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SMD marking

X4in SOT-23

Marking codes are not standardised, and the same code is reused by unrelated makers for unrelated parts. Below is every part in our tables printed with it, and any printed with a code that is easy to misread as it, from the manufacturers' own marking tables.

6 parts are printed X4

Not sure which one you have?

Answer up to 4 quick questions and these 6 parts are ranked, with a meter test that settles it. It works on a dead part too.

  • AO3404ASOT-23MOSFET, Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    What it is
    MOSFET
    Maker
    Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    Details
    Low-voltage (12-30 V) MOSFET
    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 AO3404A, opens in a new tab
  • AO3404ALSOT-23MOSFET, Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    What it is
    MOSFET
    Maker
    Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    Details
    Low-voltage (12-30 V) MOSFET
    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 AO3404AL, opens in a new tab
  • BZX84B68-AUSOT-23Zener diode, Panjit
    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    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.

    Datasheetfor BZX84B68-AU, opens in a new tab
  • BZX84C68SOT-23Zener diode, Panjit
    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    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.

    Datasheetfor BZX84C68, opens in a new tab
  • BZX84C68-AUSOT-23Zener diode, Panjit
    What it is
    Zener diode
    Maker
    Panjit
    Package
    SOT-23
    Pins
    3
    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.

    Datasheetfor BZX84C68-AU, opens in a new tab
  • 1 more part has no package on record. Nothing rules them out, so they stay.
    • VSKY034085Schottky diode, Vishay
      What it is
      Schottky diode
      Maker
      Vishay
      Package
      Not recorded
      Pins
      Not recorded
      Details
      X4
      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.

      Datasheetfor VSKY034085, opens in a new tab

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