EDUCATION - SECTOR DESCRIPTIONS - ELECTRONICS

Electronics is the study of the flow of charge through various materials and devices such as semiconductors, resistors, inductors, capacitors, nano-structures and vacuum tubes. All applications of electronics involve the transmission of power and possibly information. Although considered to be a theoretical branch of physics, the design and construction of electronic circuits to solve practical problems is an essential technique in the fields of electronics engineering and computer engineering.

Electronic systems are used to perform a wide variety of tasks. The main uses of electronic circuits are:
The controlling and processing of data.
The conversion to/from and distribution of electric power.
Both these applications involve the creation and/or detection of electromagnetic fields and electric currents. While electrical energy had been used for some time prior to the late 19th century to transmit data over telegraph and telephone lines, development in electronics grew exponentially after the advent of radio.

One way of looking at an electronic system is to divide it into 3 parts:

Inputs – Electronic or mechanical sensors (or transducers). These devices take signals/information from external sources in the physical world (such as antennas or technology networks) and convert those signals/information into current/voltage or digital (high/low) signals within the system.

Signal processors – These circuits serve to manipulate, interpret and transform inputted signals in order to make them useful for a desired application. Recently, complex signal processing has been accomplished with the use of Digital Signal Processors.

Outputs – Actuators or other devices (such as transducers) that transform current/voltage signals back into useful physical form (e.g., by accomplishing a physical task such as rotating an electric motor).

For example, a television set contains these 3 parts. The television's input transforms a broadcast signal (received by an antenna or fed in through a cable) into a current/voltage signal that can be used by the device. Signal processing circuits inside the television extract information from this signal that dictates brightness, colour and sound level. Output devices then convert this information back into physical form. A cathode ray tube transforms electronic signals into a visible image on the screen. Magnet-driven speakers convert signals into audible sound.

An electronic component is any physical entity in an electronic system whose intention is to affect the electrons or their associated fields in a desired manner consistent with the intended function of the electronic system. Components are generally intended to be in mutual electromechanical contact, usually by being soldered to a printed circuit board (PCB), to create an electronic circuit with a particular function (for example an amplifier, radio receiver, or oscillator). Components may be packaged singly or in more or less complex groups as integrated circuits.