Introduction to

Basic Electronics Engineering

Module -I
Evolution, Impact of Electronics and
Passive Components
 INTRODUCTION
• The term electronics is derived from electron- the key particle, flow of
which through a conductor gives us electric current.

• This current can be produced with the help of batteries or generators.

• This current can be used for various purposes.

• The generation, control and transmission (both ac and dc) of this

current ranging from few micro amperes to hundreds of amperes are
coming under the purview of electrical engineering.

• But electronics has far reaching capabilities and potentialities.

• The flow of electrons has been regulated and controlled in electronic

devices under the stimuli of external influences.

• These external stimuli may be called signal, message, data or any

other name appropriate for the occasion.
• The controlled flow of electrons has been used through various
techniques and forms what is known as electronics.
• APPLICATIONS OF ELECTRONICS

• The electronics plays an important role in almost every sphere of our

life.
• It is very difficult to find anything starting from household goods,
transports, health, communication, entertainment, multimedia,
internets, where electronics has not made its presence felt.
• Besides the common electronic gadgets such as radio and TV
receivers, audio and video tape recorder, frequency synthesizer,
calculators, cameras, musical doorbells etc. electronics has offered its
service in different walks of life.
• Some of the applications of electronics in various field are given below

• 1. Communications
• The development of communication facilities is perhaps the most
significant gift of electronics in the twentieth century.
• Besides bringing the people of the world closer through wireless
communication, in particular through internet, it has innumerable other
applications
 APPLICATIONS OF ELECTRONICS…

– Aircrafts make constant use of radio communication which provides information

on the weather and terminal traffic.
– Satellites have revolutionized the field of communications
– All the space voyages would not have been possible without electronics.

2. Applications in Digital Electronics.

– Computer which revolutionized the world is one of the major achievements of
electronics.
– Some of the other devices are electronic calculators, digital clocks etc.
3. Applications in Medical Science
• In medical diagnostics and surgery, all scanning devices and
techniques use electronics in some form or the other.
– Some of the machines/ equipment used by the doctors in diagnosis and
treatment are given below.
– Electron microscope
– X-rays
– ECG. EEG, EMG, ENG,etc
– Various scanning machines etc..
 INTRODUCTION…

4. Entertainment
• RADIO and TV broad casting not only provides the latest information but
also provides entertainment to the viewers.
• Other electronic gadgets like Tape recorders, stereo systems etc.. are
also used for entertainment.

5. Application in defense
• RADAR had changed the war profile in the second world war.
• The communication system plays an important role in deciding success
or defeat
• Guided missiles are completely controlled by electronic circuits.

6. Applications in Automobiles.
• For various sensing and control applications, electronics are widely
used.
 INTRODUCTION…

7. Instrumentation
• Electronic measuring instruments gives Accurate and precise
measurements.
– CRO, Multimeters, frequency counters
– Electronics is also widely used in data acquisition.

8. Industrial applications
• Electronics is often used in industrial applications, in counting, sorting,
illumination control, welding control, controlling of various physical
quantities, early warning systems, measurements etc….
Evolution of Electronics
• The age of electronics began with the birth of the vacuum diode of Sir
Ambrose Fleming in 1904.
• In 1906 Lee De forest put a third electrode called grid, into the Flemings
valve and invented triode tube called audion. The audion was the first
amplifier.
• 1912 First application of radio using diodes and triodes
• First radio circuits from diodes triodes between 1907 and 1927
• The superheterodyne receiver by Amstrong in 1920
• Demonstration of television in 1925
• 1930 Black and white TV introduced
• FM modulation by Amstrong in 1933
• RADAR in 1940
Evolution of Electronics….
• Evolution of Transistors

• 1947 Brattain, Bardeen invented point contact transistor, The start of modern
electronics era, marked as the first electronic revolution
• 1950 Shockley invented junction transistor
• 1951 Transistors produced commercially ( first germanium and then silicon)
• In 1952 Shockley invented the unipolar Field Effect transistor
• The next break through came in 1956, when Bell Laboratories developed the
pnpn triggering transistor also known as thyristor or SCR
• In 1958 General Electricals introduced the first commercial thyristor
• That was the beginning of a new era for applications electronics in power
processing and conditioning, power electronics.

