Encyclopedia of Electronic Components Volume 2

Chapter 10. logic gate

integrated circuit

digital

logic gate

Only basic logic gates are included in this entry—that is, components that perform a Boolean logic operation on two to eight inputs (or one input, in the case of an inverter) to create a single high or low logical output.

Other related components

• flip-flop (see Chapter 11)

What It Does

A logic gate is a circuit that delivers an output, either high or low, depending on the states of its two inputs, either or both of which can be high or low.

Some gates may have more than two inputs, and an inverter only has one input, but the basic gates all conform with the two-input, one-output model. The components that constitute a logic gate are almost always etched into a wafer inside ...