Introduction-
Diode-
A diode is a specialized electronic components with two electrodes called the
anode and cathode. Most of
the diode are made with semi-conductor materials. It allows
the flow of current in only one direction. It has low resistance in one direction, and high
resistance on the other.
Power supplies-
A power supply is an electrical device that supplies
electric power to an
electrical load. Thus, it is a device which is used to convert AC to DC .The primary
function of a power supply is to convert electric current from a source to the correct
voltage, current, and frequency to power the load.
Types of Power Supply-
There are many types of power supply. Most are designed to convert high voltage AC
mains electricity to a suitable low voltage supply for electronics circuits and other
devices. A power supply can by broken down into a series of blocks, each of which
performs a particular function.
For example a 5V regulated supply:
Transformer - steps down high voltage AC mains to low voltage AC.
Rectifier - converts AC to DC, but the DC output is varying.
Smoothing - smooths the DC from varying greatly to a small ripple.
Voltage Regulator - eliminates ripple by setting DC output to a fixed voltage.
Power supplies made from these blocks are described below with a circuit diagram and a
graph of their output:
