Product Overview
An RCA 3N138 MOSFET With Its Markings Facing the Camera
Condition
Listed New. Every photograph on this page is of the single device you receive: a bright metal TO-72 can with four straight leads, black side markings reading 3N138 over Z RCA 010, and ZE stamped into the top of the can. A copper-colored wire loop is still wrapped around the leads, the lead-shorting ring that keeps a MOS gate from collecting a static charge in storage. No dents, corrosion, cut leads, or solder on the leads are visible in these photos. The last photo shows the device beside a handwritten note reading ZE, 3N138, Z RCA 010.
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Product Overview
The 3N138 is an N-channel insulated-gate field-effect transistor, what most people now call a MOSFET, built by RCA in the four-lead TO-72 metal can. The insulated gate is the whole idea: the control terminal sits behind an oxide layer instead of a junction, so it responds to voltage rather than gate current, and that same oxide is why MOS devices need handling discipline and why parts of this era are commonly found with a loop of wire shorting their leads together. This can carries the full identification the camera can read, 3N138 on the top line, Z RCA 010 on the second, ZE stamped into the crown, and four straight leads come out of the base in the photos. Drain and gate ratings, threshold voltage, transconductance, dissipation, and pin assignment are not confirmed here - verify them against the RCA 3N138 datasheet before you design it in or drop it into a repair.
Key Features
- Marked 3N138 with RCA on the can side, ZE stamped into the top
- N-channel insulated-gate field-effect transistor, the MOSFET family
- TO-72 metal can with four leads, as shown in the photos
- Copper-colored lead-shorting loop present around the leads as photographed
- Condition New, stock of one, and the photos are of that one device
- Electrical ratings and pinout not confirmed - verify against the RCA datasheet before use
Applications
- A restorer working on RCA-era equipment whose schematic calls out a 3N138 by number and would rather fit the original part than argue with a substitution table.
- A repair tech who needs one small-signal MOSFET in a metal can to finish a board this week instead of waiting on a broker minimum.
- A collector filling the RCA gap in a small-signal semiconductor drawer with a device whose markings were legible before it shipped.
- A teaching lab or museum restoration where the original RCA part number on the can matters as much as the function behind it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is marked on this device?
The can reads 3N138 on the top line and Z RCA 010 on the second line, with ZE stamped into the top. 3N138 is the type number and RCA is the maker. The ZE, the leading Z, and the 010 are read here as lot or date codes and are not confirmed as anything more than that.
What is the wire loop around the leads?
A lead-shorting ring. MOS gates are damaged by static discharge, so devices of this type are commonly stored with their leads tied together by a loop of wire. Leave it on until the device is seated and you are grounded, then slip it off.
Is this the four-lead package?
Yes. The photos show four leads coming out of the TO-72 metal can. Which lead is which is not confirmed here - check the RCA 3N138 datasheet against your board before wiring it in.
What can you confirm about its ratings?
Only what the can says and what the photos show: an RCA 3N138, N-channel, insulated gate, TO-72, four leads, no visible damage. Voltage limits, gate threshold, transconductance, and dissipation are not confirmed - verify against the datasheet before use.
Why buy this one device instead of a surplus lot of unknown cans?
Stock here is one, and it is the one in the photographs: type number readable, maker's name readable, four leads straight, the shorting loop still around them. A bag of unmarked metal cans is a guessing game you play with a curve tracer, and you still end up with forty-nine you did not need. Shipping is a flat $8, free once your order clears $28, and orders leave our Idaho warehouse the same or next business day.
The shorting loop still around the leads is the whole personality of a MOS device: it shows up insisting you touch nothing until it is safely in the circuit. Ground yourself, seat the leads, take the loop off last, and let it get back to the job RCA gave it a number for.
