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Physics Lesson Note For Grade 10

UNIT 5
5. INTRODUCTION TO ELECTRONICS
Electronics is the study and design of systems that use the flow of electrons through such
components as semiconductors, resistors and capacitors.

Thermionic emission
If a metal is heated up, conduction electrons move faster and some of the more energetic
electrons can escape from the surface of the metal. The effect is known as thermionic
emission. Thermionic emission is discovered by Thomas Edison in 1883.

Thermionic emission provides a controllable supply of electrons in a vacuum. Such beams of

electrons have great importance in oscilloscope, TV video part, computer monitor window
and x-ray devices.

For example, if tungsten filament is heated up to 2000℃ , it will emit electrons. Tungsten is
used to make the filament in light bulbs because of its extremely high melting point.

Cathode Electron flow Anode

heater 6V Glass tube

+
Electron flow
𝐴
Vacuum

100V

Fig. 5.1 thermionic diode

In fig. 5.1 above there are two electrodes in the vacuum tube. The cathode (negative
electrode) is tungsten filament. With no heat supply there is no current. When it is heated,
the electrons will be emitted from cathode and attracted towards anode (positive
electrode). Thus current will flow. If air replaces the vacuum, there will not be flow of
electrons; instead air molecules collide with the filament and the filament will be burned.
Therefore, the vacuum tube protects the electrons in the cathode ray beam from collision
with air molecules.

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 5.1 Vacuum tubes
Thermionic diode, x-ray tube and cathode ray oscilloscope are vacuum tube devices.

A) Thermionic diode
The name diode refers to the fact that the device has two electrodes_ an anode & a cathode.
When cathode is heated, electrons will be emitted from it and be attracted towards anode.
The connection should be the negative terminal of the source with cathode and that of the
positive terminal with anode. If the connection is reversed, current will not flow. Why?
Before the invention of silicon diodes vacuum diodes were used in converting AC voltage to
DC. Nowadays, the function of thermionic diodes is replaced by semiconductor diodes.
NB: - Cathode rays are beam of electrons moving through a vacuum at high speed. They are
emitted from cathode and attracted by anode. They are produced by electron gun. Electron
gun consists of cathode and anode.

B) X-ray tube
By thermionic emission, electrons are emitted from cathode and accelerated through a
potential difference of 100KV toward anode with high speed. When fast moving cathode
rays are suddenly stopped, x-rays are produced. Most of the beams energy is released as
heat rather than x-rays, so the anode gets very hot. To minimize this wastage of energy two
things must be done.

1. The anode is made of a large block of copper to conduct the heat away
2. The tip of the anode is made from tungsten because of its high melting point.

NB: - X-rays are used in hospitals to produce photographs of bones which can be
checked for breaks or fractures. They give more reliable result than ultrasound when
checking for broken bones.

C) Cathode ray oscilloscope (CRO)

CRO is a special kind of vacuum tube used in test equipment, radar, and TV receivers to
present a visual display of information.

In CRO the beam of electrons produces a spot on a fluorescent screen at the end of the tube.
It helps to look waves and signals on a fluorescent screen. The screen is made from
fluorescent substances which emit visible light at the point where the electron beam
strikes.

➢ Deflecting plates:- are used to deflect the beam of electrons.

1. Y-plates: - move the beam of electrons in a vertical direction. This can take place
when y-input terminals are connected with external AC voltage source. The vertical
movement can be amplified by turning the gain control.

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 2. X-plates: - move the beam of electrons in horizontal direction. This can be done by a
circuit called time base.
➢ Cathode: - releases free electrons when it absorbs enough heat from heater.
➢ Anode: - accelerates electrons away from the cathode.
➢ Fluorescent Screen: - visualizes the point where the beams of electrons strike it by
glowing the phosphorous coating.
➢ Glass envelope or Vacuum tube: - protects the electrons in the cathode ray beam
from collision with air molecules.
Some uses of CRO
CRO has the following uses.

