ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING

Electronics
– stands for electron-mechanics.
– field of science and engineering which deals with the motion of electrons under the
influence of applied electric and/or magnetic field.
Electric Current
- the constant flow of charged particles/electrons through a complete circuit of
conductors. Measured in Amperes (A).
Electrons
- a negatively charged sub atomic particle.
Atom
- the smallest unit of matter that is composed of three sub-atomic particles: the
proton, the neutron, and the electron
- basic building block of all matter and chemistry.

Conductors
- high electron mobility (many free electrons)
Insulators
- low electron mobility (no free electrons)
Electronic Components
1. Passive Components
- the circuit element which can only absorb electrical energy and dissipates it in
the form of heat or stores in either magnetic field or electric field
Ex: Resistor, Capacitor, Inductor, Transformer, Diodes
2. Active Components
- are parts of a circuit that rely on an external power source to control or modify
electrical signals.
Ex: Transistors, Rectifiers, Diodes

Resistors
- limit/resist the flow of electric current.
- Uses:
o Employed in amplifiers as load for active devices, in bias networks, and
as feedback elements.
o In combination with capacitors, they establish time constants and act as
filters.
o Employed in power circuits to reduce voltages by dissipating power.
o Act as bleeders to discharge capacitors
o Used to set operating currents and signal levels
o Etc…
- Symbol:

or
Types
a. Fixed Resistor
- A resistor having a fixed, defined electrical resistance which is not
adjustable.
a. Carbon Composition Resistor
- most common type of low wattage resistor
- the resistive material is of carbon clay composition and the leads are
made of tinned copper.
- Uses colored bands to identify the resistive value and its percentage
of tolerance
- Range: 1Ω to 22Ω
- Maximum power: 2W
 Resistor Color Code

▪ 4-Band Resistor
- General purpose resistors
- Resistors with tolerance of +/- 5% or more.
Example:
i. Yellow-Violet-Orange-Gold Color Code

Value: 47 kΩ with a tolerance of +/- 5%.

ii. Green-Red-Gold-Silver Color Code

Value: 5.2 Ω with a tolerance of +/- 10%.

iii. White-Violet-Black Color Code

Value: 97 Ω with a tolerance of +/- 20%.

Three color bands on a resistor, is actually a 4-band code with a blank
(20%) tolerance band.
▪ 5-band Resistor
- Precision resistors
- Resistors with tolerance of +/- 2% or less.
Example:
i. Orange-Orange-Black-Brown-Violet Color Code

Value: 3.3 kΩ with a tolerance of +/- 0.1%.

ii. Brown-Green-Grey-Silver-Red Color Code

Value: 1.58 Ω with a tolerance of +/- 2%.

iii. Blue-Brown-Green-Silver-Blue Color Code

Value: 6.15 Ω with a tolerance of +/- 0.25%.

b. Wire-wound Resistors
- The resistive element is an insulated metallic wire that is wound
around a core of non-conductive material
- often used in high power resistor applications
- Range: 1Ω to 100kΩ
- Maximum power: 200W or more
- Values can be indicated with letters and digit codes

▪ The use of the uppercase letters L (for 10−3 ), R (for 100 = 1), K (for 103 ), M
(for 106 ), and G (for 109 ) to be used instead of the decimal point.
▪ Tolerance is indicated as

F = +/- 1%
G = +/- 2%
J = +/- 5%
K = +/- 10%
M = +/- 20%
c. Metal Film Resistor
- Metal film resistors have a thin metal layer as resistive element on a non-
conducting body.
- The appearance of metal film resistors is similar to carbon film resistors,
but their properties for stability, accuracy, and reliability are considerably
better.
- With low tolerance values, metal film resistors offer high accuracy,
making them suitable for precision applications.
- Range: 0.1Ω to 104 MΩ
- Maximum power: 1W

d. Carbon Film Resistors

- They are constructed out of a ceramic carrier with a thin pure carbon film
around it.
- Carbon film resistors are a significant improvement on carbon
composition resistors.
- Metal and oxide film are not more expensive to produce and have overall
better properties.
- Range: 10Ω to 100 MΩ
- Maximum power: 2W
2. Variable or Adjustable Resistors
- a resistor of which the electric resistance value can be adjusted.

