Electronics and Electrical Engineering

The rapidly changing technology of electronics has left many technicians requiring an urgent updating of their skills. The same problems have faced other engineers, who now require a knowledge of electronics to understand new developments in their own subjects. Hardly any part of modern life is untouched by electronics, and almost everyone working in engineering or science needs some understanding of electronics. This book has been written in response to the need that now undoubtedly exists. The aim has been to explain principles and devices in clear terms, without assuming a high level of prior knowledge. The reader will probably have some elementary knowledge of electricity, more likely from a practical than a theoretical standpoint. For that reason, the early chapters of the book are concerned with electrical principles, and may be omitted by anyone who is thoroughly familiar with them. For the reader whose theoretical knowledge may have been dulled by time, these chapters should provide a very useful revision of topics that are essential to the understanding of electronics. In the sections that deal with electronics, the emphasis has been on principles and devices, but sufficient circuit diagrams have been included to illustrate how the various electronic components are used. The book provides a practical introduction to electronics for the electrician or newly qualified technician and a welcome retraining course for the non-electrical engineers also.