Introduction To Basic Electronics

Learning about basic electronics and creating your own projects is a lot easier than you
may think. In this tutorial, we’re going to give you a brief overview of common
electronic components and explain what their functions are. You will then learn about
schematic diagrams and how they are used to design and build circuits. And finally, you
will put this information to use by creating your first basic circuit.

Electronic Workbench
Before you get started, make sure your electronic workbench is properly set up. The work
area doesn’t need to be fancy and you could even build your own electronic workbench.

Storage
Electronic components can be small and
it’s a good idea to keep everything organized.
The most popular option is to use clear
plastic storage boxes for storing parts.
In addition, you could use plastic storage
bins that hang from a rack or fit on a shelf.
Tools
Now that you have a good workspace set up, it’s time to stock it with the proper tools and
equipment. This isn’t a complete list but it does highlight the most common items used in
electronics.

Breadboard
Breadboards are an essential tool for prototyping
and building temporary circuits. These boards contain
holes for inserting wire and components. Because of
their temporary nature, they allow you to create circuits
without soldering. The holes in a breadboard are
connected in rows both horizontally and vertically as
shown below.

Digital Multimeter
A multimeter is a device that’s used to measure electric
current (amps), voltage (volts) and resistance (ohms).
It’s a great for troubleshooting circuits and is capable
of measuring both AC and DC voltage. Check out this
post for more info on how to use a multimeter.

Battery Holders
A battery holder is a plastic case that holds batteries
from 9V to AA. Some holders are enclosed and
may have an on/off switch built in.

Leads (Alligator Clips)

Test leads are great for connecting components
together to test a circuit without the need for soldering.

Wire Cutter
Wire cutters are essential for stripping stranded
and solid copper wire.

Precision Screwdriver Set

Precision screwdrivers are also known as jeweler’s
screwdrivers and usually come as a set. The
advantage of these over normal screwdrivers is
the precision tips of each driver. These are very
handy when working with electronics that contain
tiny screws.
Helping 3rd Hand
When working with electronics, it seems you never
have enough hands to hold everything. This is
where the helping hand (3rd hand) comes in.
Great for holding circuit boards or wire when
soldering or tinning.

Heat Gun
A heat gun is used to shrink plastic tubing known as
heat shrink to help protect exposed wire. Heat
shrink has been called the duct tape of electronics
and comes in handy in a wide variety of applications.

Jumper Wire
These wires are used with breadboard and development
boards and are generally 22-28 AWG solid core wire.
Jumper wires can have male or female ends depending
on how they need to be used.

Soldering Iron
When it time to create a permanent circuit, you’ll want
to solder the parts together. To do this, a soldering
iron is the tool you would use. Of course a soldering
iron isn’t any good unless you have solder to go with it.
You can choose leaded or lead-free solder in a few
diameters.

Electronic Components
Now its time to talk about the different components that make your electronic projects
come to life. Below is a quick breakdown of the most common components and functions
they perform.

Switch
Switches can come in many forms such as pushbutton,
rocker, momentary and others. Their basic function is
to interrupt electric current by turning a circuit on or off.
Resistor
Resistors are used to resist the flow of current or to
control the voltage in a circuit. The amount of
resistance that a resistor offers is measured in Ohms.
Most resistors have colored stripes on the outside and
this code will tell you it’s value of resistance. You
can use a multimeter or Digikey’s resistor color code
calculator to determine the value of a resistor.

Variable Resistor (Potentiometer)

A variable resistor is also known as a potentiometer.
These components can be found in devices such as a
light dimmer or volume control for a radio.
When you turn the shaft of a potentiometer the
resistance changes in the circuit.

Light-Dependent Resistor (LDR)

A light-dependent resistor is also a variable resistor
but is controlled by the light versus turning a knob.
The resistance in the circuit changes with the intensity
of the light. These are often found in exterior lights
that automatically turn on at dusk and off at dawn.

Capacitor
Capacitors store electricity and then discharges it back
into the circuit when there is a drop in voltage.
A capacitor is like a rechargeable battery and can be
charged and then discharged. The value is measured
in F (Farad), nano Farad (nF) or pico Farad (pF) range.

Diode
A diode allows electricity to flow in one direction and
blocks it from flowing the opposite way. The diode’s
primary role is to route electricity from taking an
unwanted path within the circuit.

Light-Emitting Diode (LED)

A light-emitting diode is like a standard diode in the fact that
electrical current only flows in one direction. The main
difference is an LED will emit light when electricity
flows through it. Inside an LED there is an anode and
cathode. Current always flows from the anode (+) to
the cathode (-) and never in the opposite direction.
The longer leg of the LED is the positive (anode) side.
Transistor
Transistor are tiny switches that turn a current on or off
when triggered by an electric signal. In addition to being
a switch, it can also be used to amplify electronic signals.
A transistor is similar to a relay except with no moving parts.

Relay
A relay is an electrically operated switch that opens or
closes when power is applied. Inside a relay is an
electromagnet which controls a mechanical switch.

Integrated Circuit (IC)

An integrated circuit is a circuit that’s been reduced in
size to fit inside a tiny chip. This circuit contains
electronic components like resistors and capacitors
but on a much smaller scale. Integrated circuits
come in different variations such as 555 timers,
voltage regulators, microcontrollers and many more.
Each pin on an IC is unique in terms of it’s function.

