Since its invention in the beginning of the 19th century, electricity is considered one of the most important inventions in history. It has changed our interaction with nature and with others in a radical way. For example, our sleeping schedule has changed when we first discovered the lamp, and our social behavior has changed when we discovered television and mobile phones, wars are about to begin because of rare minerals, and the countries that contain those minerals are the ones defining the global policies in recent years
Notion of electricity
Electricity or the electrical current is the movement of small particles called electrons inside a conductive or a semi-conducting material
Based on that definition, every material is classified into three categories : conductive material, semi-conductive material or non-conductive material. We will elaborate on every category in other sections of this website
Conductive and semi-conductive materials, besides current generators are important to understand the functioning of an electrical circuit
Copper for example, which is one of the most used conductors, does not produce electricity, but when we connect a copper wire to a current generator, the wire starts transporting electrons from one extremity to the other side of the wire, which is normally connected to a receptor, like a lamp. This phenomenon is called electrical current
Electrical current then, is the movement of electrons inside a conductor using an electrical generator. And to complete the circuit, we connect the lamp to the negative terminal of the generator
The unit “Ampere” is used to calculate the intensity of electrical current. and we use the unit “Volt” to express the amount of stimulus between the two sides of a conductor. Both units are connected because when voltage is high between the two sides of a conductor, more current can be transported to the other side of the wire
Other definitions
1 – Electrical receptor
Is the part the consumer uses, or the part of the electrical circuit that the user interferes with, like a computer screen, speakers or an automatic barrier
For example, the active part of a LED lamp is a glass material that emits light of a specific color when excited by electrical current. It can be considered then both as a conductor or a receptor
2 – Electronic Board
Also called “printed circuit board” or “motherboard”. inside every electronic device, there are three essential elements : button panel, screen or the part the user can observe the effect of electricity in a circuit when activated, in addition to the motherboard
Electronic board is the calculator in every electronic device. Its main function is to manage and distribute electrical signals to other parts of the device based on entries that the user defines using the button panel. Its shape and complexity differs depending on the required task
The history of electronic boards goes back to the end of WWII when we first discovered transistors and the use of semiconductors. Engineers started then to deal with managing low power electrical signals and delaying its transmission. That was the beginning of the computer science and programming era
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