1. It can display different types of wave forms

2. It can measure short time interval
3. It can be used as a voltmeter to measure the potential difference of the source

The voltage of AC varies between positive (maximum) and negative (minimum). If the
time base is switched ON, the shape of the curve sine wave is formed. If the time base is
switched OFF, it is represented by a vertical line. Read the text book on page 160.

Calculating the period, frequency and voltages of AC’s using CRO

By using CRO an unknown voltage and frequency can be measured by comparing it with
known values.

A) Measuring peak voltage

Amplitude
𝑤𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ

5𝑉⁄𝑐𝑚 10𝑚𝑠⁄𝑐𝑚

Gain control Time base

Fig. 5.2

The sensitivity- the size of deflection caused by voltage applied across y-plates of CRO can
𝑉
be adjusted by using gain control. It is calibrated in 𝑐𝑚 .

In fig. 5.2 the y-input of oscilloscope is connected with AC source. The gain control points at
𝑉
5 𝑐𝑚. This means that the spot is deflected 1cm in the vertical direction with each 5V
voltage.
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The peak voltage is represented by the amplitude. When the amplitude is 2cm, then
𝑉
𝑉𝑝𝑒𝑎𝑘 = 2𝑐𝑚 × 5 𝑐𝑚 = 10𝑉

B) Measuring period and frequency

To discover more about a signal being studied a voltage called a time base is applied to the
x-plates. This pulls the spot across the screen from left to right at a steady rate. It is
𝑚𝑠
calibrated in 𝑐𝑚 to show how long the spot takes to cross each cm of the screen.
𝑚𝑠
In fig. 5.2 above the time base is placed at 10 . This means that to move the spot a
𝑐𝑚
distance of 1cm horizontally it takes 10ms. The peak to peak distance is 4cm and thus
𝑚𝑠
𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑑 (𝑇) = 4𝑐𝑚 × 10 𝑐𝑚 = 40𝑚𝑠 = 0.04𝑠
1 1
𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑦 (𝑓) = = = 25𝐻𝑧
𝑇 0.04𝑠

5.2 Conductors, semiconductors and insulators

Based on their electrical conductivity materials can be classified as conductors,
semiconductors and insulators.

Conductors have free electrons and thus they can conduct electricity. For example, metals
are electrical conductors.
Insulators don’t conduct electric current as their valence electrons are tightly bound with
the nuclei. Non metals, rubber, plastic, ceramic etc. are insulators which are used in
covering wires for electrical safety.
Semiconductors are insulators at absolute zero temperature (0K or −273.15℃). They can
conduct current at room temperature (≈ 20℃). That is why silicon and germanium are
named as semiconductors.

Types of semiconductors
A. Intrinsic semiconductors
Intrinsic semiconductors are pure semiconductors. An intrinsic semiconductor has few free
electrons at room temperature. Its conductivity increases when it is heated.

When an intrinsic semiconductor is heated, its resistance decreases as the number of free
electrons increases. When a semiconductor is heated, the electron leaves the atom and the
semiconductor becomes positively charged. The positive charge is called hole.

When semiconductors get temperature (heated), hole-electron pairs will be generated.

Both holes and free electrons are not included from outside. Hence, we call them pure or
intrinsic semiconductors. An electron that is freed from its covalent bond by heat is called

96
thermal carrier. The current due to thermal carriers in semiconductors is called intrinsic
current.

If we connect an intrinsic semiconductor with a battery, the electrons and holes move in
opposite directions, and the semiconductor exhibits intrinsic conduction.

Look at fig. 5/13 and 5/14 from your text book on page 165.

B. Extrinsic semiconductors
Pure semiconductor materials (such as silicon) are virtually never used in electronic
devices. Instead, controlled amounts of impurities such as Arsenic or Indium are added.

Extrinsic semiconductor is a semiconductor that has been doped. Doping is the phenomena
of introducing impurity atoms into a pure semiconductor crystal. At zero Kelvin (0K)
current can flow through extrinsic semiconductors.