What Is A Circuit?
Before you design an electronic project, you need to know what a circuit is and how to
create one properly.
An electronic circuit is a circular path of conductors by which electric current can
flow. A closed circuit is like a circle because it starts and ends at the same point forming
a complete loop. Furthermore, a closed circuit allows electricity to flow from the (+)
power to the (-) ground uninterrupted.
In contrast, if there is any break in the flow of electricity, this is known as an open
circuit. As shown below, a switch in a circuit can cause it to be open or closed depending
on it’s position.

All circuits need to have three basic elements.

These elements are a voltage source, conductive
path and a load.The voltage source, such as a
battery, is needed in order to cause the current
to flow through the circuit. In addition, there
needs to be a conductive path that provides
a route for the electricity to flow. Finally,
a proper circuit needs a load that consumes
the power. The load
Schematic Diagram
When working with circuits, you will often find something called a schematic
diagram. These diagrams use symbols to illustrate what electronic components are used
and where they’re placed in the circuit. These symbols are graphic representations of the
actual electronic components.
Below is an example of a schematic that depicts an LED circuit that is controlled by a
switch. It contains symbols for an LED, resistor, battery and a switch. By following a
schematic diagram, you are able to know which components to use and where to put
them. These schematics are extremely helpful for beginners when first learning circuits.

Schematic Diagram For LED Circuit

There are many types of electronic symbols
and they vary slightly between countries.
Below are a few of the most commonly
used electronic symbols in the US.
How To Determine A Resistor Size
Resistors are commonly used in electronics projects and it’s important to know which size
to use. To find the resistor value, you need to know the voltage and the amps for your
LED and battery.
A standard LED generally needs a voltage of around 2V and a current of 20mA or .02A to
operate correctly. Next, you need to find out what voltage your battery is. In this
example, we will be using a 9V battery. In order to determine the resistor size, we need to
use a formula known as Ohm’s law as shown below.
Ohm’s Law – Resistance (R) = Voltage (V) / Current (I)
 Resistance is measured in Ohms (Ω)
 Voltage is measured in volts (V)
 Current is measured in amps (A)

Using Ohm’s law, you need to subtract the LED voltage from the battery voltage. This
will give you a voltage of 7 which needs to be divided by .02 amps from the LED. This
formula shows that you will need a 350 Ω resistor.
As a note, standard resistors don’t come in 350 Ω but are available in 330 Ω which will
work fine.
Electronics Project #1
Now it’s time to combine everything you’ve learned and create a basic circuit. This
project is a great starter project for beginners. We will be using test leads to create a
temporary circuit without having to solder it together.
Parts Needed:
 9V Battery
 Battery Snap-on Connector
 Test Leads w/ Alligator Clips
 330 Ohm Resistor
 LED – Basic Red 5mm
Schematic Diagram

Project Steps
1. Attach the battery clip to the top of the 9V battery.
2. Red wire from the battery clip is connected to one alligator clip on the red test
lead.
3. The other end of the red test lead is connected to the long leg (+) of the LED.
4. Connect one alligator clip from black test lead to the short leg (-) of the LED.
5. The other end of the black test lead is clipped to one leg of the 330 Ω resistor.
6. Clip one side of the other black test lead to the other leg of the 330 Ω resistor.
7. The opposite end of the black test lead is connected to the black battery wire.

IMPORTANT – Never connect an LED directly to a 9V battery without a resistor in the

circuit. Doing so with damage/destroy the LED. You can however connect an LED to a
3V or smaller battery without a resistor.
How To Use A Breadboard
Another way to create and test a circuit is to build it on a breadboard. These boards are
essential for testing and prototyping circuits because no soldering is needed. Components
and wires are pushed into the holes to form a temporary circuit. Because it’s not
permanent, you can experiment and make changes until the desired outcome is reached.
Below the holes of each row are metal clips that connect the holes to each other. The
middle rows run vertically as shown while the exterior columns are connected
horizontally. These exterior columns are called power rails and are used to receive and
provide power to the board.
Breadboards will need to have power supplied
to them and this can be done in a few ways.
One of the easiest way is to plug the wires
from a battery holder into the power rails.
This will supply voltage to the rail it’s
plugged into only.

To power both rails, you will need to use a

jumper wire from the (+) and (-) to the rail on
the opposite side.

Electronics Project #2
Now we’re going to learn how to create a
circuit on a breadboard. This circuit is the
exact same one we did earlier but we won
’t be using the test leads.

Parts Needed:
 9V Battery
 Battery Snap-on Connector
 330 Ohm Resistor
 LED – Basic Red 5mm
 Breadboard- Half Size

Schematic Diagram
Project Steps
1.Attach the battery clip to the top of the 9V battery.
2.Place the red wire from the battery clip into
F9 of the breadboard.
3.Insert the black wire from the battery
clip into J21 of the breadboard.
4.Bend the legs of the 330 Ω resistor
and place one leg into F21.
5.Place the other leg of the resistor
into F15.
6.Insert the short leg of the LED into J15
and the long leg into J9.

The red arrows in the image below help to

show how electricity is flowing in this circuit.
All components are connected to each other in ac
ircle just like when we used the test leads.

IMPORTANT – Never connect an LED

directly to a 9V battery without a resistor
in the circuit. Doing so with damage/
destroy the LED.