase margin

Bode plots are used to assess the stability of negative feedback amplifiers by finding the
gain and phase margins of an amplifier. The notion of gain and phase margin is based
upon the gain expression for a negative feedback amplifier given by

where AFB is the gain of the amplifier with feedback (the closed-loop gain), β is the
feedback factor and AOL is the gain without feedback (the open-loop gain). The gain AOL
is a complex function of frequency, with both magnitude and phase.[note 1] Examination of
this relation shows the possibility of infinite gain (interpreted as instability) if the product
βAOL = −1. (That is, the magnitude of βAOL is unity and its phase is −180°, the so-called
Barkhausen stability criterion). Bode plots are used to determine just how close an
amplifier comes to satisfying this condition.

Key to this determination are two frequencies. The first, labeled here as f180, is the
frequency where the open-loop gain flips sign. The second, labeled here f0 dB, is the
frequency where the magnitude of the product | β AOL | = 1 (in dB, magnitude 1 is 0 dB).
That is, frequency f180 is determined by the condition:

where vertical bars denote the magnitude of a complex number (for example, ), and
frequency f0 dB is determined by the condition:

One measure of proximity to instability is the gain margin. The Bode phase plot locates
the frequency where the phase of βAOL reaches −180°, denoted here as frequency f180.
Using this frequency, the Bode magnitude plot finds the magnitude of βAOL. If |βAOL|180 =
1, the amplifier is unstable, as mentioned. If |βAOL|180 < 1, instability does not occur, and
the separation in dB of the magnitude of |βAOL|180 from |βAOL| = 1 is called the gain
margin. Because a magnitude of one is 0 dB, the gain margin is simply one of the
equivalent forms: .

Another equivalent measure of proximity to instability is the phase margin. The Bode
magnitude plot locates the frequency where the magnitude of |βAOL| reaches unity,
denoted here as frequency f0 dB. Using this frequency, the Bode phase plot finds the
phase of βAOL. If the phase of βAOL( f0 dB) > −180°, the instability condition cannot be met
at any frequency (because its magnitude is going to be < 1 when f = f180), and the
distance of the phase at f0 dB in degrees above −180° is called the phase margin.

If a simple yes or no on the stability issue is all that is needed, the amplifier is stable if
f0 dB < f180. This criterion is sufficient to predict stability only for amplifiers satisfying
some restrictions on their pole and zero positions (minimum phase systems). Although
these restrictions usually are met, if they are not another method must be used, such as
the Nyquist plot.[5][6] Optimal gain and phase margins may be computed using
Nevanlinna–Pick interpolation theory.[7]

Examples using Bode plots

Figures 6 and 7 illustrate the gain behavior and terminology. For a three-pole amplifier,
Figure 6 compares the Bode plot for the gain without feedback (the open-loop gain) AOL
with the gain with feedback AFB (the closed-loop gain). See negative feedback amplifier
for more detail.

In this example, AOL = 100 dB at low frequencies, and 1 / β = 58 dB. At low frequencies,
AFB ≈ 58 dB as well.
Because the open-loop gain AOL is plotted and not the product β AOL, the condition AOL =
1 / β decides f0 dB. The feedback gain at low frequencies and for large AOL is AFB ≈ 1 / β
(look at the formula for the feedback gain at the beginning of this section for the case of
large gain AOL), so an equivalent way to find f0 dB is to look where the feedback gain
intersects the open-loop gain. (Frequency f0 dB is needed later to find the phase margin.)

Near this crossover of the two gains at f0 dB, the Barkhausen criteria are almost satisfied
in this example, and the feedback amplifier exhibits a massive peak in gain (it would be
infinity if β AOL = −1). Beyond the unity gain frequency f0 dB, the open-loop gain is
sufficiently small that AFB ≈ AOL (examine the formula at the beginning of this section for
the case of small AOL).

