Transistor


A device composed of semiconductor material that amplifies a signal or opens or closes a circuit. Invented in 1947 at Bell Labs, transistors have become the key ingredient of all digital circuits, including computers. Today’s microprocessors contains tens of millions of microscopic transistors.

Prior to the invention of transistors, digital circuits were composed of vacuum tubes, which had many disadvantages. They were much larger, required more energy, dissipated more heat, and were more prone to failures. It’s safe to say that without the invention of transistors, computing as we know it today would not be possible.

Read Also:

  • Transmission Media

    Describes the type of physical system used to carry a communication signal from one system to another. Examples of transmission media include twisted-pair cable, coaxial cable, and fiber optic cable.

  • transmission path

    Also referred to as a transmission channel, the path between two nodes of a network that a data communication follows. The term can refer to the physical cabling that connects the nodes on a network, the signal that is communicated over the pathway or a subchannel in a carrier frequency.

  • transmissive

    (adj.) A type of LCD screen in which the pixels are illuminated from behind the monitor��s screen (opposite of the user). Transmissive LCDs are commonly used in laptop computers because they offer high contrast and deep colors and are well-suited for indoor environments and low-light circumstances. Transmissive LCDs are at a disadvantage in very bright […]

  • transparent

    Invisible. In computer software, an action is transparent if it takes place without any visible effect. Transparency is usually considered to be a good characteristic of a system because it shields the user from the system’s complexity.

  • transparent bridge

    Transparent bridges are devices which connects more than one network segments with other bridges to make all routing decisions. A transparent bridge is essentially used to learn the MAC addresses of all nodes and their associated port, to filter incoming frames whose destination MAC addresses are located on the same incoming port, and to forward […]


Disclaimer: Transistor definition / meaning should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. All content on this website is for informational purposes only.