Electronics Today and Yesterday Figure 1.6 Bell Laboratories Research Team That Invented the Transistor Walter Brattain, William Shockley, and John Bardeen were awarded the Nobel Prize for physics in 1956. (Photo cour- tesy of the American Institute of Phys- ics, Niels Bohr Collection) depended on electrons liberated from a heated cath- ode for its operation. An inordinate amount of elec- trical energy was required to produce this heating, which not only set limits on how much the physical size of the tube could be reduced, but also eventually destroyed the tube. If in the new active device free electrons could be generated and liberated without the use of heat, the device's power consumption and. Physical size could be greatly reduced, ‘The family of substances known as semicon- ductors appeared to the Bell researchers as a prom- ising area of study since these materials, normally nonconductors, could be made to conduct heavily when conditions were slightly changed. Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley initially used a thin sheet of semiconductor material (germanium) contacted by two springy pieces of phosphor-bronze wire. Some amplification (gain in signal strength) took place at close spacings, but it proved inadequate for practical application. The researchers then tried a different technique. A thin sheet of gold attached 15 to an insulating base was cut in two with a razor blade, and a sheet of germanium was pressed firmly down upon it. This time somewhat more amplifi- cation was obtained, but still not enough to be prac- tical. Announced publicly in 1948 as the point-contact transistor (Figure 1.7), the new device remained a laboratory curiosity Shockley then approached the problem from a different direction. Starting with germanium of the highest possible chemical purity, he formed it into thin sheets. Part of the sheets were treated with the vapor of an element such as arsenic, which resulted in germanium with more free electrons than usual, or N-type (negative) germanium. Other sheets of pure germanium were treated with the vapor of an clement such as aluminum, which resulted in ger- manium deficient in free electrons, or P-type (pos- ive) germanium. The elements used to treat the pure Spring Emittor lad Collector toad Gold emitor stip Bose lead Germaniui chip base Figure 1.7 Point-Contact Transistor A spring forces a wedge of plastic, cov- ered with gold leaf, against a slab of specially treated crystalline germa- nium. Produced in 1948, it was the first ofa series of transistors created to over- come amplification problems.16 germanium were called dopants, and it was only necessary to use about 1 atom of dopant to every 100 million atoms of the semiconductor ‘When members of the Bell research team began assembling sheets of these materials into electrical “sandwiches,” they realized they were on the right track at last. The sandwiches could be assembled in either of two pattems: PNP or NPN. Each config- tration worked equally well; only the battery volt- ages needed to be reversed. After more research development of the bipolar transistor (Figure 1.8) was announced. A fellow researcher, John R. Pierce suggested the term iransistor for the new device since it transferred an electrical signal through the germanium that would normally be a resistor. (Tran- sistors are discussed in Chapter 9.) The bipolar transistor developed rapidly into an active device capable of equaling or surpassing the performance of the previously unchallenged vacuum tube. The solid-state age had arrived. The transis tor's extra-small size, coolness of operation, great life expectancy, and consistent reliability were to change completely the course of the Electronics In dustry. For their contribution to science, Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1956. Figure 1.8 Bipolar Transistor This transistor, of the NPN type, is shown with its protective metal cap removed. The circular disc with two wires at- tached is the “electrical sandwich” of treated silicon. Chapter 1 Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby Today's integrated circuit (IC) has been under development since the late 1960s, when researcher Robert Noyce of Fairchild Semiconductor and his, counterpart at Texas Instruments, Jack Kilby, both working independently, started their experiments Figure 1.9 Early Version of an Inte- grated Circuit The IC has been placed over the eye of a needle to show its size. It probably contains five or six transis- tors. (Photo courtesy of Western Elec- tric)Electronics Today and Yesterday Their goal was to form a number of transistors, to- gether with their associated components and wiring, directly on a tiny chip of silicon that served as a substrate, or base (Figure 1.9). They achieved their goal by treating one surface of the silicon with the high-temperature vapors of elements such as arsenic or