Table of Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xiii
1 Introduction 1
Goals of this Book 2
Quick Notes: Replacing Electrolytic Capacitors and Soldering 2
Soldering Problems (Cold Solder Connections) 3
Summary 5
2 Basic Breadboards 7
Solderless Breadboards 7
Quality 8
Power Buses on Solderless Breadboards … Look for Breaks in the Power Bus Lines 10
And Now Some Words of Caution 13
Other Breadboards 14
3 Power Sources: Batteries and Battery Holders, Safety Issues, and Voltmeters 17
Batteries 17
Again, a Word of Caution 19
Expected Battery Capacity 21
Safety Considerations 21
Survey of Digital Voltmeters 21
4 Some Basic Electronic Components 27
Capacitors 27
Radial and Axial Electrolytic Capacitors 33
Measure Twice, Install Once: Erroneously Marked Capacitors 35
Resistors 37
Using a DVM to Measure Resistance Values 40
Measuring Low Resistance Values 44
5 Diodes, Rectifiers, and Zener Diodes 49
Diodes and Rectifiers 49
Forward Voltage Across Anode to Cathode and Reverse Voltage Effects 54
Testing Diodes and Rectifiers with Digital and Analog Volt Meters 56
Schottky Diodes 60
A Brief Look at Zener Diodes 63
Some General Rules About Diodes 69
6 Light-Emitting Diodes 71
The LED's Light Output 71
LED "Minimum Turn On" Voltages 75
Other Types of Green LEDs 81
Problems with Paralleling Two LEDs with Different Turn-On Voltages 83
Protecting LEDs from Damage Due to Reverse Voltage Across the Anode and Cathode 86
Some Keys Points About Light Emitting Diodes 88
7 Bipolar Junction Transistors 89
Bipolar Junction Transistors 89
What Happens When a Transistor Is Damaged 94
Schematic Symbol of NPN and PNP Transistors 95
Applying a DC Voltage to the Base of the Transistor to Provide a Constant Current Source 96
Improved Current Source Circuits 101
What Happens When Things Go Wrong 107
Insufficient "Headroom Voltage" for the Transistor 112
Sometimes Even a Correct Circuit Goes Bad 114
Summary 115
8 Troubleshooting Discrete Circuits (Simple Transistor Amplifiers) 117
Important Practical Transistor Specifications 117
Simple Transistor Amplifier Circuits 118
First DC Analysis: Capacitors = Batteries with Self Adjusting Voltages 120
Second DC Analysis: Take Out the Capacitors to Find the DC Currents and DC Voltages 121
Finding the AC Signal Gain 124
Limited Input Amplitude Range 130
Output Swing Determined by IC and RL | R2 133
Troubleshooting the One-Transistor Amplifier 135
Using Negative Feedback to Build "Mass Production" Amplifiers 135
DC Analysis of Self-Biasing Amplifier 136
AC Analysis of a Self-Biased Amplifier 139
Output Resistance Ro' 144
Another Common Emitter Amplifier 148
Troubleshooting the Amplifier in Figure 8-31 152
Maximum Output Voltage Swing 155
Amplifier's Emitter AC Grounded via CE 156
Amplifier's Emitter Partially AC Grounded via Series RE2 and CE2 156
Finding an Optimum Bias Point for Maximum Output Swing with Just an Emitter Resistor 158
Summary 159
9 Analog Integrated Circuits Including Amplifiers and Voltage Regulators 161
Operational Amplifiers 161
Maximum Safe Power Supply Voltage 171
Minimum Power Supply Voltage 172
Caution on Providing Supply Voltages 173
Maximum Output Current 174
Output Voltage Range 179
Input Signal Range 179
Non-Inverting Gain Amplifiers 182
Inverting Gain Amplifiers 192
A Short Look at Linear Voltage Regulators 201
Drop-Out Voltage Summary 203
Voltage Selections, Packages, Pin Outs and Schematics 204
Knowing the Pin Out Sequence Is Important 205
Low-Drop-Out Voltage Regulators 206
10 Audio Circuits 213
Preamps and Power Amps 213
A Basic Difference Amplifier 214
Dynaco PAT-5 Low-Level Preamp Section and Power Supply 221