• T
 The Start of the Modern
Electronics Era

Bardeen, Shockley, and Brattain at Bell The first germanium bipolar transistor.
Labs - Brattain and Bardeen invented Roughly 50 years later, electronics
the bipolar transistor in 1947. account for 10% (4 trillion dollars) of
the world GDP.

Chap 1 - 9
 Evolution of Electronics…
• Evolution of Integrated Chips
• The first Integrated circuit was developed in 1958 by Kilby(TI) and Noyce
( Fair child semiconductor)
• 1960 Small Scale Integration SSI, <100 components per chip
• 1961 First commercial IC from Fairchild Semiconductors and Texas
Instruments.
• 1966 Medium scale Integration MSI, >100 and less than 1000 per chip
• 1968 First commercial IC Opamp uA709 by Fair child
• 1969 Large scale Integration LSI, >1000 but <10,000
• The first microprocessor 4004 by intel in 1971
• In 1972 8 bit micro processor by Intel
• 1975 Very Large Scale Integration VLSI >10000
• 1980 106 components per chip
• 1998 Ultra large Scale Integration ULSI > 10000 components per mm2
• 108 components per chip
 Evolution of Electronics…

• Evolution of Computers
• 1633 schiokherd in Germany invented mechanical computer.
• 1833 First computing system analytical engine by Charles Babbage
• 1933 Electro mechanical calculator – IBM, 17m long and 3 –m high
• 1946 Electronic calculator introduced ( 18,000 vaccum tubes)
• 1948 General purpose small electronic calculator
• 1954 first generation computer (IBM 650 tube version)
• 1959 Second generation computer ( IBM transistor version)
• 1965 Third generation computer ( IBM IC version)
• 1970 Computer with semiconductor memory
• 1978 Entire computer on a single chip (6X6 mm2)
• 1980 Micro computer general purpose digital processing and control
system.
Evolution of Electronic Devices

Vacuum Discrete
Tubes Transistors

SSI and MSI VLSI

Integrated Surface-Mount
Circuits Circuits
 Resistors
• The units of resistance are Ohms which was named after German
Physicist Georg Simon Ohm. The resistor color code calculator
can also be used for identifying the resistor value or resistance
value of different types of resistors.
• Resistors are commonly used to perform two functions in a
circuit.
• The first use is to limit the flow of current in a circuit.

I=V/R
I = 15 V / 30 Ω
I = 0.5 A
 Resistors

• The second use is to produce a voltage divider.

A to B = 1.5 V
A to C = 7.5 V
A to D = 17.5 V
B to C = 6 V
B to D = 16 V
C to D = 10 V
 Resistors
Exceeding the power rating causes damage to a
resistor.
 Resistors

Specifications.

Resistance is measured in units called ohms. The symbol for an

ohm is Ω. Large values of resistance usually have prefixed. One
thousand ohms is represented by one kilohm (kΩ) and one million
ohms is the same as one megaohm (MΩ).
Specifications.
Tolerance

This always follows the value when describing a resistor

Definition: The maximum error in resistance value at room

temperature

Units: Percent (%)

All processes have some degree of variation and there is a limit to

how accurately resistance measurements can be made. This
means the actual value may differ from the nominal value, and
tolerance is a way of stating the limit on this.

In general, tighter tolerances (= lower % figures!) mean higher

costs / prices. If the requested tolerance is unavailable, a tighter
tolerance alternative can be used.
Specifications..

Thermal stability

TCR stands for Temperature Coefficient of Resistance

Definition: How much the resistance changes with temperature across a

given temperature range

Units: Parts per million per degree C (ppm / °C) (1ppm = 0.0001% over a
100 °C change)
The resistive properties of all materials vary with temperature. Careful
material selection and processing can minimize this.

This is generally more of an issue for precision resistors. These are often
available in a range of TCR values - the lower the TCR, the higher the cost /
price.
Specifications..

Power Rating

Any resistor functions such that it limits current flow while dropping voltage. It does this by
changing some electrical energy into heat. The amount of energy the resistor is capable of
safely changing into heat is called its power rating.

Definition: The maximum power which can be dissipated in the resistor at a certain
ambient temperature is the resistor’s power rating.

