RECOMMENDED REFERENCE AND TEXT BOOKS FOR ELECTRONICS

I'm sometimes asked about the books I recommend and use. Here are my principal selections and my reasons in choosing them:

The ARRL Handbook for Radio Amateurs

- ARRL

This is the 78th edition of "THE standard reference book for radio amateurs, electronics technicians and professional engineers". It is not called the "electronics bible" for nothing. I have several editions as far back as 1943.

The mammoth 1200 pages translate theory into practice through the large variety of hands-on-projects packed into THE ARRL HANDBOOK. From Antennas to Zener diodes, Transceivers to Switching Power Supplies, HF and VHF Propagation to Power Amplifiers—it’s covered in this edition. Among the newest material is a chapter on digital signal processing, a remote-controlled automatic antenna switch and computer hardware.

Turn on the Lights - From Bed! : Electronic Inventions, Contraptions, and Gadgets Kids Can Build

- by Robert Carrow, Rick Brown (Illustrator) - Paperback - 111 pages (December 9, 1996).

From the Back Cover

Amazing, useful and educational gadgets kids can build! With the help of this book, children can have fun impressing family and friends with all kinds of cool electronic gadgets and contraptions. all the while, they'll be learning about electricity and radio waves. In addition to making these irresistible projects, children are encouraged to create their own inventions.

Ideal for middle school children, these useful and whimsical contraptions can be made with inexpensive, easy-to-find materials such as recycled toy parts and motors, flashlight batteries, and other everyday household items.

Simple-to-build gadgets and contraptions include: Remote-controlled fan; Mousetrap alarm; Canned laughter; "Someone's outside my door" light; Wireless magic tricks. Each thought-provoking activity comes with complete, clear instructions, but that's not all. Plenty of suggestions are included for varying and changing each project to help children brainstorm their own cool inventions.

Engineering Formulas

- by Kurt Gieck, Reiner Gieck - Hardcover - 572 pages 7th edition (August 28, 1997).

Book Description

A comprehensive revision of the famed pocket guide giving engineers, scientists and other specialists a wide range of technical and mathematical formulas in a handy format. Now including a new section on control engineering, this edition is updated throughout and includes 50 additional pages.

This perennial best-seller puts engineering formulas most used on the job at the user's fingertips.

Thoroughly practical and authoritative, it brings together in one source thousands of formulas and hundreds of diagrams to simplify all engineering and technical calculations.

Comprehensive section cover: Units, Areas, Solid Bodies, Arithmetic, Functions of a Circle, Analytical Geometry, Statistics, Differential Calculus, Integral Calculus, Differential Equations, Statics, Kinematics, Dynamics, Hydraulics, Heat, Strength, Machine Parts, Production Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Control Engineering, Radiation Physics, Chemistry, Tables.

High Speed Digital Design: A Handbook of Black Magic

- by Howard W., Ph.D. Johnson, Martin, Ph.D. Graham - 384 pages.

Book Description

Focused on the field of knowledge lying between digital and analog circuit theory, this new text will help engineers working with digital systems shorten their latest design problems. The scope of the material covered includes signal reflection, crosstalk, and noise problems which occur in high speed digital machines (above 10 megahertz). This volume will be of practical use to digital logic designers, staff and senior communitions scientist, and all those interested in digital design.

REVIEW: Very good balance of theory and practice, nice examples from the real world, must-read for anybody designing high speed digital logic and having PCB board design in mind.

Newnes Electronics Engineer's Pocket Book

- by Joe Carr, Keith Brindley, Joseph J. Carr - 344 pages.

Book Description

* Core title in Pocket Book series. * Updated by leading US electronics author, Joe Carr. * Covers European and US practice.

Newnes Electronics Engineer's Pocket Book is a unique reference source concise but comprehensive, and designed to be an essential tool for a wide range of engineers and electronics enthusiasts.

This is a book written to be used, not to gather dust on a shelf, so unlike most reference books it is designed for the workshop and lab. This compendium includes: component data, IC pin-outs, tables, formulae, principles of circuit design, circuit diagrams and a substantial glossary of terms.

[Ian Purdie VK2TIP says:]
"There is no way I would be without my copy of this fine reference, you will wear it out with constant use..... Absolutely brilliant for students preparing for exams."

The second edition includes expanded material on circuit design covering amplifiers, bridge circuits, filters and lasers. The editor of the second edition is Joe Carr, a leading US electronics author who has published numerous books and magazine articles, including several titles with Newnes.

Electronic Circuits and Secrets of an Old-Fashioned Spy

- by Sheldon Charrett

Book Review

In this information-run-amok age of pencil-necked pencil pushers, who can an aggrieved party call on for an old-fashioned spy job? Why, an old-fashioned spy, of course! Let Sheldon Charrett, the last of the old-fashioned spies and author of Modern Identity Changer, show you how to build bugs or take advantage of those already in place (be they cordless phones, baby monitors or cell phones); assemble a DTMF decoder with LCD readout or decode the phone tones without one; construct a red box for free pay phone calls; map a cellular coverage area; modify a Mr. Microphone to broadcast outside the commercial FM band; crack answering machine passwords in seconds; make a crystal-controlled FM phone tap for those annoying subjects who refuse to use cordless phones; defeat digital and spread-spectrum cordless phones with an FM phone tap and much more!

