electro-, electr-, electri-
(Greek > Latin: electric, electricity; from amber, resembling amber, generated from amber which when rubbed vigorously [as by friction], produced the effect of static electricity)
Electronics in our lives consists of numerous tools
Equipment which we use everyday relies on electronics to function including calculators, car controls, cameras, washing machines, medical scanners, mobile telephones, radar systems, computers; as well as many other applications or devices which are listed in this unit.
2. The generation of electricity or of electric polarity in dielectric crystals subjected to mechanical stress, or the generation of stress in such crystals subjected to an applied voltage.
3. Electric currents generated by pressure upon certain crystals; such as, quartz, mica, and calcite.
4. Etymology, Piezoelectricity is derived from Greek piezein, "to squeeze" or "to press".
A certain type of piezoelectric material can covert energy at a 100 percent increase when manufactured at a very small size; in this case, about 21 nanometers in thickness.
Many high-tech devices contain components that are measured in nanometers, which is a microscopic unit of measurement representing one-billionth of a meter; a human hair is about 100,000 nanometers wide.
Piezoelectrics are materials; usually, crystals or ceramics, which generate voltage when a form of mechanical stress is applied. They demonstrate a change in their physical properties when an electric field is applied.
Discovered by French scientists in the 1880's, piezoelectrics are not a new concept. They were first used in sonar devices during World War I.
Today they can be found in microphones and quartz watches. Cigarette lighters in automobiles also contain piezoelectrics. Pressing down the lighter button causes impact on a piezoelectric crystal which then produces enough voltage to create a spark and ignite the gas.
While advances in piezoelectrics applications are progressing, piezoelectric work at the nanoscale is a newer endeavor with different and complex aspects to consider; especially, because the size of a hair is much more pliable and susceptible to change from its surrounding environment than larger kinds of materials.
More research is being done to accomplish a self-powering cell phone that never needs to be charged because it will be able to convert sound waves produced by the user into the energy it needs to keep running without batteries.
2. An electrode with a small metallic point to obtain a high electric current density in a small area.
The positive pole of a galvanic battery or the electrode connected with it.
An electrode toward which negatively charged ions migrate.
2. A positively charged particle of the same mass and magnititude of charge as an electron; a positive electron.
The references or sources of information for compiling the words and definitions in this unit are listed at this Electronic Bibliography page or specific sources are indicated when they are appropriate.
A cross reference of word units that are related, directly and/or indirectly, with "electricity": galvano-; hodo-; ion-; piezo-; -tron; volt; biomechatronics, info; mechatronics, info.