Hi, How do you go about finding the right transistor for the job? Is there somewhere that lets you search based on certain values like the parametric search at micrchip.com?
Hi, How do you go about finding the right transistor for the job? Is there somewhere that lets you search based on certain values like the parametric search at micrchip.com?
One quick thought...I usually go to www.digikey.com, whether I end up buying from them or not is another story...
Type 'transistor' in the search box, pick the type of transistor (example Transistor BJT Single under Discrete Semiconductor Products), then narrow it down based on the lists provided. Do it for MOSFETs, chips, resistors, whatever.
I'm sure Digikey isn't the only company that has a 'drill-down' type system for figuring out what a person wants to buy. And I'd be willing to bet that if you know a semi-conductor manufacturer (i.e. Fairchild, Motorola, etc), you'd probably be able to do the same thing at their websites.
I use Rapid for components. They do have a kind of drill down to find things but its not got anything like that site you linked me to. I did a quick search but i cant seem to find any transistors that rapid sell. Maybe im looking for the wrong things though. Now i can find the formulas i need and put the results into that page and hopefully find what i need and hopefully i wont end up using NPN transistors again where i need PNPs
If your desiging a circuit from scratch - then chosing the right transistor is a bit of a black art.
That said, if you have an idea of the operating voltage and current draw you can narrow your search down.
Probably best to trawl the net for some circuits (similar to your idea) and copy that.
If your replacing a stuffed transistor - change it with the same or get your hands on a transistor comparison tables book to find an equiv.
Squib
I think a question is what you want to do with the transistor. If for driving something, there are tons of IC drivers for driving high or low and very high current DC or AC loads - even opto-isolated drivers. There are even opto isolated triacs (I've used them to directly drive up to 25 watts of lights for disco effects! 64 channnels for $1 a channel!)
So fill us in and maybe everyone can help with a driver IC or how to select your transistor.
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