Questions tagged [terminology]

Terminology is the studying of the terms used to identify things. In electronics, just like any other complex human endeavour, using the proper terms helps in understanding.

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Confusing terminology? [closed]

I posted this question at motor vehicle stack exchange but I believe it's more suited for this. I've noticed that many computer errors (diagnostic trouble codes PXXXX) in cars use confusing ...
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technical term for this phenomenon: minor adjustments to a notebook's LED-LCD screen angle result in major legibility issues

Perhaps a bit of background will help you to understand the question I'm trying to formulate. I have no engineering background but would like to read more about this LED-LCD phenomenon though I don't ...
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What does the statement "Schottky diode has high switching speed" mean?

I understand that digital circuits that can be run at high frequency can be called "high speed," but what is the meaning of "Schottky diode having a high switching speed?" Does ...
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Origin of the term "doping" in semiconductors

Is there a known origin/etymology for using the terms "doping" and "dopants" when describing the process of introducing impurities to semiconductors? I have never been able to find ...
knzy's user avatar
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Why do datasheets sometimes use fractions of a microfarad or tens of thousands of picofarads instead of nanofarads? [duplicate]

This datasheet for a mini dev board, as an example, denotes eg C1 as 0.1µF, and C6 as 10000pF, instead of 100nF and 10nF, respectively. This is something I've noticed in several datasheets at various ...
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Multiple feedback filters: Deliyannis? Friend? Rauch? Which one is which?

I am somewhat confused regarding the MFB filter naming custom. In the literature, I read of the Deliyannis form, the Deliyannis-Friend form, the Rauch form, and people seemingly confuse them. There ...
sh-'s user avatar
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Does this latch have a name?

I'm looking for a circuit like: Where, on the rising edge of any input, the corresponding output latches on and the rest of the outputs turn off. Sort of a mutually exclusive selection latch. Does ...
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Can we say that a CPU is an ASIC that is designed to perform a wide range of instructions?

My question is more terminological than technical. I have come across different definitions of what an ASIC is. The most common one is that an ASIC is an IC that is designed for a specific application ...
Ramzi Baaguigui's user avatar
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Insulation resistance or isolation resistance?

is there a difference between "isolation resistance" and "insulation resistance"? What is the correct term? I have a definition: "Electrical resistance with an often high ohm ...
Antonia's user avatar
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Are contradictory definitions of cathode/anode (in conventional cf) explained by two ways of conceptualizing the circuit?

For consistency let's just consider conventional current flow; we can imagine it as positively charged holes. I don't want an electrochemical (or even historic) explanation, just a consistent naming ...
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Is "load sharing" when 2 power supplies are connected in parallel or when a battery is connected indirectly to the load?

I see the term "load sharing" used in two completely different cases: When 2 power supplies are connected in parallel, a technology that ensures that each delivers half of the load current: ...
Davide Andrea's user avatar
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Can a digital system be considered an ASIC regardless its physical implementation?

From my knowledge from classical books of computational and digital systems, an ASIC is a category of full-customized or semi-customized integrated circuit (IC) tailored to a specific application. ...
Rubem Pacelli's user avatar
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Electronic vs. Electronics Engineering [closed]

As a non-native English speaker, I am always torn between writing/saying, "I have a degree in Electronic Engineering" vs. "Electronics Engineering". I have heard the Electronics ...
Rubem Pacelli's user avatar
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2 answers
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Meaning of 'Bessel Filter'

Question I'll get straight to the narrow point ahead: I'd like an expert's opinion on the appropriate use of Bessel when considering a specific 4th order bandpass design. I don't mind a more general ...
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What are the differences between on-off control, proportional only control, and fuzzy control?

