Transistors

The switch that changed the world

An interactive lesson with 6 steps, about 5 minutes: you predict, drag and solve, with instant feedback on every answer. It runs in your browser and needs JavaScript.

What you’ll learn

• A MOSFET’s gate voltage switches a channel between source and drain on or off.
• Transistors act as switches (logic) or amplifiers (signals).
• Shrinking transistors put billions on a single chip.

Steps

1. A switch with no moving parts
2. Amplifiers
3. Current gain
4. Why chips use CMOS
5. Moore’s law
6. Tiny switches