Basic electronics

So what the heck are these little black plastic box things with legs

anyway?Electronics for non-geeks

2Copyright © 2008 Altium Limited

What we will talk about

Electrons Water Silicon Transistors ICs Counting to two Logical decisions Thinking machines FPGAs – what the…!


I’m about to spend two hours in a small room

with an engineer…aaahhhh!


Electrons are fun!

Electronics = controlling the flow of electrons to do useful stuff

Electrons are tiny charged particles Electrons can made to ‘move’ in some

materials– Conductors

Metals for example

Electrons don’t move in some materials

– Insulators Rubber, wood for example

By controlling flow of electrons we can– Transmit information– Transform information


The water analogy

Voltage = water pressure Current = amount of water flowing Hoses/pipes = wires Resistor = kink or restriction in hose Capacitor = storage tank Inductor = water wheel in the flow Transistor = tap or valve


Some basic terms


So where does silicon fit in?

Silicon forms semiconductors– Sometimes it conducts– Sometimes it doesn’t conduct

We can help semiconductors make up their mind

– Temperature– Electric/magnetic fields

Silicon is used to make some electronic components

– Transistors– Diodes

We place ‘impurities’ in silicon to form these components

Silicon transistors form the heart of all modern electronics devices


The first transistor - 1947


Those pesky little black blobs!

Multiple components on one piece of silicon = Integrate Circuit = IC

ICs can be complete circuits ICs can perform complex functions The complexity cycle:

1. Combine multiple ICs and basic components to form even more complex circuits

2. Turn this into an even more complex IC

3. Repeat steps 1, 2 and 3


The law according to Mr Moore

“The number of transistors that can be inexpensively placed on an integrated circuit is increasing

exponentially, doubling approximately every two years”

- Gordon E. Moore, co-founder of Intel, 1965

This observation has held true for almost half a century

The latest Intel processor has 2,000,000,000 transistors


Practical electronic product - 1


Practical electronic product - 2


A real practical electronic product


Counting to two

Transistors can act as an on/off switch Let On=1, Off=0 Now you can count using electrons! For electrons, and penguins, 1+1 = 10


A very old joke

There are 10 types of people in the world…

…those that understand binary and those that don’t!


Analogue vs digital

The real world is analogue Analogue stuff is hard to manipulate with

electrons Digital stuff – well it’s just numbers! We can easily do stuff with numbers


AND and NAND or OR NOT NOR

Transistors can act logically Let On=TRUE, Off=FALSE Now you can make decisions with

electrons Sound buzzer if A and (B or C) Logical circuits are called GATES

– Not named after Bill– Reflect what they do to signals


Boolean algebra with transistors

=

Gates are just electronic circuits


What do electrons think?

Logic + counting = processing Processing is controlling one set of signals with another A set of logical instructions is a ‘program’ Chips that execute programs are called Microprocessors No you can think, calculate and react with electrons


Today, microprocessors are in everything!


So what is an FPGA?

FPGA = Field Programmable Gate Array An array of gates on a single chip

– Can be connected together after manufacture

– Can be made to do almost any digital function

– Can be reconfigured at any time

Development of FPGAs has been consistent with Moore’s Law They will have a significant impact on the future of electronic design


So what have you learned?

Electrons can be used to do useful things Components control the flow of electrons Putting components together to do stuff is called electronics design It’s easier to do stuff with numbers than with analogue signals Microprocessors make doing stuff with numbers easy FPGAs let you do digital design in a whole new way Electronics is developing at an exponential rate


And finally…

Electrons CAN be DANGEROUS Leave it to the professionals!

The End

Technology

Basic electronics