Specialty Diodes

Specialty diodes are specialty or proprietary products and accessories related to diodes. Specialty diodes are usually types of PIN, step recovery, laser, and LED diodes. They tend to have much lower leakage. Specialty diodes that employ resonant tunneling to provide forward-bias attributes are called a tunnel diode. The tunneling effect is when doping levels that enhance tunneling reduces an intrinsic voltage barrier. These types of diodes provide a negative resistance region where unlike conventional diodes, the current decreases as the voltage increases, resulting in very fast switching speeds.

A high voltage diode is a general-purpose diode that couples high forward conductance fast switching speed with high blocking voltages. A rectifier diode is a diode that is used in rectification power supplies, which convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC). These types of specialty diodes are also used in circuits where a large current must pass through the diode. A Schottky diode is constructed of a metal-to-N junction rather than a P-N semiconductor junction.

A Laser diode is a specialty diode that converts an electrical signal to light. Laser diodes do not generate much heat compared to incandescent lights, and are frequently used in fiber optics because they possess high radiance, emit in a small area, and can be modulated at high speeds. A light emitting diode (LED) or LED diode contains a semiconductor chip that allows it to emit light when connected to a circuit. Using a p-n junction in reverse bias, a Zener diode makes use of the zener effect, which holds the voltage close to a constant value causing a breakdown effect. Specialty diodes like Zener diodes are manufactured with zener voltages ranging anywhere from a few volts to hundreds of volts.

A Germanium diode is a semiconductor developed using germanium material. These specialty diodes have an advantage over silicon-based diodes in that have low forward voltage drops, which provide for less power loss and a more efficient diode. A varactor diode (or tuning diode) is a specialty diode that can vary the reverse bias being applied in order to change the junction capacitance.

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Part Numbers for Specialty Diodes