Nikola Tesla was born in Austria-Hungary in 1856 and moved to the United States in 1884 as a physicist. He pioneered the creation, transmission, and application of alternating current (AC) power, which can travel far longer distances than direct current. Tesla made significant contributions to the field of electricity and technology.

First, Tesla patented a method for inducing electrical current in a piece of iron (a rotor) rotating between two electrified wire coils. When this spinning magnetic field device is rotated using mechanical energy such as steam or hydropower, it generates alternating current (AC). When the generated current reaches its user and is fed into another rotating magnetic field device, the second device transforms into an AC induction motor that generates mechanical power. Induction motors power domestic appliances such as clothes washers and dryers. The development of these devices resulted in widespread industrial and manufacturing applications for electricity.

The Tesla Coil is another gift. He was more intrigued in its ability to wirelessly carry electricity, namely for lights. He wanted to build enormous coils distributed around the planet, each capable of powering any gadget equipped with a receiver coil. However, he had limited success with this strategy. Tesla presented a lecture and demonstration on wireless transmission in 1893, proposing signal transmission alongside power transmission. He also received a patent for the same principles, which is considered the first radio patent. A Tesla coil is an electrical transformer or device that increases or decreases voltage, which is a measure of electrical potential.

A Tesla coil produces extremely high voltage, often in excess of a million volts. It employs alternating current electricity, which means that the circuit's voltage changes at a specific frequency. A modern Tesla coil typically includes an initial transformer that amplifies voltage from the power supply and sends it to a capacitor connected to the primary coil, which absorbs the high-voltage electricity. When the capacitor reaches a high enough voltage, electricity flows at a high frequency across a spark gap, or a distance between two high-conducting terminals, generating an alternating current (AC) in the primary coil.

Building on the Tesla coil findings, Tesla developed the magnifying transmitter to provide free wireless power to all by passing information from one tower to another via resonance. The currents were sent from one circuit to the next, increasing in frequency until lightning erupted from one tower to another. He powered his laboratory wirelessly by attaching a wire to the tower and routing it throughout the room. He exhibited the effect to audiences on stage with light bulbs that were not attached to any power source. The magnifying transmitter successfully transmitted an electrical signal from a kilometre afar.

The magnifying transmitter works as a high-frequency, high-voltage resonant transformer. It has a primary coil, a secondary coil, a capacitor, and a spark gap. Electrical energy is stored in the capacitor and released across the spark gap, resulting in a sudden burst of current. This energy is passed to the primary coil, which produces a voltage in the secondary coil. The pulsating current in the secondary coil produces electromagnetic waves that spread outwards. These waves can be received by a distant receiver adjusted to the same frequency, which converts electromagnetic energy back into electrical energy.

Nikola Tesla invented the Tesla turbine, a revolutionary bladeless turbine, in 1913. Tesla was inspired by the limits of existing turbines to create a more efficient and robust design. He aimed to develop a turbine that could capture the power of multiple fluids, such as steam, gas, and even air, with minimal wear and tear. The Tesla turbine functions on the basis of boundary layer effects. When a fluid flows over a surface, a thin coating of fluid called the boundary layer adheres to the surface.

The Tesla turbine uses a number of smooth disks placed closely together to harness the energy within this boundary layer. As the fluid moves between the disks, it transmits momentum to them, causing them to revolve. Despite its unique design, the Tesla turbine encountered obstacles throughout its early development. The technological restrictions of the time prevented it from reaching its full potential, and it never reached widespread commercial success. However, in recent years, there has been a revived interest in the Tesla turbine, particularly in small-scale applications where its distinct benefits can be fully appreciated.

Despite having inventions that left a mark on humankind, Nikola Tesla died on January 7, 1943, on the 33rd level of the New Yorker Hotel in Manhattan. He was 86 years old and had been living in these modest motel rooms for decades. His cause of death was coronary thrombosis. By then, much of the hoopla surrounding Tesla's ideas had subsided. He had lost the race to invent the radio to Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi in 1901, and his financial backing from investors such as J.P. Morgan had dried up. Nikola Tesla's creations, however, would leave behind a legacy that would capture the imaginations of generations.