Electronic Definitions (P)

[P] Presenting a list of electronic terms starting with letter p that are available for more detailed lookup for their definitions or abbreviation explanation. All terms are listed in alphabetical order for easy browsing.

Electronic Acronyms and Terms for [P]	Description	Other Electronic Terms Somewhat Related;
P-Type Semiconductor	- A semiconductor where there are more holes than free electrons
PA	"Public Address"	pac, packet switching, packing, packing density, pad, paging, palette, pam, panda, panel, panelization, paper tape punch, paper tape reader, paraboloid, parallel processing, parallel running, parameter, parastic oscillations, parity bit, parity check, pars, parsing, partition, partitioned cluster, pascal, passport photos, password, patch, pause
PAC	"Programmable Analog Circuits"	packet switching, packing, packing density
Packet Switching	- Communication using a channel shared by multiple users, silent periods between a sender and receiver are filled with data from other user pairs	x25
Packing	- Is the compression of flies and folders in order to save storage space)	packing density
Packing Density	- Is a measure of the quantity of data that can be held per unit length of track on a storage medium.
PAD	"Packet Assembler / Disassembler Device"	graphics tablet, test pad, via pad
Paging	- Is a technique in which the main store is divided into segments called pages. Large user programs may cover several pages possibly too many to fit into the available store. Another definition of paging: (1) Allows alert signal to be transmitted from base to handset of a cordless telephone (but not speech) (2) Allows gcmral announcement to be made from any extension of a PABX (3) Onsite paging uses a radio transmitter so that holders of appropriate receivers can be alerted anywhere within range of the transmitter within a budding or small complex for instance (4) National paging relies on radio network so that holders of appropriate receivers can be alerted anywhere in the country
Palette	- Is the range of display colours available in a computer system
PAM	"Pulse Amplitude Modulation"
Panda	- Noise reduction system devised by Wegener (originally used for transmissions)
Panel	- A substrate with specific features furnished for direct assembly machine processing	panelization
Panelization	- Combining two or more substrates on a single panel for direct assembly machine processing
Paper Tape Punch	- Is an output device that punches data into paper tape
Paper Tape Reader	- Is an input device that reads punched paper tape
Paraboloid	- A parabola of revolution. Classical shape of antenna reflector.	offset fed antenna, prime focus, shaped reflector
Parallel Processing	- Is the simultaneous operation of a computer on a number of tasks. To achieve this several processors may be provided in the same computer.
Parallel Running	- Is a stage in the implementation of a new computer system during which the new and old (possibly manual) systems are run simultaneously to facilitate a trouble-free handover
Parameter	- Is the name or value made available to a subprogram (e.g. a subroutine or procedure) from a calling program or vice versa
Parastic Oscillations	- Oscillations of a very high frequency that cause all sorts of strange things to happen
Parity Bit	- Is a binary digit appended to binary data. The state of the bit is such as to ensure even or odd parity as appropriate.
Parity Check	- Is a test applied to binary data to check for even or odd parity as appropriate
PARS	"Private Advanced Radio Service"	parsing
Parsing	- Is the breaking down of high level programming language statements into their component parts during the translation process (e.g. identifying reserved words and variables)
Partition	- Separation of circuit functions or power and ground area	partitioned cluster
Partitioned Cluster	- Electrical functions separated to accommodate isolated testing of circuit parts
Pascal	- Is designed to encourage structured programming	pcode
Password	- Is a sequence of characters that must be presented to a computer system before it will allow a user access to the system or parts of that system
Patch	- Is a small fragment of code provided by a software supplier to enable a user to modify or correct his own copy of software without requiring a complete replacement
Pause	- Inserted in stored number dialing sequence to allow time for switching to take place especially between the outside line access code and the number required when diffusing through a PABX
PBGA	"Plastic Ball Grid Array"
PBX	"Private Branch eXchange" - Often used interchangeably with PABX	ddi, station protector
PC	"Personal Computer" - Is a microcomputer designed for individual use usually as a business machine rather than as a home computer	pcb, pcb layout, pcb manufacturers, PCBWeb, pci, pcm, pcmcia, pcn, pcode, pcs, pcx
PCB	"Printed Circuit Board"	pcb layout, pcb manufacturers, PCBWeb
PCB Layout	- mem 2 4/2.5
PCBWeb	- A free CAD application for designing and manufacturing electronics hardware
PCI	"Peripheral Component Interconnect"
PCM	"Pulse Code Modulalion"	pcmcia
PCMCIA	"Personal Computer Memory Card International Association"	axis
PCN	"Personal Communications Network"
Pcode	- Is used by some Pascal compilers
PCS	"Personal Communications Service"	computer security, dos, expansion card, floppy disk drive
PCX	"Pre-Connection Inspection"
PDA	"Personal Digital Assistant" - A small hand held terminal which recognise handwriting rather than demanding that the user can type
PDF	"Pulse Density Function"
PDH	"Plesiosynchronous Digital Hierarchy"
PDM	"Pulse Duration Modulation"
PDN	"Public Data Network"
PDU	"Protocol Data Unit"
PE	"Protective Earth"	peak detector, peak inverse voltage, peak value, pedestal, pel, Pergonicals, perigee, periodic, peripheral device, petabit
Peak Detector	- The same as a rectifier with a capacitor input filter. Ideally, the capacitor charges to the peak of the input voltage. This peak voltage is then used for the output voltage of the peak detector, which is why the circuit is called a peak detector.
