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SMD code BSs

Marking codes are not standardised, and the same code is reused by unrelated makers for unrelated parts. Below is every part in our tables printed with it, and any printed with a code that is easy to misread as it, from the manufacturers' own marking tables.

The last letter, s, is lower case, which on NXP and Philips parts is a date or factory code, so it was set aside and BS was searched.

9 parts are printed BSs

Not sure which one you have?

Answer up to 4 quick questions and these 9 parts are ranked, with a meter test that settles it. It works on a dead part too.

  • 2SC2412KSOT-23NPN transistor, 3 pins, JSCJ
    What it is
    NPN transistor
    Maker
    JSCJ
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    Details
    Bipolar transistor, NPN, 50 V, 0.15 A
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead? The meter test is below: NPN transistor.

  • 2SC5658SOT-723NPN transistor, 3 pins, JSCJ
    What it is
    NPN transistor
    Maker
    JSCJ
    Package
    SOT-723
    Pins
    3
    Details
    Bipolar transistor, NPN, 50 V, 0.15 A
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead? The meter test is below: NPN transistor.

  • AO3453SOT-23P-channel MOSFET, 3 pins, Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    What it is
    P-channel MOSFET
    Maker
    Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    Details
    P-channel MOSFET (8-60 V)
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead? The meter test is below: P-channel MOSFET.

  • BCM856BSSOT-363PNP transistor, 6 pins, Nexperia
    What it is
    PNP transistor
    Maker
    Nexperia
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Details
    65 V, 100 mA PNP/PNP matched double transistors
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead? The meter test is below: PNP transistor.

  • BZT52H-C22SOD-123FZener diode, 2 pins, Nexperia
    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Nexperia
    Package
    SOD-123F
    Pins
    2
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead? The meter test is below: Zener diode.

  • 4 more parts have no package on record
    • BGA615L7RF amplifier (MMIC), Infineon
      What it is
      RF amplifier (MMIC)
      Maker
      Infineon
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Source
      From the manufacturer's datasheet

      Is it dead? The meter test is below: RF amplifier.

    • BSS670S2LN-channel MOSFET, Infineon
      What it is
      N-channel MOSFET
      Maker
      Infineon
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      N-Channel Small Signal MOSFET 55 V in SOT-23 package
      Source
      From the manufacturer's datasheet

      Is it dead? The meter test is below: N-channel MOSFET.

    • BZX884B62LZener diode, Vishay
      What it is
      Zener diode
      Maker
      Vishay
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      62 V Zener diode
      Source
      From the manufacturer's datasheet

      Is it dead? The meter test is below: Zener diode.

    • SDB160WSSchottky diode, Diotec
      What it is
      Schottky diode
      Maker
      Diotec
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      SMD Schottky Barrier Rectifier Diodes
      Source
      From the manufacturer's datasheet

      Is it dead? The meter test is below: Schottky diode.

Is it dead? One meter test per kind

Parts of the same kind are tested the same way, so each test is here once. Each part above points to its own.

NPN transistor

Diode range, part lifted or its base leg off the pad.

Working, it reads

Red probe on the base reads about 0.6 to 0.75 V to the emitter and to the collector, and open the other way round. Collector to emitter reads open both ways.

Dead, it reads

  • Collector to emitter the same both ways, near 0 V with a continuous beep: shorted. The commonest failure.
  • The base the same both ways to another pin, near 0 V or a middling value: a shorted junction.
  • Only one junction reads, or none: a junction has failed open. It then looks like a diode.
  • A reading the wrong way round, where it should be open: leaky.
On the board
this is a first look only: the meter reads every path between those pins, and a short can be a neighbour. Lift one leg before you condemn it.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
A pair of diodes with a common pin reads just like a transistor, and some transistors carry a built-in diode or resistor. The datasheet says which.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

P-channel MOSFET

Diode range, part lifted. Test drain to source first, then short gate to source and test again.

Working, it reads

Red probe on the drain, black on the source: about 0.4 to 0.9 V, the body diode. Open the other way. The gate reads open to both other pins, both ways.

Dead, it reads

  • Drain to source the same both ways, near 0 V with a continuous beep, and still so after shorting gate to source: shorted. The classic failure.
  • The gate reads low to source or drain: gate shorted. Often all three pins end up shorted together.
  • No body diode at all: failed open.
On the board
the gate usually has a resistor to the source, so gate to source reads that resistor, which is not a fault. Lift a leg to be sure.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
The diode range can charge the gate enough to turn the part on, and then drain to source reads near 0 both ways on a good part. Short gate to source and test again before you condemn it.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

PNP transistor

Diode range, part lifted or its base leg off the pad.

