What are Resistors and What are their Types?

High Voltage Resistors

A resistor is determining the flow of current in an electrical circuit. Whenever there is a high circuit resistance, there is a small current flow. When there is a low resistance, there is a large current flow. The voltage, current and resistance were connected to electrical circuits. This takes place through the Ohm’s Law.

The resistors are used for regulation of current and these resist the current flow with the extent of performing with the use of ohms measurement. It can also be found in most electronic circuits available and it is also very small to obtain numbers printed on it.

Surface Mount Resistors

There are several resistor types used in an electronic circuit. Each one has different property which is usually dependent upon its construction as well as manufacturer. For this reason, they got various resistors that have been designed for a certain application. For the past years, resistor types have been utilized in the mass production of electronics but these are now undergoing changes. 

Fixed and Variable Resistors 

They have been the main categories of resistors. They fit into two different types of fixed and variable resistors. Fixed resistors are one of them and this has been regarded as a common kind of resistors. These have been utilized in an electronic circuit for setting the proper conditions in the circuits. The values of a fixed resistor can be determine on the design phase of the circuit. However, they must never be transformed for circuit adjustment.

The variable resistors have been the resistor types that re composed of slides and elements of fixed resistors where the main resistor elements tap into. They are providing 3 connections to a component in which two of them are integrated to a fixed element and one distinguishes the slider.

Wirewound Resistors

The other resistor type category has been the fixed resistor type which has numerous types available. Carbon composition is one and this is actually a very well known type. But the truth is that this has been seldom used. Carbon film is another type. This is usually formed as the hydrocarbon on a ceramic former is cracked. There is also a metal oxide/metal film which is now widely used resistor form as the metal film is being deposited into the ceramic rod.

The other type of resistor is the wire wound and thin film which has specific uses. The last resistor category is leaded and non leaded resistors which have surface mount and leaded resistors.

The Basics of Shunt Resistors

Shunt Resistors

Shunt resistors are usually associated a parallel position along with an instrument or the component. This is done to divert an electrical current. These types of resistors provide alternative current paths in case there have been problems or failure and these are used for complete reduction of input sensitivity from the input lines through the ground.Current shunt resistors were generally low in resistance and passive electronic devices used to measure AC (alternating current) and DC (direct current) going through the voltage drop in which currents created throughout resistance. 

The electrical specifications of the shunt resistors involve resistance tolerance, power rating, resistance power coefficient, resistance temperature coefficient, ohms, and current rating. Ohms measure the material opposition into an electric flow of circuit while temperature coefficient of resistance (or TCR) refers to the change in resistance along with change in temperature. 

Current Sense Resistors

PCR or the power coefficient of resistance is referring to a temperature. This temperature rises because of self-heating. For the current-sensing shunts, the resistance usually ranges from 100 µO up to 500 mO. A shunt resistor can be applied in current conversion. This is the aspect in which high precision has been required. 

The physical specifications for the shunt resistors involve resistor materials and lead type. A shunt resistor can be surface mounted, chassis mounted, through-hole mounted, and bolted. THT or the through-hole technology and SMT or the surface mount technology are both other popular and common mounting styles. The other kinds of lead are screw terminals, J-leads, and tab terminals. There are also gull-wing leads, radial leads, and axial leads available. 

Shunt resistors without leads are also available and they can be wire wound, metal film, metal oxide, carbon film, ceramic, metal alloy, thin film, and thick film. The carbon shunt resistor has been comprised of high temperature, resistive, solid and ceramic materials that have been bonded by the metal contacts. 

Wirewound Resistors

Metal allow shunt resistors have 2 or more elements while a wirewound shunt resistor has thin wire winding in a ceramic rod. Each shunt resistor becomes unique in the area of packing because of passive electronic components that were packed in tape reel assemblies. This includes carrier tape which had embossed cavities for individual component storage. Others have been packed in trays (or trails) and they had been made up of carbon-power and fiber materials as they molded in rectangular outlines containing uniformly spaced matrices of pockets. Some of them have been packed in a tray (trail) and were comprised of both fiber and carbon-power materials. At the same time, these are molded in a rectangular form that has numerous pockets which were uniformly spaced.