The Mighty Switch [Rant Electronics #1]

Why I Almost Burned My House?

So, for my final project in the electrical course — which I hate with a passion — I decided to make an ABSOLUTELY

MAGNIFICIENT

Led Bulb Circuit*,*

Yeah. Ain’t I creative, huh?

So, let’s see — it was 3 AM. I was accompanied by the ghost of Nikola Tesla, whom I summoned using my patented Ouija Transistor. I connected the wires, then the LED, then the battery (a whooping 50volts ‘heck yeah’).

“IT's Alive, IT’S ALIVEEEE!!“, I woke my neighbours up as the LED began to glow in all its holy glory. After proudly contemplating my masterpiece, I left to get some caffeine.

By the time I came back, I smelled excellently cooked meat. “But…, I didn’t have meat at home…OH SHIT, its the Neighbours”. I looked — and there she was — the raging red-yellow maiden, dancing wildly atop the wooden table where I’d left the model.

I sprinted to grab my phone, hastily trying to remember the emergency numbers.
“Aha! That was it!” I said, as I ran downstairs calling them. Soon enough, my emergency taxi (aka me running like hell) took off.

As I watched my horrid neighbors crawl out of their houses, covered in black ash like a flock of traumatized crows, one thought crossed my mind:

“I should have put the switch!“

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I Hate That Piece of Plastic!

M y L i f e, is gonna truly be about going banana over a plastic crap.

THE SWITCH.

Yeah. The switch. The damn switch.

The thing I ignored because I thought I could control the circuit like some anime protagonist screaming:

“BEHAVE, CURRENT-SAMA!”

Who in the world gave this tiny, worthless-looking object the godly ability to banish darkness?

“Let there be light???” Who made this? Jesus?

Why does it have control over the Wind God? One click and fans obey it.
The refrigerator bows to it.
Even your damn PC or phone won’t listen to your “hot and sexy motherboard” at 3 AM unless this royal button is honored.

I’m starting to think it’s a global conspiracy — tracking our moves as we mindlessly click these innocent-looking tyrants.

Whatever you say but you—

“You need to hit the switch“,

So my nemesis, is truly overpowered. Or is it? I need to know everything to win.

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Wolf In Sheep’s Clothings? Or Actually A RAT?

You seee, This mighty foe, is just the gatekeeper. It decides whether to let the current pass or not.

“You shall not pass!”

It’s like a drawbridge for knights — the knights being the electrons.
When it’s ON, the bridge lowers.
When it’s OFF — boom, the bridge lifts, and now there's just... a gap.

Kinda like the gap between your teacher’s words and your brain,
where the critical info about which brand of underwear Napoleon wore just never makes it across.

WAIT A SEC, I didn’t say we are done yet— COME RIGHT BACK HERE.

Clicking a switch as simple as it looks on the outside isn’t that simple in the inside. It’s as complex as you pretending to be funny just to go crawl into bed with your sad songs.

There are two metal contacts, one connected to the source, one to your appliances.

• When you turn it ON, a third metal connected to both. Bridging the current through

• When you turn it OFF, that third piece lifts, the bridge breaks — and so does your fan. Why?
  (Cuz now your parents are cleaning while you’re sleeping, because it’s Sunday morning, and God hates you.)

• Different types of switches use different mechanisms for this, spring, balls—which is the reason for the ‘*click*’ sound you hear. Its the metal making or breaking contact.

And now all the advanced folks are raising their hands:

“Why doesn’t it arc?”
The gap’s too big, duh.

“What kind of metals are used?”
Ooo, solid question. Conductive, corrosion-resistant ones like copper or silver alloys. You’re learning, kid.

“Why doesn’t it burn up from continuous current flow like a weak resistor?”
EVEN BETTER QUESTION.

No no no, you asked, now you gotta stay and listen.
No running. We’re just getting started.

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Metuallurgy of Switches

1. The metal contacts —

   They’re usually made of copper, brass, or aluminum.
   Why specifically these?

   Because they’ve got—

   • High conductivity

   • Good durability (they don’t melt when things get heated — literally)

   • And… they’re cheap. Abundantly found = wallet-friendly.

