TESLA’S INVENTIONS IN PHYSICS AND HIS ENGINEERING SPIRIT

Abstract

The article describes Tesla’s inventions in physics. Tesla’s engineering spirit is compared to M. Faraday’s and A. A. Michelson’s spirit of discovery in electromagnetism. Tesla’s unfinished investigative journey, from great experiments in electrical technology and radio technology to the physical theories he derived from them, are examined historically and scientifically. Several discoveries and individual experiments are described that were signifcant in the subsequent development of accelerator technology, as well as Tesla’s monopole antenna for high power and long-range electromagnetic waves, in which the principle of Tesla’s transformer is applied. Within the framework of classical electromagnetic theory, calculations and modern analysis of the system for the study of Tesla’s model of the long-distance wireless transmission of electromagnetic energy or information are presented, demonstrating the scientific basis for Tesla’s ideas. The coverage of Tesla’s inventions and contributions in the physics and electrical engineering curricula at the University of Zagreb is reviewed, especially in textbooks and other works by Ivan Supek, Vatroslav Lopašić and Tomo Bosanac. An interpretation is offered of Tesla’s interest in Goethe’s poetry, which provided an impetus for his inventions and desire for knowledge.