Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
How Edison's abandoned discovery started electronics To learn for free on Brilliant 👉 brilliant.org/Theengineeringmindset Brilliant’s also given our viewers 20% off an annual Premium subscription, which gives you unlimited daily access to everything on Brilliant.
Discover how Thomas Edison’s forgotten discovery sparked the creation of the vacuum diode, triode, and ultimately the transistor, the foundation of all modern electronics and the computer age.
In this video, we explore the evolution of diodes, semiconductors, LEDs, rectifiers, and the atomic science behind PN junctions, showing how a simple effect inside a light bulb transformed into a multi-trillion-dollar industry.
If you want to understand electronics, radio, silicon, germanium diodes, Zener diodes, Schottky diodes, LED technology, and the origins of modern computing, this is the perfect deep-dive.
Watch ad-free here:➡️ patreon.com/theengineeringmindset
Become channel member:➡️ youtube.com/channel/UCk0fGHsCEzGig-rSzkfCjMw/join
Get your engineers mug here:➡️ https://engineeringmindset.store/pages/mugs
Timestamps
0:00 – Edison’s forgotten patent
0:22 – Strange effect in the glass
3:34 – Vacuum diode
3:59 – The triode
4:59 – Crystal detectors & first semiconductor
5:58 – Germanium diodes
6:54 – Silicon diodes and PN junctions
7:27 – Diode stripe, symbol & identifying polarity
8:04 – Diode as circuit protection
8:54 – AC to DC with diodes
9:49 – Main diode types
9:54 – Voltage drop and heating
10:54 – Zener diodes
11:34 – Schottky diodes
12:10 – Atoms, energy and semiconductors
14:03 – PN junction and photon emission
14:55 – LEDs, photodiodes & solar cells
15:14 – Bell Labs
Images:
“Zone refining at Bell Labs (1954)” — Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Source: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zone_refining_Bell_Labs_1954.jpg
Original source: Radio and Television News, May 1954
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👉WEBSITE: Http://TheEngineeringMindset.com
How Edison's abandoned discovery started electronics To learn for free on Brilliant 👉 brilliant.org/Theengineeringmindset Brilliant’s also given our viewers 20% off an annual Premium subscription, which gives you unlimited daily access to everything on Brilliant.
Discover how Thomas Edison’s forgotten discovery sparked the creation of the vacuum diode, triode, and ultimately the transistor, the foundation of all modern electronics and the computer age.
In this video, we explore the evolution of diodes, semiconductors, LEDs, rectifiers, and the atomic science behind PN junctions, showing how a simple effect inside a light bulb transformed into a multi-trillion-dollar industry.
If you want to understand electronics, radio, silicon, germanium diodes, Zener diodes, Schottky diodes, LED technology, and the origins of modern computing, this is the perfect deep-dive.
Watch ad-free here:➡️ patreon.com/theengineeringmindset
Become channel member:➡️ youtube.com/channel/UCk0fGHsCEzGig-rSzkfCjMw/join
Get your engineers mug here:➡️ https://engineeringmindset.store/pages/mugs
Timestamps
0:00 – Edison’s forgotten patent
0:22 – Strange effect in the glass
3:34 – Vacuum diode
3:59 – The triode
4:59 – Crystal detectors & first semiconductor
5:58 – Germanium diodes
6:54 – Silicon diodes and PN junctions
7:27 – Diode stripe, symbol & identifying polarity
8:04 – Diode as circuit protection
8:54 – AC to DC with diodes
9:49 – Main diode types
9:54 – Voltage drop and heating
10:54 – Zener diodes
11:34 – Schottky diodes
12:10 – Atoms, energy and semiconductors
14:03 – PN junction and photon emission
14:55 – LEDs, photodiodes & solar cells
15:14 – Bell Labs
Images:
“Zone refining at Bell Labs (1954)” — Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Source: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Zone_refining_Bell_Labs_1954.jpg
Original source: Radio and Television News, May 1954
⚡🛠️ TOOLS YOU NEED 🛠️⚡
*******************************
Get this electronics book ➡️ amzn.to/41cCJPk
Professional Multimeter -➡️ amzn.to/3xu2Vaw
Good multimeter -➡️ amzn.to/3xrbuTd
Professional clamp meter ➡️ amzn.to/4140FnK
Good Clamp meter ➡️ amzn.to/3xqt2is
Outlet tester ➡️- amzn.to/3kavg2l
Energy monitoring plug ➡️ amzn.to/3SkfPl7
Battery tester -➡️ amzn.to/3S3fHWI
Basic electronics ➡️ kit amzn.to/3xuLiqS
MY FAVOURITE GEAR
🎥 My camera - amzn.to/3YCZ7Q9
🎤 My Microphone - amzn.to/3YYXsUC
⌨️ My Keyboard - amzn.to/3lBsl33
🖥️ My monitor - amzn.to/415BGjW
🎧 My headphones - amzn.to/3lN7R7u
👋 SOCIALISE WITH US 👋
*******************************
👉FACEBOOK: facebook.com/theengineeringmindset
👉TWITTER: twitter.com/TheEngMindset
👉INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/engineeringmindset
👉WEBSITE: Http://TheEngineeringMindset.com
