Uploaded December 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

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In this video which is part of my Electronics Notebook series, I highlight the fact that voltage reference diodes / Zener diodes can have one of two different types of breakdown.

This breakdown has an impact on some aspects of their performance - in particular their temperature coefficient.

Below about 5 or 5.5 volts Zener breakdown dominates, but above this the impact ionisation progressively dominates.

This can be useful because their temperature coefficients act in opposite directions. This means that around 5 to 5.5 volts the temperature coefficient is minimised and you get the most stable voltage.

More information can be found at: electronics-notes.com/articles/electronic_components/diode/zener-diode.php

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