High conductivity means low resistance, which means less heat.
(Which also means you’re less likely to burn your house down, just saying.)

Now, you’ll also find expensive metals in the game:
Silver and even Gold — yeah, switches blinged out like rappers.

Why?
Because silver is the most conductive metal known to humankind.
But thanks to its price tag and rarity, you’ll mostly see it used in satellites, aerospace systems, or places where every milli-ohm matters.

2. The material used for the switch body—

   This is usually Bakelite or Polycarbonate.
   Why? Because these materials are—

   • Heat resistant

   • Excellent insulators

That’s why you don’t get shocked when you press a switch with your bare, innocent fingers.
(Unless you’re into licking switchboards, then good luck.)

Which makes me wonder… why?
Hmm…

Oh right. The answer lies in chemistry.
Let’s jump into that next.

(Brace yourself — molecules are about to enter the chat.)

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The Chemistry of Bakelite and Polycarbonate

You can skip this if you don’t like chemistry. Yes, go on. Not like I’m going to pray to God that you fail in chemistry or anything…
Absolutely your choice.
SUFFER WITH ME!!!

1. Electrical Conductivity—

   Electrons are tightly bound

   • In plastics and polymers, the electrons are localized in covalent bonds.

   • No "free electrons" to carry current (unlike metals where electrons move freely).

   • So, no charge flow = no conduction.

Think of a metal like a classroom full of students running around (free electrons).
A polymer is like students tied to chairs with seatbelts (electrons locked in place).

Yep, No one’s moving.

1. Heat Resistance—

   Rigid Structures. Unshakable souls.

   1. Polycarbonate – A thermoplastic:

      • Can soften when heated

      • But you’ll need hell-level heat (~150°C or more)

      • Your fiery motivation to finish math homework ain’t enough, lol

      • It’s tough, has a strong molecular backbone

      • Bonus: If it catches fire, it self-extinguishes like a boss.

   2. Bakelite – A thermosetting plastic:

      • Once it’s set, it stays set

      • Can’t be reshaped with heat (even if you scream at it)

      • Formed with 3D cross-linked bonds, making it a thermal tank

      • Perfect for switches, sockets, and your undying hatred for practical exams

BUT WAIT—how the hell do these guys stop heat though??

Well, for that... we go deeper into insulation.

Coming up next:
"How Plastics Laugh at Heat and Current Like Cold-hearted Villains."

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The Chemistry of Heat Insulation

So, what is “HEAT”?
Yes, what is heat?

It’s basically kinetic energy — the energy possessed by moving objects.
HUH? Who’s moving though?

My laptop’s on fire, but it’s sitting peacefully on my lap, slowly roasting my thighs like chicken.
What a piece of—
...Never mind, it runs my daily soap serials. Good lappy. Love you.

Now, where was I?…Ah yes—
Atoms.

On a molecular level, atoms vibrate.
And this vibration — when zoomed out to our everyday world — is what we experience as heat (or more accurately, temperature). So when you “heat” something, you’re basically making its atoms go:
“Shakira Shakira, my hips don’t lie.” (What? That song’s a vibe.)

The more heat you add, the more the atoms shake:
“And I’m starting to feel you, boy…” (Her songs ruled the world, bro. Don’t even deny.)

Now imagine if your shake your hips too fast, what’s gonna happen? They will break, just like the covalent bonds between the atoms in the molecule—this is what we term as melting.

SOOO, to prevent melting….to stop getting heated up or stop your temperature from going up. All you would need to do in the most laymen terms is not let your atoms vibrate. YESS, don’t let them go shaky shaky. So, How do we tell atoms “SIT DOWN. STOP TWERKING.”? You lock them in place.

Take Bakelite into consideration, this is the same material which is used to make the handles for your cooking utensils, you never thanked this material for saving your soft, fragile fingers from 300°C flaming oil?, Did ya? You ungrateful mouse.

Bakelite’s rigid structure doesn’t let its atoms go shaky shaky, hence no vibration hence no increase in temperature or no melting at usual temperature (off course bring to the sun and it will surely melt).

Taking about polycarbonate, it pulls off some cool chemical kung-fu, which i don’t wanna discuss (backbonding and aromatic ring, scared right? Me too), but the overall concept is same. NO shaking atoms hence no heat.

