Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla

(10 July 1856 – 7 January 1943) was a Croatian-American inventor, engineer, and scientist, born in a Orthodox family in small village of Smiljan, Croatia (then as a part of Austro-Hungarian Empire).

His education began in Smiljan, after which he went to Gospic elementary school. After elementary school, he went to gymnasium (higher secondary school) in Karlovac, Croatia. In Graz, Austria, he enrolled at the University Polytechnic School on a state scholarship, but fails to complete the second year of study, and gives up.

A short time he worked in Maribor (Slovenia), but returned in the High School in Gospic. In 1880, Nikola Tesla tryed to enroll at faculty in Prague (Czech Republic) but he failed. A year later began working in Budapest (Hungary), and participates in the construction of the first telephone exchange.

Then he went to Paris (France) and worked for Edison's company (Continental Edison Company). In 1883 in Strasbourg he constructed the first model of the induction motor. After returning to Paris, Tesla gets a recommendation from Charles Batchellor and in 1884 he moved to New York and got a job in Edison's company. After disagreements with Edison in 1885 Tesla founded his own company, Tesla Electric & Manufucturing Company. A year later his company collapses so Tesla had to turn to hard physical labor in order to survive.

In 1887, Tesla founded new company - Tesla Electric Company - and applied for patents: polyphase system of electric transmission, induction motor, generators and transformers.

A year later, in 1888 Tesla entered into partnership with George Westinghouse and sold him patent on the basis of AC electricity for a $1,000.000, but received only about $60,000.

In 1889 Tesla returns to Europe and visits his native Croatian Lika. This is his first visit to Europe since he went to America. In 1890 he began to explore the power of high frequencies and a year later made Tesla coil (transformer).

In 1893 he held an exhibition in Chicago dedicated to advances in the field of electrical engineering where Tesla showed the advantages of AC power. The fire in 1895 destroyed his laboratory.

In 1895 (August 26) at the Niagara Falls, Adams Hydropower Plant was put into operation in which Westinghouse used Tesla's patents on the basis of AC.

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