More than 200 years ago the origin of electricity was analyzed for the first time and throughout this process the way to more revolutionary technological inventions has always been enabled by an enhanced insight into the physical process of electric charge manipulation. Although many inventions and patents were considered fundamental research and initially ignored by industry, they have eventually changed our way of living and as such are of enormous economic importance. A rather prominent example in this regard is the transistor, which is one of the key inventions of modern society arguably comparable to the domestication of fire and the invention of the wheel.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00502-017-0534-y
