---
title: "How does a transistor work by Veritasium"
description: "One of the best ways to describe a transistor is as an \"electronic switch.\" They are solid state devices that make up almost everything in our world. This video by…"
canonical: "https://www.baldengineer.com/how-does-a-transistor-work-by-veritasium.html"
author: "James Lewis"
date: "2014-12-26T16:05:17Z"
lastmod: "2022-03-31T01:04:25Z"
image: "https://www.baldengineer.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/youtube-IcrBqCFLHIY.jpg"
categories: ["blog","components","videos"]
tags: []
---

# How does a transistor work by Veritasium


One of the best ways to describe a transistor is as an "electronic switch."  They are solid state devices that make up almost everything in our world.  This video by [Veritasium](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHnyfMqiRRG1u-2MsSQLbXA "Veritasium YouTube Channel"), which is a bit older, covers how n and p-type transistors actually work.

This complements the [Addohms](http://youtube.com/addohms) videos on [BJTs](http://addohms.com/ep10 "How to use BJT Transistors as a Switch") and [MOSFETs](http://addohms.com/ep11 "Using MOSFETs as a Switch | AddOhms"), which are more about how to use them.

If you've never watched a [Veritasium](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHnyfMqiRRG1u-2MsSQLbXA "Veritasium YouTube Channel Page") video, do yourself a favor and set aside a few minutes. He's like the Alton Brown of science.