The story of the discovery of electricity: the emergence and development. When did it appear and who discovered electricity in Russia?

Electricity has been known to people since the earliest times. True, people only learned to measure electricity in the early 19th century. Then it took another 70 years before the moment when in 1872 the Russian scientist A.N. Lodygin invented the world's first incandescent light bulb. But knowledge of such a phenomenon as electricity was in people already many thousands of years ago. After all, even an ancient person noticed the amazing property of wool rubbed with amber to attract threads, dust and other small objects. Much later, this property was noticed with other substances, such as sulfur, sealing wax and glass. And due to the fact that "amber" in Greek sounded like an "electron", these properties began to be called electric.

And the reason for the occurrence of electricity is that during friction, the charge is divided into positive and negative charges. Accordingly, charges with one sign repel each other, and with different signs they are attracted. Moving along a metal wire, which is a conductor, these charges create electricity.
Without electricity in our time, it is simply impossible to imagine a normal civilized life. It shines, warms, gives us the opportunity to communicate at great distances from each other, etc. Electric current drives a wide variety of units and devices - from a small alarm clock to a huge rolling mill. Therefore, if we imagine that once electricity can disappear simultaneously on the entire planet, human life will dramatically change its direction. We can no longer do without electric current, because it feeds and makes almost all the mechanisms and devices invented by man work. And if you look around you can see that in any apartment, at least one of the sockets will be plugged in, from which there is a wire to a tape recorder, TV, microwave or other devices that we use daily at home or at work .
Today, no civilized country can live without electricity. How is such a huge amount of electricity produced that can meet the needs of billions of people living on Earth?
For these purposes, power plants have been created. With the help of generators, electricity is created on them, which is then transmitted over great distances through power lines. Power plants come in many forms. Some use water energy to generate electricity; they are called hydroelectric power plants. Others receive energy from the combustion of fuel (gas, diesel, or coal). These are thermal power plants that produce not only electric current, but can also heat water, which then enters the heating pipes that heat the premises of houses or shops of factories. And there are also nuclear power plants, wind, tidal, solar and many others.
In a hydroelectric power station (HPS), a stream of water rotates the turbines of a generator that generates electricity. In thermal power plants (TPPs), this responsibility is assigned to water vapor, which is formed as a result of heating water from fuel combustion. Water vapor bursts under very high pressure into the turbines of the generator, where there are many rotating parts equipped with special petals resembling aircraft propellers. Steam passing through the petals rotates the working units of the generator, due to which an electric current is generated.
A similar principle is used in a nuclear power plant (NPP), only there are radioactive materials - uranium and plutonium - serve as fuel. Due to the special properties of uranium and plutonium, they emit a very large amount of heat, which is used to heat water and produce water vapor. Then the heated steam enters the turbine and an electric current is generated. Interestingly, only ten grams of such fuel replaces a whole carriage of coal.

Basically, power plants do not work on their own. They are interconnected by power lines. With their help, electricity is sent to where it is most needed. Power lines stretch across our vast country, so the current that we use at home can be generated very far, hundreds of kilometers from our apartment. But wherever the power plant is, thanks to power lines, everyone can plug in a plug and socket and turn on any device or device that he needs.

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Electricity - the greatest invention of mankind

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Vadim Pribytkov theoretical physicist, permanent author of Terra Incognita. ---- The basic properties and laws of electricity - established by amateurs. Electricity is the foundation of modern technology. There is no more important discovery in the history of mankind than electricity. They may say that space and computer science are also grandiose scientific achievements. But without electricity there would be no space, no computers. Electricity is a stream of moving charged particles - electrons, as well as all the phenomena associated with rearrangement of a charge in a body. The most interesting thing in the history of electricity is that its basic properties and laws were established by outsiders. But at this crucial moment, until now, somehow no attention has been paid. Already in ancient times, it was known that amber, shabby on wool, acquires the ability to attract light objects. However, for thousands of years this phenomenon has not found practical application and further development. Amber persistently rubbed, admired ...

Vadim Pribytkov theoretical physicist, permanent author of Terra Incognita.

The basic properties and laws of electricity are set by amateurs.

