Andre-Marie Ampere
Andre Marie Ampere was one of the pioneers of modern
electronics. He effectively made the first electrical measuring intrument
(electronic test equipment), thereby enabling people to understand how much
current was flowing in a circuit. Along with his mathematical derivations of
electricity, he made a truly major input to the early science of electricity.
Ampere's birth
Andre-Marie Ampere was born on 20th January 1775 in Lyon, France. From an early
age he could be seen to be brilliant, mastering many aspects of mathematics by
the age of 12. In 1801 he became professor of physics and chemistry at Bourg and
eight years later he was invited to take up the post of professor of mathematics
at Ecole Polytechnique in Paris.
Ampere's work
Ampere's major break though came in 1820 after he heard about the discovery that
Hans Christian Oersted had made in observing that a magnetic needle was
deflected when placed near a current carrying cable. Ampere was given to sudden
flashes of inspiration. True to form he developed a relationship between
electricity and magnetism within a week and he had prepared a paper for
publication.
Ampere formulated a law of electromagnetism, often called
Ampere's Law that mathematically describes the magnetic force between two
currents. In addition to this he undertook many experiments from which he
managed to explain some electromagnetic phenomena that had been observed.
However one of the major reasons why he is associated with
electric currents in particular is that he was the first person to develop an
instrument to measure the magnitude of the current flowing in a conductor. This
was of immense importance because up until this time no quantitative work had
been possible and this opened up the way for a far greater understanding of
electricity and current flow. In later work by other scientists this instrument
was caleld a galvanometer.
Last years
Ampere died in Marseilles on 10th June 1836. In recognition of the importance of
his work, the unit of current was named after him.
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