An electronic component is any basic discrete electronic device or physical entity part of an electronic system used to affect electrons or their associated fields. Electronic components are mostly industrial products, available in a singular form and are not to be confused with electrical elements, which are conceptual abstractions representing idealized electronic components and elements. A datasheet for an electronic component is a technical document that provides detailed information about the component's specifications, characteristics, and performance. Discrete circuits are made of individual electronic components that only perform one function each as packaged, which are known as discrete components, although strictly the term discrete component refers to such a component with semiconductor material such as individual transistors.
Electronic components have a number of electrical terminals or leads. These leads connect to other electrical components, often over wire, to create an electronic circuit with a particular function (for example an amplifier, radio receiver, or oscillator). Basic electronic components may be packaged discretely, as arrays or networks of like components, or integrated inside of packages such as semiconductor integrated circuits, hybrid integrated circuits, or thick film devices. The following list of electronic components focuses on the discrete version of these components, treating such packages as components in their own right.
Classification Components can be classified as passive, active, or electromechanical. The strict physics definition treats passive components as ones that cannot supply energy themselves, whereas a battery would be seen as an active component since it truly acts as a source of energy.
However, electronic engineers who perform circuit analysis use a more restrictive definition of passivity. When only concerned with the energy of signals, it is convenient to ignore the so-called DC circuit and pretend that the power supplying components such as transistors or integrated circuits is absent (as if each such component had its own battery built in), though it may in reality be supplied by the DC circuit. Then, the analysis only concerns the AC circuit, an abstraction that ignores DC voltages and currents (and the power associated with them) present in the real-life circuit. This fiction, for instance, lets us view an oscillator as "producing energy" even though in reality the oscillator consumes even more energy from a DC power supply, which we have chosen to ignore. Under that restriction, we define the terms as used in circuit analysis as: Active components rely on a source of energy (usually from the DC circuit, which we have chosen to ignore) and usually can inject power into a circuit, though this is not part of the definition.For instance, a computer could be contained inside a black box with two external terminals. It might do various calculations and signal its results by varying its resistance, but always consuming power as resistance does. Nevertheless, it is an active component, since it relies on a power source to operate. Active components include amplifying components such as transistors, triode vacuum tubes (valves), and tunnel diodes. Passive components cannot introduce net energy into the circuit. They also cannot rely on a source of power, except for what is available from the (AC) circuit they are connected to. As a consequence, they cannot amplify (increase the power of a signal), although they may increase a voltage or current (such as is done by a transformer or resonant circuit). Passive components include two-terminal components such as resistors, capacitors, inductors, and transformers. Electromechanical components can carry out electrical operations by using moving parts or by using electrical connections.
Most passive components with more than two terminals can be described in terms of two-port parameters that satisfy the principle of reciprocity—though there are rare exceptions.Nonreciprocal passive devices include the gyrator (though as a truly passive component, this exists more in theoretical terms, and is usually implemented using an active circuit)—and the circulator, which is used at microwave and optical frequencies In contrast, active components (with more than two terminals) generally lack that property.
Active components
Semiconductors Transistors Transistors were considered the invention of the twentieth century that changed electronic circuits forever. A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and electrical power.
Field-effect transistors (FET) MOSFET (metal–oxide–semiconductor FET) – by far the most widely manufactured electronic component (also known as MOS transistor) PMOS (p-type MOS) NMOS (n-type MOS) CMOS (complementary MOS) Power MOSFET LDMOS (lateral diffused MOSFET) MuGFET (multi-gate field-effect transistor) FinFET (fin field-effect transistor) TFT (thin-film transistor) FeFET (ferroelectric field-effect transistor) CNTFET (carbon nanotube field-effect transistor) JFET (junction field-effect transistor) – N-channel or P-channel SIT (static induction transistor) MESFET (metal semiconductor FET) HEMT (high-electron-mobility transistor) Composite transistors BiCMOS (bipolar CMOS) IGBT (Insulated-gate bipolar transistor) Other transistors Bipolar junction transistor (BJT, or simply "transistor") – NPN or PNP Photo transistor – amplified photodetector Darlington transistor – NPN or PNP Photo Darlington – amplified photodetector Sziklai pair (compound transistor, complementary Darlington) Tetrode transistor – is any transistor having four active terminals. Thyristors Silicon-controlled rectifier (SCR) – passes current only after triggered by a sufficient control voltage on its gate TRIAC (TRIode for Alternating Current) – bidirectional SCR Unijunction transistor (UJT) Programmable Unijunction transistor (PUT) SITh (static induction thyristor)
Diodes Conduct electricity easily in one direction, among more specific behaviors. Diode, rectifier, diode bridge Schottky diode (hot carrier diode) – super fast diode with lower forward voltage drop Zener diode – allows current to flow "backwards" when a specific set voltage is reached. Transient voltage suppression diode (TVS), unipolar or bipolar – used to absorb high-voltage spikes Varicap, tuning diode, varactor, variable capacitance diode – a diode whose AC capacitance varies according to the DC voltage applied.