Units: Watt (W) = 1 Joule / 1 second

If a resistor gets too hot it can a) change value, b) become unreliable or c) burn or damage
the circuit board and surrounding product.

This sets a limit on how much electrical power can be allowed to turn into thermal energy in
a given time.
The power rating relates to continuous dissipation for an indefinite time. Resistors can
dissipate more power if the time is limited to a fraction of a second or a few seconds,
known as pulse power.
 Types of Resistors
• Resistors are basically of two types namely linear and non-linear resistors.
• Each type is further subdivided into many types as shown in figure.
• 1. Linear Resistors
• The resistors through which the current is directly proportional to the
applied voltage, are called linear resistors.
• The resistance value do not change with the variation in applied voltage ,
temperature or light intensity.
• Linear resistors are of two types
• Fixed resistors
• Variable resistors
 Types of Resistors

• FIXED RESISTORS
– Fixed resistors have only one ohmic value, which
cannot be changed or adjusted.
– Fixed resistors are of the following types
– i) Carbon composition resistors
– ii) Thin film resistors
– iii)Thick film resistors
– iv) Wire-wound resistors
i) CARBON COMPOSITION RESISTORS
• Carbon composition resistors are made by mixing carbon
powder and insulating binders to produce desired resistance
• Usually the resistance element is a simple rod of carbon powder
which is enclosed in plastic case
• The two ends of the carbon resistance element are joined to
metal caps with leads of tinned wire.
• Available in resistance values ranging from 1Ω to 22MΩ
• Power rating varies from 1/8,1/4,1/3,1/2,2/3,1and 2 watts.
• The size of these resistors vary with power rating.
 ½ Watt 1 Watt 2 Watt
II.) THIN FILM RESISTORS
•These resistors are made by depositing a very thin layer of
conducting material on an insulated rod made of ceramic or
plastic.
•Thin film resistors are of two types
a.)Carbon film resistors
•Carbon resistors are not as accurate as wire wound or metal
oxide resistors but they are very cheap to produce and are widely
used in electronics.
• Carbon film resistors with values from 1 Ω to 10 MΩ are made
and the value of each is shown using a four band colour coding
system.
 Types of Resistors
• b.) Metal Film Resistors
• Metal film resistors are another type of fixed resistor.
• These resistors are made by depositing a very thin layer of metal
on a ceramic or glass rod.
• Metal film resistors are superior to carbon resistors because their ohmic
value does not change with age and they have improved tolerance.
• These resistors have tolerances ranging from +_.025% to 2% of the
specified value.
 Types of Resistors
• III. Thick film resistors
• These resistors are made by a technique similar to thin film
resistors.
• Thick film resistors are of three types
• a.) Metal oxide resistors
• Metal oxide resistors are made in a similar manner to carbon
resistors, except that certain metal oxides are used instead of
carbon.
• They are usually coated in a grey coloured material and are more
accurate.
• They have low noise good temperature stability and resistance
values available up to 10 Mega ohm
• Five band colour coding system is used for marking its resistance
value.
Resistors
 Types of Resistors…
• B.)Bulk property film resistor
• These are made of metal film which is photo etched to provide
close resistance tolerance values ranging from ±0.1% to 1%
• These resistors have low noise, very low temperature
coefficient and can work at high frequency.
• C.) Cermet film resistor
• These are made by placing a coating of metal alloy along with
insulating material on a ceramic substrate. The combination is
then fired into a ceramic metal called cermet.
• They provides the highest resistance values than any other
resistive material.
• Resistance value can be up to up to 500Mohm and tolerances
ranging from ±0.5% to 2 %
 TYPES OF RESISTORS…
IV. Wire-wound resistors

•Wire-wound resistors are fixed resistors that are made by winding a

piece of resistive wire (nichrome) around a ceramic core.
•The wire is then coated with an insulating material
•The wire is connected to the two resistor leads and coated with an
insulating plastic.
•These are used when a high power rating is required.

