Lesson 20: Technician Class Exam Prep T6B

This is the 20th lesson in the Technician Class Exam preparation course.  This lesson covers the T6B questions from the exam question pool dealing with semiconductors.  This lesson primarily focuses on the functions of diodes and transistors.  This subject can get pretty deep, but I tried to give you enough of a knowledge base in the video to deal with the questions.

Some of the items you will need to remember.

-Diodes allow current to flow in only one direction.
-The leads on a diode are called an anode (+) and a cathode (-).  The cathode is identified with a stripe.
-Transistors are capable of using a voltage or current signal to control current flow and can act as amplifiers or switches.
-A Bipolar junction transistor has three leads.  They are the base, emitter, and collector.
-A field effect transistor, or FET, has three leads as well.  They are the gate, source, and drain.

If you have all this you should be fine with this section.  Explanations of semiconductors on the internet tends to be a bit complex.  If you are looking for more information about semiconductors, or electronics in general, I recommend the book Understanding Basic Electronics published by the ARRL.  This gives down to earth and simple explanations of some fairly complex electronics subjects.  This book does not presume you have any previous knowledge of electronics and builds from the ground up.  A great book!

Until next time and lesson 21...

73,
Andy
KE4GKP