Electricity is the foundation of modern technology. There is no more important discovery in the history of mankind than electricity. They may say that space and computer science are also grandiose scientific achievements. But without electricity there would be no space, no computers.

Electricity is a stream of moving charged particles - electrons, as well as all the phenomena associated with rearrangement of a charge in a body. The most interesting thing in the history of electricity is that its basic properties and laws were established by outsiders. But at this crucial moment, until now, somehow no attention has been paid.

Already in ancient times, it was known that amber, shabby on wool, acquires the ability to attract light objects. However, for thousands of years this phenomenon has not found practical application and further development.

Amber was stubbornly rubbed, admired, made various decorations out of it, and this was limited to this.

In 1600, a book by the English doctor W. Hilbert was published in London, in which he first showed that many other bodies, including glass, also have the ability to attract light objects after friction. He also noted that air humidity impeded this phenomenon to a large extent.

Hilbert's erroneous concept.

However, Hilbert was the first to erroneously establish a distinction between electrical and magnetic phenomena, although in reality these phenomena are generated by the same electrical particles and there is no line between electrical and magnetic phenomena. This erroneous concept had far-reaching consequences and for a long time confused the essence of the issue.

Hilbert also discovered that a magnet loses its magnetic properties upon heating and restores them upon cooling. He used a soft iron nozzle to enhance the action of permanent magnets, the first to consider the Earth as a magnet. Already from this brief listing it is clear that the most important discoveries were made by the doctor Hilbert.

The most surprising thing about this analysis is that until Hilbert, from the ancient Greeks who established the properties of amber and the Chinese who used the compass, there was no one who could draw such conclusions and systematize observations.

Contribution to the science of O. Henrique.

Then the events developed unusually slowly. 71 years passed before the German burgomaster O. Gerike in 1671 took the next step. His contribution to electricity was enormous.

Guericke established the mutual repulsion of two electrified bodies (Hilbert believed that there was only attraction), the transfer of electricity from one body to another by means of a conductor, electrification by influence when approaching an uncharged body of an electrified body, and, most importantly, he was the first to build one based on friction electric car. Those.

he created all the possibilities for further insight into the essence of electrical phenomena.

Not only physicists have contributed to the development of electricity.

Another 60 years passed before the French scientist S. Duffe in 1735-37. and American politician B. Franklin in 1747-54.

found that electric charges are of two kinds. And, finally, in 1785, the law of the interaction of charges was formed by the French artillery officer S. Coulomb.

It is also necessary to indicate the work of the Italian doctor L. Galvani. Of great importance were the work of A. Volt to create a powerful DC source in the form of a "voltaic column."

An important contribution to the knowledge of electricity occurred in 1820, when the Danish physics professor H. Oersted discovered the influence of a conductor with current on a magnetic needle. Almost simultaneously, A. Ampere discovered and studied the interaction of currents among themselves, which is of extremely important applied value.

A great contribution to the study of electricity was also made by aristocrat G. Cavendish, Abbot D. Priestley, and school teacher G. Ohm. Based on all these studies, apprentice M. Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction in 1831, which in reality is one of the forms of current interaction.

Why have people not known anything about electricity for millennia? Why did the most diverse sections of the population participate in this process? In connection with the development of capitalism, there was a general economic upsurge, medieval caste and estate prejudices and restrictions broke, and the general cultural and educational level of the population rose. However, then there were some difficulties. For example, Faraday, Om, and several other talented researchers had to engage in fierce battles with their theoretical opponents and opponents. But still, in the end, their ideas and views were published and found recognition.

From all this, interesting conclusions can be drawn: scientific discoveries are made not only by academics, but also science lovers.

If we want our science to be at the forefront, we must remember and take into account the history of its development, fight against caste and monopolism of one-sided views, create equal conditions for all talented researchers, regardless of their scientific status.

Therefore, it is time to open the pages of our scientific journals for school teachers, artillery officers, abbots, doctors, aristocrats and apprentices, so that they can take an active part in scientific work. Now they are deprived of such an opportunity.

Who invented electricity and when did this happen? Despite the fact that electricity has firmly entered our lives and radically changed it, most people find it difficult to answer this question.

And this is not surprising, because humanity has been moving towards the era of electricity for millennia.

Light and electrons.

