Alessandro Volta, Italian Physicist
Volta revealing his electric battery to Napoleon Bonaparte (seated) and fellow scientists, in 1800. Upon presenting his invention, Napolean awarded Volta the medal of the Legion of Honor and made Volta a count. Alessandro Volta (1745-1827) was an Italian physicist. He became interested in electricity in 1786 after seeing the work of Galvani. Volta was the first to show that an electrical current flowed when two dissimilar metals were brought into contact. In 1800 he constructed a device which used this effect to produce a large flow of electricity. Bowls of salt solution were connected together by metal strips, each composed of copper at one end and tin or zinc at the other, and a current was produced. A compact version of this, using a stack of discs of copper, zinc and cardboard moistened with salt solution, was shown to Napolean in 1801. Upon presenting his invention, Napolean awarded Volta the medal of the Legion of Honor and made Volta a count. The unit of electrical potential, the volt (V), is named after him
