Linear circuits maintain consistency of electronic components and properties, regardless of voltage variations. They do not contain non-linear components like diodes or transistors and are separated from digital production lines. Linear circuits are used in protection methods for electronic devices and possess a superposition property.
A linear circuit is designed in such a way that any accessory or electronic component remains consistent. It also ensures that all of the different properties of the circuit including impedance, resistance, gain and capacitance are unaffected throughout the circuit. This is regardless of any voltage variations that may occur between components throughout the circuit.
In electrical circuits, the linear term represents the formatting of the circuit used. For a circuit to be considered a linear circuit, it must not contain any form of non-linear component. This means that there may not be a diode or transistor element within the circuit, nor any conductor with an iron core.
In the electronics manufacturing industry, linear circuits are given their own designation within the manufacturing process. Printed circuit board manufacturers and electronic device manufacturers must maintain the separation between linear and nonlinear products. This usually means that they separate their linear products from their digital product production lines to maintain the integrity of the linear based products. For example, producing an amplifier circuit that behaves linearly is not produced on the same line as an op-amp that contains transistors of any type because transistors behave nonlinearly, which would take away from the basic function of the linear amplifier.
Linear circuits are also used in protection methods for electronic devices. Some surge protectors, as well as industrial and residential circuit breakers, use linear circuits as a means of safely dissipating the amount of power introduced into another circuit. These are used because a linear circuit is able to dissipate power more evenly as it passes through the circuit than that of a nonlinear circuit.
A nonlinear circuit contains nonlinear, shorted, or faulty components that can cause the circuit protection device to malfunction. If a resistor or diode unit within a non-linear circuit in a surge protector fails, the device allows the voltage rise of a voltage rise to pass directly through it without providing any power resistance. Linear circuits are not subject to these problems.
To be considered a linear circuit, it must possess a superposition property. This means that no matter how many inputs the circuit has, the output of the circuit in terms of voltage or signal is the same as the actual sum of each of the inputs being added. No change in inputs occurs through passing the signal through a linear circuit.
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