What follows is a list of commonly used abbreviations and acronyms referenced in the electronics industry.
Bottom view of a Cyrix CPU, 6x86MX type core, PR200 model, manufactured in 1998 by IBM. Source: Eric Gaba, Wikimedia Commons user Sting/CC BY-SA 3.0A
A: Amperes
A/D: Analog to digital
AC: Alternating current
ADC: Analog to digital converter
AE: Aerial
AE: Applications engineer
AI: Artificial intelligence
AM: Amplitude modulation
AM/FM: Amplitude modulation or frequency modulation
AMM: Analog multimeter
ANSI: American National Standards Institute
AR: Augmented reality
ASIC: Application specific integrated circuit
ASP: Application service provider
B
B: Battery
BGA: Ball grid array
BLDC: Brushless DC motor
BLE: Bluetooth low energy
bps: bit per second
BW: Bandwidth
DPDT knife switch in closed position.
C
C: Capacitance
CAD: Computer-aided design
CAE: Computer-aided engineering
CAM: Computer-aided manufacture
CAN: Controller area network
CCD: Charge-coupled device
CMOS: Complementary metal-oxide semiconductor
COB: Chip on board
CPU: Central processing unit
CRT: Cathode ray tube
D
D or CR: Diode
D/A: Digital to analog
DAC: Digital to analog converter
dB: Decibels
dBm: dB milliwatt
DC: Direct current
DIN: Deutsche Industrie Norm
DIP: Dual-in-line packaging
DMA: Direct memory access
DMM: Digital multimeter
DPDT: Double-Pole Double-Throw (switch)
DRAM: Dynamic random access memory
1990s-era Ethernet network interface controller. Source: Nixdorf/CC BY-SA 3.0E
EHF: Extremely high frequency
EHV: Extra high voltage
ELF: Extremely low frequency
EIA: Electronic Industries Alliance
EISA: Enhanced Industry Standard Architecture
EMC: Electromagnetic compatibility
EMI: Electromagnetic interference
ESD: Electrostatic discharge
ETH: Ethernet
ETSI: European Telecommunications Standards Institute
EV: Electric vehicle
F
F: Farads
f: Frequency
F: Fuse
FCC: Federal Communications Commission
FET: Field effect transistor
FDM: Frequency division multiplexing
FDMA: Frequency division multiple access
FPC: Flexible printed circuit
FPGA: Field-programmable gate array
FRU: Field replaceable unit
Navstar-2F satellite of the Global Positioning System (GPS).G
G: Conductance
G: Gauss
G: Giga
GaN: Gallium nitride
GDT: Gas discharge tube
GHz: Gigahertz
G: Gravitational force
GNSS: Global navigation satellite system
GPa: Gigapascal
GPS: Global positioning system
GUI: Graphic user interface
GWh: Gigawatt hours
H
HD: High definition
HDMI: High-definition multimedia interface
HF: High frequency
hp: Horsepower
HPC: High-performance computer
Hz: Hertz
Illustration of the internet of things (IoT).I
I: Current
I/O: Input/output
IC: Integrated circuit
IDE: Integrated Drive Electronics
IEEE: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
IF: Intermediate frequency
IoE: Internet of everything
IIoT: Industrial internet of things
IoT: Internet of things
IP: Intellectual property
IP: Internet Protocol
IPC: Interconnecting and packaging electronic circuit
IR: Infrared
ISA: Industry standard architecture
ISDN: Integrated services digital network
ISO: International Standardization Organization
ISP: Internet service provider
J
JFET: Junction field effect transistor
K
kHz: Kilohertz
kV: Kilovolt
kW: Kilowatt
LEDs used as daytime running lights. Source: Thermos/CC BY-SA 3.0L
L: Coil, inductance
LAN: Local area network
LAP: Link access protocol
LAPB: Link access protocol balanced
LC: Inductance-capacitance
LCD: Liquid crystal display
L-C-R: Inductance-capacitance-resistance
LDR: Light dependent resistor
LED: Light emitting diode
LF: Low frequency
LGA: Land grid array
Lidar: Light detection and ranging
li-ion: Lithium-ion
LNA: Low noise amplifier
LOC: Lab on a chip
LSI: Large scale integration
Modem and router units. Source: Tmthetom/CC BY-SA 4.0M
M: Mega
M: milli
mA: Milliampere
MAN: Metropolitan area network
MB: Megabytes
MCA: Micro channel architecture
MCGA: Multi-color graphics array
MCM: Multi-chip module
MEMS: Micro-electro-mechanical systems
MF: Medium frequency
Mfd: Micro Farads
MHz: Megahertz
Mic: Microphone
Mil: A thousandth of an inch
MMU: Memory management unit
mmWave: Millimeter wave
MODEM: Modulator demodulator
M2M: Machine to machine
MOSFET: Metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor
MOS: Metal-oxide semiconductor
MPU: Microprocessor unit
MSI: Medium scale integration
mV: Millivolt
mW: Milliwatt
Neon lamps, type NE2, illustrating different voltages (DC left lead positive, DC right lead positive, AC). Source: Ceinturion/CC BY-SA 3.0N
n: Nano
nA: Nanoampere
NA: Network analyzer
NBS: National Bureau of Standards
NEMA: National Electrical Manufacturers Association
NE: Neon lamp
NFC: Near-field communication
NIST: National Institute of Standards and Technology
nm: Nanometer
NMEA: National Marine Electronics Association
NMOS: Negatively doped metal-oxide semiconductor
Ns: Nanosecond
nW: Nanowatt
O
OD: Outside diameter
OEM: Original equipment manufacturer
OLED: Organic light emitting diode
OP AMP: Operational amplifier
OS: Operating system
The Arduino board is based on a printed circuit board (PCB) platform, and also represents a type of System on Chip (SoC).