• In this type of resistor, the value is usually written on the protective

coating.
•Wire wound resistors are used when extremely accurate and high
wattage values are needed.
 VARIABLE RESISTORS
• The resistance values of Variable resistors can be varied from 0 to a
specified value.
• It is used in electronic circuits to adjusts values of current and
voltage.
• They find applications in changing the volume of sound,
brightness of a television picture etc..
• Variable resistors are of the following three type.
• Wire wound variable resistor
• Potentiometer and
• Trimmer or preset
 VARIABLE RESISTORS …
• a.)Wire wound variable resistor
• These resistors are made of nichrome wire wound on a
ceramic core and covered with an insulate coating, a
window is left on the insulating cover.
• An adjustable tap is rides along the exposed wire . This
act as the adjustable point.
• These are used in power supplies and low frequency
circuits.
• It is not suitable for high frequency application
• Wire wound resistor are available with resistance values
ranging from 1Ω to 150 K Ω with ±5% to ±10%
tolerance and power rating from 3 watts to 200w
 TYPES OF RESISTORS…
• b.) Potentiometers
• The name potentiometer comes from the use of this device as
potential meter.
• Potentiometers usually have three connecting points.
• Two are connected to the ends of the resistance material and the third
is connected to the central sliding contact.
• the outer terminal are fixed and the middle terminal is variable.
• The slider can either slide in a straight line or around a curve. This is
shown in Figure.
 TYPES OF RESISTORS…
• Thin resistance wire, or a strip of carbon material, is used in
potentiometers where circuit current are small
• However, in potentiometers where large currents are flowing ,
such as in those used for light dimmers, very thick resistance
wire is used.
 TYPES OF RESISTORS…

c.) Trimmers (Preset resistors)

•These are used in electronic circuits to trim the circuit to the desired
operating conditions.
•The materiail used in the construction of trimmers are carbon
composition, carbon film,cermet and wire.
•Resistance values ranging from 50Ω to 5M Ω with a power rating of
¼ watt to ¾ watt
•preset resistors operate on the same principle as potentiometers
except the value is usually adjusted when a circuit is being tested
and then left on that setting.
• They are usually adjusted by using a small screwdriver.
 NON –LINEAR RESISTORS
• These resistors are made from semiconducting
materials.
• The non linear property of the resistors arises due to
the breaking of covalent bonds in the semiconducting
material.
• The source of energy for the creation of charge
carriers in semiconducting materials may be voltage,
temperature or incident light
• The non-linear resistors are of three types
• 1. Thermistors 2. Photo resistors 3. Varistors.
Thermistors
•The word thermistor is an acronym for thermal resistor. ie; temperature
sensitive resistors, the resistance varies with temperature.
•The variation in temperature is reflected through an appreciable
variation of the resistance of the device.
•Hence It is able to detect even small changes in temperature.
•Thermistors with both negative – temperature coefficient (NTC) and
positive temperature coefficient (PTC) are available.
• NTC means that the resistance decreases with increase in
temperature, these are commonly used.
•PTC means that the resistance increases with increase in
temperature.

•The NTC thermistors are manufactured by sintering semiconductor

ceramic materials prepared from mixtures of metallic oxides of cobalt,
nickel, manganese etc.
•These materials have high negative temperature coefficient of
resistance
 Thermistors
• PTC thermistors are made from doped barium titanate
semiconducting material.
• Thermistors are manufactured in the form of beads, probes, small
discs, washers and rod.
• Thermistors are used for temperature measurement and also in
various control circuits.
Photo Resistor (Light dependent resistors (LDRs)
•Photo resistors are made from semiconductor material whose
resistance changes when illuminated with light energy.
•Light dependent resistors are made from a semiconductor called
cadmium sulphide.
•The resistance of this material changes according to the amount of
light falling on it.
•When intensity light increases, resistance decreases.
•The resistance may be several mega ohms in total darkness and less
than 100 ohm when well illuminated
• Light dependent resistors are used in light meters and in circuits
designed to switch on or off when light intensity changes, such as
entrance alarm systems.
Varistor ( Voltage Dependent Resistor)

•The word Varistor is an acronym for variable resistor

•These are used to protect circuits from high voltage transients and
surges.
•When a transient occurs, the varistor resistance changes from a very high
stand-by value to a very low conducting value.
•The transient is thus absorbed and clamped to a safe level, protecting
sensitive circuit components.
 Resistor Color Code
• As the carbon film and carbon composition resistors are very
small in size to print the value of resistance, color bands are
printed to calculate the resistor value.
• The resistor color code consists of different bands on the
resistor with different colors (colors from resistor color code
chart).
Resistor Color Code Chart
•The resistor color code chart is shown in the figure
•This consists of different colors, significant figures, multiplier values,
tolerance values, and temperature coefficients that are used in resistor
colour code calculator.
Color Value
Black 0
Brown 1
Red 2
Orange 3
Yellow 4
Green 5
Blue 6
 Resistor Color Code…
Representation of Resistor Bands Where,