So whether it's your fan switch, rice cooker, or lab partner’s ego,
**if the structure is rigid, heat won’t get in.

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History of Switches

“Because even our ancestors wanted to feel powerful with one click.”

So the history buff in me (a.k.a the inner nerd who googled at 2AM) dug up some random facts for you to flex on your friends in the most unnecessary situations possible.

• Early 1800s: You wanna turn things on? Just connect the wires by hand. Pure caveman engineering.

• 1837: Samuel Morse creates the Morse key switch. Sends signals with short & long presses — basically the first text message system for your crush.

• 1884: John Henry Holmes invents the Quick Break Switch. Makes switching safer after Edison lit up the world in 1879.

• 1900s: Enter toggle, rotary, and pull-chain switches. Everyone’s clicking like it’s a fidget toy.

• Early 2000s: Switches go mini for circuit boards. Phones, remotes, gadgets — all got tiny clicky bois inside.

• Now: Smart switches. Touch, voice, app — all fancy stuff. But still just pretending to be cooler than that old flip switch on your wall.

Yea Yea, history ain’t that fun is it? Well then lets see two sciency facts.

1. Fact 1: Switch = Sun-Melter

   When you flip a switch in a high-voltage circuit (like an industrial panel), it can release a tiny bolt of plasma called an arc flash — temperatures can exceed 19,000°C, hotter than the surface of the sun!

   Thomas Edison once used switch arcing to help ignite explosives in a demonstration.

   “The power of the sun in the palm’s of my hand!”

   It’s highly localized and lasts for a very short time — not enough to melt the switch.
   But if it lasts longer (like in the case of constant high voltages), it can burn things.
   Hehe.

1. Fact 2: Switches Can Work Without Touch

   With Your Body’s Capacitance. Yes, your body holds a natural electric field.

   Your skin, water content, and ions make you slightly conductive — like a living antenna. This weak field can influence nearby circuits, especially at low voltages.

   When you bring your finger near the button, the capacitance changes —
   (Don’t know capacitance? Search it up, duh. I ain’t doing all the stuff for you!)

   The software inside detects this change and goes like:

   “I can feel a disturbance in the force…”
   Then toggles the state of the appliance.

   You are a JEDI.
   You are part of the circuit.
   A Wizard. Your very presence alters the electromagnetic environment.

Okay okay… I’ll recall capacitance once again for your lazy ass:

Capacitance = The ability to store charge between two conductors, separated by an insulator (called a dielectric). Even your hand + the switch pad = a capacitor, with air in between.

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Real World Occurances

If you really want me to write anything here, you must be living under a rock, stupid. OK, i’ll tell you something more. Ain’t sorry to call you stupid tho. They—

Control of flow.
Control of state.
Control of logic (like 1 or 0 in digital systems). Yep, Binary, the exact thing that builds the device on which you stalk your ex at midnight.

Types of switches you’ll trip over in electronics:

1. SPST: Single Pole, Single Throw (basic on-off)

2. SPDT: Single Pole, Double Throw (chooses between two paths)

3. DPDT: Double Pole, Double Throw (controls two things at once)

4. Push Button: Momentary action (like keyboards)

5. Toggle: Your classic metal-flip switch

6. Membrane: Your microwave or calculator

7. Slide/Rocker: Fans, extension boards

8. Reed Switch: Magnetic-triggered — sci-fi, but real

Just a little list, not explaining them tho, because this series is not educational, its just me ranting. You didn’t learn anything, did you? You did? Good for you then. I don’t care.

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Philosophy? Why not?

"Like a humble switch bossing around a whole damn appliance, maybe your tiny, awkward steps are quietly unlocking some grand cosmic hallway. Keep walking. Slowly. Gracefully. Pretend like you know where you're going — the universe might just believe you."

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What’s Next?…

I guess that’s enough rant for the poor little switch and your poor little brain.

I’ll leave you for now and resign back to shouting at my microcontrollers. I will see you next time. When we will be talking about—

“Wires“,

these pesky snakes need to be taught a lesson.

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Welcome to Rant-Electronics.
This is not a tutorial.
This is therapy.