Types:
• Potentiometer
- the most common variable resistor.
- is a manually adjustable variable resistor with 3 terminals.
- used to adjust the value of voltage by changing the resistance
and keeping current constant.
- employed for controlling volume in radio receivers, brightness of
picture in TVs, tuning of circuits, process control panels, etc..
- Symbol:

or

• Rheostat
- used for controlling the flow of electric current either by increasing
or decreasing the resistance.
- The rheostats find applications as power control devices in motor
speed control, light intensity control and in heaters.
- Symbol:

or
Inductors
- Specially made components consisting of coiled copper wire
- A physical device which is capable of storing energy by virtue of a current flowing
through it.
- A circuit component which opposes the change of current flowing through it and
induces a voltage when the current flowing it varies in magnitude and/or direction.
- Referred to as “AC Resistance”. It offers high impedance to AC but very low
impedance to DC.
- It blocks AC signals but passes DC signals.
- Represented by capital L and measured in Henrys.
- Uses:
o Tuning circuits
o Sensors
o Store energy in a device
o Induction motors
o Transformers
o Filters
o Chokes
o Relays
- Symbol:
Types:
1. Iron Core Inductor
- a type of inductor that uses iron or ferromagnetic material as the core at the
center of its coil.
- are commonly used in power supply circuits, filters, and transformers.
- Symbol:

2. Air Core Inductor

- is a type of inductor that uses the self-inductance of a wire coil to store energy
in a magnetic field instead of using a ferromagnetic core material like iron or
ferrite.
- As the name suggests the core in this inductor can be air.
- These inductors are used when the amount of inductance required is low.
- they are used extensively in high-frequency applications such as radio
frequency (RF) circuits, tuners, and antenna systems.
- Symbol:
 3. Ferrite Core Inductor
- Inductors that are manufactured with a ferrite core inside their coil.
- are commonly used in inexpensive power supplies, where the components are
chosen for cost rather than quality.
- Symbol:

Capacitor
- A physical device which is capable of storing energy by virtue of a voltage
existing across it.
- A capacitor is a two-terminal electrical device that can store energy in the form
of an electric charge.
- Store energy by holding apart pairs of opposite charges.
- The simplest design for a capacitor is a parallel plate, which consists of two
metal plates with a gap between them.
- Like a battery but works completely differently.
- Basically meant to store electrons (electrical energy) and released them
whenever required.
- Capacitance is a measure of a capacitor’s ability to store charge and is
measured in farads (F).
- Offers low impedance to AC but very high impedance to DC.
- Symbol:

Fixed Capacitor Fixed Capacitor Polarized Capacitor

Variable Capacitor
Classifications of Capacitors
1. According to Structure
a. Fixed Capacitor
b. Variable Capacitor
c. Trimmer Capacitors
- a variable capacitor used for initial calibration and recalibration of
equipment.
2. According to Polarization
a. Polarized
- are capacitors with specific positive and negative polarities.
- cannot be connected to AC circuits
b. Unpolarized
- Work with both AC and DC, consume little power, and operate at higher
frequencies.
- The two electrodes can be randomly inserted into the circuit.
Types of Capacitors
1. Ceramic Capacitors
- is considered to be one of the most commonly used capacitors.
- It is constructed of two or more alternating layers of ceramic and a metal
layer acting as the electrodes.
- uses a ceramic material as the dielectric.
o Dielectric
▪ Another word for insulator
▪ materials that don't allow current to flow.
- non-polar devices which mean that they can be used in any direction in the
circuit.

2. Film Capacitors
- also known as a polymer film, plastic film, or film dielectric.
- they are inexpensive and come with limitless shelf life.
- uses a thin dielectric material with the other side of the capacitor metalized.
- depending on the application, the film capacitor is rolled into thin films.
- the general voltage range of these capacitors is from 50 V to 2 kV.
3. Electrolytic Capacitors
- a sort of capacitor that utilizes an electrolyte to obtain greater capacitance than the
other type of capacitors.
- has one of the highest capacitances when compared to other capacitors.
- An electrolyte is a liquid or gel with a high ion concentration.
- a polarized capacitor
4. Paper Capacitors
- uses paper as the dielectric to store electric charge
- also known as condensers.
Semiconductor
- are materials which have a conductivity between conductors (generally metals)
and non-conductors or insulators (such as ceramics).
- can conduct electricity under preferable conditions or circumstances.
- This unique property makes it an excellent material to conduct electricity in a
controlled manner as required.
- are employed in the manufacture of various kinds of electronic devices, including
diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits.
- Gallium arsenide, germanium and silicon are some of the most commonly used
semiconductors.
- Silicon is used in electronic circuit fabrication, and gallium arsenide is used in solar
cells, laser diodes, etc.
Holes and Electrons in Semiconductors
- Holes and electrons are the types of charge carriers accountable for the flow of
current in semiconductors.
- Holes (valence electrons) are the positively charged electric charge carrier or the
absence of electron in a particular place, whereas electrons are the negatively
charged particles.
Valence Electron
- The electrons in the outermost shell of an atom.
- They are also the electrons that can be influenced by external forces such
as electric fields or magnetic fields.

