Galileo Ferraris (October 31, 1847 – February 7, 1897) was an Italian
physicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and electrical engineer, noted mostly for his studies of
alternating currentIn alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. An electric charge would for instance move forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, over and over again...
.
Ferraris gained a bachelor's degree in engineering and became an assistant of technical physics near the Regal Italian Industrial Museum. Ferraris independently researched the
rotary magnetic fieldA rotating magnetic field is a magnetic field which changes direction at a constant angular rate. This is a key principle in the operation of the alternating-current motor. In 1882, Nikola Tesla identified the concept of the rotating magnetic field. In 1885, Galileo Ferraris independently...
in 1885. Ferraris experimented with types of asynchronous electric motors.
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Galileo Ferraris (October 31, 1847 – February 7, 1897) was an Italian
physicistA physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and electrical engineer, noted mostly for his studies of
alternating currentIn alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. An electric charge would for instance move forward, then backward, then forward, then backward, over and over again...
.
Biography
Ferraris gained a bachelor's degree in engineering and became an assistant of technical physics near the Regal Italian Industrial Museum. Ferraris independently researched the
rotary magnetic fieldA rotating magnetic field is a magnetic field which changes direction at a constant angular rate. This is a key principle in the operation of the alternating-current motor. In 1882, Nikola Tesla identified the concept of the rotating magnetic field. In 1885, Galileo Ferraris independently...
in 1885. Ferraris experimented with types of asynchronous electric motors. The research resulated in the development of an
alternating-current motorAn alternator is an electromechanical device that converts mechanical energy to alternating current electrical energy. Most alternators use a rotating magnetic field but linear alternators are occasionally used...
. In 1888, Ferraris published his research in a paper to the Royal Academy of Sciences in
TurinTurin is a major city as well as a business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River surrounded by the Alpine arch...
(later, in the same year that Tesla gained ).
In 1889, Ferraris worked at the Italian Industrial Institution, a school of electrical engineering (the first school of this kind in Italy; subsequently incorporated in the Politecnico di Torino). In the 1896, Ferraris joined the Italian Electrotechnical Association and became the first national president of the organization.
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