thyristor

T1H4Y4R1I1S1T1O1R1

noun

A semiconductor diode having an extra "gate" terminal to switch it on.

UncommonScrabble 15

Meanings

nounthyristor (plural thyristors)

plural thyristors

  1. businessA semiconductor diode having an extra "gate" terminal to switch it on.

    In calling it a "Thyristor", Mr. Warder was following a growing practice which takes account of the fact that in years to come the controlled rectifier may be made of other materials than silicon.

    1963 November, “A "Second Generation" in traction”, in Modern Railways, page 290
    1 more example

    Figure 1.4 shows a modern thyristor encapsulated in a presspack housing and Figure 1.5 illustrates a typical interdigitated gate geometry in a high-power thyristor; the black areas indicate silicon ( Si0₂ ) and the white areas the Al metallisation.

    1998, J. Arrillaga, High Voltage Direct Current Transmission, page 6

Origin

Blend of thyratron (1930) + transistor (1947). First attested c. 1965, as an alternative name for the Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR) developed in the late 1950s.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan tiristor
  • tiristorsemiconductor diode
Dutch thyristor
  • thyristorsemiconductor diode
Finnish tyristori
  • tyristorisemiconductor diode
French thyristor
  • thyristorsemiconductor diode
German Thyristor
  • Thyristorsemiconductor diode
Romanian tiristor
  • tiristorsemiconductor diode
Russian тиристор
  • тиристор (tiristor)semiconductor diode
Spanish tiristor
  • tiristorsemiconductor diode
Swedish tyristor
  • tyristorsemiconductor diode

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with thyristor

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Cite this entry
APA

thyristor. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thyristor

MLA

“thyristor.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thyristor. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “thyristor,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thyristor.

Source: thyristor on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.