• Band 1 represents the first significant number of resistor values

• Band 2 represents the second significant number
• Band 3 represents the third significant number can be observed
in five band resistors and six band resistors
• Band 4 represents multiplier value (decimal)
• Band 5 represents the percentage of tolerance value
• Band 6 represents temperature coefficient value
 Resistor Color Code…

• The resistor color code can be used to determine the

resistor’s ohmic value and tolerance. 1500ohm with 10%
tolerance
Resistor Color Coding
 Resistor Color Coding…

a. )Two digits plus multiplier

AB*10C b )Two digits plus multiplier and tolerance

Yellow – Violet – Red Yellow – Violet – Red-Gold

47*102 47*102
4700 Ω ±20% 4700 Ω ±5%

c.) Brown – Black-Black – Red -

Silver
100*102
10000 Ω ±10%. 10K Ω ±10%.

Tolerance

Gold +/-5%
Silver +/-10%
None +/-20%
4-Band Resistor

5-Band Resistor

6-Band Resistor

State the colours of the bands for each of the following resistors.
a. 18 Ω 5% carbon film
b. 270 Ω 10% carbon film
c. 8.2 kΩ 10% carbon film
d. 8.20 kΩ 1% metal oxide
e. 470 kΩ 1% metal oxide
 Resistors

Schematic symbols are used to represent various types

of fixed resistors.
 Standard Values Resistors

10 33
11 36
12 39
13 43
15 47
16 51
18 56
20 62
22 68
24 75
27 82
30 91

Available in +/-5%
 Resistors
Review:
1. Resistors are used in two main applications: as voltage
dividers and to limit the flow of current in a circuit.
2. The value of fixed resistors cannot be changed.
3. There are several types of fixed resistors such as
composition carbon, metal film, and wire-wound.
4. Carbon resistors change their resistance with age or if
overheated.
5. Metal film resistors never change their value, but are
more expensive than carbon resistors.
6. The advantage of wire-wound resistors is their high
power ratings.
 Resistors…
Review:

7. Resistors often have bands of color to indicate their

resistance value and tolerance.
8. Resistors are produced in standard values. The number
of values between 0 and 100 Ω is determined by the
tolerance.
9. Variable resistors can change their value within the
limit of their full value.
10. A potentiometer is a variable resistor used as a voltage
divider.
Commonly used metric prefixes and their symbols
PREFIX+ UNIT METRIC SYMBOL MULTIPLIER LETTER

Teraohms T 1012 T
Gigohms G 109 G
Megohms M 1,000,000 M
Kilohms k 1000 K
Ohms  1 R
Milliohms m 0.001 R

1.5  is written 1.5

0.01  is written .01
10,500  (10.5k) is written 10.5K
1,800,000  (1.8M) is written 1.8M
0.005  (5m) is written .005 (for some manufacturers is written or marked
as R005)
 Capacitors

• A capacitor is a passive element that stores energy in its electric

field.
• A capacitor consists of two conducting plates separated by an
insulator (or dielectric).
• When a voltage source is connected to the capacitor, the source
deposits a positive charge, +q, on one plate and a negative charge,
–q, on the other.
+
+
+q
+q v C
v C -q
-q
-
-
 Capacitors
• The amount of charge is directly proportional to the voltage so that

q  Cv
C, called the capacitance of the capacitor, is the constant of proportionality.
C is measured in Farads (F). Since capacitance is very small, units such as
micro farad, nano farad and pico farad are generally used.