Working, it reads

Black probe on the base reads about 0.6 to 0.75 V to the emitter and to the collector, and open the other way round. Collector to emitter reads open both ways.

Dead, it reads

  • Collector to emitter the same both ways, near 0 V with a continuous beep: shorted. The commonest failure.
  • The base the same both ways to another pin, near 0 V or a middling value: a shorted junction.
  • Only one junction reads, or none: a junction has failed open. It then looks like a diode.
  • A reading the wrong way round, where it should be open: leaky.
On the board
this is a first look only: the meter reads every path between those pins, and a short can be a neighbour. Lift one leg before you condemn it.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
A pair of diodes with a common pin reads just like a transistor, and some transistors carry a built-in diode or resistor. The datasheet says which.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

RF amplifier

Voltage, board powered, on the output pin that the bias resistor or choke feeds.

Working, it reads

The output pin sits at the device voltage the datasheet gives, a few volts, below the supply.

Dead, it reads

  • Output pin at 0 V, or near 0 Ω to ground with the power off: shorted inside.
  • Output pin at the full supply voltage: open inside, no current flowing.
On the board:
Measured on the board with power on; the bias network is part of the reading.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
The figures depend on the part and its bias resistor. The datasheet gives both.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

N-channel MOSFET

Diode range, part lifted. Test drain to source first, then short gate to source and test again.

Working, it reads

Red probe on the source, black on the drain: about 0.4 to 0.9 V, the body diode. Open the other way. The gate reads open to both other pins, both ways.

Dead, it reads

  • Drain to source the same both ways, near 0 V with a continuous beep, and still so after shorting gate to source: shorted. The classic failure.
  • The gate reads low to source or drain: gate shorted. Often all three pins end up shorted together.
  • No body diode at all: failed open.
On the board
the gate usually has a resistor to the source, so gate to source reads that resistor, which is not a fault. A drain short can be the load. Lift a leg to be sure.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
The diode range can charge the gate enough to turn the part on, and then drain to source reads near 0 both ways on a good part. Short gate to source and test again before you condemn it.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

Zener diode

Diode range for the forward check, part lifted, red probe on the anode. A bench supply for the Zener voltage.

Working, it reads

About 0.6 to 0.8 V forward and open in reverse on the diode range. Its Zener voltage shows only on a supply: feed it through a resistor that sets about 5 mA, cathode to positive, read quickly, and it should hold near its rated voltage.

Dead, it reads

  • The same reading both ways round, near 0 V with a continuous beep or the same middling value: shorted.
  • Open both ways, forward too: failed open.
  • Holds well off its rated voltage on the supply test: drifted.
  • A soft knee, or a voltage that creeps on the supply test: leaky.
On the board
this is a first look only: the meter reads every path between those pins, and a short can be a neighbour. Lift one leg before you condemn it.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
A meter's diode range stops at about 2 to 3 V, so almost every Zener reads open in reverse on it, good or bad; a 3 V meter may just show a 2.4 or 2.7 V part. Above about 3 V the meter cannot tell a Zener from a plain diode.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

Schottky diode

Diode range, part lifted or one leg off the pad. Red probe on the anode.

Working, it reads

About 0.15 to 0.45 V anode to cathode, roughly half a silicon diode, and open the other way.

Dead, it reads

  • The same reading both ways round, near 0 V with a continuous beep or the same middling value: shorted.
  • A reading the wrong way round as well: leaky.
  • Open both ways: failed open.
On the board
this is a first look only: the meter reads every path between those pins, and a short can be a neighbour. Lift one leg before you condemn it.
Compare:
If an identical part sits elsewhere on the board, measure it the same way: that is what this one should read.
Watch for:
A large Schottky can read about 0.1 V forward and beep like a short, and leaks a little the wrong way when good, more when warm. It is shorted only if it reads the same both ways. Measure it cold, beside an identical cold one.

A dead part still carries its marking. A short or an open says it has failed, not that it is a different part.

Printed with a code easy to misread as BSs

One character differs, and it is one that is easy to confuse under a lamp. Each code has a page of its own.

Codes that begin with BSs

For a marking with its end worn or burnt off. Each code has a page of its own.

Open this in the search to correct a character or try another package.