Electricity is called the totality of phenomena based on the movement and interaction of tiny charged particles, called electric charges.

The term "electricity" comes from the Greek word "electron", which in translation into Russian means "amber".

This name was given to the physical phenomenon for a reason, because the first experiments on generating electricity date back to ancient times, when in the 7th century BC e. the ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician Thales came to the discovery that a piece of amber worn on the wool is able to attract paper, feathers and other objects with low weight.

At the same time, attempts were made to get a spark after bringing a rubbed finger to the glass. But the knowledge available to people in those ancient times was clearly not enough to explain the nature of the origin of the obtained physical phenomena.

Significant progress in the study of electricity was made after 2 millennia. In 1600, the court physician of the British Queen William Gilbert published a treatise "On magnets, magnetic bodies and a large magnet - the Earth", where he used the word "electrician" for the first time in history.

In his work, an English scientist explained the principle of operation of a compass based on a magnet, and described experiments with electrified objects. Gilbert was able to conclude that the ability to electrify is characteristic of various bodies.

The successor of William Gilbert’s research can be called the German burgomaster Otto von Gerike, who in 1663 managed to come up with the first electrostatic machine in the history of mankind.

The German invention was a device consisting of a large sulfur ball, mounted on an iron axis and attached to a wooden tripod.

To obtain an electric charge, the ball was rubbed with a piece of cloth or hands during rotation. This simple device allowed not only to attract light objects to itself, but also to repel them.

In 1729, experiments on the study of electricity were continued by a scientist from England, Stephen Gray. He managed to determine that metals and some other types of materials are capable of transmitting electric current at a distance. They began to be called conductors.

In the course of his experiments, Gray found out that in nature there are substances that are not able to transmit electricity. These include amber, glass, sulfur, etc. Such materials were subsequently called insulators.

4 years after the experiments of Stephen Gray, the French physicist Charles Dufe discovered the existence of two types of electric charges (resin and glass) and studied their interaction with each other. The charges described later were called negative and positive.

Inventions of the last centuries

The middle of the XVIII century. marked the beginning of an era of active study of electricity. In 1745, the Dutch scientist Peter van Mushenbruck created a device for the accumulation of electricity, called the Leiden Bank.

In Russia at about the same period, Mikhail Lomonosov and Georg Richman were actively studying electrical properties.

The first person to try to give a scientific explanation for electricity was an American politician and scientist Benjamin Franklin.

According to his theory, electricity is an intangible fluid that is present in all physical matters. During friction, part of this fluid passes from one body to another, thereby causing an electric charge.

Other Franklin achievements include:

• introduction of the concept of negative and positive electric charge;
• invention of the first lightning rod;
• proof of the electrical origin of lightning.

In 1785, the French physicist Charles Coulomb formulated a law explaining the interaction between point charges in an immovable state.

Coulomb's Law became the starting point for the study of electricity as an exact scientific concept.

Since the beginning of the 19th century, many discoveries have been made in the world that allow us to better study the properties of electricity.

In 1800, a scientist from Italy, Alessandro Volta, invented a galvanic cell, which is the first source of direct current in the history of mankind. Soon after, the Russian physicist Vasily Petrov discovered and described a discharge in gas, called the voltaic arc.

In the 1920s, Andre-Marie Ampère introduced the concept of “electric current” into physics and formulated a theory about the relationship of magnetic fields with electric fields.

In the first half of the 19th century, physicists James Joule, Georg Om, Johann Gauss, Michael Faraday and other world-famous scientists make their discoveries. In particular, Faraday owns the discovery of electrolysis, electromagnetic induction and the invention of an electric motor.

In the last decades of the 19th century, physicists have discovered the existence of electromagnetic waves, invented an incandescent lamp, and set about transferring electric energy over long distances. From this period, electricity begins to slowly but surely spread across the planet.

His invention is associated with the names of the greatest scientists of the world, each of which at one time made every effort to study the properties of electricity and transfer its knowledge and discoveries to subsequent generations.

Today I want to tell you briefly what electricity is.

And then we all study topics on electricity, but we don’t even think about the basics and internal processes of its occurrence.

We will not go deeply into the study of the origin and origin of electricity, because it is very laborious and time consuming, but I consider it necessary to consider the basics.