we define:
• Capacitance is the ratio of the charge on one plate of a capacitor to the
voltage difference between the two plates, measured in Farad (F). Thus,
1F = 1 coulomb/volt
• In reality, the value of C depends on the surface area of the plates, the
spacing between the plates, and the permittivity of the material.
• Capacitor passes ac signals and blocks dc signals.
• Capacitors are widely used in signal generation, tuning, timing , filtering etc.
 Types of Capacitor
•Capacitors are commonly classified on the basis of dielectric material used
•Capacitors may be divided into two classes - fixed and variable capacitors.
Fixed Capacitors
Capacitance value cannot be varied
Fixed Capacitors are of two types
•Electrostatic and Electrolytic
Electrostatic capacitors
•Electrostatic capacitors are made up of two metal conductors called plates
separated by a dielectric.
Following are the different types of electrostatic capacitors. This is based on the
type of dielectric material used in the construction.
Ceramic:
Ceramic material used as the dielectric material.
- large capacitance in smaller package ( high dielectric constant)
-Values: 1 nF to 1 μF.
-Lower breakdown voltage compared to paper or mica capacitors.
-Used for by pass, decoupling, filtering and in timing circuits.
-voltage ratings from a few volts to tens of volts
 Types of Capacitor
Mica capacitors
-Available in capacitance value ranging from 1 pF to 10000pF
- Stable capacitance value even at 200MHz
- Able to withstand very high voltages ( about 500V) due to high
dielectric constant
- Widely used in radio and telecommunication applications

Plastic film Capacitors.

• Plastic material as dielectric.
• The plastics used for this purpose are Polystyrene, polyester, teflon etc.
• Two sheets of foil separated by a thin plastic film and rolled up to save
space.
• Values: 1 nF to 10 pF
• Working voltage 1000 Vdc
• Automotive applications, filters, and in timing circuits.
• Plastic capacitor
 Types of Capacitor…
• Paper capacitor
• These capacitors are made of using strips of aluminium foil with treated
paper as dielectric.
• The foil and paper is rolled in a ribbon form. The leads are connected to the
aluminium foil and taken out at each end
• Available capacitance values 1nF to 1µF
• High working voltage may be up to 2000volts.
• The capacitors have excellent stability and reliability
 Types of Capacitor…

Electrolytic Capacitors
• Electrolytic capacitors are constructed with two thin metallic films (foil)
and an electrolytic semi-liquid solution.
• The flexibility of these materials allows them to be rolled up and provide a
large surface area and therefore help to create a large capacitance.
• Since the electrolytic solution (or paste) is conductive, a thin dielectric
oxide layer is grown on one of the the metallic film, to prevent the
metallic film from shorting to the electrolytic solution.
• The dielectric film is very thin which greatly increases the capacitance of
an electrolytic capacitor.
• Electrolytic capacitors have some of the highest capacitance values of any
type of capacitors. Values: 1 μF to 10000μF.
• Electrolytic capacitors are polarised:- the foil with the oxide layer must
always be at a positive voltage relative to the other (else explosion).
• Negative terminal indicated by a curved plate in symbol
 Electrolytic Capacitors…

• All polarized electrolytic capacitors have their polarity marked on them with
a negative sign which indicates which pin must be kept at the lowest
electrical potential.
• The two most common types of electrolytic capacitors are aluminium
electrolytic capacitors and tantalum capacitor
• Tantalum capacitors differ from most electrolytic capacitors in that they look
more like ceramic capacitors.
• Tantalum capacitors are much smaller than aluminium electrolytic capacitors
and have lower leakage currents which make them a better choice for many
signal blocking, by-passing, decoupling, filtering, and timing applications.
• Limitation of Electrolytic Capacitors
• Low voltage rating up to a few hundred volts.
• Polarization
• Leakage current and resistance is high
• Poor storage life.
 Types of Capacitor…

