BASIC ELECTRONICS

ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS AND EQUIPMENTS

BREADBOARD
Breadboards are an essential
tool for prototyping and building
temporary circuits. These boards
contain holes for inserting wire
and components. Because of
their temporary nature, they
allow you to create circuits
without soldering.
PCB (PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD)
PCB mechanically supports and
electrically connects electronic
components or electrical components
using conductive track and pads
etched from one or more sheet layers of
copper laminated onto and/or between
sheet layers of a non-
conductive substrate. Components are
generally soldered onto the PCB to both
electrically connect and mechanically
fasten them to it.
BATTERY HOLDER

A battery holder is a plastic

case that holds batteries from
9V to AA. Some holders are
enclosed and may have an
on/off switch built in.
TEST LEADS (ALLIGATOR CLIPS)

Test leads (Alligator clips)

are great for connecting
components together to test
a circuit without the need for
soldering.
WIRE CUTTER

Wire cutters are essential

for stripping stranded and
solid copper wire.
SCREWDRIVER SET

A screwdriver is a tool, manual

or powered, for turning
(driving or removing) screws. A
typical simple screwdriver has
a handle and a shaft, and a
tip that the user inserts into the
screw head to turn it.
JUMPER WIRE

These wires are used with

breadboard and development
boards and are generally 22-
28 AWG solid core
wire. Jumper wires can have
male or female ends depending
on how they need to be used.
SOLDERING IRON AND SOLDERING LEAD

When its time to create a permanent

circuit, you’ll want to solder the parts
together. To do this, a soldering iron is
the tool you would use. Of course a
soldering iron isn’t any good unless
you have solder (soldering wire) to go
with it. You can choose leaded or
lead-free solder in a few diameters.
DC POWER SUPPLY

Electronic components majorly

work on DC Power Supply and
hence having a reliable source
of DC Power Supply is very
important. Provides a steady,
unvarying supply voltage.
BATTERY

Battery is a device that converts

chemical energy into electrical energy
and provides power to devices like
mobile phones, laptops, flashlights, etc.
In electronics, we often use batteries to
power our circuits, either to make the
circuit portable or just to test the
functionality of the circuit.
MULTIMETER

A multimeter is a device that’s used

to measure electric current (amps),
voltage (volts) and resistance
(ohms). It’s great for
troubleshooting circuits and is
capable of measuring both AC and
DC voltage. DMMs are available
as handheld devices as well as
bench devices.
OSCILLOSCOPE

The most reliable Test Equipment for

observing continuously varying signals
is an Oscilloscope. With the help of an
Oscilloscope, we can observe the
changes in an electrical signal like
voltage, over time. Oscilloscopes are
used in a wide range of field like
Medical, Electronic, Automobile,
Industrial and Telecommunication
Applications.
FUNCTION GENERATOR OR SIGNAL
GENERATOR
A Signal Generator, as the name
suggests, generates a variety of
signals for testing and
troubleshooting electronic circuits.
The most common types of
signals are Triangular Wave,
Sine Wave, Square Wave and
Sawtooth Wave.
16 X 2 LCD (LIQUID-CRYSTAL DISPLAY)

The most commonly used display

module in electronic circuits is an
LCD Display and in particular, a
16 x 2 LCD Display. It is an
alpha – numeric display with two
rows and 16 columns and can
display a maximum of 32
characters.
7 – SEGMENT DISPLAY

Another common display module

is the Seven Segment Display. It
can be used to display decimal
numerals in different electronic
devices like clocks, meters,
calculators, public information
systems, etc.
CONDUCTING WIRE

Wires are simple. They

move electricity from one
component to another.
Transports charge carriers
from one point to another
(an electrical conductor).
RESISTOR

Resistors are used to resist the flow of

current or to control the voltage in a
circuit. Resistance rating is measured in
Ohms (current-limiting characteristic)
and power rating is measured in
Watts (how much power they can
handle without burning up).
VARIABLE CAPACITOR (POTENTIOMETER)

A variable resistor is also known

as a potentiometer. These
components can be found in
devices such as a light dimmer or
volume control for a
radio. When you turn the shaft
of a potentiometer the resistance
changes in the circuit.
LDR (LIGHT DEPENDENT RESISTOR)