How we can differentiate between these 3 concepts: On-off control and proportional only (where integral and derivative gains are zero) control and fuzzy control? I am especially confused in the ...
DSP_CS's user avatar
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Multiplexer terminology

If a multiplexer has N inputs and 1 output, that's called an N:1 multiplexer. But suppose a multiplexer has N inputs, each of which is an M-bit bus, and the output is also an M-bit bus. What is the ...
MathematicalOrchid's user avatar
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Confusion regarding actuator

Almost all of the block diagram shown in control systems texts show a controller block and a system/plant block, but they don't show an actuator block. So I am confused, should we consider thr ...
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Technical term to define "the grooves" feature in a plastic enclosure

What is the technical term to define those grooves indicated by the arrows, in the attached picture?
Adrian Ionescu's user avatar
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What is the relation between filter coefficient (N) of Simulink pid block and filter time constant of MATLAB pid command?

What is the relation between filter coefficient (N) of Simulink pid block and filter time constant of MATLAB pid command? According to my experience they are not same or equal, there is some other ...
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What is the etymology of 'plane' e.g. data plane, control plane, etc.?

My guess would be aviation (used as an analogy), but I find no source for this. Data plane was being used as early as 1965 (e.g. in this paper) https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/4038491 &...
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Linear regulator and switching regulator terminology

Linear voltage regulator = linear regulator = voltage regulator? Switching regulator = switching voltage regulator = switch mode power supply SMPS (e.g. step-up, step-down)? Are the terms above ...
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Confusion regarding sensitivity topic of closed loop system

I am reading about closed loop systems in Dorf, Modern Control Systems. While reading, I got confused by highlighted text in the attached snapshot. What does "variations in parameters" mean. ...
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What are some of the examples of "plant" in control systems?

What is meant by "plant" in control system? This above question gives some detail about the term "plant" in context of control systems. But it mainly mentions "DC motor" ...
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Exception vs interrupt for Cortex-M chip

I'm not sure how to use the terms "exception" and "interrupt" correctly. In the book Embedded Systems with ARM Cortex-M Microcontrollers in Assembly Language and C it says: "...
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What is meant by the term "general amplifier"?

I have been studying the topic of amplifiers recently and I've come across the term "general amplifier" a number of times online. Does this term refer to a particular kind of amplifier, or ...
int's user avatar
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What is the formal/usual name of this kind of connector?

I need to buy connectors like these: I don't know how to search for them in the millions of existing connector references. Could you tell me what their formal name is, or what these are usually ...
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Confusion understanding the term "classic control"?

I am trying to study basics of control systems, and I have came across terms like "classic control" and "modern control". These two terms "classic control" and "...
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Confusions regarding Laplace transform

We know that Laplace transform has two parts, \$\sigma \$ and \$ j\omega\$. \$\sigma\$ is the real part while \$ j\omega\$ is the imaginary part. Is it okay to say that the term \$\sigma \$ is a ...
s12d's user avatar
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Bring up a board

I often wince when I hear engineers at my current workplace say "We need to do xxx during the bring-up of the board." Basically, it is a board with a few components and as they test that the ...
cup's user avatar
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6 votes
1 answer
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What is an Elegant Breadboard

There are quite a few documents on the internet which use the term Elegant BreadBoard (EBB) with no explanation of what it actually is. I've been trawling the net trying to find out the difference ...
cup's user avatar
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Calling embedded systems vs. calling embedded electronics

I know that the name "Embedded systems" is way more adopted worldwide. However, it always intrigues me since, in engineering, the term "system" is usually used when it is intended ...
Rubem Pacelli's user avatar
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Bob Smith Termination - Where should we use it? [duplicate]

What is a Bob-smith termination and why do we use it? I've seen it being using in Ethernet RJ-45 connectors where it is terminated to Chassis ground? Can someone tell me how this type of termination ...
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6 votes
4 answers
1k views

How is the word "kilohm" pronounced traditionally? [closed]

Had to ask this in electronics, would like to hear this from people who have been involved. I am not a native English speaker, and I couldn't find a definitive answer online: there are too many ...
Jimmy Falcon's user avatar
11 votes
5 answers
4k views

What are the effects of removing P, I, and D from a PID controller respectively?

