Voltage (V) is the electrical potential difference between two points. Electrons will flow as current from areas of high potential (concentration of electrons) to areas of low potential. Voltage and current are directly proportional in that the higher the voltage applied to a conductor the higher the current that will result.

Electricity is delivered from power stations to customers as AC because it provides a more efficient way to transport electricity over long distances. Most households use electricity with a frequency of 60Hz.

Insulators have valence shells that are more than half full of electrons and, as such, are tightly bound to the nucleus and difficult to move from one atom to another.

A semiconductor is a material that has a limited ability to conduct electrical current with conductivity between that of an insulator and that of a conductor. Silicon, a cheap and abundant material, is the most used semiconductor material although other materials are used in the electronics components made from semiconductors. The primary advantages of a semiconductor over a conductor is that the conductivity of a semiconductor can be varied under an external electrical field giving engineers precise control over complex circuits and, unlike conductors like metals, a semiconductor's conductivity increases with increased temperatures.

The transistor is the foundation of modern electronic devices. It is made entirely from semiconductor material (making it a solid state device) and can serve many different functions in a circuit including acting as a switch, amplifier, or current regulator. A transistor works by allowing a small amount of current applied at the base to control general current flow from collector to emitter through the transistor.