Following are the 3 different methods of doping a semiconductor.

1. The crystal is heated in an atmosphere containing dopant atoms. The dopant atoms
diffuse into the hot crystal.
2. The impurity atoms are added in the molten state of a semiconductor
3. The intrinsic semiconductor is bombarded by ions of impurity atoms

There are two types of doping, acceptor doping and donor doping or p-type
semiconductors and N-type semiconductors.

P-type semiconductors
When a trivalent atom (such as B or Ga) is added in a semiconductor crystal such as silicon
or germanium, holes (missing electron) will be produced. Holes serve as current carriers.

The trivalent atoms in p-type (positive type) semiconductors are acceptor atoms since they
trap electrons. The majority and minority charge carriers in p-type semiconductors are
respectively holes and free electrons.

Si hole

Si B Si

Si

Fig. 5.3 P-type lattice

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 N-type semiconductor
It is formed when a pentavalent impurity (arsenic or phosphorous) is added to a
semiconductor material. Since electrons are charge carriers, the material formed is said to
be N-type (negative type) semiconductor.

In N-type semiconductor, electron current is majority current and hole current is minority
current. The pentavalent atoms in N-type semiconductor are called donors since they
release free electrons.

Si free electron

Si As .
Si Si
Fig. 5.4 N-type lattice

NB:- P-type and N-type semiconductors are electrically neutral.

The P-n junction diode

P-n junction is the region where the P-type crystal meets the N-type crystal. At the junction
when they meet, some of the N-type electrons move or fall into the P-type holes. This
movement is known as diffusion current. This diffusion current causes the P-type to become
slightly negative whiles the N-type slightly positive. This leaves a depletion zone in the
boundary.

Depletion layer is a charge carrier free region. The pair of ions formed in the depletion layer
doesn’t move like electrons and holes rather fixed in place, immobile. The charges of the ions
are opposite to the charge of the mobile charge carriers of the side in which they are formed.
The depletion layer charge (ions) on the P-type side is negative and that on the N-type side is
positive.

P-type N-type

+ + + + - + - - - -
+ + + + - + - - - -
+ + + + - + - - - -

Depletion layer

Fig. 5.5 PN-junction

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 Electric field is produced in the depletion layer and therefore charge carriers can’t move freely.
It prevents further diffusion of electrons and holes through the junction. If you need to move a
charge across the depletion layer, you need to apply an external potential difference between
the two ends of the junction that overcomes the depletion layer field. The minimum potential `
difference needed to let a charge across the depletion layer is known as barrier
potential. It is on the average 0.3V for germanium (Ge) and 0.6V for silicon (Si).

The depletion layer field assists minority charge carriers to cross the junction to a region where
there are majority charge carriers and prevents majority charge carriers from crossing the
junction.

Forward and reverse biasing

Bias is a voltage or current applied to a device. Biasing is a connection of a PN-junction with a
battery in electric circuits. There are two types of biasing- forward biasing and reverse biasing.

A) Forward biased

It is connecting the positive (+) terminal of the battery to the P-type region and negative (-)
terminal to the N-type region of diode, allowing conduction of current.

In such type of biasing both electrons and holes are repelled toward the depletion region. As a
result, the depletion region gets smaller or narrower. The larger the opposing voltage gets, the
smaller the depletion region becomes. When the applied voltage becomes greater than 0.6V,
the depletion region goes away completely. Once the depletion region is gone, electrons are
free to carry current across the junction and the semiconductor becomes a conductor.

B) Reverse biased

It is connecting the positive (+) terminal of the battery to the N-type region and negative (-)
terminal of the battery to the P-type region of diode, preventing conduction of current.
Actually, in reverse bias small current will flow because of minority carriers (electrons for P-type
and holes for N-type) and small leakage current results. In this connection, the depletion layer
becomes wide because the charge carriers from either side are attracted by the battery
terminals. Therefore, except minority charge carriers, majority charge carriers can’t cross the
junction.