• Variable Capacitors.
• The capacitors in which the capacitance value may be changed either
by changing the area between the plates or by adjusting the spacing
between them.
• Capacitance value in pF range
• Capacitors are made by using air , mica, ceramic or plastic as a
dielectric
• Variable capacitor with air as dielectric - Ganged capacitors
• Variable capacitor using other dielectrics are called trimmers or
padders
 Types of Capacitor…
• Ganged Capacitor
• This capacitor consists of two sets of metal plates, separated from each
other by air
• One set of plates is fixed while the other set is connected to a shaft that
can be rotated.
• By rotating the shaft, moving plates can be moved in or out of a fixed
set of plates. This will change the area of overlap hence the capacitance
• The capacitance is minimum, when the moving plates are completely
out and maximum when these are completely in.
• Ganged capacitors are used in radio receivers for tuning to different
radio stations.
 Types of Capacitor…
• Trimmers and Padders.
• A trimmer consists of two small flexible metal plates separated by
dielectric ( ceramic, mica or plastic)
• The spacing between the plates can be changed by means of a screw
adjustment
• As the screw is rotated inwards, the plates are compressed and its
capacitance is increased
• Capacitance value of trimmers can be adjusted over a range from 5pF
to 30pF
• Trimmers are used exclusively for making fine adjustments on the
total capacitance of a device.
• Padders are similar to trimmers, but larger in size or may have more
plates.
• Capacitance value can be varied from 10pF to 500pF.
• Trimmers and padders are available in number of shapes.
Trimmers and Padders…
 Specifications of Capacitors

• The capacitors are specified with the type of dielectric, capacitance

value, working voltage, capacitance tolerance and its physical size.
• Capacitance of a capacitor is specified in microfarad F, pico farad(pF)
or nano farad (nF)
• The working voltage also called voltage rating is the maximum voltage
at which the capacitor may be operated continuously at a specified
temperature.
– Working voltage ranging from a few volts to several thousands of volts.
–
• Capacitor tolerance is expressed in terms of a percentage of specified
capacitance value
• The capacitance value and working voltage of a capacitor is usually
printed on its body.
 Capacitors
6-dot color code for mica and molded paper capacitors
 Capacitors
COLOR CODES FOR CAPACITORS
• The capacitance value may be printed on the body of a capacitor, it may also
be indicated by a color code.
• The color code used to represent capacitance values is similar to that used to
represent resistance values.
• The color codes currently in use are the Joint Army-Navy (JAN) code and the
Radio Manufacturers' Association (RMA) code. (EIA)
• For each of these codes, colored dots or bands are used to indicate the value
of the capacitor.
• A mica capacitor, it should be noted, may be marked with either three dots or
six dots.
• Both the three- and the six-dot codes are similar, but the six-dot code contains
more information about electrical ratings of the capacitor, such as working
voltage and temperature coefficient.
 Capacitors
COLOR CODES FOR CAPACITORS….
•The capacitor shown in figure 3-21 represents either a mica capacitor or a
molded paper capacitor.
•The first dot at the base of the arrow sequence (the left-most dot) represents the
capacitor TYPE.
•This dot is either black, white, silver, or the same color as the capacitor body.
Mica is represented by a black or white dot and paper by a silver dot or dot
having the same color as the body of the capacitor.
•The two dots to the immediate right of the type dot indicate the first and second
digits of the capacitance value.
•The dot at the bottom right represents the multiplier to be used.
• The multiplier represents pico-farads.
•The dot in the bottom centre indicates the tolerance value.
 INDUCTORS
• An inductor is a two terminal circuit element that has a voltage across its
terminals which is proportional to the derivative of the current through its
terminals.
• The coefficient of this proportionality is the defining characteristic of an
inductor.

Air-core coil for.

FIG. Defining
 INDUCTORS…
• An inductor obeys the expression

diL
vL  LX
dt
where vL is the voltage across the inductor, and iL is the current through the inductor, and LX
is called the inductance.
• In addition, it works both ways. If something obeys this expression, we can think of it, and
model it, as an inductor.
• The unit ([Henry] or [H]) is named for Joseph Henry, and is equal to a
[Volt-second/Ampere].
• Inductors are used in radio receivers as a built in antenna coil to pick up
radio signals.
• They are also used in transformers and coupled circuits.
• In many applications Inductors are used to minimize alternating current
while permitting flow of direct current – choke- AFC or RFC
• Inductors are generally specified with inductance value and current
capacity.
 INDUCTANCE
Inductor Construction

• Inductance of a coil is given by

• It is sensitive to the number of turns of wire in
the coil, its area of cross section , length of
core, and permeability of the core material
 INDUCTANCE
Inductor Construction

Air-core coil for.

 INDUCTORS…
Types
• Inductors are of two types Fixed and Variable
• It is again classified based on the type of core used

FIG. Inductor (coil) symbols.

