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1 part is printed 3SS.

The only part printed 3SS in our tables

MMBTA28

What it is
Darlington transistor
Maker
JSCJ
Package
SOT-23
Pins
3
Details
Darlington transistor, 80 V, 500 mA
Source
From the manufacturer's datasheet

Is it dead?

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

Working, it reads

From the base, one probe colour reads about 0.6 to 0.75 V to the collector and about 1.1 to 1.4 V to the emitter, two junctions in series, and open the other way round. Collector to emitter reads open. Built-in resistors can change these readings.

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.

3 more parts have codes that begin with 3SS

Codes that begin with 3SS

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

  • 1SMC5355-AUprinted 355BSMCZener diode, 2 pins, Panjit

    Printed 355B. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SMC
    Pins
    2
    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.

  • 2 more parts have no package on record
    • 1SMC5355printed 355BZener diode, Panjit

      Printed 355B. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

      What it is
      Zener diode
      Maker
      Panjit
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      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.

    • CJAE35SN06printed 35SN06N-channel MOSFET, JSCJ

      Printed 35SN06. Only the start matches what you typed, so this fits only if the rest of the marking is worn off.

      What it is
      N-channel MOSFET
      Maker
      JSCJ
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      MOSFET, N-channel, 60 V, 35 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.

      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.

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.