Free Electrons
- are valence electrons that are not tightly bound to their parent atoms and
can move freely within the material.
 - These are the electrons that can respond to an applied electric field or
potential difference and drift toward one direction, creating an electric
current.

- the electrons present in the outermost orbit absorb thermal energy. When
the outermost orbit electrons get enough energy then they will break
bonding with the nucleus of atom and jumps in to conduction band. The
electrons present in conduction band are not attached to the nucleus of an
atom so they are free to move.
▪ Valence Band
- the band of electron orbitals that electrons can jump out of, moving into
the conduction band when excited. The valence band is simply the
outermost electron orbital of an atom of any specific material that
electrons actually occupy.
- Trivalent – 3 valence electrons
o Ex: Boron (B), Gallium (G), Indium (In), and Aluminum (Al).
- Tetravalent – 4 valence electrons
o Ex: Germanium (Ge) and Silicon (Si)
- Pentavalent – 5 valence electrons
o Ex: Arsenic (As), Antimony (Sb), and Bismuth (Bi)
▪ Conduction Band
- The conduction band is the band of electron orbitals that electrons can
bounce up into from the valence band when energized. At the point
when the electrons are in these orbitals, they have enough energy to
move freely in the material. This movement of electrons makes an
electric current flow.
 ▪ Energy Band/Band Gap
- the band gap represents the minimum energy that is required to excite
an electron up to a state in the conduction band where it can participate
in conduction.

Energy Diagram
Classification of Semiconductors
1. Intrinsic (pure) Semiconductor
- is made to be very pure chemically.
- It is made up of only a single type of element.
- Germanium (Ge) and silicon (Si) are the most common types of intrinsic
semiconductor elements. They have four valence electrons (tetravalent).
- Both these semiconductors are most frequently used in the manufacturing of
transistors, diodes and other electronic components.
2. Extrinsic (Doped) Semiconductor
- is a semiconductor doped by a specific impurity which is able to deeply modify its
electrical properties, making it suitable for electronic applications (diodes,
transistors, etc.) or optoelectronic applications (light emitters and detectors).
- The conductivity of semiconductors can be greatly improved by introducing a small
number of suitable replacement atoms called IMPURITIES.
o Doping - The process of adding impurity atoms to the pure semiconductor.
- the impurity modifies the electrical properties of the semiconductor and
makes it suitable for electronics devices.
- An extrinsic semiconductor can be further classified into types:
• P-Type Semiconductor
- the majority charge carriers are holes whereas minority charge carriers
are electrons.
- P stands for positive
- The P-type Semiconductor is formed when a trivalent (having three
valence electrons) impurity such as Gallium and Indium is added to a
pure semiconductor in a small amount, and as a result, a large number
of holes are created in it.
- These p-type producing impurities are known as Acceptors because
each atom of them creates one hole which can accept one bonded
electron.
- A positive charge hole is created when the three valence electrons of
the impurity bond with three of the four valence electrons of the
semiconductor and having one electron short, the covalent bond cannot
be completed, hence the missing electron is known as a hole.
• N-Type Semiconductor
- The N-type semiconductor is described as a type of extrinsic
semiconductor doped with a pentavalent (having five valence electrons)
impurity element.
- The pentavalent impurity or dopant elements are added in the N-type
semiconductor so as to increase the number of electrons for conduction.
- Each pentavalent impurity atom is said to donate one electron to the N-
type semiconductor hence it is called a Donor impurity.
- there are more electrons than holes in the N-type semiconductor.
Semiconductor Diode
- A diode is a two-terminal electronic component that has a low resistance to the
flow of current in one direction thus allowing the passage of current in one
direction whereas there will be a high resistance in the other, thus restricting the
flow of current in that direction.
- It is used in the rectification process where the AC signals converted into DC
signals.
- It acts as valve in electrical and electronic circuits.
- A semiconductor diode is a p-n junction diode.
- It allows the flow of electric current only in forward biased condition, in the
reverse-biased it blocks the flow of electric current.
- Symbol:
Types of Semiconductor Diodes
1. LED
- used for emitting an infrared light spectrum.
- can emit light when it is in the forward biased state.
- Aluminum alloys are used to obtain red, orange and yellow light, and indium
alloys are used to get green, blue and white light.