Peak Inverse Voltage	- The maximum reverse voltage across a diode in a rectifier circuit
Peak Value	- The largest instantaneous value of a time varying voltage	initial slope of sine wave
Pedestal	- The box often used by the phone company as the junction box for a number of local telephones
PEL	"Picture ELement"
Pergonicals	- Is a form of generated electromagnetism during two particles moving rapidly
Perigee	- Lowest point (minimum altitude) of a geocentric orbit
Periodic	- An adjective that describes a waveform that repeats the same basic shape for cycle after cycle	AM
Peripheral Device	- Is the term used to describe an input output or backing storage device which can be connected to the central processing unit	buffering, channel, multi programming
Petabit	- 1,000 terabits/sec
pF	- A capacitance UOM equal to one trillionth of a farad	pfd, pfm
PFD	"Power Flux Density"	footpath
PFM	"Pulse Frequency Modulation"
PG	"Polyimide Glass"
Phase Current	- The current measured across any one winding from a three phase delta configuration
Phase Shift	- The difference in phase angle between phasor voltages at points A and B	bpsk, compensating capacitor, dopsk, dpsk, dqpsk, qdpsk, reference voltage, resonant frequency
Phase Splitter	- A circuit that produces two voltages of the same amplitude but opposite phase. It is useful for driving class B push-pull amplifiers.
Phase Voltage	- The voltage measured between any one conductor and the general mass of earth from a three phase star configuration
Phoneme	- Is a single sound unit in speech
Photodiode	- A reverse-biased diode that is sensitive to incoming light. The stronger the light, the larger the reverse minority-carrier current.
PID	"Personal Identification Device" - Is a device that is inserted into a terminal to establish the holder as an authorised user of the system. Sometimes used in conjunction with a PIN.
Piezoelectric Effect	- The effect of a voltage between opposite sides of a piezoelectric crystal as a result of pressure or twisting
PIN	"Personal Identification Number"	pin and socket connectors, pinchoff voltage, ping
Pin and Socket Connectors	- Pin interface to a mating socket for the electrical connection of assemblies or modules
Pinchoff Voltage	- The border between the ohmic region and the current-source region of a depletion-mode device when the gate voltage is zero
PING	"Packet Inter-Net Groper" - Ping is a utility used for network operating systems
PIO	"Programmable Input Output"
Pipelining	- Is the concurrent decoding of two or more machine instructions
Pixel	- Is a contraction of picture element. As used in graphics it is the smallest element of a display
PJ	"Petroleum Jelly"
PK	"Polyimide Kevlar"	pks
PKS	"Physically Knowledgeable Synthesis"
PL	"Physical Layer"	pl1, pla, PLC, plcc, pll, plotter, plug and chugger, pluge
PL1	"Programming language 1" - Is used for both scientific and business computing
PLA	"Programmable Logic Array"
PLC	"Programmable Logic Controller"	plcc
PLCC	"Plastic Leaded Chip Carrier"
PLL	"Phase Locked Loop"
Plotter	- Is an output device which draws lines on paper	digital plotter, electronic workbench, incremental plotter
Plug and Chugger	- Someone who always reaches for a calculator and a book of formulas. One who substitutes values into one formula after another, hoping to get the right answer. One who is seldom sure of the answer because he or she hasn't thought the problem through.
