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3 parts are printed K1. 2 printed with a similar-looking code.

Not sure which one you have?

Answer up to 4 quick questions and these 3 parts are ranked, with a meter test that settles it. It works on a dead part too.

all SOT-363, 6 pins. What differs:

  • BAV99SSOT-363Switching diode, Nexperia
    What it is
    Switching diode
    Maker
    Nexperia
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Details
    Switching diode, 75 V, 150 mA
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

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

    Working, it reads

    About 0.5 to 0.8 V anode to cathode, and open the other way. Small switching diodes read about 0.6 to 0.7 V; large rectifiers can read a little lower.

    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: failed open.
    • A reading the wrong way round as well: leaky.
    On the board:
    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 three-pin body can hold two diodes. With a common pin they read two junctions from that pin, just like a transistor; in series they read two drops end to end. Test each pair the datasheet names.

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

  • MMBZ5251BTWSOT-363Zener diode, Panjit
    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    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:
    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.

  • UM6K1NSOT-363Dual N-channel MOSFET, JSCJ
    What it is
    Dual N-channel MOSFET
    Maker
    JSCJ
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Details
    MOSFET, dual N-channel, 30 V, 0.1 A
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    Diode range, part lifted. Test drain to source first, then short gate to source and test again. Test each MOSFET on its own pins, as the datasheet's pinout gives them.

    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:
    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.

2 more parts are printed with a code easy to misread as K1

Printed with a code easy to misread

One character differs, and it is one that is easy to confuse under a lamp. The odd one out is marked on each.

  • BG3230Rprinted KIRF amplifier (MMIC), Infineon

    Printed KI on the part. Easy to misread as K1. Check that character with a loupe before you order anything.

    What it is
    RF amplifier (MMIC)
    Maker
    Infineon
    Package
    Not recorded
    Pins
    Not recorded
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    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.

  • TLV75530PDQNprinted KILDO regulator, 4 pins, Texas Instruments

    Printed KI on the part. Easy to misread as K1. Check that character with a loupe before you order anything.

    What it is
    LDO regulator
    Maker
    Texas Instruments
    Package
    Not recorded
    Pins
    4
    Details
    500mA, Low-IQ, Small-Size, Low-Dropout Regulator
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    Voltage, board powered, black probe on ground. Then ohms with the power off.

    Working, it reads

    Input pin at the supply, output pin at its rated voltage, and the enable pin high if it has one.

    Dead, it reads

    • Output equal to the input: the pass element has shorted. Everything after it may have taken the full input.
    • Input present, enable high, no output: failed open, or holding itself off into a shorted load. Power off and measure output to ground.
    • Power off, input to output near 0 Ω: shorted.
    On the board:
    An output at 0 V is often a shorted load with the regulator in current limit. Lift the output pin: if the short stays on the board, the regulator may be fine.
    Compare:
    The same regulator on another rail or another board shows the right voltages and the right resistances.
    Watch for:
    Makers put input, output and ground on different pins in the same package, so take them from this part's datasheet. Diode or ohms readings between its pins say little; check it powered.

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

3 more parts have codes that begin with K1

Codes that begin with K1

For a marking with its end worn or burnt off. Each one shows its full printed code.

all JSCJ. What differs:

  • MMDT2222Aprinted K1PSOT-363NPN transistor, 6 pins

    Printed K1P. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

    What it is
    NPN transistor
    Maker
    JSCJ
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Details
    Bipolar transistor, NPN, 40 V, 600 mA
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    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:
    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.

  • SD103ATWprinted KLLSOT-363Schottky diode, 6 pins

    Printed KLL. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

    What it is
    Schottky diode
    Maker
    JSCJ
    Package
    SOT-363
    Pins
    6
    Details
    Schottky diode, 40 V, 0.175 A
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    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:
    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.

  • 1 more part has no package on record. Nothing rules them out, so they stay.
    • ESDUNK12VF1printed K12ESD protection diode

      Printed K12. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

      What it is
      ESD protection diode
      Maker
      JSCJ
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      ESD protection diode, VRWM 12 V
      Source
      From the manufacturer's datasheet

      Is it dead?

      Diode range, from the protected line to ground, part lifted if you can.

      Working, it reads

      A one-way part reads about 0.6 to 0.8 V forward and open in reverse. A two-way part reads open both ways. Arrays with several lines read as the datasheet's diagram draws them.

      Dead, it reads

      • From the line to ground, the same reading both ways, near 0 V with a continuous beep: shorted.
      • A reading both ways on a one-way part: leaky.
      • A one-way part open both ways: failed open.
      On the board:
      On the board, a line reading shorted to ground can be this part or anything else on that line. Lift it: if the short goes with it, it has failed.
      Compare:
      The same part on the next line or connector pin is the healthy reading to compare with.
      Watch for:
      A two-way part reads open both ways when it is good, exactly like one that has failed open. The meter cannot tell them apart; an identical part on the next line can.

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

One code, several parts

Marking codes are not unique. In the standard code book, 6H on a SOT-23 is an NPN transistor, a varicap, an N-channel JFET, two digital transistors, a 3.6 V voltage detector: six parts from five makers. So a search shows the parts we hold under that code and under codes easily misread as it, with only the columns that tell them apart.

6Hon a SOT-23, in the code book
  • NPN transistor
  • Varicap
  • N-channel JFET
  • Digital transistor ×2
  • 3.6 V voltage detector

When more than one is left

Tap Help me choose. Up to 4 quick answers: whether the part has failed, then what separates the parts left. Those get ranked with the reasoning and a test that settles it. That uses one identification: 2 a month are free without an account, and 3 with a free account.

When you cannot read it

Tap the camera in the field. We read the characters, keep the ones we are unsure of, and search every reading. A photo too soft to read is turned back on your phone first; if it is the only one you can get, you can still send it.