2. Zener Diode
- used for the stabilization of current and voltage in electronic systems
- can conduct in both directions when a certain voltage is reached
- made from heavily doped silicon

3. Rectifier Diode
- used for the rectification of alternating current
- mostly made up of silicon

4. Tunnel Diode or Esaki Diode

- exhibit negative resistance wherein the current across the tunnel diode
decreases when the voltage increases.
- used as a very fast switching device in computers.
- germanium material is commonly used to make the tunnel diodes.
5. Photodiode
- It is also called as Photodetector, Photo Sensor or Light Detector.
- used to convert light into electrical energy.
- typical photodiode materials are Silicon, Germanium, Indium Gallium
Arsenide Phosphide and Indium gallium arsenide.

6. Switching Diode
- refers to a diode with a switching function.
- this diode has the performance of passing current (ON) when voltage is
applied in the forward direction and stopping (OFF) current when the
voltage is applied in the reverse direction.
- made of silicon

7. Gunn Diode
- Also called transfer electron devices.
- which composes of only an n-doped semiconductor material
- used in electronic oscillators to generate microwave frequencies, in radars,
as sensors in door opening systems, trespass detecting systems,
pedestrian safety systems, etc.
 - made of Gallium Arsenide materials

8. Variable-Capacitance Diode
- a type of diode whose internal capacitance varies with respect to the
reverse voltage.
- it always works in reverse bias conditions and is a voltage-dependent
semiconductor device.
- also called as Varicap diode, Varactor diode, and Voltcap
- made of Gallium Arsenide and silicon materials

9. Schottky Diode
- a type of metal – semiconductor junction diode, which is also known as hot-
carrier diode, low voltage diode or schottky barrier diode.
- the schottky diode is formed by the junction of a semiconductor with a
metal.
- metals like platinum or aluminum are used instead of P type
semiconductors.
Applications of Diodes
- We know that a Diode allows the current flow only in one direction and hence it acts
as a one-way switch. Diode is made of P and N type materials and has two terminals
namely anode and cathode. This device can be operated by controlling the voltage
applied to these terminals.
- When the voltage applied to the anode is positive with respect to the cathode, the
diode is said to be in Forward Bias. If the voltage applied to the diode is greater than
the threshold level (generally, it is of ≈0.7V for Silicon Diodes), then diode acts as a
short circuit and allows the current flow.
- If the polarity of the voltage is changed i.e., the cathode is made positive with respect
to anode, then it is said to be in Reverse Bias and acts as open circuit. As a result,
no current flows through it.

Common Applications
• Rectifiers
• Clipper Circuits
• Clamping Circuits
• Voltage Multipliers
• Reverse Current Protection Circuits
• In Logic Gates
• …and many more
Diode as Rectifier
- The electrical power is almost exclusively generated, transmitted and distributed in
the form of AC because of economical construction but for the operation of most of
the electronic devices and circuits, DC supply is required
- The most common and important application of a diode is the rectification of AC power
to DC power. Using diodes, we can construct different types of rectifier circuits. The
basic types of these rectifier circuits are half wave, full wave center tapped and full
bridge rectifiers. A single or combination of four diodes is used in most of the power
conversion applications.
Transformer
- device that transfers electric energy from one alternating-current circuit to one or
more other circuits, either increasing (stepping up) or reducing (stepping down) the
voltage.

Transformer ratio:

𝑁𝑝 𝑉𝑝 𝐼
= = 𝐼𝑠
𝑁𝑠 𝑉𝑠 𝑝
𝑁𝑝 - number of turns in primary

𝑁𝑠 - number of turns in secondary

𝑉𝑝 - voltage in primary (in V)

𝑉𝑠 - voltage in secondary (in V)

𝐼𝑝 - current in primary (in A)

𝐼𝑠 - current in secondary (in A)

Two primary methods of Rectification
• Half Rectifier
• Full Wave Rectifier

Half Wave Rectifier

- When a rectifier unit is placed in series with the load across an AC supply, it converts
alternating voltage into unidirectional pulsating voltage, using the half cycles of the
applied voltage, the other half cycle being suppressed because it conducts only in
one direction.
- Only one diode is required to construct a half-wave rectifier.
 - The circuit diagram below shows how a capacitive filter is. It can be used to
smoothen out a pulsating DC waveform into a constant DC waveform.