 INDUCTORS…
Types

• 1. Fixed inductors
• Fixed inductors are of three types based on the core used
– Air core inductor
– This inductor is made of coils of wire wound on a former made of
cardboard
– They have low value of inductance and suitable for RF applications
 INDUCTORS…
Types

• Iron-core Inductor
– This inductor is made of coils of wire wound on a solid iron-
core
– The iron core is laminated to avoid eddy current loss
– The laminated core consists of thin iron laminations pressed
together, but insulated from each other
– They are suitable for AF applications
 INDUCTORS…
Types

• Ferrite-core Inductor
– This inductor is made of coils of wire wound on a ferrite core
– Eddy current loss is very low
– Suitable for high frequency application
 INDUCTORS…
Types

• Variable Inductors
– This inductors are similar to fixed ferrite core inductors, but
the core is adjustable
– Variable inductors are used in tuning and filter circuit
 INDUCTANCE
Types of Inductors

FIG. 11.21 Relative sizes of different types of inductors: (a) toroid, high-
current; (b) phenolic (resin or plastic core); (c) ferrite core.
 INDUCTANCE
Types of Inductors

FIG. 11.23 Variable inductors with a typical

range of values from 1 mH to 100 mH;
commonly used in oscillators and various RF
circuits such as CB transceivers, televisions,
and radios.
 INDUCTANCE
Practical Equivalent Inductors

FIG. 11.25 Practical equivalent model for

an inductor.
FIG. 11.24 Complete equivalent
model for an inductor.
 INDUCTORS…
Specifications

• Specifications of Inductor normally includes

– The value of Inductance.
– The current rating
– And the tolerance
• Current rating is the maximum continuous current which can be safely
applied to the inductor.
• Tolerance is the maximum permissible variation from the marked value.
• Inductors are also characterized by the temperature coefficient of the
inductance, stability of the inductor, dc resistance of the inductor windings,
Q-factor of the inductor and working frequency range.
• Inductor values are usually written on inductor.
 TRANSFORMERS
• Transformer is device consisting of two or more coils used to transfer
electrical energy from one circuit to another at different voltages without
changing the frequency.
• It works on the principle of mutual induction
• It has two windings called primary and secondary winding
• When there is change in current in the primary winding, a magnetic flux is
induced in the core.
• This changing magnetic flux induces voltage in the secondary winding.
• The voltage induced across each coil is proportional to its number of
turns.
• The current induced in each coil is inversely proportional to its number of
turns.
• Instantaneous input power to the transformer = Instantaneous output
power from the transformer. ( ideal)
 The Transformer

i1(t) i2(t)
M V2

Coil 1 Coil 2

(Primary has N1 turns) (Secondary has N2 turns)

Transformer 83
 TRANSFORMERS ….
• Types of transformers.
• Power transformer
• Audio frequency Transformers
• High frequency transformers
• Intermediate Frequency Transformers.(IFT)
• Power transformers are of two types
• Step up and step down
• In step up transformer, the number of turns in primary winding is less than
that in the secondary winding.
• The ac voltage applied across the primary gets boosted up and is
available across the secondary winding.
• In step down transformer , the number of turns in the secondary winding
is less than that in the primary winding.
• It converts high voltage to low voltage
 TRANSFORMERS ….
• Audio frequency transformer
• Used in AF applications for voltage, current and impedance
transformation.
• Two types are available I/P transformer and O/P transformer
• Input transformers are used to couple a low impedance source such as
microphone, transmission line and transducers with a high impedance
circuit like amplifiers.
• O/P transformers are used in PA system, radio receivers etc. to match
the high output impedance of an amplifier with loud speaker having
low impedance.
 TRANSFORMERS ….
• Intermediate Frequency Transformer(IFT)
• IFTs are used in radio receivers
• In radio receivers the RF frequency is usually reduced to lower
frequency called intermediate frequency(IF)
 TRANSFORMERS…
• Transformers are characterized by the following specifications
• Voltage rating
– It is the rated primary and secondary voltage of the transformer
• Current rating
– It is the maximum current that the transformer winding can carry
• Power rating
– It is the maximum power which can be continuously delivered(handled) by the
transformer
– It is expressed in Volt Ampere
• Frequency range
– It is the range of frequencies in which transformer operates without failure
• Regulation
– It is the measure of the ability of a transformer to maintain its rated output voltage
under load.
– It is expressed in percentage.