Gain-bandwidth product
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The gain bandwidth product (GBW) for an amplifier is the product of the open loop gain (constant for a given amplifier) and its 3 dB bandwidth.
[edit] Relevance to design
This quantity is commonly specified for operational amplifiers, and allows circuit designers to determine the maximum gain that can be extracted from the device for a given frequency (or bandwidth) and vice versa.
When adding LC circuits to the input and output of an amplifier the gain raises and the bandwidth decreases, but the product remains constant.
[edit] Examples
If the GBWP of an op-amp is 1 MHz, it means that the gain of the device falls to unity at 1 MHz. Hence, when the device is wired for unity gain, it will work up to 1 MHz (GBW product = gain x bandwidth, therefore if BW = 1 MHz, gain = 1) without excessively distorting the signal. The same device when wired for a gain of 10 will work only up to 100 kHz, in accordance with the GBW product formula. Further, if the maximum frequency of operation is 1 Hz, then the maximum gain that can be extracted from the device is 1 x 106.