P
P: Pico/power
PA: Power amplifiers
PAL: Programmable array logic
PCB: Printed circuit board
PCM: Pulse code modulation
PDM: Pulse-duration modulation
PES: Project Engineer for Safety
pF: Picofarad
PGA: Pin grid array
PIC: Programmable interrupt controller
PIR: Passive infrared sensors
PLA: Programmable logic array
PLA: Poly(lactic) acid
PLD: Programmable logic device
PM: Phase modulation
PMOS: Positively doped metal-oxide semiconductor
PPE: Personal protective equipment
PS: Power supply
PTH: Plated through hole
PV: Photovoltaic
pw: Pulse width
PWM: Pulse width modulation
Q
QAM: Quadrature amplitude modulation
One-gigabyte stick of DDR2 667 MHz (PC2-5300) laptop RAM, made by Samsung.R
R: Resistance
RAM: Random-access memory
RC: Resistance—Capacitance
RF: Radio frequency
RFI: Radio frequency interference
ROM: Read-only memory
RoHS: Restriction of Hazardous Substances
RPM: Revolutions per minute
RPM: Rotations per minute
RTOS: Real-time operating system
S
SAE: Society of Automotive Engineers
SCL: System control layer
SCSI: Small computer system interface
Centronics 50-pin SCSI connector. Source: Ian Wilson/CC BY-SA 3.0
SD: Secure digital
SD: Standard definition
SDRAM: Synchronous dynamic random-access memory
SHF: Super high frequency
SIMM: Single inline memory module
SIP: Single in-line package
SLIP: Serial line internet protocol
SMD: Surface mount device
SMT: Surface mount technology
SNA: System network architecture
SNR: Signal to noise ratio
SoC: System on Chip
SPST: Single-pole, single throw (switch)
Sq cm: Square centimeter
SRAM: Static random access memory
SVGA: Super video graphics array
T
T: Tera
THM: Through hole mounting
THT: Through hole technology
THz: Terahertz
U
UAV: Unmanned aerial vehicle
UHF: Ultra high frequency
UHV: Ultra high voltage
USB: Universal serial bus
UPS: Uninterruptible power supply
UV: Ultraviolet
Oculus viewer designed for virtual reality (VR) applications.V
V2X: Vehicle to everything
V: Voltage
VA: Volt ampere
VGA: Video graphics array
VHF: Very high frequency
VLSI: Very large scale integration
VLF: Very low frequency
VNA: Vector network analyzer
VRAM: Video random access memory
VR: Virtual reality
W
W: Watts
WAN: Wide area network
Wi-Fi: Wireless fidelity
WLAN: Wireless local area network
WPS: Wi-Fi protected setup
WSI: WLAN to serial interface
Z
Z: Impedance
ZEV: Zero emissions vehicle
Resources
EEWeb—List of Symbols and Abbreviations in Electronics
Electronics and You—Electronic Component Name Abbreviations
Electronix Express—Commonly Used Acronyms
Hobby Projects: Abbreviations Used in Electronics
PCB3D—Abbreviations in Electrical & Electronics Engineering
Syscom Tech — 80 Electronic Manufacturing Services Terms & Acronyms to Know
