asimov studies

Active device	Active devices are devcies that produce current and voltage.
Amplifier	an Amplifier is any device that increases the amplitude of a signal (current or voltage). an audio amplifier is designed to amplify frequencies between 15 Hz and 20 KHz a Video amplifier is designed to amplify frequencies between 10 Hz and 6 MHz an RF amplifier is an amplifier designed to amplify frequencies between 10 KHz and 100 GHz
Anode	the Anode of a device is the terminal of a device where current flows in (positively charged)
Antenna	an Antenna is a transducer designed to transmit or receive electromagnetic waves, in other words, antennas convert electromagnetic waves into electric current and vice versa.
Attenuation	Attenuation is the difference in dB of a device vs frequency measured in a system between the input and output.
Attenuation factor	the attenuation factor is the factor that quantifies the decrease of the amplitude over a lossy medium
Attenuator	an Attenuator reduces the amplitude of a signal without distorting its waveform. it is considered as a passive device.
Bandwidth	the Bandwidth is the difference between the upper and the lower operating frequency (it is the range of frequencies occupied by a defined wave).
Bias Current	Bias Current is a current that is independent of output and is fed to a semiconductor or other electronic device to ensure that the desired semiconductor is functioning.
Biases	Biasing is the method of establishing predetermined voltages or currents in a circuit.
Capacitor	a Capacitor is a passive electrical component that can store energy in the electric field between a pair of conductors (called plates). The charging of the capacitor is measured in farad. the capacitor can be used to store power and then release it when switched.
Cathode	the Cathode of a device is the terminal where current flows out (negatively charged).
Circulators	Circulators are used to route the incoming and outgoing signal between inputs and outputs, example radars routes the signal between the antenna, transmitter, and the receiver.
CMOS	CMOS technology is used in microprocessors, microcontrollers, static RAMS, data converters. it is used as p type and n type gates to create paths to the output.
Conductor	a Conductor is a design in which a current flow, creates a magnetic field in the space surrounding it.
Coulomb Law	coulomb law summarizes the fundementals of electric fields: 1- two like charges repel each others, whereas two charges of opposite polarity attracts 2- the force act s along the line joining the charges 3- the strengh is proportional to the product of the magnitude of the two charges and inversely proportional to the square distance between them.
Damping	Damping is considered as energy loss which slows responses.
Daughter Board	a Daugher Board is a board that plugs and extends the main circuit board.
Decomposition temperature	the decomposition temperature is the temperature at which irreversible degradation of the pcb material occurs.
Dielectric	Dielectric is a non conducting substance, used as an insulator.
Dielectric Constant	The Dielectric Constant is a measure of how a material is able to store electric current. It is  defined as the ratio of the capacitance of a capacitor with a given dielectric material to air. a material with a high dielectric constant can store more electric flux, thus material with high dielectric are used to manufacture capacitors, whereas materials with low dielectric constants are used to handle high magnetic flux without breakage (example: Teflon)
Dipole	the Dipole represents the N-S; the separation of positive and negative charges.
Dissipation Factor	the Dissipation Factor is the ratio of the power loss in the material to the product of the voltage and current.
Electrode	Electrode is a contact which emits or collects the movement of electrons.
Electrolyte	an Electrolyte is a substance that is full of ions that ionizes when melted to produce an electrical conductive medium. Electrolytes usually conduct electrical current.
Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)	Electromagnetic interference (EMI) is any conducted radiated or magnetically induced voltage which degrades, obstructs, or repeatedly interrupts the desired performance of electronic equipment.
Electromagnetic Spectrum	Electromagnetic spectrum represents the entire range of wavelenghts and frequencies of electromagnetic radiation extending from gamma rays to the longest radio waves and including visible light.
Epoxy	Epoxy is made of epichlorohydrin and bisphenol-A.
Electrostatic Discharge (ESD)	Electrostatic discharge is defined as the transfer of electrostatic charge between bodies at different potentials caused by direct contact or induced by an electrostatic field.
Ferrite	Ferrite is a material that induces a magnetic current. Ferrite is used mainly in the core of an inductor.
Film	Film is a coating or a layer of material.
Filter	a Filter is a device or equipment that allows the pass of signals with certain frequencies, while disallowing others with different frequencies.
Frequency	the frequency represents one cycle per second and is equal to: f = 1/T with a unit of Hertz (Hz)
glass transition temperature	Glass Transition Temperature is the temperature at which glass transforms from a rigid state to a more deformable or softened state.
Hermetic	hermetic packages encapsulate the metal and ceramic can electronic packages.
High Pass Filter	a high pass filter attenuates frequencies below the cuttoff frequency while allowing frequencies above the cuttoff frequencies to be transmitted.
HZ	Hertz is the unit of frequency and it is "cycles per second".
