Cryptic marking

Inductors—be aware that many vendors put cryptic markings such as 102 or 103 on them. For capacitors, there are industry standard markings. For example, 221 is 22 x 1 O pf, 222 is 22 x 102pf, and so on. All are referred to the base unit, pF. But in inductors, 102 may be 10 x 102in nH or pH. In other words they could be a factor of 1000 apart, with the same marking. If necessary, find an LCR meter and double-check. 

Haseloff, J., Siemering, K. R., Prasher, D. C. and Hodge, S. (1997). Removal of a cryptic intron and subcellular localization of green fluorescent protein are required to mark transgenic Arabidopsis plants brightly. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94, 2122-7. 

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