Lesson 1. Electronics as a science

I. Read the text for gist and retell it briefly.

Electronics as a science studies the properties of electrons, the laws of their motion, and the laws of transformation of various kinds of energy.

Electronics is a science, which deals with devices and instruments that are operated by the control of the movement of electric charges in a vacuum, in gasses, or in semiconductors; or with the processing of information or the control of energy by such devices. This definition covers the whole complex family of vacuum and gaseous electron tubes and their application. It also includes semiconductor and transistor technologies to process information or to convert energy. Without electronics we would not have cybernetics, cosmonautics and nuclear physics. It is no mistake to compare the birth of electronics to such great achievements of mankind as the discovery of fire, and penetration into the secrets of the atom. Shortly speaking, electronics is not so much a new subject; it is rather a new way of looking at electricity.

 

II. Read and translate the text.

Overview of electronic engineering

Electronic engineering involves the design and testing of electronic circuits that use the electronic properties of such components as resistors, capacitors, inductors, diodes and transistors to achieve a particular functionality.

Signal processing deals with the analysis and manipulation of signals. Signals can be either analog, in which case the signal varies continuously according to the information, or digital, in which case the signal varies according to a series of discrete values representing the information.

For analog signals, signal processing may involve the amplification and filtering of audio signals for audio equipment or the modulation and demodulation of signals for telecommunications. For digital signals, signal processing may involve the compression, error checking and error detection of digital signals.

Control engineering has a wide range of applications from the flight and propulsion systems of commercial airplanes to the cruise control found in many modern cars. It also plays an important role in industrial automation.

Control engineers often utilize feedback when designing control systems. For example, in a car with cruise control the vehicle’s speed is continuously monitored and fed back to the system which adjusts the engine’s power output accordingly. Where there is regular feedback, control theory can be used to determine how the system responds to such feedback.

 

III. Find international terms and practice their pronunciation.

IV. Look through the text again and choose phrases or sentences with the most relevant information.

V. Read the text and ask 3 or 4 questions of different types in writing.

Microelectronics

Microelectronics is a subfield of electronics which is related to the study and manufacture of electronic components which are very small. These devices are made from semiconductors using a process known as photolithography. Many components of normal electronic design are available in microelectronic equivalents: transistors, capacitors, inductors, resistors, diodes and of course insulators and conductors can all be found in microelectronic devices.

Digital integrated circuits consist mostly of transistors. Analog circuits commonly contain resistors and capacitors as well. Inductors are used in some high frequency analog circuits; they occupy a large chip area if used at low frequencies.

As techniques improve, the sizes of microelectronic components continue to decrease. At smaller scales, the effects of minor circuit elements such as interconnections may become more important. These are called parasitic effects, and the goal of the microelectronics design engineer is to find ways to compensate for or to minimize these effects.

 

Notes

P arasitic effects - паразитные явления (побочные, нежелательные явления, возникающие в схеме)