-
Power Supply Specifications
- The most important characteristics which are required to be specified for a power
supply:
1. Output DC voltage
2. Average and peak currents in the diode
3. Peak inverse voltage of the diode
4. The regulation/efficiency
5. The ripple Factor
Peak Inverse Voltage
- The maximum voltage that the rectifying diode has to withstand when it is reversed
biased.
𝑃𝐼𝑉 = 𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
 𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑅𝐿 𝑉𝐷𝐶

DC Output Voltage/Average Voltage

- The output DC voltage appears at the load resistor RL which is obtained by
multiplying output DC voltage with the load resistor RL. The output DC voltage is
given as:

𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑉𝑆 max (𝑅 )
𝐿
𝑉𝐷𝐶 = =
𝜋 𝜋(𝑅𝐿 +𝑅𝐹)

• 𝑉𝑆𝑚𝑎𝑥 − 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒

DC Current/Average Current
- DC current is given as:
𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐼𝐷𝐶 = =
𝜋 𝜋𝑅𝐿
𝑉
𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 𝑅𝑆 +𝑅
𝑓 𝐿

• 𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 − 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝐷𝐶 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡/𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡

• 𝑅𝐿 – load resistance
RMS Value of Current
- Value of current flowing through the diode.
𝑉
𝐼𝑟𝑚𝑠 = 2(𝑅𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
+𝑅 ) 𝐹 𝐿

• 𝑅𝐹 – diode forward resistance

RMS Value of Output Voltage
- RMS value of voltage across the load

𝑉
𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥 𝐿 𝑅
𝑉𝐿 𝑟𝑚𝑠 = 2(𝑅 +𝑅 ) 𝐹 𝐿
𝑉𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑉𝐿 𝑟𝑚𝑠 = if 𝑅𝐿 ≫ 𝑅𝐹
2
Ripple Factor
- Ripple voltage means the amount of unwanted AC components that remains when
converting AC waveform into a DC waveform. The main reason for the ripple voltage
is that the converter converts the AC voltage into a DC voltage, but the AC voltage
cannot completely eliminate.
- Ripples are the oscillations that are obtained in DC which are corrected by using filters
such as inductors and capacitors.
- Ripple factor tells us the number of ripples presents in the output DC. Higher the
ripple factor, more is the oscillation at the output DC and lower is the ripple factor,
less is the oscillation at the output DC.
- Ripple factor is the ratio of RMS value of the AC component of the output voltage to
the DC component of the output voltage.

𝑉 2 𝐼 2
𝛾 = √( 𝑉𝐿 𝑟𝑚𝑠) − 1 = √( 𝐼𝑟𝑚𝑠) − 1
𝐷𝐶 𝐷𝐶

Rectifier Efficiency
- Rectifier efficiency is the ratio of output DC power to the input AC power. For a
half-wave rectifier, rectifier efficiency is 40.6%.

𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 2
𝑃𝑑𝑐 = ( 𝜋 ) 𝑅𝐿
𝐼 2𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑃𝑎𝑐 = (𝑅𝐹 + 𝑅𝐿 )
4
Advantages of Half Wave Rectifier
▪ Affordable
▪ Simple connections
▪ Easy to use
 ▪ Number of components used are less
Disadvantages of Half Wave Rectifier
▪ Ripple production is more
▪ Harmonics are generated
▪ Utilization of the transformer is very low
▪ Efficiency of rectification is low
Full-wave Rectifier
- converts the complete cycle of alternating current into pulsating DC.
- The lower efficiency of the half wave rectifier can be overcome by the full wave
rectifier.

Types:
1. Centre-Tap Full Wave Rectifier
- The circuit of the full wave rectifier consists of a step-down transformer and two
diodes that are connected and center tapped.
- The output voltage is obtained across the connected load resistor.
- Uses 2 diodes.
Peak Inverse Voltage

𝑃𝐼𝑉 = 2𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥

Peak Current/Maximum current
𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 =
𝑅𝑓+𝑅𝐿

2. Bridge Rectifier
- a type of Full Wave Rectifier that uses four diodes to form a close-loop bridge.
- the most efficient rectifier circuit.
- Uses 4 diodes
Peak Inverse Voltage

𝑃𝐼𝑉 = 𝑉𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
Peak Current/Maximum Current
𝑉
𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 = 2𝑅𝑆 𝑚𝑎𝑥
+𝑅 𝑓 𝐿

Common Formula for Centre-Tapped and Bridge Rectifier

DC Output Voltage/Average Voltage
2
𝑉𝐷𝐶 = 𝜋 𝐼max 𝑅𝐿
DC Current/Average Current
2
𝐼𝐷𝐶 = 𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝜋
RMS Value of Current
𝐼 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝐼𝑅𝑀𝑆 =
√2
RMS Value of Output Voltage
𝐼 𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑉𝐿 𝑅𝑀𝑆 = 𝑅𝐿
√2
Ripple Factor

2
𝛾 = √ 𝐾𝑓 − 1

𝐼 𝑟𝑚𝑠
𝐾𝑓2 = - form factor
𝐼𝑑𝑐
Rectifier Efficiency
- For a full-wave rectifier, rectifier efficiency is 81.2%.

