ASVAB Electronics Study Guide | Ace the Electronics Subtest

Humanity cannot live without the use of electricity. From lightbulbs to ovens to television to computers, electricity is practically everywhere. Today, even cars utilize electricity for ignition. This section of the ASVAB electronics checks your electronics knowledge and evaluates what you may or may not already know.

Standard Electrical Theory

You don’t have to dive into the complicated or advanced atomized structure of the electrical theory. Instead, basic electrical knowledge would be more than enough to get you through this section. Electrical theory dictates that all material on the face of the planet is composed of atoms.

But things get interesting because the subatomic particles of each atom contain an electric polarity. The electron charge represents negative polarity, whereas the proton charge represents a positive polarity. In essence, you will have to manage the positive and negative electrical polarities.

• Charge

When you turn on a lightbulb switch, it creates a static charge that builds current. You produce that through electricity.

• Current

The current has positive and negative terminals on an average battery. Usually, you can see the (+) and (–) sign is under or over the batteries.

• Resistance

The opposite of current refers to resistance. A copper wire, for instance, has minimal resistance, which ensures the productivity of the conductor. Insulators, on the other hand, have considerable resistance.

• AC and DC

One of the best examples of a voltage source is a battery. It has two adjoined charge polarities for the flow of current from one terminal end to the second terminal end. However, an alternative direct voltage source can reverse the effect on charge polarities. As a result, there will be fluctuated changes in the flow of the current.

• Insulators and Semiconductors

Electrons cannot move with freedom in an insulator material such as rubber, wood, glass, or porcelain. Conversely, a semiconductor material can relatively produce less as compared to, say, a metal conductor. However, it is more potent than an insulator. Silicon, for instance, is arguably the best semiconductor.

Electronic Testing and Manufacturing

A modern workshop contains electronic tools to take care of electrical equipment. It includes screwdrivers, wire cutters, wrenches, and pliers. For instance, a wire stripper is an effective electrical tool to eliminate the insulation from a particular wire and adjoin the circuit wires.

For ASVAB electronics testing, however, you will need more specialized electrical test equipment. For instance, you will need instruments such as an ammeter, ohmmeter, and voltmeter to measure current, resistance, and voltage

In addition, you should be aware of how the solder metal alloy works. Similarly, the use of printed circuit boards (PCBs) is relatively standard because of their thin size. You can adjoin numerous circuit paths and replace discrete wires effectively.

Miscellaneous Electrical Elements

It includes switchboards and fuses that come in handy in most electrical tasks. Fuse is usually a small wire that burns and then stops the conduction of electricity. Switches, however, start or stop the flow of the current.