P N P N

a) Reverse biased b) Forward biased

Fig. 5/6 biasing a diode
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 I-V characteristics of semiconductor diodes
Characteristic of a PN junction diode is a graph between the voltage applied across the terminal
of a PN junction diode and the current that flows in the diode. Once the voltage gets higher
than the bias voltage, diodes have low resistance.

𝑰𝑭
Reverse bias Forward bias

𝑉𝑅 Break down voltage 𝑉𝐹 Voltage across diode

0.6V

Doesn’t conduct; slight leakage Conducts

𝐼𝑅

Fig. 5/7 Current versus voltage graph

The PN-junction diode can conduct current in one direction but not in the reverse or other
direction. In the forward direction, silicon requires about 0.6V before conduction will start, but
after that the current is usually limited by the resistance of the rest of the circuit.

In reverse bias, the electric field at the junction is enhanced and very few charges are able to
cross the junction. This results in very small current.

Some semiconductor devices and their circuit symbols

NO. Device name Circuit symbol Function of the device

1 diode Allows current to flow only in one direction

2 Light Conducts current in bright light. In the dark, it

dependent has very high resistance.
resistor
(LDR)

3 Thermistor Its resistance depends on temperature change.

In PTC thermistor when temperature increases
so does its resistance.

4 Variable A variable resistor is a potentiometer with only

resistor two connecting wires. This is useful when we

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 don’t know what resistance value is required in a
circuit.

5 Light When current flows in forward direction, it emits

emitting light.
diode (LED)

6 transistor It has three parts i.e. emitter, base and collector

and used for current and voltage amplification.

7 Photodiode It is reverse biased diode (don’t conduct. It is a

PN junction diode made of photosensitive
semiconductor. It starts to conduct when light
shines on it.

8 Photovoltaic It is a device whose resistance changes with a

cell change in brightness of light. It has high
resistance at dark and low resistance at bright
light. The solar cell is based on photo-voltaic
effect.

Rectification using diodes

Rectification is the process of conversion of AC to DC. This is done by diodes. Hence, diodes are
called as rectifiers. Diodes allow current to flow only in one direction. Why rectification?
Because most electronic circuits need DC rather than AC. TV, tape recorder, radio and CD
players need low voltage but they operate with a 220V AC supply. The reason is that DC power
supply is inserted in such appliances; step down transformer to lower the voltage and rectifier
to change AC to DC and capacitor to smooth the output potential difference.

There are two types of rectification namely, half wave and full wave rectifications.

1. Half wave rectification

In half wave rectification, the positive (+) half cycle is forward biased and the negative (-) half
cycle is reverse biased. Thus, current only flows in the positive (+) half cycle but not in the
negative (-) half cycle.

+ AC +
time
𝑅𝐿
_ time -
Output voltage
Input voltage supplied by the source

101
 Fig. 5/8 half wave rectifier

Half wave rectifiers are usually limited to low power applications. The direction of conventional
current in diodes is from anode to cathode (or from P to N).

Question: Why capacitors are used in half wave rectifier circuits? (Read p.174 of the text book)

2. Full wave rectification

There are two types of full wave rectifiers. These include bridge and center tap rectifiers. The
diagram below shows a bridge rectifier.

𝐷1 𝐷2

𝐷3 𝐷4 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑠

Input voltage Output voltage

𝑅𝐿

Fig. 5/9 bridge rectifier

In fig. 5/9 during the positive (+) half cycle, D1 & D4 are forward biased and D2 & D3 are
reverse biased. Thus, the direction of current is from: D1 → R L → D4

During the negative (-) half cycle, D2 & D3 are forward biased and D1 & D4 are reverse
biased. Therefore, the direction of current is from: D3 → R L → D2

The arrangement shown in the figure below is called center tap rectifier. It is a full wave
rectifier.

A - + 𝐷1

RL
B +

- 𝐷2

Fig. 5/10 Center tap rectifier

In fig. 5/10 during the positive half cycle, 𝐷1 is forward biased and current will flow through 𝐷1
& R L and will go to the central low potential point and the circuit will be completed.