2 2
𝑃𝑑𝑐 = (𝜋 𝐼𝑚𝑎𝑥 ) 𝑅𝐿
𝐼 2𝑚𝑎𝑥
𝑃𝑎𝑐 = (𝑅𝐹 + 𝑅𝐿 )
2

Advantages of Full Wave Rectifier

• The rectifier efficiency of a full-wave rectifier is high
• The power loss is very low
• Number of ripples generated are less
Disadvantages of Full Wave Rectifier
• Expensive
Diode as Clippers in Clipping Circuit
- The Diode Clipper, also known as a Diode Limiter, is a wave shaping circuit that takes
an input waveform and clips or cuts off its top half, bottom half or both halves together.
- A circuit which removes the peak of a waveform based on requirements.
- The shape of the waveform depends on the configuration as well as the design of the
circuit.
Applications of Clipper
• The clipper circuit offer overvoltage protection therefore, it is used in power
supplies for limiting the voltage.
• They are used for filtering noise in transmitters.
• They are used in transmitters and receivers of television.
• They are used for modifying or generating new waveforms such as square,
triangular, etc.

Types
• Series Clippers
• Shunt Clippers
Series Clippers
- A clipper is said to be a series clipper if the diode and resistor are connected in series
with the input AC (voltage) signal and the output is taken across the resistor. Based
on the position of the diode, we can clip either the positive half part or the negative
half part of the input signal.
Types
▪ Positive Series Clipper
- A series clipper is said to be a positive series clipper if it clips the positive half
part of the input signal. There is no output or zero output during the positive
half cycle of the input signal since the diode is reverse biased. Output is the
same as that of input during the negative half cycle of the input signal since
the diode is forward-biased.
o Positive Series Clipper with positive 𝑉𝑟
- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in series to the input
signal and biased with positive reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the positive portions of the waveform.

o Positive Series Clipper with negative 𝑉𝑟

- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in series to the input
signal and biased with negative reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that
attenuates the positive portions of the waveform.

▪ Negative Series Clipper

- A series clipper is said to be a negative series clipper if it clips the negative
half part of the input signal. There is no output or zero output during the
negative half cycle of the input signal since the diode is reverse biased.
 Output is the same as that of input during the positive half cycle of the input
signal since the diode is forward-biased.

o Negative Series Clipper with positive 𝑉𝑟

- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in series to the input
signal and biased with positive reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the negative portions of the waveform.

o Negative Series Clipper with negative 𝑉𝑟

- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in series to the input
signal and biased with negative reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the negative portions of the waveform.
Shunt Clippers
- A clipper is said to be a shunt clipper if the resistor and diode are connected in series
with the input AC (voltage) signal and the output is taken across the diode. Based on
the position of the diode, we can clip either the positive half part or the negative half
part of the input signal.
Types:
▪ Positive Shunt Clipper
- A shunt clipper is said to be a positive shunt clipper if it clips the positive half
part of the input signal. There is no output or zero output during the positive
half cycle of the input signal since the diode is forward-biased. Output is the
same as that of input during the negative half cycle of the input signal since
the diode is reverse biased.

o Positive Shunt Clipper with Positive 𝑉𝑟

- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in shunt to the input
signal and biased with positive reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the positive portions of the waveform.
 o Positive Shunt Clipper with Negative 𝑉𝑟
- The following figure represents the circuit diagram for positive shunt
clipper, when the reference voltage applied is negative.

▪ . Negative Shunt Clipper

- A shunt clipper is said to be a negative shunt clipper if it clips the negative
half part of the input signal. There is no output or zero output during the
negative half cycle of the input signal since the diode is forward-biased.
Output is the same as that of input during the positive half cycle of the input
signal since the diode is reverse biased.
o Negative Shunt Clipper with positive 𝑉𝑟
- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in shunt to the input
signal and biased with positive reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the negative portions of the waveform.