Laser diode Light-emitting diode (LED) – a diode that emits light Photodiode – passes current in proportion to incident light Avalanche photodiode – photodiode with internal gain Solar Cell, photovoltaic cell, PV array or panel – produces power from light DIAC (diode for alternating current), Trigger Diode, SIDAC) – often used to trigger an SCR Constant-current diode Step recovery diode Tunnel diode - very fast diode based on quantum mechanical tunneling
Integrated circuits Integrated Circuits can serve a variety of purposes, including acting as a timer, performing digital to analog conversion, performing amplification, or being used for logical operations. Integrated circuit (IC) MOS integrated circuit (MOS IC) Hybrid integrated circuit (hybrid IC) Mixed-signal integrated circuit Three-dimensional integrated circuit (3D IC) Digital electronics Logic gate Microcontroller Analog circuit Hall-effect sensor – senses a magnetic field Current sensor – senses a current through it
Programmable devices Programmable logic device Field-programmable gate array (FPGA) Complex programmable logic device (CPLD) Field-programmable analog array (FPAA)
Optoelectronic devices Opto-electronics Opto-isolator, opto-coupler, photo-coupler – photodiode, BJT, JFET, SCR, TRIAC, zero-crossing TRIAC, open collector IC, CMOS IC, solid state relay (SSR) Slotted optical switch, opto switch, optical switch LED display – seven-segment display, sixteen-segment display, dot-matrix display
Display technologies Current: Filament lamp (indicator lamp) Vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) (preformed characters, 7 segment, starburst) Cathode-ray tube (CRT) (dot matrix scan, radial scan (e.g. radar), arbitrary scan (e.g. oscilloscope)) (monochrome & colour) LCD (preformed characters, dot matrix) (passive, TFT) (monochrome, colour) Neon (individual, 7 segment display) LED (individual, 7 segment display, starburst display, dot matrix) Split-flap display (numeric, preprinted messages) Plasma display (dot matrix) OLED (similar to an LCD, but each pixel generates its own light, can be made flexible or transparent) Micro-LED (similar to OLED, but uses inorganic LEDs instead of organic ones, does not suffer from screen burn-in, however it cannot be made flexible or transparent) Obsolete: Incandescent filament 7 segment display (aka 'Numitron') Nixie tube Dekatron (aka glow transfer tube) Magic eye tube indicator Penetron (a 2 colour see-through CRT)
Vacuum tubes (valves) A vacuum tube is based on current conduction through a vacuum (see Vacuum tube). Diode or rectifier tube Amplification Triode Tetrode Pentode Hexode Pentagrid (Heptode) Octode Traveling-wave tube Klystron Oscillation Magnetron Reflex klystron (obsolete) Carcinotron
Optical detectors or emitters Phototube or photodiode – tube equivalent of semiconductor photodiode Photomultiplier tube – phototube with internal gain Cathode-ray tube (CRT) or television picture tube (obsolete) Vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) – modern non-raster sort of small CRT display Magic eye tube – small CRT display used as a tuning meter (obsolete) X-ray tube – generates x-rays
Discharge devices Gas discharge tube Ignitron Thyratron
Obsolete: Mercury arc rectifier Voltage regulator tube Nixie tube
Power sources Sources of electrical power: Battery – acid- or alkali-based power supply. Fuel cell – an electrochemical generator Power supply – usually a main hook-up Photovoltaic device – generates electricity from light Thermoelectric generator – generates electricity from temperature gradients Electrical generator – an electromechanical power source Piezoelectric generator - generates electricity from mechanical strain Van de Graaff generator - generates electricity from friction
Passive components Components incapable of controlling current by means of another electrical signal are called passive devices. Resistors, capacitors, inductors, and transformers are all considered passive devices.
Resistors
Pass current in proportion to voltage (Ohm's law) and oppose current. Resistor – fixed value Power resistor – larger to safely dissipate heat generated SIP or DIP resistor network – array of resistors in one package Variable resistor Rheostat – two-terminal variable resistor (often for high power) Potentiometer – three-terminal variable resistor (variable voltage divider) Trim pot – small potentiometer, usually for internal adjustments Thermistor – thermally sensitive resistor whose prime function is to exhibit a large, predictable and precise change in electrical resistance when subjected to a corresponding change in body temperature.What is a Thermistor. U.S. Sensor Corp. Humistor – humidity-varied resistor Photoresistor Varistor, Voltage-dependent resistor, MOV – Passes current when excessive voltage is present Resistance wire, Nichrome wire – wire of high-resistance material, often used as a heating element Heater – heating element
Capacitors
Capacitors store and release electrical charge. They are used for filtering power supply lines, tuning resonant circuits, and for blocking DC voltages while passing AC signals, among numerous other uses. Capacitor Integrated capacitors MIS capacitor Trench capacitor Fixed capacitors Ceramic capacitor Film capacitor Electrolytic capacitor Aluminum electrolytic capacitor