2N4401 transistor
2N4401 transistor electrical specification
- 2N4401 is an NPN general-purpose amplifier medium power transistor device
- Collector to emitter voltage is 40V
- Collector to base voltage is 60V
- Emitter to base voltage is 6V
- Collector current is 600mA
- Power dissipation is 625mW
- DC current gain is 20 to 300hFE
- Transition frequency (FT) is 250MHz
- Junction temperature is between -55 to 150℃
- Thermal resistance junction to ambient is 200℃/W
- Collector to emitter saturation voltage (VCE (SAT)) is4 to 0.75V
- Output capacitance (Cob) is 5pF
- Rise time 20ns
2N4401 PINOUT
| Pin Number | Pin Name | Description |
| 1 | Emitter | Current flows through the emitter |
| 2 | Base | Base terminal is used to trigger the transistor |
| 3 | Collector | Current flow through the collector |
2N4401 package
The 2N4401 medium-power general-purpose amplifier transistor device has a TO-92 device package.
TO-92 is a three-terminal package mainly used for general-purpose applications, they are been made with epoxy/plastic for higher temperature capacity and the shape and size of the package will make them more compact.
2N4401 electrical specification description & application
Here in this section, we explain the electrical specifications of 2N4401, this explanation is really useful for a better understanding of the device for circuit applications and replacement process.
Voltage specs
The terminal voltage specifications of 2N4401 are collector to emitter voltage is 40V, collector-to-base voltage is 60V, and emitter-to-base voltage is 6V, it had a medium voltage value.
The collector-to-emitter saturation voltage is 0.4V to 0.75V, which is the switching voltage of the device.
The voltage specs show it is a medium-voltage device having power applications.
Current specs
The collector current value of the 2N4401 transistor is 600mA, which is the maximum load capacity of the device.
Dissipation specs
The power dissipation value of 2N4401 is 625mW, this value is the product of voltage and current values.
Current gain specs
The DC current gain value of the 2N4401 transistor is 20 to 300hFE, this value is important for amplifier circuit applications.
Transition frequency
The transition frequency value of the 2N4401 is 250MHz, this value is important at the circuit.
Junction temperature/ storage temperature
The maximum temperature value of the 2N4401 transistor is -55 to 150℃.
Thermal resistance between junctions to ambient
The thermal resistance of the 2N4401 transistor is 200℃/W.
Output capacitance
The output capacitance value of the 2N4401 is 6.5Pf
DATASHEET 2N4401
If you need the datasheet in pdf please click this link
2N4401 equivalent
The 2N4401 transistor has equivalent devices such as BC537, KSC1008, ZTX450, MPSW01A, NTE123AP, MPS651, 2N2222, BC537, 2N2369, and 2N3055, each of these transistors have same set of electrical specifications, so we can use them as the 2n4401 transistor equivalent at circuits.
The applications based on 2N4401 transistors are high-speed control circuits, inverter switching circuits, and audio applications, so the specs such as voltage, current, dc current gain, and transition frequency are important so all of these devices before the replacement process.
2N4401 complementary
2N4401 NPN transistor devices have complementary PNP 2N4403 transistors, each of them are been combined to use at push-pull amplifier circuit and use as Darlington pair circuits.
2N4401 SMD
The SMD transistor devices such as 2SD602A (SOT-23), MMBT4401 (SOT-23), PXT2222A (SOT-89), FJX2222A (SOT-323) and MMBT2222AT (SOT-323F) are the SMD equivalent of 2N4401 transistor.
2N4401 vs BC537 vs MP5650
Here in the table below, we listed the electrical specifications of 2N4401, BC537, and MP5650, these type of comparison is useful for a better understanding of devices.
| Characteristics | 2N4401 | BC537 | MP5650 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collector to base voltage (VCB) | 60V | 60V | 60V |
| Collector to emitter voltage (VCE) | 40V | 60V | 40V |
| Emitter to base voltage (VEB) | 6V | 6V | 5V |
| Collector to emitter saturation voltage (VCE (SAT)) | 0.4 to 0.75V | 0.7 to 1.2V | 0.3V to 0.5V |
| Collector current (IC) | 600mA | 1A | 2A |
| Power dissipation | 625mW | 1.5W | 625Mw |
| Junction temperature (TJ) | -55 to +150°C | -55 to +150°C | -55 to +150℃ |
| Transition frequency (FT) | 250MHZ | 100MHz | 75MHz |
| Gain (hFE) | 20 to 300hFE | 40 to 400hFE | 75 to 40hFE |
| Output capacitance | 6.5pF | 15pF | - |
| Rise time | 20ns | - | - |
| Package | TO-92 | TO-92A | TO-92 |
2N3904 vs 2N4401
Characteristics 2N4401 2N3904
Collector to base voltage (VCB) 60V 60V
Collector to emitter voltage (VCE) 40V 40V
Emitter to base voltage (VEB) 6V 6V
Collector to emitter saturation voltage (VCE (SAT)) 0.4 to 0.75V 0.2 to 0.3V
Collector current (IC) 600mA 200mA
Power dissipation 625mW 1.5W
Junction temperature (TJ) -55 to +150°C -55 to +150°C
Transition frequency (FT) 250MHZ 300MHz
Gain (hFE) 20 to 300hFE 100 to 300hFE
Output capacitance 6.5pF 8pF
Rise time 20ns 35ns
Package TO-92 TO-92
2N4401 applications
- Various switching applications
- Speed control of motor
- Inverter circuits
- Rectifier circuit
- Darlington pair
- Sensor circuit
- Preamp circuit
- RF circuits
Characteristics curves of 2N4401
The figure shows the DC current gain characteristics curves of the 2N4401 transistor, and the graph plots with DC current gain vs collector current.
At two different collector-to-emitter voltage values, three different temperature curves are been plotted for calculating DC current gain.
From the temperature curves, we can see higher DC gain values from higher temperature values.
The figure shows the collector-to-emitter saturation voltage characteristics of the 2N4401 transistor and the graph plots with collector-to-emitter saturation vs collector current.
The graph plotted at three different temperature values, the saturation voltage increases from a lower value to a higher value and then it became constant with respect to the collector current.
2N4401 & 2N4403 relay driver circuit
The figure shows the 2n4401 and 2N4403 complementary pair-based relay driver circuit, as we can see in the circuit both transistors are been connect to the relay for higher current absorption.
2N4401 amplifier circuit
The figure shows the basic amplifier circuit using a 2N4401 transistor, the circuit consists of a few passive components with one active component 2N4401 transistor.
The input signal reaches the input capacitor, which remove DC components from the signal and forwarded the signal to the transistor for amplification purpose.