o Negative Shunt Clipper with negative 𝑉𝑟

- A Clipper circuit in which the diode is connected in shunt to the input
signal and biased with negative reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 and that attenuates
the negative portions of the waveform.
Two-Way Clipper
- This is a positive and negative clipper with a reference voltage 𝑉𝑟 .
- The input voltage is clipped two-way both positive and negative portion
of the input waveform with two reference voltages. For this, two diodes
D1 and D2 along with two reference voltages Vr1 and Vr2 are connected
in the circuit.
Diodes as Clamper in Clamping Circuit
- A clamping circuit is a circuit that adds a DC level to an AC signal.
- shifts the waveform to a desired DC level without changing the actual appearance of
the applied signal.
- A simple clamper circuit comprises of a capacitor, a diode, a resistor and a dc battery
if required.
Applications:
- Voltage multiplier
- DC level shifting
- Use to remove distortion in the signal
- Signal restoration
- For test equipment
- Etc..
Types:
1. Positive Clamper
2. Negative Clamper
Positive Clamper
- A negative peak of the signal is raised above to the zero level.
 • Positive Clamper with positive 𝑉𝑅
- A positive clamper circuit if biased with some positive reference voltage, that
voltage will be added to the output to raise the clamped level.

• Positive Clamper with negative 𝑉𝑅

- A Positive clamper circuit if biased with some negative reference voltage, that
voltage will be added to the output to raise the clamped level.

Negative Clamper
- Shifts the output signal to the negative portion of the input signal.
• Negative Clamper with positive 𝑉𝑅
- A Negative clamper circuit if biased with some positive reference voltage, that
voltage will be added to the output to raise the clamped level.

• Negative Clamper with negative 𝑉𝑅

- A Negative clamper circuit if biased with some negative reference voltage, that
voltage will be added to the output to raise the clamped level.
Transistors

- an electronic component that is used in circuits to either amplify, rectify or switch

electrical signals or power.
- replaced the bulky and fragile vacuum tube in electronic equipment.
- a miniature semiconductor that regulates or controls current or voltage flow in
addition to amplifying and generating these electrical signals and acting as a
switch/gate for them.
- typically, transistors consist of three layers, or terminals, of semiconductor material,
each of which can carry a current namely emitter, base and collector.
- an electrical signal is applied to the base, and the current flow between the emitter
and collector.
- the standard units of a transistor for electrical measurement are Ampere (A), Volt
(V), and Ohm (Ω), respectively.
- the word transistor is a combination of transfer and resistance because it transfers
the resistance from one end of the device to the other end or we can say, transfer
of resistance.
Terminals of a Transistor
- The current flowing through the gate from the collector can be regulated by sending
varying levels of current from the base. In this manner, a very small amount of current
can be used to control a large amount of current like in amplifiers. Transistor works
as a switch or as an amplifier.
1. Base
- This segment is at the center of the transistor. It lightly doped and is very thin in
comparison to either emitter or collector so that it may pass most of the injected
charge carriers to the collector.
2. Collector
- It is the righthand section of the transistor and it main function is to collect majority
charge carriers. Collector is always reverse biased. It is larger than the emitter and
is moderately doped.
3. Emitter
- This segment is on the left side of the transistor and its main function is to supply
majority charge carriers (electrons in case of NPN transistors and holes in case of
PNP transistors) to the base. It is always forward biased with respect to base so that
it is able to supply majority charge carriers to the base. It is moderately sized and
heavily doped so that it may be able to inject a large number of charge carriers.
Different Types of Transistors
Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT)
- a three-terminal semiconductor device that consists of two p-n junctions which are
able to amplify or magnify a signal. It is a current controlled device.
- are manufactured in two types, PNP and NPN, and are available as separate
components, usually in large quantities. The prime use or function of this type of
transistor is to amplify current. This makes them useful as switches or amplifiers.

xsistor.docx

- Transistors of both types (PNP and NPN) behave exactly the same way except
change in biasing and majority carriers.
- In a NPN transistor, the base controls the amount of current passing through it while
allowing current flow from the emitter to the collector. PNP transistors, on the other
hand, are made to flow current from collector to emitter.
- NPN transistors are preferred due to their high frequency response.
 - a bipolar transistor is so named because its operation involves two kinds of charge
carriers, holes and electrons.
BJT Construction
Transistor Biasing
- The supply of suitable external dc voltage is called as biasing. Either forward or
reverse biasing is done to the emitter and collector junctions of the transistor. These
biasing methods make the transistor circuit to work in four kinds of regions such as
Active region, Saturation region, Cutoff region and Inverse active region.

Collector
Emitter Junction Region of Operation Application
Junction

Forward Biased Forward Bias Saturation Region Closed Switch

Forward Biased Reverse Bias Active Region Amplifier

Reverse Biased Forward Bias Inverse Active region No application

 Reverse Biased Reverse Bias Cut-off Region Open Switch

Active Mode Biasing

Saturation Mode Biasing

Cut-off Mode Biasing

BJT Configuration
- The three types of configurations are Common Base, Common Emitter and
Common Collector configurations.

