Diodes are small light bulbs that are found in Hurricos in Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage!. They're created by the Electrolls, and used to power the machines in Avalar. They were often unplugged due to the Gear Grinders constantly annoying the Electrolls. When they were unplugged from their gates, some electric forcefields would be turned on, blocking any passage and shocking anyone who touched them.
Spyro had to find all of the diodes in order to plug them back in, deactivate the forcefields and advance through the realm.