Velleman DCA75 - Manual (Page 9)

Atlas DCA Pro User Guide December 2012 – Rev 1
Page 9
Zener diode
Red-K Blue-A
VR=5.094V at 5.00mA
Red-K Blue-A
VR=5.094V at 5.00mA
VF=0.702V at 5.00mA
Zener Diodes
The DCA Pro supports Zener diodes (and Avalanche
diodes). Additionally, the instrument can measure the Zener
voltage*.
Connect any pair of the 3 test leads to the Zener diode.
Following analysis, the component
details are displayed.
In this example, a Zener diode with a
reverse voltage (Zener voltage) of
nearly 5.1V has been detected.
Additionally, the forward biased
voltage characteristic is measured, 0.702V at 5mA for this example.
The DCA Pro attempts to test the Zener diode with a current of nominally
5mA. For Zener diodes with a Zener voltage of more than about 9V, a lower
test current will be used. This is illustrated in the following graph:
0
1
2
3
4
5
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Zener Voltage (Volts)
T
e
s
t
C
u
rr
e
n
t
(m
A
)
*The DCA Pro may not be able to identify Zener diodes with a Zener voltage
of more than 11V. It will however still identify the diode junction in its
forward biased mode.