PLGUE	"Picture Line Up Generating Equipment"
PM	"Phase Modulation"	PMPO, pmr
PMPO	"Pick Music Power Output"
PMR	"Private Mobile Radio" "Personal Mobile Radio"
PNP Transistor	- A semiconductor sandwich. It contains an n region between two p regions
POCSAG	"Post Office Code Standardisation Advisory Group"
POF	"Plastic Optical Fibre"
Polar Mount	- Is a movable mount for satellite dishes that allows the dish to be pointed at many geostationary satellites by slewing around one axis
Polarisation	- The property by which an electromagnetic wave exhibits a direction (or rotation sense) of vibration giving the opportunity for frequency reuse by orthogonal polarisations	polarisation rotor/rotator
Polarisation Rotor/Rotator	- A device that permits selection of one of two orthogonal polarisation or of any polarisation angle. Not a polariser.
Polariser	- A birefringent component in waveguide or antenna system which converts between linear (plane) and circular polarisation. Not a polarisation rotor.	head unit, magnetic polariser, mechanical polariser, ratio, skew
Polarity	- The term used to describe positively and negatively charged particles or bodies eg. one terminal of a battery has a positive charge Another definition of Polarity: - The + and - of electrical current flow. When testing, the red probe of the VOM goes to the + and the black goes to the - or ground	altai tie clip microphone, batteries, Zero Crossing
Polarized Parts	- Devices that must be mounted in a predetermined direction or orientation
Polling	- Is the testing of a terminal in a multi-access system to establish whether it is holding data for transmission to the computer. In systems which accept data from remote data storage devices polling includes the process of collecting this data.
Polygraph	- Popularly referred to as a lie detector test, is a device or procedure that measures and records several physiological indicators such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while a person is asked and answers a series of questions.
Polyimide	- A stable resin film used for the base material of flexible substrate circuits	polyimide glass, polyimide quartz
Polyimide Glass	- Polyimide resin and glass fiber substrate material
Polyimide Quartz	- Polyirnide resin and quartz fiber substrate material
Polymer Coating	- Material used for solder masking on substrates
Poodle	- A small, fluffy, dog
Pop2	- Is used for list processing
Port	- Term referring to the system connection point for an exchange line or extension	portability
Portability	- Is the ease with which a piece of software can be run on a variety of machines or under the control of a variety of operating systems	intermediate code
POS Terminal	"Point Of Sale" Terminal - Is an input device used to record at the point of sate the details relating to the sale of goods for display to the customer and for subsequent transmission direct to the computer system for detailed stock control
Positive Clamper	- A circuit that produces a positive do shift of a signal by moving all the input signal upward until the negative peaks arc at zero and the positive peaks are at 2Vp
Positive Feedback	- Feedback where the returning signal aids or increases the effect of the input voltage	latch, multivibrator
Positive Limiter	- A circuit that clips off the positive parts of the input signal
POT	"Plain Old Telephone"	potentiometers, pots
Potentiometers	- Variable or adjustable resistor
POTS	"Plain Old Telephone System"
Power Bandwith	- The highest frequency that an op amp can handle without distorting the output signal. The power bandwidth is inversely proportional to the peak value
Power Dissipation	- The product of voltage and current in a resistor or other non-reactive device. Rate at which heat is produced within a device.	foldback current limiting, switching regulator
Power Fail Telephone	- A telephone which will automatically be connected to a PSTN line when a PABX becomes ino rated due a power failure
Power Gain	- The ratio of output power to input power
Power Transistor	- A transistor that can dissipate more than 0.5 W. Power transistors are physically larger than small-signal transistors.
PPL	"Phonographic Performance Ltd."
PPM	"Pulse Position Modulation"
PPRK	"Palm Pilot Robot Kit"
PPV	"Pay Per View" - A pay TV system that allows an individual viewer to purchase access to special events
PRA	"Primary Rate Access"
PRBS	"Pseudorandom Binary Sequence"
Pre Emphasis	- A method of improving SNR in a FM system by increasing deviation at high (relative to low) baseband frequencies according to a defined (I3G or CCIR) function.
Preblanked Units	- Die cut or machined substrates
Predicted Voltage Gain	- The voltage gain you calculate from the circuit values on a schematic diagram
Preformed Leads	- Leads prepared for direct assembly processing
PRF	"Pulse Repetition Frequency"
PRI	"Primary Rate Interface"	prime focus, print hammer, printer, printer quality, printout, privacy, private mobile radio
Prime Focus	- The focal point of a paraboloid reflector (or part of a paraboloid). A feed system placed at that point.