As you all know from the course of school physics, or you may not know, all bodies consist of the following tiny particles:

• molecule
• a molecule in turn consists of atoms
• atom consists of protons, neutrons and electrons

So each of these particles has its own electric charge.

The charge is either positive or negative. Accordingly, a body with a positive charge is always attracted to a body with a negative charge. And two bodies with positive charges, or negative, always repel each other.

Opposite charged bodies attract, and homonymous bodies repel, i.e. at this moment, one can observe the tendency of movement of these bodies.

The intensity and speed of movement of the smallest particles in bodies depends on many of the following factors:

• temperature
• deformation
• friction
• chemical reactions

The origin and occurrence of electricity

I mentioned a little above that an atom consists of protons, neutrons and electrons. So protons (positively charged) and neutrons (neutrally charged) this is the very nucleus of the atom. In the image below, see what an atom consists of.

The nucleus of an atom always has a positive charge. The neutron (shown in red) does not have an electric charge. The proton (shown in blue) always has a positive charge.

Negatively charged electrons rotate around this nucleus (shown in blue), which can be at different distances from the nucleus, depending on the material of the substance. The distance, or rather, the energy level of the electron, depends on the energy that the electron can absorb from outside (usually from photons) and emit. This is done by the electrons of the outer electron shells (the most distant from the nucleus). If the electron "captures" too much energy, it can leave the atom, as discussed below. Those. The interaction of an atom with other atoms and other particles occurs due to external electrons.

The charge of an electron is exactly equal to the charge of a proton in magnitude and opposite in sign. Therefore, in general, the atom is neutral.

The interaction of positive protons of the nucleus with negative electrons is not always constant, and as electrons move away from the nucleus, it decreases.

Those. it turns out that we can change the number of electrons in atoms.

The methods of exposure and factors affecting the bodies I mentioned above are light, temperature, deformation, friction, and various chemical reactions. Now let's talk about each impact in more detail.

Shine

For example, under the influence of light radiation on a substance, electrons can fly out of it, which in turn are charged with a positive charge. This phenomenon is called in physics photo effect. We will talk about him in the following articles. In order not to miss new articles, subscribe to receive a notification about the release of new articles on the site.

The principle of the action of photocells is based on the phenomenon of the photoelectric effect.

Temperature

When a substance (body) is exposed to high temperature, electrons distant from the nucleus increase their speed of rotation around the nucleus and at one fine moment they have enough kinetic energy to break away from the nucleus. In this case, the electrons become free particles with negative charges.

This phenomenon in physics is called thermionic emission. This phenomenon is applied quite extensively. But more on that in the following articles. Stay tuned for updates on the site.

Chemical reaction

In chemical reactions, positive and negative poles are formed as a result of charge transfer. The battery device is based on this.

Friction and deformation

When exposed to some bodies by friction, compression, tension or just deform them, then electric charges may appear on their surface. This phenomenon of physics is called the piezoelectric effect, or in abbreviated form, piezoelectric effect.

Electromotive force

With each method of influencing the body, as a result, small sources of two polarities appear: positive and negative. Each of these polarities has its own value, which is called the potential. All of you must have heard such an expression.

Potential is the stored potential energy of a unit of the amount of electricity located at a specific point in the electric field.

So, the greater the potential, the greater the difference between the positive and negative poles. This potential difference is the electromotive force (EMF).

If the circuit is closed, then under the influence of the emf of the source, an electric current will appear in the circuit.

The unit of measurement of potential difference is volt. You can measure the potential difference with a voltmeter, or.

P.S. All of the above methods for generating electricity are just small examples. Man created on their basis larger energy sources, such as generators, batteries, and more.

The discovery of electricity completely changed a person’s life. This physical phenomenon is constantly involved in everyday life. Lighting of the house and the street, the work of all kinds of devices, our fast movement - all this would be impossible without electricity. This has become available thanks to numerous studies and experiences. Consider the main stages of the history of electrical energy.

Ancient time

The term "electricity" comes from the ancient Greek word "electron", which means "amber". The first mention of this phenomenon is associated with ancient times. Ancient Greek mathematician and philosopher Thales of Miletus  in the 7th century BC e. found that if you friction amber on the wool, then the stone has the ability to attract small objects.