During the negative half cycle, current will flow through 𝐷2 & R and again will go to the central
low potential point and the circuit will again be completed.

102
 Bipolar junction transistors (BJTs)
Transistor means transfer resistor. There are two types of transistors namely BJT and FET. At
this grade level we will only focus on BJTs.

BJT is a 3 layer semiconductor device. It is formed when one type of semiconductor (P or N

type) is sand witched between two layers of the other type. Or, it is formed when two diodes
are joined back to back. There are two types of BJTs i.e. NPN and PNP transistors. Diode
representation of transistors is:

NPN and PNP

They are called as BJT as both negative electrons and positive holes play a part in conduction
through a transistor.

N P N
P N P

a) PNP transistor b) NPN transistor

Fig 5/11 block diagram of transistors

E
a) PNP b) NPN

Fig. 5/12 circuit symbol of transistors

A transistor has three parts or terminals namely emitter (E), base (B) and collector (C).

A) Emitter ( E) : is highly doped, rich in current carriers. Its job is to send its carriers into base
(B) and then onto collector (C). It produces holes in PNP and electrons in NPN. Emitter lead
is the one with arrow.
B) Base (B) : is slightly doped (center layer) and thin (very narrow) layer, acts as a control
region. Base can allow none, some or many carriers to flow from emitter (E) to collector
(C). If voltage greater than 0.6V is applied to base (B) terminal, current will flow from base
(B) to emitter (E).
C) Collector (C) : is moderately doped and wide layer, collects carriers.

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NB: The arrow on the circuit symbol of a transistor indicates the way conventional current
should flow through it. It should also be noted that current will actually be the flow of electrons
in the opposite direction to the arrow.

Quick quiz 1. Can current flow through transistors? Yes. How? If we apply a small voltage such
as a voltage greater than 0.6V to the base connection, current will flow through it.

Transistor biasing
Biasing refers to placing voltages across the terminals of a device. It seems that two diodes back
to back never allow current flow but applying small voltage to the base connection allows
current flow in the transistor. This is the feature which makes the transistor so valuable as an
electrical component.

Whichever the transistor is, in whatever circuit you use it, you should use the forward-reverse
biasing condition. That is, EB (emitter base) junction forward biased and CB (collector base)
junction reverse biased.

For a pnp transistor, the heavily doped P-type emitter emits holes that flow across the EB-
junction into the base. Because the base is very thin, most of the holes flow across the base
into the collector. However, some of the holes recombine in the base, producing a positive
charge that inhibits the further flow of current. To prevent this, some of the holes that do not
reach the collector are drawn off the base as a base current (𝐼𝐵 ) in a circuit connected to the
base. 𝐼𝐵 is usually only a small fraction of 𝐼𝐶 . However, a small changes in 𝐼𝐵 produces a large
change in the 𝐼𝐶 .

ON OFF

E P n P
C 𝐼𝐶
P
VE B 𝑽𝑪
𝐼𝐵

Fig. 5/13 PNP transistor in forward biasing

Since the base (B) is very narrow, most of holes will be swept through the base and the
collector (C) bias attracts the carriers coming from the emitter (E). This tends to make the
collector current (𝐼𝐶 ) almost as high as the emitter current (𝐼𝐸 ).

Base current controls collector current and emitter current.

𝐼𝐸 = 𝐼𝐶 + 𝐼𝐵

Collector voltage (𝑉𝐶 ) has only a small effect on collector current over most of operating range.

All charge carriers or holes don’t pass from emitter (E) to collector (C). They will combine with
electrons in the base region so there must be a current between the base and emitter.

104
 Transistor characteristics
The three operation modes of transistors are:

1. Common emitter (EB is input & EC is the output)

2. Common collector(CB is input & EC is the output) and
3. Common base (BE is input & BC is the output) operation modes

Therefore, from the three terminals one of them can be common to both.

A transistor has two circuits. One is the input circuit and the other the output circuit.