Many of these procedures in this entertaining, fact-filled book have not been published anywhere, and the photos and drawings make following them a snap.

This is the book old-fashioned spies everywhere have been clamoring for. For academic study only.

Tesla : Man Out of Time

- Margaret Cheney

Synopsis
Portrays the trailblazing nineteenth-century inventor, the man who introduced the fundamentals of robotry and computer and missile science and who harnessed the alternating electrical current used today. Reprint. - This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title

Teach Yourself Electricity and Electronics

- Stan Gibilisco - Paperback 660 pages.

I've not read this one but several people have purchased it through the general link to Amazon. I consider that in itself a considerable recommendation.

Editorial Reviews - Book News, Inc.

Presented as a self-instructional guide for professionals, hobbyists, and technicians desiring to competently enter the world of circuits (ac and dc), measuring devices, resistors, cells and batteries, semiconductors, computers, and the Internet. The author adopts an informal and visually-oriented style, estimating that a daily hour investment for eight months and taking the chapter-end multiple choice tests, in combination with no higher than junior high school level math and physical science, will earn self-didacts basic mastery in this area.

Book Description

In the field of introductory electronics, Stan Gibilisco wrote the book. Now this gifted teacher / author has updated his best-selling guide to reach audiences interested in the latest electronic technologies: wireless communications plus computers and the Internet. Like its predecessor, the Second Edition is a complete self-teaching tool. Because it assumes no prior technical knowledge, true novices can use it at their own pace to master the fundamentals of electronics for work or hobbies....

RF Circuit Design

- Chris Bowick

I have never read a better book on RF design. Chris's book is a constant reference for the serious RF designer. You will be amazed at the quality and the quantity of the content. - 176 pages

ONE OF A NUMBER OF UNSOLICITED TESTIMONIALS

Hi Ian,

Just a quick note to say thanks for the book-shop department. I took your advice and bought the book by Chris Bowick. It's great. The material is very well presented and it is just right for about every level from beginner to engineer. Good choice!

Regards,

Larry L. Beavers CPBE W1GTA, Assistant Chief Engineer, WBZ Newsradio 1030

My edition of this book has chapters on:

Components
Wire - resistors - Capacitors - Inductors - Toroids - Toroidal Inductor Design - Practical Winding Hints.

Resonant Circuits
Some definitions - Resonance (lossless components) - Loaded Q - Insertion Loss - Impedance Transformation - Coupling of resonant Circuits.

Filter Design
Background - Modern Filter Design - Normalization and the Low-Pass prototype - Filter Types - Frequency and Impedance Scaling - High Pass Filter Design - The Dual Network - Bandpass Filter Design - Summary of the Bandpass Filter Design Procedure - Band Rejection Filter Design - The Effects of Finite Q.

Impedance Matching
Background - The L Network - Dealing with Complex Loads - Three-Element Matching - Low Q or Wideband Matching Networks - The Smith Chart - Impedance Matching on the Smith Chart - Summary.

Transistors at Radio Frequencies - RF
The Transistor Equivalent Circuit - Y Parameters - S Parameters - Understanding RF Transistor Data Sheets - Summary

Small Signal RF Amplifier Design
Transistor Biasing - Design Using Y Parameters - Design Using S Parameters

RF Power Amplifiers
RF Power Transistor Characteristics - Transistor Biasing - Power Amplifier Design - Matching to Coaxial Feedlines - Automatic Shutdown Circuitry - Broadband Transformers - Practical Winding Hints - Summary

Appendices on Vector Algebra and Noise Calculations ( Types of Noise - Noise Figure - Receiver Systems Calculations ).

Troubleshooting Analog Circuits (The Edn Series for Design Engineers)

- Robert A. Pease

If you are an analog or digital engineer/technician, experienced or neophyte, you'll find the legendary Bob Pease's approach to problem identification and isolation to be applicable to a wide spectrum of engineering disciplines. Based on Pease's immensely popular series in EDN MAGAZINE, he provides clear explanations and proven techniques.

Proven methods for troubleshooting analog circuits * Disk with approximately 60 pre-built Electronics Workbench circuits.
* Electronics Workbench software required. * Part of the EDN Series for Design Engineers. - 224 pages

Most Secret War

- Dr. R. V. Jones

O.K. why is Ian recommending a non-reference book?. Because this is simply the most fascinating book I have ever read and, it is all true. This is not fiction electronics.

I am a particular admirer of Dr. Jones. Over a fair period of time I've read and re-read this particular book three times, lent and recommended it to countless people. Simply amazing the part science, electronics in particular, played in WW11.

When I first read this book (an earlier edition) I was left with the overwhelming feeling of being a real mental pygmy. Dr. Jones experimented with infra-red, as one example, back in the late 1930's when it was considered pure science fiction.

This compelling book goes into great detail how science played such a huge part in allied success in WW11. It covers the fascinating topic of the "battle of the beams", that is, radio beams.