In fact, it was the experience of studying the possibility of generating electricity. In the modern world, this method is known as the triboelectric effect, which makes it possible to extract sparks and attract objects with light weight. Despite the low efficiency of this method, we can talk about Thales, as the discoverer of electricity.

In ancient times, several more timid steps were taken towards the discovery of electricity:

• ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle in the 4th century BC e. studied varieties of eels capable of attacking the enemy with a discharge of current;
• the ancient Roman writer Pliny in 70 AD investigated the electrical properties of resin.

All these experiments are unlikely to help us figure out who discovered the electricity. These isolated experiments were not developed. The following events in the history of electricity took place many centuries later.

Stages of creating a theory

The XVII-XVIII centuries were marked by the creation of the foundations of world science. Since the 17th century, a series of discoveries has been made that in the future will allow a person to completely change his life.

The appearance of the term

In 1600, an English physicist and court physician published a book On Magnet and Magnetic Bodies, in which he defined electric. It explained the properties of many solids after rubbing to attract small objects. When considering this event, one must understand that this is not about the invention of electricity, but only about a scientific definition.

William Hilbert was able to invent the device, which he called the versors. We can say that it resembled a modern electroscope, the function of which is to determine the presence of an electric charge. With the help of the versor, it was found that, in addition to amber, the ability to attract light objects also has:

• glass;
• diamond;
• sapphire;
• amethyst;
• opal;
• shales;
• carborundum.

In 1663, a German engineer, physicist and philosopher Otto von Guericke  invented the apparatus, which was the prototype of the electrostatic generator. It was a ball of sulfur, mounted on a metal rod, which rotated and rubbed by hand. With the help of this invention, one could see in action the property of objects not only attracted, but also repelled.

In March 1672, a famous German scientist Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz  in a letter to Guericke  mentioned that when working with his machine, he fixed an electric spark. This was the first evidence of a mysterious phenomenon at that time. Guericke created a device that served as the prototype of all future electrical discoveries.

In 1729, a scientist from Great Britain Stephen Gray  made experiments that opened up the possibility of transmitting electric charge over small (up to 800 feet) distances. And he also found that electricity is not transmitted through the earth. In the future, this made it possible to classify all substances into insulators and conductors.

Two types of charges

French scientist and physicist Charles Francois Dufe  in 1733 discovered two dissimilar electric charges:

• "Glass", which is now called positive;
• "Tar" called negative.

Then he carried out studies of electrical interactions, which proved that oppositely electrified bodies would be attracted one to one, and repelled by the same name. In these experiments, the French inventor used an electrometer, which made it possible to measure the amount of charge.

  In 1745, a physicist from Holland Peter van Muschenbrook  invented the Leiden bank, which became the first electric capacitor. Its creator is also a German lawyer and physicist Ewald Jürgen von Kleist. Both scientists acted in parallel and independently of each other. This discovery gives scientists the full right to enter the list of those who created electricity.

October 11, 1745 Kleist  made an experiment with a "medical bank" and found the ability to store a large number of electric charges. Then he informed about the discovery of German scientists, after which an analysis of this invention was carried out at Leiden University. Then Peter van Muschenbrook  published his work, thanks to which the Leiden Bank became known.

Benjamin Franklin

In 1747, an American politician, inventor and writer Benjamin Franklin published his essay "Experiments and observations with electricity." In it, he presented the first theory of electricity, in which he designated it as an intangible liquid or fluid.

In the modern world, the surname Franklin is often associated with a hundred-dollar bill, but we should not forget that he was one of the greatest inventors of his time. The list of his many achievements includes:

1. Known today is the designation of electrical states (-) and (+).
2. Franklin proved the electrical nature of lightning.
3. He was able to come up with and present in 1752 a lightning rod project.
4. He owns the idea of \u200b\u200ban electric motor. The embodiment of this idea was the demonstration of a wheel rotating under the action of electrostatic forces.

The publication of his theory and numerous inventions give Franklin the full right to be considered one of those who invented electricity.

From theory to exact science

The conducted research and experiments allowed the study of electricity to go into the category of exact science. The first in a series of scientific achievements was the discovery of Coulomb's law.