Preamp's DC Bias Point Estimates 227
AC Analysis 229
A High-Fidelity Audio Power Amplifier 231
DC Biasing Conditions in Figure 10-9 234
AC Signal Conditions 236
11 Troubleshooting Analog Integrated Circuits 241
Circuits That Need Fixing or Redesigning 242
Photodiode Circuits 254
Trans-resistance Amplifiers 257
Summary 266
Reference Books 266
12 Some Ham Radio Circuits Related to SDR 267
Software Defined Radio Circuits 267
Some Troubleshooting Tips Concerning Figure 12-5 and Figure 12-7 277
A Common Sample-and-Hold RF Mixer Circuit 279
A Preferred Implementation with Sample-and-Hold Circuits 284
A Cool Four-Phase Commutating Mixer 288
DC Bias Conditions 293
Testing Circuit with an RF or Function Generator 293
Improving the "Original Design" 296
Another View of Op Amp Circuits (Where the Inverting Input Drives a Load) 302
Suggested System Approach 304
Crystal Oscillators 304
Types of Crystals 307
Low-Frequency Cylindrical Crystals, "Standard" Crystals, and Ceramic Resonators 308
Standard HC-49 and High-Frequency Cylindrical Crystals 308
Ceramic Resonators 309
Be Aware of Overtone Crystals 316
Gain Bandwidth Product Revisited 318
Summary 318
13 Timer, CMOS, and Motor Drive Circuits 319
Types of 555 Timer Chips 319
Basic Modes of the 555 Timer Chip and Pin Outs 320
The 555 Pulse Generator (a.k.a., One-Shot or Monostable Mode) 321
Troubleshooting the 555 One-Shot Monostable Timer 324
When You Want to AC Couple a Signal to Trigger a Pulse Output Signal 325
"Strange" Output Signals Observed via an Oscilloscope 328
Troubleshooting the 555 Oscillator (a.k.a. Astable Mode) 329
One More Example on Driving Speakers with the 555 332
Why Again an Output Coupling Capacitor Is Preferable 332
Using a 555 to Drive Motors via Pulse-Width Modulation 338
Summary of Troubleshooting Techniques 346
14 Troubleshooting Other Circuits, Including Kits and Projects 347
Component Kits and Test Equipment 347
LED and Sensor Kits 349
A Quick Detour with the LM386 Audio Power Amplifier IC 354
Photonics: A Light Transceiver System 356
Thermal Sensing Circuit via Thermistor (Temperature-Dependent Resistor) 361
A Circuit Using an Electrolytic Capacitor Incorrectly 370
Identifying and Fixing "Bad" Circuit Designs 375
An Example of the Missing Ground Connection 378
Ferrite Beads to Tame Parasitic Oscillations 382
Summary 386
15 More Tips and Final Thoughts 387
Deciphering Schematics with Too Many Connection Flags 388
Troubleshooting with Minimal Test Equipment 393
Analog Meter Driving Circuits for AC Signals 393
Troubleshooting an Older Push Pull Audio Amplifier in a 1950s Transistor Radio 396
Reducing Noise on the Power Supply Bus with Multiple Circuits 403
Bad Connections from Some IC Sockets 405
Summary and Final Thoughts 406
A Choosing Test Equipment 411
Lab Power Supplies (Adjustable) 411
Signal Generators 414
Oscilloscopes 415
Examples of Display Resolution and Number of Memory Points 417
Oscilloscope Probes 420
An Inexpensive Lab 422
B Online Learning Resources 425
C Components and Parts Suppliers 427
General Electronic Components 427
Transistors, FETs, Diodes, LEDs, Photodiodes, and ICs 427
Low-Noise Transistors and JFETs, Including Matched Pairs 427
Passive Components, Resistors, Capacitors, Fixed Valued Inductors, Transformers, Tools, Soldering Irons, Breadboards, and Solder 427
Kit Parts for Transistors, Diodes, Capacitors, Resistors, LEDs, and More 428
Ham Radio Parts 428
Crystals, Inductors, Capacitors, Transistors, RF Transistors, Transformers, and ICs 428
Oscillator Coils, IF Transformers, and Audio Transformers 428
Antenna Coils 428
Variable Capacitors 428
Science Kits, Cool Things, and Everything Else 429
Index 431
