What is an output voltage swing?

Output voltage swing is defined as the maximum positive or negative peak output voltage that can be obtained without wave form clipping, when quiescent DC output voltage is zero.

VOM is limited by the output impedance of the amplifier, the saturation voltage of the output transistors, and the power supply voltages. This is depicted in the figure above.

This emitter follower structure cannot drive the output voltage to either rail. Rail-to-rail output op amps use a common emitter (bipolar) or common source (CMOS) output stage. With these structures, the output voltage swing is only limited by the saturation voltage (bipolar) or the on resistance (CMOS) of the output transistors, and the load being driven.Maximum and minimum output voltage is usually a design issue when dynamic range is lost if the op amp cannot drive to the rails. This is the case in single supply systems where the op amp is used to drive the input of an ADC, which is configured for full scale input voltage between ground and the positive rail.

Because newer products are focused on single supply operation, datasheets use the terminology VOH and VOL to specify the maximum and minimum output voltage.