B C Out In

Output

Input E In Out

a) Common E b) Common B c) Common C

Fig. 5/14 transistor circuitry

Variation in collector current (𝑰𝑪 ) with increasing voltage (𝑽𝑪𝑬 )

(For common emitter configuration)

To plot the output characteristics, base current (𝐼𝐵 ) is maintained constant. At each fixed value
of 𝐼𝐵 , 𝑉𝐶𝐸 is adjusted in steps and the corresponding values of 𝐼𝐶 are recorded. For each
different values of 𝐼𝐵 , 𝐼𝐶 is plotted versus 𝑉𝐶𝐸 in the graph shown below.

𝐼𝑐 (mA) 𝐼𝐶 (𝑚𝐴)

15 Ib = 30μA
10 Ib = 20μA
𝐼𝐵 (𝜇𝐴)
5 Ib = 10μA
VCE (V)
𝐼𝑐 against 𝐼𝐵
Fig. 5/15 𝑰𝑪 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒖𝒔 𝑽𝑪𝑬

The I versus V graph for a transistor depends on 3 variables. For a given value of 𝐼𝑏 the
relationship between the voltage (𝑉𝐶𝐸 ) and current (𝐼𝐶𝐸 ), between collector and emitter is
similar to the relationship for a resistor. The difference is that the collector-emitter voltage
must still exceed a .6V bias voltage for the transistor to become fully active.

105
If 𝐼𝐵 is held constant, 𝐼𝐶 varies with increasing 𝑉𝐶𝐸 . Although there is a sufficient voltage
between C and E, the dominant influence on the collector current is what is being fed into the
base. (Refer the text book from page 180-184)

Fig. 5/15 is a characteristic graph for common emitter configuration. The characteristics of
common emitter configuration are:

• The input is base emitter (B-E) and the output is emitter collector (E-C) circuit.
• The input signal controls 𝐼𝐵 and in turn 𝐼𝐵 controls 𝐼𝐶 .
• Input current is 𝐼𝐵 and the output current is 𝐼𝐶 .
𝐼
• The current gain ℎ𝑓𝑒 is greater than one because ℎ𝑓𝑒 = 𝐼 𝐶 .
𝐵

Transistors as switch and as amplifiers

A) Transistor as a switch

Transistors can be used as switches because they can be turned on with a base current or input
voltage to produce low resistance path (the switch is on) or they can be turned off by removing
base current or input voltage to produce a high resistance (the switch is off).

A transistor may not be able to switch on and off really large currents. This is done by a relay,
an electrically operated switch. A transistor might be able to switch off in a time of around
10−8 𝑠, while a relay may require something nearly one second.

Transistors are widely applied because they are small, inexpensive, reliable, capable of high
speed operation, easy to control and relatively efficient.

B) Transistors as amplifiers

Amplifiers make sounds louder and signal levels greater, and in general, provide a function
called gain. Amplifier gain is determined by dividing output by input.
𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑜𝑢𝑡
𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 = 𝑠𝑖𝑔𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑖𝑛

𝑉𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐼𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡

𝐴𝑉 = , 𝐴𝐼 = , 𝐴𝑃 =
𝑉𝑖𝑛 𝐼𝑖𝑛 𝑃𝑖𝑛

Where, 𝐴𝑉 𝑖𝑠 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝐴𝐼 𝑖𝑠 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 & 𝐴𝑝 𝑖𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛

NB: - an amplifier can show a voltage loss and yet still significant power gain. Likewise, another
amplifier might have a current loss and still have power gain.

In common base configuration, the EB junction is forward biased and the CB junction is reverse
biased. This forward bias makes the resistance of EB junction to be low as compared with the
resistance of CB junction. A reverse biased junction has high resistance. 𝑅𝐵 helps to limit the
base current to a suitable level. Look at the given figure.

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 Reverse bias C
N 𝑅𝐶𝐵 Reverse biased (high resistance)

P B

N
Forward bias E
𝑅𝐵𝐸
Forward biased (low resistance)
Fig. 5/16

The large difference in junction resistance makes transistor capable of power gain.

