Electrons are essential particles that are part of atoms.
Before going into the definition of the word electron, it is very important to establish its etymological origin. Specifically, we can establish that it comes from the Greek term elektron, which meant "amber."
An electron is the lightest essential particle that makes up an atom and has the lowest possible charge in terms of negative electricity . It is a subatomic element that is located around the nucleus of the atom, formed by neutrons and protons .
Discovery of electrons
Electrons are responsible for establishing the attractions between atoms and, through their movement, produce electric current in most metals. They were discovered by the British physicist Joseph John Thomson ( 1856 – 1906 ), although their existence had already been postulated by the scientist George Johnstone Stoney ( 1826 – 1911 ).
The latter, a physicist and mathematician of Irish origin born in Oakley Park in 1826, is considered to be the person who coined the term electron. In addition to this fact, he has gone down in history as one of the most important scientists thanks to his work on the structure of matter and Avogadro's number, which earned him the prestigious Nobel Prize.
Electrons establish the attractions that exist between atoms.
Some features
The mass of an electron is about 1,800 times smaller than that of a proton. Although electrons are usually part of atoms, there are electrons that form bundles in a vacuum or that move independently through matter. If electrons move outside the atom, they can generate electricity.
Static charge , on the other hand, arises when the atoms of a body have a smaller or larger number of electrons than is needed to balance the positive charges of its nucleus. If the atom has fewer electrons, the body has a positive charge; if it has more, the charge will be negative.
The movement of electrons allows us to have electricity in our homes. Tube televisions that emit cathode rays are based, on the other hand, on a beam of electrons that is redirected by a magnetic field until it reaches the fluorescent screen. Semiconductors, electron microscopes, transistors and welding machines also use electrons.
Electrons and television
Although the concept we are addressing may seem to us to be only a fundamental pillar of science, we must be clear that this is not the case, as it is a basic part of our daily lives. And it is precisely thanks to electrons that we have, for example, the possibility of enjoying television, as we have mentioned.
Specifically, these essential particles are one of the central axes around which the cathode ray tube rotates, which is the one in the television that is responsible for proceeding, by means of magnetic fields, to impact the fluorescent screen that gives us the images of the news, film or series that we are watching.
Very closely related to the aforementioned television, we must mention that the term in question had a leading role in a children's programme on the small screen that was broadcast in the 80s and 90s in Spain. It was "La bola de Cristal" (The Crystal Ball) where characters called electrogoblins, who were experts in electronics, entertained children with their "cathode" adventures.