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1 part is printed A81. 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.

The only part printed A81 in our tables

BAP50-03

What it is
PIN diode
Maker
JSCJ
Package
SOD-323
Pins
2
Details
PIN diode, 50 V
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 0.6 to 0.9 V anode to cathode, 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.
  • 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 varicap that has drifted in capacitance reads normal on a meter. Only a capacitance meter or the tuning itself shows it.

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

Datasheetfor BAP50-03, opens in a new tab

Printed with a code easy to misread

These parts are printed with a character that is easy to misread as what you typed. The odd one out is marked on each.

all Panjit. What differs:

  • PE4224CSprinted ABISOD-323ESD protection diode, 2 pins

    Printed ABI on the part. Easy to misread as A81. Check that character with a loupe before you order anything.

    What it is
    ESD protection diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOD-323
    Pins
    2
    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.

    Datasheetfor PE4224CS, opens in a new tab
  • PJA138Lprinted A8LSOT-23MOSFET, 3 pins

    Printed A8L on the part. Easy to misread as A81. Check that character with a loupe before you order anything.

    What it is
    MOSFET
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    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

    One way between drain and source reads about 0.4 to 0.9 V, the body diode, and the other way open. The gate reads open to both other pins.

    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.
    • No body diode at all: failed open.
    On the board:
    On the board the gate usually has a resistor to the source, which reads as that resistor and 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.

    Datasheetfor PJA138L, opens in a new tab
1 more part has a code that begins with A81

Codes that begin with A81

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

  • AOZ2151LQI-30printed ABLMDC-DC converter, Alpha & Omega Semiconductor

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

    What it is
    DC-DC converter
    Maker
    Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    Package
    Not recorded
    Pins
    Not recorded
    Details
    Synchronous buck regulator
    Source
    From the manufacturer's datasheet

    Is it dead?

    Voltage with the board powered; ohms from each pin to ground with it off.

    Working, it reads

    Supply pin at its voltage and the output doing what the datasheet says. Readings between pins depend on the part.

    Dead, it reads

    • A pin near 0 Ω to ground or to the supply pin where an identical part does not read that: failed short.
    • Supply present, output stuck: failed, or its load has.
    On the board:
    A pin shorted to ground on the board can be anything on that net. Lift the pin to be sure.
    Compare:
    The surest reference is the same IC on a working board, measured pin by pin.
    Watch for:
    Its protection diodes can read like junctions between pins, even like a transistor. That proves nothing either way.

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

    Datasheetfor AOZ2151LQI-30, opens in a new tab

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.