DE 1.1 Key Terms - Introduction to Electronics

Breadboard

A circuit board for wiring temporary circuits, usually used for prototypes or laboratory work.

Transistor-Transistor (TTL)

A family of digital logic devices whose basic element is the bipolar junction transistor.

Engineering Notation

A floating point system in which numbers are expressed as products consisting of a number between 1-999, and an exponent in some multiple of three (to facilitate use of SI prefixes).

Truth Table

A list of all possible input values to a digital circuit, listed in ascending binary order, and the output response for each input combination.

Current

A movement of electrical charges around a closed path or circuit.

Digital Multi-Meter(DMM)

A piece of test equipment used to measure voltage, current, and resistance in an electronic circuit.

Datasheet

A printed specification giving details of the pin configuration, electrical properties, and mechanical profile of an electronic device.

Fuse

A protective device in the current path that melts or breaks when current exceeds a predetermined maximum value.

Cycle

A series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.

Digital Waveform

A series of logic HIGHS and LOWS plotted as a function of time.

Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier (PLCC)

A square IC package with leads on all four sides designed for surface mounting on a circuit board.

Dual In-Line Package (DIP)

A very common IC package with two parallel rows of pins intended to be inserted into a socket of through holes drilled in a printed circuit board.

Digital

A way of representing a physical quantity by a series of binary numbers. This representation can have only specific discrete values.

Analog

A way of representing some physical quantity, such as temperature or velocity, by a proportional continuous voltage or current. An analog voltage or current can have any value within a defined range.

SI Notation

Abbreviation of System International, a system of practical units based on the meter, kilogram, second, ampere, Kelvin, mole, and candela.

NOT Gate

Also called an INVERTER gate or an inverting buffer. A logic gate that changes its input logic level to the opposite state.

Small Outline IC (SOIC)

An IC package similar to a DIP, but smaller, which is designed for automatic placement and soldering on the surface of a circuit board.

Large Scale Integration (LSI)

An IC that contains circuitry equivalent to 100 gates or more.

Medium Scale Integration (MSI)

An IC that contains circuitry equivalent to more than 11 and less than 100 gates.

Seven-Segment Display

An array of seven independently controlled light-emitting diodes (LED) or liquid crystal display (LCD) elements, shaped like a figure-8, which can be used to display decimal digits and other characters by turning on the appropriate elements.

Capacitor

An electrical device used to temporarily store electrical charge.

Logic Gate

An electronic circuit that performs a Boolean algebraic function.

Small-Scale Integration (SSI)

An integrated circuit having 12 or fewer gates in one package.

Resistor Color Code

Coding system of colored stripes on a resistor to indicate the resistor's value and tolerance.

AND Gate

Digital circuit that implements the AND operation. The output of this circuit is HIGH only if all of its inputs are HIGH.

OR Gate

Digital circuit that implements the OR operation. The output of this circuit is HIGH (logic level 1) if any or all of its inputs are HIGH.

Combinational Logic

Digital circuitry in which an output is derived from the combination of inputs, independent of the order in which they are applied aka AOL Logic.

Sequential Logic

Digital circuitry in which the output state of the circuit depends not only on the states of the inputs, but also on the sequence in which they reached their present states.

Clock Signal

Digital pulse in the form of a rectangular, square wave.

Ohm's Law

Explains the electric relationship of voltage, current, and resistance. In electric circuits, I=V/R.

Printed Circuit Board

Insulating board containing conductive tracks for circuit connections.

LED

Light-emitting diode. An electronic device that conducts current in one direction only and illuminates when it is conducting.

AOI

Logic containing various gates, such as And, Or, I; aka Combinational Logic.

Solder

Metallic alloy of 60% tin and 40% lead that is used to electrically join two metal surfaces.

Scientific Notation

Numbers entered as a number from one to nine and a decimal, multiplied by a power of ten.

Series Circuit

One that has only one path for current to flow.

Parallel Circuit

One that has two or more branches for current flow from one voltage source.

Resistance

Opposition to current. Unit is the ohm.

Soldering

Process of joining two metallic surfaces to make an electrical contact by melting solder (usually tin and lead) across them.

Schottky TTL

TTL subfamily that uses the basic TTL standard circuit except that it uses a Schottky barrier code (SBD) connected between the base and the collector of each transistor for faster switching.

Transistor

Term derived from "transfer resistor." Semiconductor device that can be used as an amplifier or as an electronic switch.

Simulation

Testing design function by specifying a set of inputs and observing the resultant outputs. Simulation is generally shown as a series of input and output waveforms.

Kirchhoff's Current Law (KCL)

The algebraic sum of all currents into and out of any branch point in a circuit must equal zero.

Kirchhoff's Voltage Law (KVL)

The algebraic sum of all voltages around any closed path must equal zero.

Conventional Current

The direction of current flow associated with positive charge in motion. The current flow direction is from a positive to negative potential, which is in the opposite direction of electron flow.

Logic HIGH

The higher of two voltages in a digital system with two logic levels (usually 5V).

Logic LOW

The lower of two voltages in a digital system with two logic levels (usually 0V).

Tinning

The process of applying a thin coat of solder to materials prior to their being soldered; for example, application of a light coat of solder to the filaments of a conductor to hold the filaments in place prior to soldering the conductor.

Solder Bridge

The unwanted formation of a conductive path of solder between conductors.

Toggle

To switch from one effect, feature, or state to another.

Soldering Iron

Tool with an internal heating element used to heat surfaces being soldered to the point where the solder becomes molten.

Ampere

Unit of current flow (abbrev. AMP).

Volt

Unit of electrical potential.

Ohm

Unit of resistance. Value of one ohm allows current of one ampere with potential difference of one volt.