Law of interaction of charges

French engineer and physicist Charles Augustin de Coulomb  in 1785, he discovered a law that reflected the strength of the interaction between static point charges. The pendant had previously invented torsion scales. The emergence of the law took place thanks to the experiments of Coulomb with these scales. With their help, he measured the force of interaction of charged metal balls.

Coulomb's law was the first fundamental law explaining the electromagnetic phenomena with which the science of electromagnetism began. In honor of Coulomb in 1881, a unit of electric charge was named.

The invention of the battery

  In 1791, an Italian physician, physiologist, and physicist wrote a treatise on the forces of electricity in muscle movement. In it, he recorded the presence of electrical impulses in the muscle tissues of animals. And he also found a potential difference in the interaction of two types of metal and electrolyte.

The discovery of Luigi Galvani was developed in the work of the Italian chemist, physicist and physiologist Alessandro Volta. In 1800, he invented the “Voltaic pole” - a source of continuous current. It was a stack of silver and zinc plates, which were separated by paper pieces soaked in salt solution. The Volt Pole became the prototype of the galvanic cells in which chemical energy was converted into electrical energy.

In 1861, the name "volt" was introduced in his honor - a unit for measuring voltage.

Galvani and Volta are among the founders of the doctrine of electrical phenomena. The invention of the battery provoked rapid development and the subsequent growth of scientific discoveries. The end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century can be characterized as the time when electricity was invented.

The emergence of the concept of current

In 1821, a French mathematician, physicist, and naturalist Andre-Marie Ampere  in his own treatise he established a connection between magnetic and electrical phenomena, which is absent in the static electricity. Thus, he first introduced the concept of "electric current".

Ampere designed a coil with multiple turns of copper wires, which can be classified as an electromagnetic field amplifier. This invention created the electromagnetic telegraph in the 30s of the 19th century.

Thanks to the studies of Ampere, the birth of electrical engineering became possible. In 1881, in his honor, the unit of current was called an "ampere", and instruments measuring force were called "ammeters."

The law of the electric circuit

Physicist from Germany Georg Simon Om  in 1826 he introduced a law that proved the relationship between resistance, voltage, and current in a circuit. Thanks to Ohm, new terms arose:

• voltage drop in the network;
• conductivity;
• electromotive force.

In 1960, a unit of electrical resistance was named after him, and Ohm is undoubtedly included in the list of those who invented electricity.

  English chemist and physicist Michael Faraday  In 1831 he made the discovery of electromagnetic induction, which underlies the mass production of electricity. Based on this phenomenon, he creates the first electric motor. In 1834, Faraday discovered the laws of electrolysis, which led him to conclude that atoms can be considered the carrier of electric forces. Electrolysis studies have played a significant role in the emergence of electronic theory.

Faraday is the creator of the doctrine of the electromagnetic field. He was able to predict the presence of electromagnetic waves.

Public Application

All these discoveries would not have become legendary without practical use. The first possible application was electric light, which became available after the invention of incandescent lamps in the 70s of the 19th century. Its creator was a Russian electrical engineer Alexander Nikolaevich Lodygin.

The first lamp was a closed glass vessel in which there was a coal rod. In 1872, an application was filed for an invention, and in 1874 Lodygin was granted a patent for the invention of an incandescent lamp. If you try to answer the question in which year the electricity appeared, then this year can be considered one of the correct answers, since the appearance of a light bulb became an obvious sign of accessibility.

The emergence of electricity in Russia

  It will be interesting to find out in which year electricity appeared in Russia. Lighting first appeared in 1879 in St. Petersburg. Then the lights were installed on Liteiny Bridge. Then, in 1883, the first power station began to work at the Police (People's) Bridge.

Lighting first appeared in Moscow in 1881. The first urban power station was launched in Moscow in 1888.

The founding day of the energy systems of Russia is considered July 4, 1886, when Alexander III signed the charter of the “Electric Lighting Society of 1886”. It was founded by Karl Friedrich Siemens, who was the brother of the organizer of the world famous Siemens concern.

It is impossible to say exactly when electricity appeared in the world. Too many time-scattered events that are equally important. Therefore, there can be many answers, and all of them will be correct.