Print Hammer	- Is the component causing the contact between the character ribbon and paper in an impact printer
Printer	- Is an output device producing characters or graphic symbols on paper. There are many methods of printing and of organising the operation of a printer and the following terms may be applied to any specific printer as appropriate.	printer quality
Printer Quality	- Is the standard of word processing output
Printout	- Is printed output from the computer
Privacy	- Is the recognition of the private nature of certain data. In consideration of privacy safeguards are usually built into systems which hold confidential data to prevent unauthorised access.	passport photos, surveillance
Private Mobile Radio	- Means of communication used by most mini cab firms and some other businesses
Process	- A step-by-step routine followed to solve a problem. It is like a map that gets you from the given data to the final solution	process friendly
Process Friendly	- Compatible materials in the assembly processing of surface-mounted devices to a circuit substrate
Profiling	- Temperature adjustment for the re-flow processing of solder paste for electrical and mechanical interconnection of SMT devices to the substrate	punch press
Program	- Is a complete set of program statements structured in such a way as to specify an algorithm	program counter, program execution, program generator, program relocation, program statement, programmer, programming code, programming languages
Program Counter	- Is the register that contains the address of the next machine code instruction to the expected. Also referred to as Instruction Address Register (IAR).
Program Execution	- Is the carrying out of instructions specified by a computer program	execution error
Program Generator	- Is a program that assists users to write their own programs by expanding simple statements into program code
Program Relocation	- Is the moving of a program stored in one area of main store (by the OS) to another area of main store
Program Statement	- Is usually a source language instruction which generates several machine code instructions when translated
Programmer	- Is the person responsible for writing computer programs	applications programmer, c, reserved word, SDK, source program, sprite, systems programmer
Programming Code	- A set of commands created in the process if writing of a computer program i.e. source code	reverse engineered code
Programming Languages	- These are artificial languages constructed in such away that people and programmable machines can communicate with each other in a precise and intelligible way
PROLOG	"PROgramming in LOGic" - Is a programming language based on mathematical logic with applications in information retrieval
PROM	"Programmable Read Only Memory"
Propagation Delay	- The specified amount of time for a signal to pass through a previously closed signal path. The delay must be considered, for example, when the signal is used to synchronize other signals, or is being used in a Clock / Data configuration. This is due to both the electrical length of the signal path, and any active components in the signal path.
Proportional Pinch Of Voltage	- The border between the ohmic region and the current-source region for any gate voltage
Proportional Pinch Off Voltage	- The border between the ohmic region and the current-source region for any gate voltage
Prototype	- A basic circuit that a designer can modify to get more advanced circuits Another definition of Prototype: - Limited quantity assembly processing of a product	micro microphones
PRP Logic	- Surround sound type effect developed by Dolby Laboratories to simulate cinema/ theatre sound in the home; usually five speakers.
PRS	"Performing Right Society"
PSD	"Power Spectral Density"	psdn
PSDN	"Packet Switched Data Network"
PSM	"Phase Shift Masking"
PSN	"Public Switched Network"
PSSS	"Packet Switched System/Service"
PSTN	"Public Switched Telephone Network" "Packet Switched Telephone Network"	call waiting, power fail telephone, ren
Pseudorandom Number Generator	- Is a piece of software that generates sequences of `pseudorandom` numbers that obey all the above rules but can be repeated by starting the sequence at the same point
PT	"Packet Terminal"	pth, ptm, pto, ptt
PTH	- Pin through hole lead device or component
PTM	"Pulse Time Modulation"
PTO	"Public Telecommunications Operator" - A company offering telephone/data services
PTT	"Posts Telegraphs and Telecommunications" "Push To Talk"
PU	"Polyurethane"	pulldown menu, pullup resistor, pulse dialing, pulse dialling, punch and retain, punch press, punched paper tape, push pull connection
Pulldown Menu	- Is one available to the user at any time which when requested appears on the screen typically obscuring part of the work in hand
Pullup Resistor	- A resistor that the user has to add to an IC device to make it work properly. One end of the pullup resistor is connected to the device, and the other end is connected to the positive supply voltage.
Pulse Dialing	- The method of dialing by which electrical pulses tons and offs) are "counted" by the phone company`s switching computer
pulse Dialling	- A system now obsolescent of signaling to the exchange the required number by transmitting a sequence of pulses. Also known as loop disconnect (LD) dialling.	tone switching
Punch and Retain	- Individual substrate units die punched from and returned to a panel for assembly processing
Punch Press	- Machine for punch press processing or profiling of materials
Punched Paper Tape	- Is a continuous strip of paper used to represent data by the patterns of the holes punched in a recognised code in the strip of paper
Push Pull Connection	- Use of two transistors in a connection that makes one of them conduct for half a cycle while the other is turned off. In this way, one of the transistors amplifies the first half-cycle, and the other amplifies the second hall-cycle.
PWM	"Pulse Width Modulation"