A deep dive into the real-world behavior of diodes and bipolar transistors, starting with the Shockley diode equation and its ideality factor. Covers small-signal analysis and linearization around operating points, showing how incremental resistance and transconductance are derived. Explains temperature coefficients (tempco) for various components including transistors, resistors, voltage references, and quartz crystals. Uses the LM741 op-amp output stage as a case study to explain crossover distortion and how thermal runaway occurs when a fixed base-emitter voltage causes a positive feedback loop of increasing current and heat. Also covers thermal runaway in parallel BJTs (current hogging), MOSFETs with positive on-resistance tempco, and magnetic saturation in inductors.
