Band-stop filters

Also called band-elimination, band-reject, or notch filters, this kind of filter passes all frequencies above and below a particular range set by the component values. Not surprisingly, it can be made out of a low-pass and a high-pass filter, just like the band-pass design, except that this time we connect the two filter sections in parallel with each other instead of in series. (Figure below)

System level block diagram of a band-stop filter.

Constructed using two capacitive filter sections, it looks something like (Figure below).

Twin-T” band-stop filter.

The low-pass filter section is comprised of R1, R2, and C1 in a “T” configuration. The high-pass filter section is comprised of C2, C3, and R3 in a “T” configuration as well. Together, this arrangement is commonly known as a “Twin-T” filter, giving sharp response when the component values are chosen in the following ratios:

Given these component ratios, the frequency of maximum rejection (the “notch frequency”) can be calculated as follows:

The impressive band-stopping ability of this filter is illustrated by the following SPICE analysis: (Figure below)

twin-t bandstop filter
v1 1 0 ac 1 sin
r1 1 2 200
c1 2 0 2u
r2 2 3 200
c2 1 4 1u
r3 4 0 100
c3 4 3 1u
rload 3 0 1k
.ac lin 20 200 1.5k
.plot ac v(3)
.end

Response of “twin-T” band-stop filter.