1. Common Base (CB) Configuration

- The name itself implies that the Base terminal is taken as common terminal for
both input and output of the transistor.
- Input is connected between emitter and base and output is taken across collector
and base.
- Base terminal is grounded.
- The construction of this configuration circuit is difficult because this type has high
voltage gain values.
- Is less common as an amplifier than compared to the more popular common
emitter, (CE) or common collector, (CC)
- The common base circuit is mainly used in single stage amplifier circuits, such as
microphone pre amplifier or radio frequency amplifiers because of their high
frequency response.
Formulas:
Currents

𝐼𝐸 = 𝐼𝐵 + 𝐼𝐶 𝐼𝐸 – emitter current
𝐼𝐵 𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂
𝐼𝐸 = + 𝐼𝐶 – collector current
1−𝛼 1−𝛼
𝐼𝐶 = 𝛼𝐼𝐸 + 𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 𝐼𝐵 – base current
𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 – Collector-base current when output is open
– Collector-base leakage current

𝐼𝐶𝐸𝑂 – Collector-emitter current when base is open

– Collector-emitter leakage current
Current Gain Factor/Current Amplification Factor
- Measure of transistor’s quality. The higher the value the better is the transistor.
𝐼𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐼𝐶 𝐼𝐶 −𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂
𝛼= = = - usual value ranges from 0.95 to 0.99
𝐼𝑖𝑛 𝐼𝐸 𝐼𝐸

Voltage Gain
𝑉 𝐼 (𝑅 ) 𝑅
𝐴𝑉 = 𝑉𝑂𝑈𝑇 = 𝐶 𝐿 = 𝛼 𝐿 𝑅𝐿 – load resistance
𝐼𝑁 𝐼𝐸 (𝑅𝐼𝑁) 𝑅𝐼𝑁

𝑅𝐼𝑁 – input resistance

 2. Common Emitter (CE) Configuration
- Input is connected between base and emitter while the output is taken between
collector and emitter.
- Emitter is common to input and output circuits.
- Bias voltages are applied between collector and emitter and base and emitter.
- Emitter is terminal is grounded.
- Most popular transistor arrangement when significant current gain is required.
- One of the most popular applications for common emitters is audio amplification
and power amplifiers.

Formulas:
Currents

𝐼𝐸 = 𝐼𝐵 + 𝐼𝐶 𝐼𝐸 – emitter current
𝐼𝐶 = 𝛽𝐼𝐵 + (𝛽 + 1)𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 𝐼𝐶 – collector current
𝐼𝐶 = 𝛽𝐼𝐵 + 𝐼𝐶𝐸𝑂 𝐼𝐵 – base current
𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂
𝐼𝐶𝐸𝑂 = 𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 – Collector-base current when output is open
1−𝛼
– Collector-base leakage current

𝐼𝐶𝐸𝑂 – Collector-emitter current when base is open

– Collector-emitter leakage current
Current Gain Factor/Current Amplification Factor
𝐼 𝐼
𝛽 = 𝐼𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝐼𝐶 - Usual value ranges from 20 to 100
𝑖𝑛 𝐵
Voltage Gain
𝑉
𝐴𝑉 = 𝑉𝑂𝑈𝑇
𝐼𝑁

3. Common Collector (CC) Configuration

- The name itself implies that the Collector terminal is taken as common terminal for
both input and output of the transistor.
- This circuit is mostly used for impedance matching. That means, to drive a low
impedance load from a high impedance source.

Formulas:
Currents

𝐼𝐸 = 𝐼𝐵 + 𝐼𝐶 𝐼𝐸 – emitter current
𝐼𝐸 = (𝛽 + 1)𝐼𝐵 + (𝛽 + 1)𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 𝐼𝐶 – collector current
𝐼𝐶 = 𝛽 + 1𝛼𝐼𝐸 + 𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 𝐼𝐵 – base current
𝐼𝐶𝐵𝑂 – Collector-base current when output is open
– Collector-base leakage current
 Current Gain Factor/Current Amplification Factor
𝐼
𝛾 = 𝐼𝐸 - usual value ranges from 20 to 500
𝐵

Voltage Gain
𝑉
𝐴𝑉 = 𝑉𝑂𝑈𝑇
𝐼𝑁

Relationship Between Alpha, Beta and Gamma

𝛽
𝛼=
1+𝛽
𝛾−1
𝛼=
𝛾
𝛽 = 𝛾−1
𝛽
𝛼=𝛾