Power, 𝑃 = 𝐼 2 𝑅
𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝐼 2𝑅
𝐴𝑃 = = 𝐼𝐶 2𝑅𝐶𝐵
𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝐸 𝐵𝐸

If 𝐼 2 𝑠 are equal i.e.𝐼𝐶 2 = 𝐼𝐸 2 (𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑒𝑥𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑙𝑦 𝑒𝑞𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑐𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑒), then
𝑹
∴ 𝑨𝑷 = 𝑹𝑪𝑩
𝑩𝑬

Question:- 1. Calculate the base resistance for the simple amplifier circuit given in the text
book. (Page 181, figure 5/54)

A simple amplifier with negative feedback

Feedback means taking some of the output signal and feeding it back to the input. Negative
feedback means that as the output signal rises, a portion is fed back in such a way as to make
the input go down a bit and therefore cause the output to drop.

Semiconductors conduct better as they warm up, but this poses a risk. If they conduct better,
they pass a large current which causes them to heat up further. A good circuit design guards
against what could lead to destruction of semiconductor. The easiest way to do is adding a
resistor 𝑅𝐸 in the emitter line. Eventually, the collector current 𝐼𝐶 will drop.

Using LDR, LED, thermistor, photovoltaic cell and transistor

LDR and LED

Light dependent resistor (LDR) Conducts current in bright light whereas in the dark conditions,
it has very high resistance thus preventing current flow.

Let us consider a circuit containing LDR, transistor and speaker to make burglar alarm. If a light
shone on the sensor or LDR, when the room is supposed to be dark, an alarm would sound.

LED emits light when current flows in forward direction. In a forward biased diode, the energy
produced by the recombination of electrons and holes at the junction can be emitted as light. If
the energy is in the visible region, we can see it. Such a diode is called LED. These diodes are

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made from the semiconductors gallium arsenide or indium phosphide. Si or Ge diodes emit
radiation in the infrared region. The brightness can be controlled by R L. LEDs are used in camera
flashes, automotive head lamps, mobile phone head lamps etc.

Light RL

Fig. 5/17 Light emitting diode

NB: The reverse process of LED is called the photovoltaic effect. Here, the material absorbs
photons, and electron-hole pairs are created.

Thermistors or thermal resistors

A thermistor is a type of resistor whose resistance varies significantly with temperature more so
than in standard resistors. Thermistors are of two types, PTC thermistor and NTC thermistor.

In PTC (positive temperature coefficient) thermistor, the resistance increases with increasing
temperature. In NTC (negative temperature coefficient) thermistor, the resistance decreases
with increasing temperature.

They are widely used in fire alarm systems. A simple fire alarm system has a thermistor and a
bell in series with a power supply. When the switch is closed, the electron flow is limited by the
high resistance of the thermistor. If a fire occurs and the temperature in the room increases,
the resistance of the NTC thermistor becomes much lower. As the resistance drops in the
thermistor, the voltage available to the fire bell increases until it is enough to make the bell
ring.

Photovoltaic cell
It is a device in which its resistance changes with a change in brightness of light. It has very high
resistance in the dark, but as light (natural or artificial) increases, the resistance of the cell
drops and so current flows in the circuit.

Solar cell is a pn-junction diode in which one of the P or N regions is made very thin (so that the
light energy is not greatly absorbed before reaching the junction) is used in converting light
energy to electrical energy. Such diodes are called solar cell. In the solar cell, the thin region is
called the emitter and the other base. By shining the light or the emitter, we can get a current
in the resistance RL. The magnitude of the current depends on the intensity of light.

Unlike a photodiode, a solar cell is not given any biasing. It supplies emf like an ordinary cell.
The solar cell is based on photovoltaic effect. When light of suitable frequency is made incident

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on an open circuited solar cell, an emf is produced across its terminals. This emf is called
photovoltaic emf. The effect is called photovoltaic effect.

