Contents
Why would a resistor get hot?
Overheating of Resistor When a resistor is placed under a voltage that approaches the upper limits of its power rating, the resistor generates more heat than normal. This is due to the voltage attempting to force more current (electrons) through the resistor than it is designed to pass.
What causes a transistor to get hot?
The transistor will only heat up if being over driven.. Either something is drawing too much current, you are demanding too much power, or it is being over clocked.. Normally it should only be warm, not a burning to touch feeling if you touch the transistor..
Do load resistors get hot?
These resistors get very hot when under constant load but for a turn signal, it won’t get as hot – still, securing to a metal surface is critical.
Why does my transistor get very hot without a resistor?
Without a resistor limiting the current, the transistor will get very hot. Here is a schematic of two circuits; one LED driven by an NPN transistor, one by a PNP transistor. The 470 Ohm resistors limit the base current to around 10mA.
Can a PNP transistor be used without a resistor?
Without a resistor limiting the current, the transistor will get very hot. Here is a schematic of two circuits; one LED driven by an NPN transistor, one by a PNP transistor. The 470 Ohm resistors limit the base current to around 10mA. Note that with the switch positions as they are now, the LEDs would be illuminated.
What causes a transistor to get more current?
If you try to share current from one resistor, one transistor will get more of the current, causing it to warm up, which drops the Vbe even more, which causes it to get even more current. To comment on a couple of things… 1. When the transistor is fully saturated (used as a switch) you use the Vce (sat) spec from the datasheet.
How does a resistor have to dissipate power?
Without more specifics, that’s about as good an answer as you can hope for. Every resistor has to dissipate power given by the formula IxIxR or VxV/R regardless of the power rating of the resistor. That power has to be taken up by the surroundings via conduction, convection and/or radiation.