SIX - Electronic Fundamentals

Abstract

This chapter discusses electronic fundamentals. It discusses how electronic devices are used to implement the systems using abstract logic elements. In the study of electronic circuits, two concepts are basic, namely, electrical potential and electric current. These ideas are analogous to those which occur in the flow of water under the action of gravity. In electric circuits, the difference in the surface height corresponds to the electrical potential difference and the rate of flow of water corresponds to the electric current. This current flows not through a pipe, but through a metal wire, which is said to have resistance to the flow of electricity. Some types of wire, particularly copper wire, have a very low resistance and such wire is used for connections between the elements of which electronic circuits are composed. The operation of electronic circuits involves the flow of electricity. The chapter also discusses electrostatics to describe the operation of electronic circuits. Static electricity, or electricity at rest, manifests itself in the form of an electric charge. Such charges can reside in or on the surface of material objects. An electric charge can be one of two types. It can either be positive or negative.