Diode

Diode is a two-terminal electronic component that conducts current primarily in one direction (asymmetric conductance); it has low (ideally zero) resistance in one direction, and high (ideally infinite) resistance in the other. A diode vacuum tube or thermionic diode is a vacuum tube with two electrodes, a heated cathode and a plate, in which electrons can flow in only one direction, from cathode to plate.

History

The first types of diode, the vacuum tube (thermionic) diodes, were invented in 1904 by John Ambrose Fleming, who had been provided with the only sample of a thermionic valve made by Thomas Edison.

Types of Diodes

There are several types of diodes are available for use in electronics design. Some of them include:

• Zener Diode
• Light Emitting Diode (LED)
• Photodiode
• Laser Diode
• Schottky Diode
• Varactor Diode
• Avalanche Diode
• Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR)
• PIN Diode

Applications

Diodes have many applications across a wide range of electronic systems and circuits. Some of the main applications of diodes include:

• Rectifier
• Voltage Multiplier
• Voltage Regulator
• Switch
• Clipping Circuit
• Clamping Circuit
• Protection Devices
• Logic Gates
• Radio Demodulation

See Also

• Semiconductor
• Transistor
• Resistor
• Capacitor
• Inductor

References

Diode Resources
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