TRIAC and DIAC

Presented by
K.Pandiaraj
Assistant Professor
ECE Department
Kalasalingam University
Structure and Symbol of TRIAC
• Introduction
• Triac is a three terminal AC switch which
is different from the other silicon
controlled rectifiers in the sense that it
can conduct in both the directions that is
whether the applied gate signal is
positive or negative, it will conduct.
• Thus, this device can be used for AC
systems as a switch.
• This is a three terminal, four layer, bi-
directional semiconductor device that
Construction controls AC power.
Two SCRs are connected in inverse parallel with gate terminal as • The triac of maximum rating of 16 kw is
common. Gate terminals is connected to both the N and P regions due available in the market.
to which gate signal may be applied which is irrespective of the polarity
of the signal. Here, we do not have anode and cathode since it works for
both the polarities which means that device is bilateral. It consists of
three terminals namely, main terminal 1(MT1), main terminal 2(MT2),
and gate terminal G.
Operation of TRIAC
• The triac can be turned on by applying the gate voltage higher than break over voltage. However,
without making the voltage high, it can be turned on by applying the gate pulse of 35 micro
seconds to turn it on. When the voltage applied is less than the break over voltage, we use gate
triggering method to turn it on. There are four different modes of operations, they are-
• When MT2 and Gate being Positive with Respect to MT1
• When this happens, current flows through the path P1-N1-P2-N2. Here, P1-N1 and P2-N2 are forward
biased but N1-P2 is reverse biased. The triac is said to be operated in positively biased region. Positive
gate with respect to MT1 forward biases P2-N2 and breakdown occurs.
• When MT2 is Positive but Gate is Negative with Respect to MT1
• The current flows through the path P1-N1-P2-N2. But P2-N3 is forward biased and current carriers
injected into P2 on the triac.
• When MT2 and Gate are Negative with Respect to MT1
• Current flows through the path P2-N1-P1-N4. Two junctions P2-N1 and P1-N4 are forward biased but the
junction N1-P1 is reverse biased. The triac is said to be in the negatively biased region.
• When MT2 is Negative but Gate is Positive with Respect to MT1
• P2-N2 is forward biased at that condition. Current carriers are injected so the triac turns on. This mode
of operation has a disadvantage that it should not be used for high (di/dt) circuits. Sensitivity of
triggering in mode 2 and 3 is high and if marginal triggering capability is required, negative gate pulses
should be used. Triggering in mode 1 is more sensitive than mode 2 and mode 3.
Characteristics of a TRIAC
The triac characteristics is similar to SCR but it is
applicable to both positive and negative triac
voltages. The operation can be summarized as
follows-
First Quadrant Operation of Triac
Voltage at terminal MT2 is positive with respect
to terminal MT1 and gate voltage is also positive
with respect to first terminal.
Second Quadrant Operation of Triac
Voltage at terminal 2 is positive with respect to
terminal 1 and gate voltage is negative with
respect to terminal 1.
Third Quadrant Operation of Triac
Voltage of terminal 1 is positive with respect to
terminal 2 and the gate voltage is negative.
Fourth Quadrant Operation of Triac
Voltage of terminal 2 is negative with respect to
terminal 1 and gate voltage is positive.
Advantages and Disadvantages of TRIAC
• Advantages of Triac
• It can be triggered with positive or negative polarity of gate pulses.
• It requires only a single heat sink of slightly larger size, whereas for SCR, two heat sinks should be
required of smaller size.
• It requires single fuse for protection.
• A safe breakdown in either direction is possible but for SCR protection should be given with
parallel diode.
• Disadvantages of Triac
• They are not much reliable compared to SCR.
• It has (dv/dt) rating lower than SCR.
• Lower ratings are available compared to SCR.
• We need to be careful about the triggering circuit as it can be triggered in either direction.
• Uses of Triac
• They are used in control circuits.
• It is used in High power lamp switching.
• It is used in AC power control.
DIAC
Introduction of DIAC

Introduction
• Diac is a device which has two electrodes. It is a
member of the thyristor family.
• It is mainly used in triggering of thyristor.
• The advantage of using this device is that it can be
turned on or off simply by reducing the voltage level
below its avalanche breakdown voltage.
• Also, it can be either turned on or off for both the
polarity of voltages.
• This device works when avalanche breakdown occurs.
Construction of DIAC

It is a device which consists of four layers and two terminals. The construction is
almost same as that of the transistor. But there are certain points which deviate
from the construction from the transistor. The differentiating points are-

• There is no base terminal in the diac.

• The three regions have almost the same level of doping.
• It gives symmetrical switching characteristics for either polarity of voltages.
Operation of DIAC
• From the figure, we see that it has two p-type material and
three n-type materials. Also it does not have any gate
terminal in it.
• The diac can be turned on for both the polarity of voltages.
When A2 is more positive with respect to A1 then the current
does not flows through the corresponding N-layer but flows
from P2-N2-P1-N1.
• When A1 is more positive A2 then the current flows through
P1-N2-P2-N3.
• The construction resembles the diode connected in series.
When applied voltage is small in either polarity, a very small
current flows which is known as leakage current because of
drift of electrons and holes in the depletion region.
• Although a small current flows, but it is not sufficient enough
to produce avalanche breakdown so the device remains in
the non conducting state.
• When the applied voltage in either polarity exceeds the
breakdown voltage, diac current rises and the device
conducts in accordance with its V-I characteristics.
Applications of DIAC
• It can be used mainly in the triac triggering circuit. The diac is connected in the gate terminal of
the triac. When the voltage across the gate decreases below a predetermined value, the gate
voltage will be zero and hence the triac will be turned off. The main applications are- It can be
used in the lamp dimmer circuit.
• It is used in the heat control circuit.
• It is used in the speed control of a universal motor.
• It is used with triac in series combination for triggering. The gate of triac is connected with a
terminal of the diac. When applied voltage across diac increases above the avalanche breakdown,
then only it can conduct. However, when the voltage across diac decreases below its avalanche
breakdown voltage it will be turned off and hence the triac will also remain in the off state.