Transistor - Types

Types

Transistors are categorized by

  • Semiconductor material (date first used): the metalloids germanium (1947) and silicon (1954)— in amorphous, polycrystalline and monocrystalline form; the compounds gallium arsenide (1966) and silicon carbide (1997), the alloy silicon-germanium (1989), the allotrope of carbon graphene (research ongoing since 2004), etc.—see Semiconductor material
  • Structure: BJT, JFET, IGFET (MOSFET), IGBT, "other types"
  • Electrical polarity (positive and negative) : NPN, PNP (BJTs); N-channel, P-channel (FETs)
  • Maximum power rating: low, medium, high
  • Maximum operating frequency: low, medium, high, radio frequency (RF), microwave (The maximum effective frequency of a transistor is denoted by the term, an abbreviation for transition frequency—the frequency of transition is the frequency at which the transistor yields unity gain)
  • Application: switch, general purpose, audio, high voltage, super-beta, matched pair
  • Physical packaging: through-hole metal, through-hole plastic, surface mount, ball grid array, power modules—see Packaging
  • Amplification factor hfe or βF (transistor beta)

Thus, a particular transistor may be described as silicon, surface mount, BJT, NPN, low power, high frequency switch.

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