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T
HE TRULY INCREDIBLE CHANGES in the technology associated with electronics over the past three
decades have certainly been the driving force for most of the growth in the field of electrical engineering.
Recall that 30 years ago the transistor was a novel device and that the majority of electronic systems
still used vacuum tubes. Then look at the section headings in the following chapters and appreciate the range
of ways that electronics has impacted electrical engineering. Amplifiers, integrated circuits, filters, power
electronics, and optoelectronics are examples of how electronics transformed the practice of electrical engi-
neering in such diverse fields as power generation and distribution, communications, signal processing, and
computers.
The various contributors to this section have done an outstanding job of providing concise and practical
coverage of this immense field. By necessity, the content ranges from rather theoretical considerations, such as
physical principles of semiconductors, to quite practical issues such as printed circuit board technology and
circuits for active filter realizations. There are areas of overlap with other chapters in the Handbook, such as
those covering electrical effects and devices, biomedical electronics, digital devices, and computers. The con-
tributors to this section, however, have maintained a focus on providing practical and useful information
directly related to electronics as needed by a practicing electrical engineer.
The author(s) of each chapter was given the task of providing broad coverage of the field while being restricted
to only a few pages of text. As a result, the information content is quite high and tends to treat the main
principles or most useful topics in each area without giving the details or extensions of the subject. This practice,
followed throughout the Handbook, is what makes it a valuable new work in electrical engineering. In most
cases the information here will be complete enough. When this is not the case, the references will point the
way to whatever added information is necessary.
Nomenclature
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