Dictionary of Electrical and Electronic Terms
"A" "B" "C", "D", "E", "F", "G", "H", "I", "J", "K", "L", "M",
"N", "O", "P", "Q", "R", "S", "T", "U", "V", "W", "X", "Y", "Z"

"S" to "Sec", "Sel" to "Series pa", "Series pe" to "Shr",
"Shu" to "Sil", "Sim" to "Skip", "Sky" to "Spe",
"Spi" to "Sta", "Ste" to "Stz", "Su", "Sw", "Sx" to "Sz"

Spike. A spike is a transient of duration less than 10 percent of pulse width during which the amplitude appreciably exceeds the average amplitude of the pulse. See the graphic in the right side-bar.

Spike Killer. See Clamping Diode.





Spindle Motor. A type of motor used with disk drives to rotate the platter.

Spin Vector. In a gyro, a vector representing the angular velocity of the gyro rotor. The spin vector lies along the spin axis of the rotor.

Spherical Wavefronts. Waves of energy that spread out in concentric circles.

Splatter. Unwanted sideband frequencies that are generated from over-modulation.

Splice. A joint formed by the connecting of two or more conductors. There are a number of different styles of wire splices.

Lineman Wire Splice
Lineman Wire Splice

Splitter. A circuit or component that splits a signal into two or more paths, usually with each path seeing a reduction in amplitude. A TV antenna splitter; Antenna/Cable to TV input.

Coaxial RF Splitter
Splitter

Spread Spectrum. Telecommunications techniques in which a signal is transmitted in a bandwidth considerably greater than the frequency content of the original information.

Spreader. Insulator used with transmission lines and antennas to keep the parallel wires separated.

Sprocket Tuner. A mechanical tuning device for magnetron tubes that changes the frequency of the cavities by changing the inductance.

Spurious Signal. A unwanted signal either generated by a system or received by a system and perceived as noise by the system.

Square Law Detector. A circuit that produces an output that is the square of the input voltage [Y=X*X].

Square Mil. The area of a square, the sides of which are each equal to 1 mil. One square mil is equal to 1.2732 circular mils.

Square Wave. An ac or dc rectangular shaped periodic waveform which switches between two fixed values. A periodic wave that switches rapidly between a positive and negative peak value with a fixed delay between values, having a 50% duty cycle.

Squelch. A circuit that cuts off the output of a receiver when there is no input.

Squirrel-Cage Windings. A type of rotor winding in which heavy conductors are embedded in the rotor body. The conductors are shorted together at the ends by continuous rings. It is widely applied in ac induction motors. Physically, it appears as a rotating squirrel-cage, thus the name.

SR Latch. Set-Reset Latch. A style of latch where one line sets the latch and the other line resets the latch. Examples include; 74279, 4043, 4044 logic ICs. The SR latch in the graphic uses NOR gates. See also SR NAND gate latch.

Stability. An inherent characteristic of an oscillator that determines how well it can produce the same frequency over a given time interval. In a magnetron, the ability to maintain normal operating characteristics.

Stabilization. The process or providing negative feedback in a circuit to prevent oscillations from occurring.

Stable Circuit. A circuit does does not produce any unwanted oscillations.

Stage. One of a series of circuits within a single device or circuit; the first stage of amplification.

Stagger Tuning. A method of klystron tuning in which the resonant cavities are tuned to slightly different frequencies to increase the bandwidth of the amplifier.

Standing Wave. The distribution of voltage and current, formed by the incident and reflected waves, that has minimum and maximum points on a resultant wave that appear to stand still.

Standing Wave Ratio. [SWR] The ratio of the maximum (voltage, current) to the minimum (voltage, current) points of a transmission line. Indicates the impedance matching quality of the termination of the line.

Standoff. A component or material used to separate one part from another. A standoff may be an individual component [conductive or non-conductive], or a material applied to a part to provide separation. A standoff with a male end and female end is also called an extension stud. A standoff may be threaded, press-fit, or bolt mounted. Also round, square, or hex. Standoff Vendors.

Threaded Standoff

Static. A fixed non-varying condition, without change, without motion. Audible noise, random in nature, which might be caused by static electricity or some other interference.

Static Electricity. Stationary electricity that is in the form of a charge. The accumulated electric charge on an object. Also refer to the dictionary of ESD Terms.

Static Memory. A type of memory that requires a refresh cycle so the it retains its contents. Reference SRAM Vendors [Static RAM].

Stator. The stationary part of a rotating electrical machine. The stator may be either the field or the armature, depending on the design of the machine. The stationary member of a synchro that consists of a cylindrical structure of slotted laminations on which three Y-connected coils are wound with their axes 120 degrees apart. Depending on the type of synchro, the stators functions are similar to the primary or secondary windings of a transformer. The stator is one of the main parts of the electric motor. The stator, of an electric motor, is made up of thin laminated sections of soft iron or steel that is pressed together and form the core of an electromagnet. Insulated copper wire is then wrapped around the core to form windings.

Statute Mile 5,280 feet.

 
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