Basic Electronic Components


The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.
-E. Phillpotts
The machine does not isolate the man from the great problems of nature but plunges him more deeply
into them.
-Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Introduction

Digital hardware systems can be viewed from many alternative perspectives, including Boolean logic, logic gates, and behavioral specifications. For most of this book, the most primitive abstraction we use is the logic gate. In this appendix, we peek beneath the sheets to get some idea of how logic gates are actually implemented by more primitive electrical components.

We begin by reviewing briefly the concepts of electricity that influence the fundamental operation of logic gates. We will also examine the basic implementation technologies from which logic gates are constructed, such as diodes, capacitors, resistors, bipolar transistors, and MOS transistors.

Table of Contents

1. Basic Electricity
2. Logic Gates from Resistors, Diodes, and Transistors
3. Bipolar Transistor Logic
4. MOS Transistors
Appendix Review

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This file last updated on 07/16/96 at 05:26:59.
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