Figure 7 shows the corresponding phase comparison: the phase of the feedback
amplifier is nearly zero out to the frequency f180 where the open-loop gain has a phase of
−180°. In this vicinity, the phase of the feedback amplifier plunges abruptly downward to
become almost the same as the phase of the open-loop amplifier. (Recall, AFB ≈ AOL for
small AOL.)

Comparing the labeled points in Figure 6 and Figure 7, it is seen that the unity gain
frequency f0 dB and the phase-flip frequency f180 are very nearly equal in this amplifier,
f180 ≈ f0 dB ≈ 3.332 kHz, which means the gain margin and phase margin are nearly zero.
The amplifier is borderline stable.

Figures 8 and 9 illustrate the gain margin and phase margin for a different amount of
feedback β. The feedback factor is chosen smaller than in Figure 6 or 7, moving the
condition | β AOL | = 1 to lower frequency. In this example, 1 / β = 77 dB, and at low
frequencies AFB ≈ 77 dB as well.

Figure 8 shows the gain plot. From Figure 8, the intersection of 1 / β and AOL occurs at
f0 dB = 1 kHz. Notice that the peak in the gain AFB near f0 dB is almost gone.[note 2][8]

Figure 9 is the phase plot. Using the value of f0 dB = 1 kHz found above from the
magnitude plot of Figure 8, the open-loop phase at f0 dB is −135°, which is a phase margin
of 45° above −180°.

Using Figure 9, for a phase of −180° the value of f180 = 3.332 kHz (the same result as
found earlier, of course[note 3]). The open-loop gain from Figure 8 at f180 is 58 dB, and 1 / β
= 77 dB, so the gain margin is 19 dB.

Stability is not the sole criterion for amplifier response, and in many applications a more
stringent demand than stability is good step response. As a rule of thumb, good step
response requires a phase margin of at least 45°, and often a margin of over 70° is
advocated, particularly where component variation due to manufacturing tolerances is an
issue.[8] See also the discussion of phase margin in the step response article.

Examples

Figure 6: Gain of feedback amplifier AFB in dB and

corresponding open-loop amplifier AOL. Parameter 1/β =
58 dB, and at low frequencies AFB ≈ 58 dB as well. The
gain margin in this amplifier is nearly zero because | βAOL|
= 1 occurs at almost f = f180°.

Figure 7: Phase of feedback amplifier °AFB in degrees

and corresponding open-loop amplifier °AOL. The phase
margin in this amplifier is nearly zero because the phase-
flip occurs at almost the unity gain frequency f = f0 dB
where | βAOL| = 1.

Figure 8: Gain of feedback amplifier AFB in dB and

corresponding open-loop amplifier AOL. In this example, 1 /
β = 77 dB. The gain margin in this amplifier is 19 dB.

Figure 9: Phase of feedback amplifier AFB in degrees and

corresponding open-loop amplifier AOL. The phase
margin in this amplifier is 45°.

Bode plotter
Figure 10: Amplitude diagram of a 10th order Chebyshev filter plotted using a Bode Plotter application. The
chebyshev transfer function is defined by poles and zeros which are added by clicking on a graphical complex
diagram.

The Bode plotter is an electronic instrument resembling an oscilloscope, which produces

a Bode diagram, or a graph, of a circuit's voltage gain or phase shift plotted against
frequency in a feedback control system or a filter. An example of this is shown in Figure
10. It is extremely useful for analyzing and testing filters and the stability of feedback
control systems, through the measurement of corner (cutoff) frequencies and gain and
phase margins.

This is identical to the function performed by a vector network analyzer, but the network
analyzer is typically used at much higher frequencies.

For education/research purposes, plotting Bode diagrams for given transfer functions
facilitates better understanding and getting faster results (see external links).

Related plots
Main articles: Nyquist plot and Nichols plot

Two related plots that display the same data in different coordinate systems are the
Nyquist plot and the Nichols plot. These are parametric plots, with frequency as the input
and magnitude and phase of the frequency response as the output. The Nyquist plot
displays these in polar coordinates, with magnitude mapping to radius and phase to
argument (angle). The Nichols plot displays these in rectangular coordinates, on the log
scale.

