Electronic components form parts of electronic circuitry, and are used or manufactured in the field of electronics, which is the study of electrical devices used for controlling electrically charged particles or the flow of electrons to execute any electrical operation. Some of the most common electronic components are as follows: Resistor: A resistor resists electric current, and the resistance is measured in ohms. Colors on the body of the resistor are a code for the value. Different colors represent the numbers from 0 to 9. In a variable resistor, resistance can be varied by moving a knob or slider. A variable resistor is used to control volume in many devices. Capacitor: This is measured in farads. A capacitor is used for storing electrical charges that can be released upon demand. Capacitors can be of different types - electrolyte and ceramic disc are two of them. Diode: A semiconductor device, diodes allow current to flow in one direction only. Small, cheap and lasting, light emitting diodes (LEDs) are special diodes that give out light and allow current to flow in one direction. NPN bipolar transistor: Used for current control, they can amplify currents with a small amount of heat dissipation and very little spatial waste. PNP bipolar transistor: Its functions are the same as NPN, but construction is slightly different. Crystal: When a voltage is applied, crystals can accurately vibrate a specific frequency. Integrated circuit: Having circuits etched into it, an integrated circuit is a semiconductor wafer that can hold capacitors, resistors, transistors, etc. in a large quantity. By allowing the chips to have millions of transistors, integrated circuits are capable of saving space. Triac: A dual silicon controlled rectifier (SCR), triac is used to control alternating current (AC). Mostly used in dimmers and touch lamps, it controls the amount of electricity reaching an appliance. Tapped secondary transformer: Used for transforming voltages, a plug-in transformer, the wall type, changes 120 volts AC into about 12 volts DC for small appliance needs. In a tapped secondary transformer, the secondary winding of the transformer is connected to a wire so that it can be used for multiple voltages, or more current. Speaker: A speaker converts electrical energy into sound energy. |