You can not help realise that if Dr. Jones did not have the personal ear of Winston Churchill the results might well have been quite different. This text is Jones's account of his part in British Scientific Intelligence between 1939 and 1949. It was his responsibility to anticipate German applications of science (electronics) to warfare, so that their new weapons could be countered before they were used. Much of his work had to do with radio navigation, as in the Battle of the Beams, with radar, as in the Allied Bomber Offensive and in the preparations for D-Day and in the war at sea. He was also in charge of intelligence against the V-1 (flying bomb) and the V-2 (rocket) retaliation weapons and, although the Germans were some distance behind from success, against their nuclear developments.

Towers' International Transistor Selector - Update 5

- Foulsham - Anthony Cawkwell CEng MIEE

Internationally famous this publication, "Towers' International Transistor Selector". A user friendly transistor characteristics - substitution book. You can't be without it.

The latest edition of a title which now includes around 2000 new entries and has been updated to take account of new technology.

Ideal for the engineer, technician and experimenter. My copy is an old edition.

482 pages Rev. Ed., Update 5 (19 July, 1996), published by Foulsham.

Low Power Scrapbook

- RSGB

Hundreds of the very best projects from the G-QRP Club's magazine Sprat are brought together in this handy book. Includes low power transmitters, simple receivers, accessories, circuit and construction hints and antennas.

Ideal for the experimenter or someone who likes the fun of building and operating their own radio equipment.

320 pages. © 2001, published by the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB).

Radio and Electronics Cookbook

- RSGB

A wealth of DIY and hobby projects written by experts who really understand home electronics construction.

Includes factsheets to help you learn electronics basics as you work through the book. The RSGB Electronics and Radio Cookbook is a unique collection of electronics projects, ideal for all electronics enthusiasts and experimenters. The simple step-by step instructions also make this book ideal for DIY enthusiasts and radio amateurs seeking to build up their electronics skills and knowledge. - 304 pages, NEW I haven't actually read this one yet.

A STRONG recommendation from a graduate student

Microelectronic Circuits - Oxford Series in Electrical Engineering. Hardcover - 1360 pages 4th Bk&cdr edition (June 1997)

I quote -

"Dear Ian,

I strongly recommend Microelectronic Circuits by Adel Sedra and Kenneth Smith. It's a basic analog and digital electronics book that no person dabbling, for want of a better word, should be without. Perhaps some of the latter portions are more for an Electronics Engineer in VLSI - but it doesn't hurt to know ANYTHING. :) "

Book Description
Microelectronic Circuits, Fourth Edition is an extensive revision of the classic text by Adel S. Sedra and K. C. Smith. The primary objective of this text remains the development of the student's ability to analyze and design electronic circuits, both analog and digital, discrete and integrated. Fundamental developments in modern technology, particularly the increased emphasis on integrated circuits and the profusion of advances in digital electronics, require that engineers today be aptly...

Solid State Design for the Radio Amateur

- Third printing, 1994. © 1986, The American Radio Relay League, Inc.

I personally own two well worn out copies of this book although my copies are the 1977 editions. Absolutely superb value with so much easy to follow general design information. Full of information on Amateur Radio circuit design and applications, descriptions of receivers, transmitters, power supplies and test equipment. Much of the data cannot be found elsewhere. Essential for every technical library. 256 pages. Extremely cheap at the price and and an excellent "general eectronics reference book".

Electronic Hobbyists Data Book

- R. A. Penfold - Babani 256 pages

This book by Bob Penfold provides a very inexpensive source of a wide range of data. The subjects include:
  common circuits and related data,
 pin out details of a wide range of CMOS and TTL devices,
 colour codes,
 data and lead out of fets, transistors, diodes, triacs, thyristors.

W1FB's Design Notebook

- The American Radio Relay League, Inc.

Practical Circuits for Experimenters by the late Doug DeMaw, W1FB.

Just the book for the avid builder of Amateur Radio equipment. This plain-language book is filled with simple, practical projects that can be built using readily available components and common hand tools. There are explanations of how the various circuits work without heavy mathematical analysis. 200 pages.

Introduction to Radio Frequency Design

- Wes Hayward W7ZOI

Radio Handbook

- Bill Orr W6SAI

My copy of Bill Orr's Handbook is the 19th edition, 1975. Fortunately you can have later and revised editions. 672 pages 23Rd/Rpt edition (May 1997).

Practical RF Design Manual

- Doug DeMaw, W1FB

Another famous title from our icon the late Doug DeMaw, a true "gentleman's gentleman" and a very innovative designer who affected and changed so many lives for the better.

CMOS Cookbook

- Don Lancaster

Another respected author who also has a fine sense of humour. A prolific writer and major contributor to columns in electronics magazines.

Lancaster's Active Filter Cookbook

- Don Lancaster

A further title from this prolific author, perhaps this one is my personal favourite from Don's long list of contributions to electronics.

IC Op-Amp Cookbook

- Walter Jung

Considered by many as the definitive book on Op-Amps. Terrible shame Walter's famous book on "555 Timers" is no longer in print, why?, if you ever see a second hand copy grab it.