Related Plots
A Nichols plot
of the same
response.

A Nyquist plot.

Appendix

Proof Sketch for the Relation to Frequency Response

This section sketches a proof for the relation between frequency response and the
magnitude and phase of the transfer function in Eqs.(1)-(2).

Slightly changing the requirements for Eqs.(1)-(2) one assumes that the input has been
applied starting at time and one calculates the output in the limit . In this
case, the output is given by the convolution
 of the input signal with the inverse Laplace transform of the transfer function . The
integral can be split in the following way

where the second term vanishes in the limit if has certain properties. Thus,
inserting the sinusodial input signal one obtains

Since is a real function this can be written as

The term in brackets is the definition of the Laplace transform of at . Inserting the
definition in the form one obtains the output
signal

stated in Eqs.(1)-(2).

See also
Analog signal processing Phase margin Bode's sensitivity integral

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

Notes
^ Ordinarily, as frequency increases the magnitude of the gain drops and the phase
becomes more negative, although these are only trends and may be reversed in
particular frequency ranges. Unusual gain behavior can render the concepts of gain and
phase margin inapplicable. Then other methods such as the Nyquist plot have to be used
to assess stability.

^ The critical amount of feedback where the peak in the gain just disappears altogether
is the maximally flat or Butterworth design.
^ The frequency where the open-loop gain flips sign f180 does not change with a change
in feedback factor; it is a property of the open-loop gain. The value of the gain at f180 also
does not change with a change in β. Therefore, we could use the previous values from
Figures 6 and 7. However, for clarity the procedure is described using only Figures 8 and
9.

References
^ Van Valkenburg, M. E. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, "In memoriam:
Hendrik W. Bode (1905-1982)", IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, Vol. AC-29, No
3., March 1984, pp. 193-194. Quote: "Something should be said about his name. To his
colleagues at Bell Laboratories and the generations of engineers that have followed, the
pronunciation is boh-dee. The Bode family preferred that the original Dutch be used as
boh-dah."

^ "Vertaling van postbode, NL>EN" . mijnwoordenboek.nl. Retrieved 2013-10-07.

^ David A. Mindell Between Human and Machine: Feedback, Control, and Computing
Before Cybernetics JHU Press, 2004 ISBN 0801880572, pp. 127-131

^ a b Skogestad, Sigurd; Postlewaite, Ian (2005). Multivariable Feedback Control.

Chichester, West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. ISBN 0-470-01167-X.

^ Thomas H. Lee (2004). The design of CMOS radio-frequency integrated circuits

(Second ed.). Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press. p. §14.6 pp. 451–453. ISBN 0-
521-83539-9.

^ William S Levine (1996). The control handbook: the electrical engineering handbook
series (Second ed.). Boca Raton FL: CRC Press/IEEE Press. p. §10.1 p. 163. ISBN 0-
8493-8570-9.

^ Allen Tannenbaum. Invariance and Systems Theory: Algebraic and Geometric Aspects.
New York, NY: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 9783540105657.

^ a b Willy M C Sansen (2006). Analog design essentials . Dordrecht, The Netherlands:

Springer. pp. 157–163. ISBN 0-387-25746-2.

External links
Explanation of Bode plots with movies and examples

How to draw piecewise asymptotic Bode plots Summarized drawing rules (PDF)
Bode plot applet - Accepts transfer function coefficients as input, and calculates
magnitude and phase response

Circuit analysis in electrochemistry

Tim Green: Operational amplifier stability Includes some Bode plot introduction

Gnuplot code for generating Bode plot: DIN-A4 printing template (pdf)

MATLAB function for creating a Bode plot of a system

MATLAB Tech Talk videos explaining Bode plots and showing how to use them for
control design

Insert the poles and zeros and this website will draw the asymptotic and accurate Bode
plots

Mathematica function for creating the Bode plot

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Last edited 10 days ago by Duckheim

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