Confused about max current through a Zener diode

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MikehZA

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Hi, I want to drop 3.9V in a circuit with a load drawing 1A. I thought I could just put in a 3.9V 5W Zener. When I look at the spec for 1N5335 it states IZM = 1.2A but also states IZT is 320mA which is the maximum useable current? - Mike
 

Izt is the test current, but you can use this diode up to it's max current Izmax ..
Just make sure that you don't overheat it (eg. reasonable copper area on the pcb) ..

IanP
:wink:
 
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