2.1 THE BASICS OF ELECTRONICS ELECTRONICS What is electronics? The word derives from “electricity”. It can be defined as the of activity that studies how to control the flow of electricity and transform it into signals that carry information. It components and circuits that use electricity at very low voltage. electronics field deals with ENIAC A short history of electronics The birth of electronics to 1904, when J. A. Fleming invented a two-element electron tube called the vacuum diode. In 1906, following Fleming’s invention, Lee De Forest developed a three-element tube called the triode. These devices made amplification and transmission of electricity possible, helping to make weak radio signals stronger; for this reason, they were first employed for long-distance communications in early radio telegraphs and telephones . In 1945 the first computer, called ENIAC, was invented in the USA. It employed thousands of vacuum tubes and was very , but it was one of the first programmable machines capable of solving quite a wide range of problems . In 1947, the transistor, another key electronic component, first appeared in American laboratories, replacing vacuum tubes. This invention made it possible to develop integrated circuits between 1958 and 1959, and then microprocessors in 1971. These components rapidly led to the development of modern computers and digital electronics. Today, most of the appliances and devices we use every day work on these electronic components. dates back 1 bulky 2 MORE These means of communication were developed in the first two decades of 1900s by Guglielmo Marconi. 1 MORE A similar computer, called Colossus, was created in Britain during World War II. It was a machine which was built to decrypt the German Nazi code and prevent attacks. 2 Applications of electronics . Applications of electronics are really common in almost all fields of everyday life: Everyday life : washing machines, microwave ovens, vacuum cleaners; household appliances : calculators, PCs, scanners, printers; office devices : TVs, microphones, loudspeakers, MP3 players; audio and video : , pace-makers, various types of monitors and meters; medical devices CT scanners : radars, body scanners, missile and rocket launching systems; security systems : scanners, , POS terminals, smartphones. other applications barcode cash dispensers . Electronics is also very important in industry. , for example, have replaced human workers in dangerous jobs or in tasks that require high precision; have contributed to the evolution of graphics and are making a big revolution in the production processes. Industry Automated systems 3D systems 3D printers