Inductance	the inductance is the efficiency of the coil in generating magnetic flux
Insertion Loss	Insertion loss is the ratio between the power received at a specified load before and after the insertion of a filter at a given frequency.
Inrush current	Instantaneous input current drawn by an electrical device when first turned on.
Ionization	Ionization is the process of adding or removing electrons from an atom or a molecule
Laminate	Laminate is used for C-stage bonding sheets, and made by very thin plastics.
LNA	Low Noise Amplifier, used mainly to amplify a weak signal captured from an antenna.
Low Pass Filter	a Low pass filter pass attenuates frequencies above the cuttoff frequency while allowing frequencies below the cuttoff frequencies to be transmitted.
Microprocessors	Microprocessors are usually made up of tens of millions of transistors. The more transistors you have, the higher the clock speed needed to produce instruction. Example: a chip clocks at 5 MHZ but executes only 0.33 MIPS, meaning it produces one instruction per clock cycles
Millimeter Wave	Millimeter waves are waves with frequencies from 30 GHz to 300 GHz.
MOSFET	MOSFETS are used to amplify or switch electronic signals. It is the most common field effect transistor in both analog and digital circuits. It is composed of n type or p type semiconductor materials.
Pad	a Pad is a copper area on the PCB where solder is allowed and component will be mounted to.
Passive device	a Passive Device is a device that consumes energy rather than produce it, example: transistors, resistors, capacitors, diodes.
Phonon	when the bonds of atoms in a solid state lattice are exposed to vibtration, the energy associated with these vibrations is qauntified as a quasiparticle sound wave called phonon.
Polarization	Polarization is a property of waves that describes the orientation of their oscillations (electric fields).
Prepreg	Prepreg are bonding sheets used in the manufacturing of PCB Boards.
Quiescent	a quiescent current is the current set to flow in a circuit or a device when no applied signal is running or passing.
qnf	qnf is a special way to design dies with thermal pad sys to dissipate heat from the semiconductor.
Quality Factor	The Quality Factor of a component is the ratio of the total energy to the dissipated energy.
Radio Frequency	if a current is applied to an antenna, an electromagnetic field is generated in the electromagnetic radiation spectrum (between 9 KHz and 300 GHz).
Regulator	a Voltage Regulator is designated to automatically maintain a constant voltage.
Repeater	a Repeater is a device that amplifies, reshapes, retimes or perform retransmission of a signal.
Resistor	The Resistor is designed to produce a voltage drop between its terminals in proportion to its current.
Return Loss	any reflected energy measured in dB below the applied level is defined as Return Loss. the higher the value of the Return Loss the better is the system. if a load has a return loss of -20 dB, that means 1/20 of the incident power is reflected. the higher the return loss the less power is actually lost.
Rise Time	Rise Time is a measure of the ability of the circuit to respond to fast input signals (it is the time required to change from a specified low value to high value).
Sampling Rate	is the number of samples per unit of of the study; Example, for frequency, the sample rate is per hertz. The sample rate shall be at least twice per period.
Saturation Current	the Saturation Current is the limit at which a current can flow throught a component.
Silicon	Computer chips require precise regulation of voltage to manipulate data, Silicon is used in chips becasue it can handle high temperature, and because it is a good electrical conductor. Semiconductor applications require two types of semiconductor properties. Silicon can be processed "doped" in order to have the conductivity required for the specified applications.
Skin Depth	Skin Depth is defined as the depth at which a current will drop off to 36.6% of the value at the surface. As the frequency increases, the skin depth decreases. the skin depth is a characteristic of the region in a wire where the carriers travel.
Solder Mask	a Solder mask is an "epoxy or liquid/dry film photoimageable material used to insulate the board from places where solder should not be applied to prevent short circuit.
Speed of Sound	The speed of sound is equal: 330 m/s
Switch	The Switch is a gate, or a logic gate that switch signals between gates.
Transducer	a Transducer reads a signal in a certain form and reports it back in another form.
Transistor	Transistors are used to amplify or swtich electronic circuits. They are known for their low voltage requirement, and they do not work with a voltage higher than 1 KV.
Transmitter	a Transmitter is an electronic device which, with the aid of an antenna, propagates an electromagnetic signal such as radio, television or other telecommunications.
Velocity of Light	The velocity of light in a free space is: 3 e+8 m/s
Voltage Breakdown	The Voltage Breakdown is the voltage at which a capacitor will be shorted.
VSWR	Volatge Standing Wave Ratio is a measure of how much reflection happens on a transmission line. A value closer to 1 is recommended for VSWR. VSWR = Vmax/Vmin; any mismatch between the impedances of the line and the load will reflect the load and have a higher VSWR.
Wavelength	a Wavelength is the distance between repeating units of a propagating wave at a given frequency. the higher the wavelength the lower the frequency. wavelength = 300,000,000 / frequency (Hz)
Waves	Waves are carrier of energy that propagates through a medium.