Operational amplifiers (op-amps) are electronic devices used to amplify signals. An ideal op-amp has infinite gain, infinite input resistance, zero output resistance, and outputs zero voltage with zero input voltage. Real op-amps have high but finite gain. The basic op-amp has two inputs - inverting and non-inverting - and an output. There are three open-loop configurations - differential, inverting, and non-inverting amplifiers. Op-amps are used in applications like filters, oscillators, analog-to-digital converters, and more.