Part of Made in India,Design Innovation

Workshop,2015

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PHYSICS INVESTIGATORY PROJECT ON

WORKING OF ZENER DIODE

Do  you  know  that  there  are  special  diodes  that  conduct  even  in  reverse  bias  mode?  These  diodes  are  called  the  zener  diodes  which  can  be  used  as  voltage  regulators,  shunt  regulators  and  surge  protectors  to  limit  the  transient  voltage  spikes.  You  can  test  out  its  func?oning  in  forward  and  reverse-­‐bias  modes.

This  project  is  divided  into  two  phases.    In  the  first  phase,  you  will  need  a  breadboard,  zener  diode,  an  LED,  a  resistor,  a  mul?meter  and  a  few  connec?ng  wires.  The  orange  side  of  the  zener  diode  is  its  p-­‐side  and  black  stripe  represents  its  n-­‐side.    The  connec?ons  are  much  such  that  the  posi?ve  terminal  of  the  LED  is  connected  to  the  n-­‐side  of  the  diode.  On  the  comple?on  of  the  circuit  the  LED  glows.  The  voltage  across  the  zener  diode  was  measured.  It  was  observed  that  the  diode  needs  a  minimum  of  0.79V  to  allow  the  current  to  pass  through  it.  

When  the  connec?ons  of  the  zener  diode  were  reversed,  the  LED  s?ll  glows.  The  voltage  across  the  zener  diode  was  measured.  It  was  observed  that  the  diode  needs  a  minimum  of  5.6V  to  conduct  in  reverse  biased  condi?on.    This  voltage  is  known  as  breakdown  voltage.

In  the  second  phase,  you  will  need  a  preset,  a  zener  diode,  an  LED,  a  resistor  and  a  few  connec?ng  wires.  A  voltage  divider  circuit  was  made  using  a  preset  and  the  connec?ons  of  the  zener  diode  were  s?ll  reversed.  The  preset  was  rotated  ?ll  the  point  where  the  LED  stops  glowing  and  the  voltage  across  the  zener  diode  was  measured.    The  same  process  was  repeated  by  rota?ng  the  preset  to  the  point  where  the  LED  starts  glowing.  The  breakdown  value  is  printed  in  the  zener  diode,  the  diode  used  is  of  value  5V6  (i.e.  5.6V).  

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CoolJunk   is   India's   fastest   growing  DIY   (do-­‐it-­‐yourself)   kits   company   focused   on   project-­‐based   learning   in  science,   engineering   and   technology.  Having   20,000   users   in   India,  US,   Singapore,   Middle   East   and   New  Zealand,  the  CoolJunk  kits  are  known   for  quality,  innovaUon   and  high  producUon  value.  CoolJunk  has  been  featured   in   naUonal   and   internaUonal   journals   including   Wallstreet,   Yourstory,   Hindu   Business   Line,  NextBigWhat  and  was  tagged  as  the  coolest  Indian  start-­‐up  in  IAN  Bootcamp-­‐2011.  

You  may  also  refer  to  the  video:  Introduc>on  to  Zener  DiodeV-­‐I  Characteris>cs  of  Zener  Diode

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