Microcontrollers - Making Life Easier

Microcontrollers, a small computer on a single integrated circuit, allow for input from sensors, and power LEDs to send signals to other devices over protocols. However, most microcontrollers do not have enough power alone to send signals to other devices. Thankfully, transistors exist and provide an excellent solution to higher power needs. First developed in 1922 by Julius Edgar, transistors weren’t given much thought until 1947 when physicists John Barden, William Shockley, and Walter Brattain use them to create a device while working at AT&T. This was one of the biggest milestones in technology history and transistors are now the modern building block of all computing devices.

There are many different versions of the transistor, but their main purpose is to take a small signal and amplify it between a pair of terminals known as the base, emitter and collector. There are numerous part numbers and they all have different voltage, currents and temperature ratings. The variety of transistors make it great because they can be used on a bunch of different projects, but it can be tricky to figure out which one you need.

There are several things you can accomplish with a microcontroller/transistor combination. Some examples include; the ability to power multi-colored LED strips, relay control for extreme loads, and amplifying audio. Amplifying audio is one of the most common examples of a transistor because of the transistor radio. Instead of vacuum tubes, transistors are now used to amplify audio signals. This change has allowed for radios to become portable, because it is only made of six components. It also allows for the use of MP3 players to Bluetooth to larger speakers. Transistors have really modernized todays world in several different aspects.

ASAP Semiconductor has a devoted and extensive range Microcontrollers, NPN transistors, and Audio Amplifiers making us the premier supplier of microcontroller components. We serve customers as a one-stop shop and primary destination for product sourcing.