Elenco Electronic Playground 50-in-1 Experiments - Manual (Page 5)

Pico- (p) A prefix used in the metric
system. It means a millionth of
a millionth (0.000,000,000,001)
of something.
Pitch The musical term for frequency.
Printed Circuit Board A board used for mounting
electrical components.
Components are connected
using metal traces “printed” on
the board instead of wires.
Receiver The device which is receiving a
message (usually with radio).
Resistance The electrical friction between
an electric current and the
material it is flowing through;
the loss of energy from
electrons as they move
between atoms of the material.
Resistor Components used to control
the flow of electricity in a circuit.
They are made of carbon.
Resistor-Transistor-
Logic (RTL)
A type of circuit arrangement
used to construct digital gates.
Reverse-Biased When there is a voltage in the
direction of high-resistance
across a diode.
Saturation The state of a transistor when
the circuit resistances, not the
transistor itself, are limiting
the current.
Schematic A drawing of an electrical circuit
that uses symbols for all the
components.
Semiconductor A material that has more
resistance than conductors but
less than insulators. It is used
to construct diodes, transistors,
and integrated circuits.
Series When electrical components
are connected one after the
other.
Short Circuit When wires from different parts
of a circuit (or different circuits)
connect accidentally.
Silicon The chemical element most
commonly used as a
semiconductor.
Solder A tin-lead metal that becomes a
liquid when heated to above
360 degrees. In addition to
having low resistance like other
metals, solder also provides a
strong mounting that can
withstand shocks.
Speaker A device which converts
electrical energy into sound.
Switch A device to connect (“closed” or
“on”) or disconnect (“open” or
“off”) wires in an electric circuit.
Transformer A device which uses two coils
to change the AC voltage and
current (increasing one while
decreasing the other).
Transient Temporary. Used to describe
DC changes to circuits.
Transistor An electronic device that uses
a small amount of current to
control a large amount of
current.
Transmitter The device which is sending a
message (usually with radio).
Truth Table A table which lists all the
possible combinations of inputs
and outputs for a digital circuit.
Tungsten A highly resistive material used
in light bulbs.
Tuning Capacitor A capacitor whose value is
varied by rotating conductive
plates over a dielectric.
Variable Resistor A resistor with an additional
arm contact that can move
along the resistive material and
tap off the desired resistance.
Voltage A measure of how strong an
electric charge across a
material is.
Voltage Divider A resistor configuration to
create a lower voltage.
Volts (V) The unit of measure for voltage.
-5-
QUIZ ANSWERS
First Quiz: 1. electrons; 2. short; 3. battery; 4. increase; 5. insulators, conductors; 6. decreases, increases; 7. decreases;
8. voltage; 9. alternating, direct; 10. increases, decreases.
Second Quiz: 1. reverse; 2. LEDs; 3. amplifier; 4. integrated; 5. saturated; 6. alternating, direct; 7. decreases, increases;
8. magnetic; 9. increases; 10. twice
Third Quiz: 1. feedback; 2. air, pressure; 3. decreases; 4. radio; 5. inductors; 6. OR; 7. NAND