Starting Electronics, Fourth Edition

✍ Scribed by Keith Brindley

• Publisher: Newnes
• Year: 2011
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 280
• Edition: 4th
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Cutting through the normal difficulties, jargon and acronyms that appear to shroud the concepts and characteristics of electronics knowledge, Starting Electronics casts aside the barriers that face the beginner from day one of any introduction to electronics. From its first publication nearly 20 years ago, this book has guided literally thousands of readers into the practical electronics age. Now this best-selling introduction to electronics reaches its fourth edition, building ever-more successfully upon its earlier editions with significant new material covering all aspects of soldering for the hobbyist - one of the areas beginners find one of the hardest to master properly. With the same detailed descriptions of processes, artwork and photographs as always, Starting Electronics introduces us all to highly technical topics, in a way that even the most technophobe of us will be able to understand and learn, and with a little practice, do ourselves. In Starting Electronics, in a highly practical and constructive way, ex-electronics-teacher and journalist Keith Brindley introduces us to the basic foundations and building blocks of electronics. He does this in his unique chatty, friendly style, giving us the pointers and knowledge that we need, making us all feel part of the modern electronics world and giving us the belief in ourselves to progress even further. Starting Electronics is the ideal beginners introduction to the fascinating world of electronics.

✦ Table of Contents

Starting Electronics......Page 1
Dedication
......Page 4
Copyright
......Page 5
Preface......Page 6
What You Need......Page 7
Tools of the Trade......Page 8
Ideas about electricity......Page 10
Charge......Page 12
Relationships......Page 15
Electronic Components......Page 17
Resistors......Page 19
Time Out......Page 20
Quiz......Page 21
All Aboard......Page 23
ICs......Page 25
The First Circuit......Page 29
Experiment......Page 31
The Second Circuit......Page 34
The Next Circuit......Page 37
More and More Complex Circuits......Page 39
Quiz......Page 40
3 Measuring Current and Voltage......Page 42
4 Capacitors......Page 61
Down to Business......Page 62
Measuring Up......Page 64
Getting Results......Page 66
The Other Way......Page 71
Theoretical Aspects......Page 73
Capacitance Values......Page 75
Quiz......Page 76
5 ICs, Oscillators, and Filters......Page 78
Throwing Light on it......Page 83
Ouch, that Hertz......Page 85
Filter Tips......Page 93
Quiz......Page 94
6 Diodes I......Page 95
Which Way Round?......Page 96
Tricky......Page 102
Reverse Bias......Page 106
Voilà! – A Complete Diode Characteristic Curve......Page 110
7 Diodes II......Page 112
Maths......Page 115
Load Lines......Page 116
Diode Circuits......Page 118
Filter Tips......Page 122
Stability Built In......Page 123
Practically There......Page 125
Quiz......Page 128
8 Transistors......Page 129
Very Close......Page 132
NPN......Page 136
Using Transistors......Page 137
Quiz......Page 140
Integrated circuits......Page 142
Building on blocks......Page 146
Turning things upside down......Page 149
Follow me......Page 151
Offset nulling......Page 153
Get back......Page 155
Quiz......Page 156
Logically speaking......Page 158
Every picture tells a story......Page 161
Boolean algebra......Page 164
OR Gate......Page 165
AND Gate......Page 168
NOR Gate......Page 170
NAND Gate......Page 171
Simple, EH?......Page 174
NOR and NOT Gates Combined......Page 175
OR and NOT Gates Combined......Page 176
The Boolean way – it’s logical!......Page 179
NOR from AND and NOT......Page 180
Quiz......Page 182
7400 Series......Page 184
4000 Series......Page 185
Shutting the Stable Gate......Page 186
SR-Type NOR Bistable......Page 187
SR-Type NAND Bistable......Page 189
The Clocked SR-Type Bistable......Page 192
The D-Type Bistable......Page 193
The Edge-Triggered SR-Type Bistable......Page 194
The JK-Type Bistable......Page 195
T-Type Bistable......Page 196
Open the Black Box......Page 197
JK-Type Bistable Symbol......Page 200
Quiz......Page 201
12 Soldering......Page 203
OK – So What’s a Printed Circuit Board?......Page 204
What is Solder Made Of?......Page 207
So What’s the Difference?......Page 209
Lead-Based vs. Lead-Free......Page 210
The Bad Soldered Joint......Page 211
Flux......Page 218
Soldering Irons......Page 220
Mains-Powered Soldering Iron......Page 221
Gas-Powered Soldering Irons......Page 222
Soldering Iron Stations......Page 223
Soldering Iron Bits......Page 224
Soldering Iron Stand......Page 226
Tip Tinning and Cleaning Block......Page 227
Key Practical Points When Soldering......Page 228
Cleaning All Parts......Page 231
Making a Reliable Joint......Page 233
Heat the Joint......Page 234
Apply the Solder......Page 236
Trim Excess Component Leads......Page 237
Connecting Leads......Page 238
Soldering a Connecting Lead Directly to Copper Track......Page 241
Using and Soldering Terminal Pins......Page 243
Unsoldering......Page 245
Using Solder Braid......Page 246
Using a Desoldering Pump......Page 247
Looking After Your Soldering Iron......Page 249
Printed Circuit Board Links......Page 250
Safety Precautions......Page 251
And Now the Time has Come …......Page 253
Quiz......Page 254
Glossary......Page 256
Component Suppliers (UK)......Page 263
Quiz Answers......Page 267
Index......Page 268