A proportional, integral, and derivative (PID) controller can feature three terms.) We sometimes see only two of the terms in use. For example, the derivative is disregarded for a PI controller. While ...
HFOrangefish's user avatar
15 votes
11 answers
8k views

Why is North American residential power called single phase?

I am under the belief that North American residential power is a special case of two phase power adequately described by the term split phase. Clearly I am in the minority and want to be convinced ...
9Harris's user avatar
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17 votes
4 answers
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What does negative capacitance mean?

I see negative capacitance measuring electrolytic capacitor at high frequencies (40kHz). How should I interpret that? The device is LCR Meter Hantek 1832C. I failed to find anything about that in the ...
max5555's user avatar
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What are the different types of digital signals, other than binary?

https://dsp.stackexchange.com/questions/81777/can-a-digital-signal-has-3-three-values1-0-and-1 Above is link to a my related question, especially relevance in the answer from Hilmar, but that does not ...
DSP_CS's user avatar
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Interpretation of multimeter displaying "OL"

Multimeters normally displaying "OL" when measuring resistance in ohms and the cables are not connected. My friend told me that apprentices in Germany learn it is "Overload", while ...
schnedan's user avatar
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2 votes
0 answers
57 views

Is there a single word term for doubled amplitude of square wave?

The IEC60050 (103-07-02) tells that the amplitude is "maximum value of a scalar sinusoidal quantity". So the peak-to-peak voltage is a doubled amplitude. Is there a single word term for a ...
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Is there a standard that describes the term "coplanar waveguide"?

I look at IEC60050 "International Electrotechnical Vocabulary" standard at section 726 "Transmission lines and waveguides" and searching on the word "coplanar" gives me ...
Arseniy's user avatar
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How to name the frequency of digital signal?

Let's imagine that we have some MCU in which each GPIO pin can be set high or low with a single assembler instruction (BSET/BCLR for example). If we divide one by the instruction execution time we get ...
Arseniy's user avatar
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-1 votes
2 answers
323 views

Terminology: What is the Reasoning for using the Term "Multiplexor"? [closed]

A multiplexor is used for selecting from many possible inputs to a single output. The schematic below displays an 8-way multiplexor. It has 8 possible inputs all going to a single output and has a ...
user7420124's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
58 views

VF vs. VFR Suffix: Whats the Difference?

On Digikey, I have found 2 parts that have the same datasheet and same product attributes, but one is $2 cheaper and has VFR at the end of its name instead of VF. Here are the products and datasheets: ...
ShortsKing's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
1k views

What is meaning of "classic" control in context of EE?

As electrical engineers, we often come across the terms "classic control" & "modern control" What does classic mean here? Is it meaning "old" or of "past time&...
bgh's user avatar
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2 answers
167 views

Why are data selectors referred to as "multiplexers" [closed]

I think it would be intuitive if a multiplexer was a component that "multiplied" the number of signals coming out of it, i.e. splits one complex signal into many simpler ones. However, I ...
ifconfig's user avatar
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4 answers
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Confusion regarding active band pass filter [duplicate]

I have seen some Google results where a band pass filter is made by cascading low pass and high pass stages. I am confused what will happen if we interchange the stages (first stage is high pass and ...
DSP_CS's user avatar
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Confusion regarding term "offset"?

I am confused regarding term "offset". What is its meaning in context of function generator and oscilloscope? I have tried to google, but I get results in context of op amp and some results ...
DSP_CS's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
417 views

How is an 8p10c connector possible?

I thought I understood how modular connector naming worked: npmc, where n is the number of positions and m the number of loaded positions, always loading from the middle out. So for an 8p8c connector, ...
Hearth's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
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Ambiguity of the "intrinsic" layer in a PIN diode

I'm having trouble understanding the fundamental makeup of large PIN diodes, specifically those used in radiation detection devices. For example, high purity germanium (HPGe) detectors are often ...
thegreatemu's user avatar
10 votes
2 answers
2k views

What is this wire connector/terminal called?

Could you please tell me the name of the red wire connector/terminal shown in the picture?
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