What are electronics?
The branch of engineering dealing with current conduction through a vacuum or gas or semiconductor is known as electronics.
Electronics essentially deals with electronic devices and their uses.
An electronic device is that in which current flows through a vacuum or gas or semiconductor.
Importance of electronics
Electronics has gained a lot of importance due to its numerous applications in the industry.
The electronic devices can perform the following functions:
- Correction
- strengthening
- Check
- Generation
(i) Correction:
The conversion of ac to dc is called rectification.
Electronic devices can convert alternating current into direct current with a very high efficiency. This is shown in fig.1 below.
This DC power supply can be used for battery charging, DC generator field power, electroplating, etc.
(ii) Reinforcement:
The process of increasing the strength of a weak signal is known as amplification.
Electronic devices can perform the task of amplification and thus act as amplifiers as shown in Figure 2 below.
The amplifiers are used in many different ways. For example, an amplifier is used in a radio set where the weak signal is amplified so that it can be heard loudly. Likewise, amplifiers are used in public address systems, television etc.
(iii) Control:
Electronic devices find wide applications in automatic control. With the aid of such devices, for example, the speed of a motor, voltage across a refrigerator, etc. can be controlled automatically.
(iv) Generation:
Electronic devices can convert direct current to alternating current of any frequency as shown in Figure 3 below.
In performing this function, they are known as oscillators. The oscillators are used in many different ways. For example, electronic high-frequency heating is used for annealing and curing. Apart from this check out the best electronic invention of all time.
