Digital Circuit Tutorial and Overview

Digital Circuit Tutorial and Overview.

In this Basic Digital Circuit Tutorial I will try to give an Overview on What is Digital Circuit, Application and How it Works. I hope you will find this tutorial helpful and learning.

A Simple Digital Circuit

Definition of Digital Circuit

A digital circuit is a type of electronic circuit where the signal is either of the two discrete levels – ON / OFF or 0 / 1 or True / False. Transistors are used to create logic gates perform Boolean logic.

Software like Electronic Design Automation (EDA / ECDA) are used to design digital circuits. Both Paid and Free EDA Software are available online for Download.

To define, we can say that “A digital circuit is a network of electronic components that manipulate digital signals as per given set of rules or instructions“.

It generally comprises logic gates, flip-flops, and other elements to process binary information (0 and 1). Digital circuits are fundamental to all modern and complex electronics ranging from advanced smartphones to latest computers and automation.

What Components are used in Digital Electronic Circuits?

Both Active and Passive Electronic Components are used in Digital electronic circuits to perform specific functions. Common are:

  • Logic Gates: These are the fundamental building blocks of digital circuits. They perform logical operations such as AND, OR, and NOT. Some Common and widely used Logic Gates are – AND gates, OR gates, and XOR gates.
  • Integrated Circuits: ICs consist of tons of interconnected semiconductor devices such as transistors. They perform wide range of tasks from simple amplification to complex processing.
  • Transistors: These act as switches or amplifiers in digital circuits.
  • Memory Devices: RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read-Only Memory), essentially used to store are retrieve data.
  • Diodes: Diodes allow current to flow in one direction only, used for rectification and signal processing in digital circuits.
  • Resistors: Are used to limit current, divide voltage, and set biasing conditions in digital circuits.
  • Capacitors: They store and release electrical energy, helping in filtering, timing, and coupling signals.
  • Inductors: Inductors store energy in a magnetic field and are used in applications such as filtering and energy storage.
  • Switches: To control the flow of current in a circuit.
  • Registers: Registers store data temporarily within a digital circuit aiding data manipulation and storage.
  • Clocks: They generate timing signals synchronized with the operation of digital circuits, ensuring proper sequencing and coordination of operations.
  • Multiplexers and Demultiplexers: These components are used to route and distribute data and control signals within digital circuits efficiently.

How Digital Circuit Works?

In digital electronic circuits, electric signals take on discrete values, which are not dependent upon time, to represent logical and numeric values. These values represent the information that is being processed.

The transistor is one of the primary electronic components used in discrete circuits, and combinations of these can be used to create logic gates. These logic gates may then be used in combination to create a desired output from an input.

Larger circuits may contain several complex components, such as FPGAs (Field-programmable gate array) or Microprocessors. These along with several other components may be interconnected to create a large circuit that operates on large amount of data.

Difference Between Analog and Digital Signal

Types of Digital Circuit

For ease of designing and understanding, Digital Circuits are divided into following 2 Types:

1. Combinational Circuits

A Circuit that gives the same output when given the same inputs. It is represents a set of logic functions.

Examples: Multiplexers, De-multiplexers, Encoders, Decoders, Full and Half Adders etc.

2. Sequential Circuits

A sequential circuit is a combinational circuit with some of the outputs fed back as inputs. These circuits perform a sequence of operations.

Examples: Shift Registers, Counter, Flip-Flop

PS: Both Combinational Circuits and Sequential Circuits can further be classified into smaller types. But for ease of understanding I am not mentioning them here or things will get confusing.

Examples of Electronic Equipment using Digital Circuit

  • Wristwatches
  • Calculators
  • PDAs (Personal Digital Assistant)
  • Microprocessors.

Also Check: Basic Analog Circuit Tutorial and Overview

Conclusion:

I hope you found this Basic Digital Circuit Tutorial for Beginners Useful. Please share with others. I welcome all questions via Comment Section Below.

FAQs: Digital Circuit

Digital circuits work by using logic gates, which are fundamental building blocks that perform logical operations. These gates process input signals and produce output signals based on predefined logic rules. Complex circuits are created by connecting these gates in various configurations.

Flip-flops are bistable multivibrator circuits used to store a single binary bit of memory. They are the basis for sequential logic, storing information until it's changed by an external signal. Common types include D-type, JK, and T flip-flops, crucial for building memory elements in processors and registers.

A decoder is a combinational circuit that takes a binary input and activates one of several output lines, typically in response to a specific pattern in the input. It's often used to convert binary information into a more human-readable or usable format, like driving a display or selecting a specific device in memory.

Digital circuits process discrete signals (binary) that represent data as 0s and 1s, while analog circuits deal with continuous signals representing a range of values.

Digital circuits are less susceptible to noise, easier to manipulate, and offer greater precision, making them suitable for computation and communication tasks, whereas analog circuits are used for tasks like amplification and signal processing.

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Santosh Das

Santosh, founder of this Electronics Tutorial Website, is an Electronics Geek, Blogger and Young Entrepreneur. He possesses vast experience in the field of electronics, electronic components, PCB, Soldering, SMT, Telecommunication, ESD Safety, and PCB Assembly Tools, Equipment and Consumables. Keep visiting for daily dose of Tips and Tutorials.

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9 Responses

  1. Samuel says:

    Nice article

  2. francis says:

    this is an important site to visit for research

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