A light-dependent resistor is also

a variable resistor but is controlled
by the light versus turning a
knob. The resistance in the circuit
changes with the intensity of the
light. These are often found in
exterior lights that automatically
turn on at dusk and off at dawn.
CAPACITOR

A device that stores energy in the form of

electric field. Most capacitors consists of two
conducting plates that are separated by a
dielectric material. A capacitor is like a
rechargeable battery and can be charged
and then discharged and it is measured in F
(Farad). In electronics circuits, a capacitor is
mainly used to block DC Current and allow AC
Current. The other applications of capacitors
are filters, timing circuits, power supplies and
energy storing elements.
INDUCTOR

Inductors are devices that store energy in

the form of Magnetic Field. Inductor is
nothing but a wire that is wound in the
form of a coil. The core around which the
coil is wound i.e. air, iron, ferrite etc. will
determine the strength of the magnetic
field. Inductors opposes the change in
electric current through them and the
changes in current will result in induction
of voltage. Measured in Henrys.
DIODE

Diode is a non-linear semiconductor

device that allows flow of current in
one direction. A Diode is a two –
terminal device and the two
terminals are Anode and Cathode
respectively. The diode’s primary
role is to route electricity from
taking an unwanted path within the
circuit.
VOLTAGE REGULATOR

A voltage regulator is an
electronic circuit that provides
a stable dc voltage independent
of the load current, temperature
and ac line voltage variations.
TRANSISTOR
Transistor are tiny switches that turn a current
on or off when triggered by an electric
signal. In addition to being a switch, it can
also be used to amplify electronic signals. A
transistor is similar to a relay except with no
moving parts. A 3 terminal device that can
either a current controlled device or a voltage
controlled device. Transistors are further
classified into Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT:
npn and pnp) and Field Effect Transistors (FET:
jfet and mosfet).
RELAY

A relay is an electrically
operated switch that opens
or closes when power is
applied. Inside a relay is an
electromagnet which controls
a mechanical switch.
SERVO MOTOR

A servomotor is a rotary
actuator or linear
actuator that allows for
precise control of angular or
linear position, velocity and
acceleration.
IC (INTEGRATED CIRCUIT)

An integrated circuit is a circuit that’s

been reduced in size to fit inside a
tiny chip. This circuit contains
electronic components like resistors
and capacitors but on a much smaller
scale. Integrated circuits come in
different variations such as 555 timers,
voltage regulators, microcontrollers
and many more. Each pin on an IC is
unique in terms of it’s function.
SWITCH

Switches can come in many

forms such as pushbutton,
rocker, momentary and
others. Their basic function is
to interrupt electric current
by turning a circuit on or off.
FUSE

A fuse is an electrical safety device

that operates to provide overcurrent
protection of an electrical circuit. Its
essential component is a metal wire or
strip that melts when too much current
flows through it, thereby interrupting
the current. Short circuits, overloading,
mismatched loads, or device failure
are the prime reasons for fuse
operation.
TRANSFORMER
A transformer is an electrical device that
transfers electrical energy between two
or more circuits through electromagnetic
induction. Built with two coils of wire,
commonly used to step up or step down
power. Since the invention of the first
constant-potential transformer in 1885,
transformers have become essential for
the transmission, distribution, and
utilization of alternating current electrical
energy.
BUZZER

A buzzer or beeper is
an audio signalling device.
Typical uses of buzzers and
beepers include alarm
devices, timers, and confirmation
of user input such as a mouse
click or keystroke.
ELECTRET MICROPHONE

An electret microphone, is
a transducer that converts sound into
an electrical signal.
KEYPAD
A keypad is a set of buttons arranged
in a block or "pad" which bear digits,
symbols or alphabetical letters. Pads
mostly containing numbers are called
a numeric keypad. Found on devices
which require mainly numeric input
such as calculators, push-button
telephones, vending machines, ATMs,
combination locks, and digital door
locks.
MICROCONTROLLER

A microcontroller (or MCU for mi

crocontroller unit) is a
small computer on a
single integrated circuit.
Designed for embedded and
automatically controlled
applications.