NB: We can use a set of solar cells to charge storage batteries in day time. These batteries can
be used for power during night. Outdoor lights that automatically turn on at dusk and off at
dawn are a low cost way to protect your family and property against thieves.

+
Light P RL
n
-

Fig. 5/18 solar cell

Digital systems
A digital system is a system which deals with systems which vary in a way similar to switches. A
switch has only two states, on and off.

ON=1, high (usually 5V)

OFF=0, low (usually 0V)

The name digital system is given as it is described by the digits 0 and 1.Numbers are written in
calculators, digital watches and microcomputers by using digital system.

Logical circuits
Logic gate is an electronic device that performs logical operations on two inputs to produce a
single logic output. Inputs may be either 1 or 0. Input 1 means 5V and input 0 means 0V.

There are five gates that are commonly used in logic circuits. These are AND, OR, NOT, NAND
and NOR gates.

Logic gate Symbol

AND

OR

NOT

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 NAND

NOR

A) AND gate

The output of AND logic gate is similar with series combination of two switches. If we assume Z
as a bulb, it can be on only if both A and B are on.

A B

5V
Z

Fig. 5/19

In AND gate, the output becomes high if all inputs are high; otherwise low. The Boolean
expression for the AND gate is given by:

𝑍 = 𝐴. 𝐵

Therefore, the truth table for AND gate is shown in the following table.

NB:-Truth table is a list of all possible input combinations, showing what you get each time at
the output.

Input A Input B Output (Z=A.B)

0 0

0 1

1 0

1 1

B) OR gate
The OR gate could be pictured as two switches in parallel.

5V B
Z

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 Fig. 5/20

The output of OR gate becomes low when all inputs are low otherwise high. The Boolean
expression for OR gate, if the inputs are A and B and Z output is given by:

𝑍 =𝐴+𝐵

The truth table for OR gate is shown in the table below.

Input A Input B Output (Z=A+B)

0 0

0 1

1 0

1 1

C) NOT gate

NOT gate has single input and its output is its opposite.

NOT gate can be expressed by the following circuit.

A Z

Fig. 5/21

In the above figure when the switch is at rest state, the contacts are closed and current can
flow, so the output is active. When the switch is pressed, the contacts open, so no current flows
and the output is inactive.

The Boolean expression for NOT gate is given by:

𝐴 = 𝑍̅ 𝑜𝑟 𝑍 = 𝐴̅

The truth table for NOT gate is :

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 Input A Output Z

Combination of logic gates

NAND gate is the combination of NOT and AND gates. The output of NAND gate is the opposite
of AND gate. NOR gate is the combination of two logic gates i.e. NOT and OR.

The Boolean expression for NAND and OR gates are given by:

𝐴. 𝐵 = 𝑍̅ Or ̅̅̅̅̅
𝐴. 𝐵 = 𝑍 ----------For NAND gate

𝐴 + 𝐵 = 𝑍̅ Or ̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
𝐴 + 𝐵 = 𝑍 -------For NOR gate

Input A Input B Output Output

NAND NOR

0 0 1 1

0 1 1 0

1 0 1 0

1 1 0 0
The total number of possible combinations of binary inputs is determined by using the formula

𝑵 = 𝟐𝒏 Where, N is the total number of possible combinations

𝑛 Represents the number of inputs

If there are three inputs, the total number of possible combinations will be 8. Because

N = 2n = 23 = 8

NB: - more than one logic gate may be combined to increase the range of control tasks that can
be performed.

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 The action of logic gates
The following are circuits that are constructed by using logic gates.

1. A simple burglar alarm

2. A thermostat for a hot water tank
3. Relay
4. A security lock to get behind the counter at a bank
5. An automatic plant waterer

Read about the action of logic gates from page 189-191 from the text book.

Integrated circuits
Logic gates that are grouped together in circuits are called integrated circuits. An IC can
function as an amplifier, oscillator, timer, counter, computer memory, or microprocessor.

Look at fig. 5/85 on page 191 in the text book.

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