boron. Their initial achievement—production of 10 to 12 separate transistors on a silicon chip—was considered remarkable. Today ICs with at least 100,000 transistors on their surface are widely used in mass-produced electronic equipment. (ICs are fully discussed in Chapter 7.) SUMMARY The Electronics Industry has moved from offering a few products that gross only several million dollars year to offering a wide spectrum of products and services that produce at least $42 billion a year for its major divisions alone. The event that triggered this growth was the public's interest in radio broad casting starting around 1922. Growth was so swift that radio receiver manufacturers were unable to keep abreast of the demand for new sets. ‘As new and better components and circuits were developed for radio receivers, experimenters were quick to adapt them to both related and new app! cations of electronics. Each new application seemed to open the way for further uses of electronics, and development has continued at an accelerated rate for six decades. ‘The term Electronics Industry, as defined by the Department of Commerce, covers a number of spe- cialized divisions that provide unique products and services. The first major division, Electronic Equip- ‘ment, is subdivided into Consumer Electronics, which provides products primarily intended for use in the and Electronic Systems, which turns out so- ted electronic units for sale largely to gov- and big business firms. The second mn, Electronic Components, represents production lines that deliver parts to the other di- Visions of the industry for assembly into salable 7 products. Communications Electronics, one of the ‘smaller divisions, comprises telephone, broadcast- ing, and television and employs far fewer people than the other divisions. Electronics Repair and Maintenance (appliance and TV repair) is s0 loosely ‘organized that it defies close analysis. A review of early developments in electricity and electronics shows that certain researchers made ey contributions that influenced the thinking oftheir contemporaries and had a lasting impact on the course ‘of today's electronics. Benjamin Franklin's great contribution was his view that electricity is a liquid that moves progressively from the positive to the negative pole of the circuit. Hans Christian Oersted established the relationship between electric current flow and electromagnetism. George Ohm, working with the most elementary equipment, established the definite relationship between voltage, resistance, and current flow that we know today as Ohm's Law. Joseph Henry, primarily interested in electromagne- tism and its applications, served the science com- munity well as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and expedited development of both the telegraph and the telephone. Samuel Morse, more an artist than a technician, devised the telegraphic code that bears his name and conducted the first public demonstra- tion of telegraphic communication. ‘Alexander Graham Bell, talented in many fields, ‘was the first person to transmit the human voice over the telephone. Guglielmo Marconi, a shrewd busi nessman as well as a gifted experimenter, was the first to see commercial advantages in the assembly of electronic equipment for public sale and in send- ing and receiving wireless messages. Ernst Alex- anderson broke with Hertz’s and Marconi’s tradition of transmitters powered with a crashing electric arc and turned to the generation of continuous radio ‘waves—a feat that made the broadcasting of music and voice possible. Vladimir Zworykin, director of research at RCA during television's early develop- ment, resolved many complex problems to bring us color television. By the 1950s electronics had become so com plex and involved in the physical sciences that a breakthrough by an independent researcher had be-18 come unlikely. The research team approach became @ necessity, and the Bell Laboratories invention of the transistor was the result of a team effort. This approach changed the course of the industry. A dec- Chapter ade later the combined skills of a score of researchers in a dozen electronics plants resulted in the break. through represented by the integrated circuit alternator bipolar transistor cathode-ray tube electricity electronics ‘generator laser beam. KEY WORDS AND CONCEPTS integrated circuit ohm resistance semiconductor SELF-TEST QUESTIONS 1. What key development in the early 1920s led to expanded use of electronics? ‘What are the two major divisions of the Elec- tronics Industry? 3. Why is the manufacturing level for electronic parts and components quickly affected by can- cellation of large government contracts for ma- jor electronic equipment items? 4, What are some of the employment benefits that electronics firms commonly offer new workers? 5. What are some of the measures used by West Coast electronics firms to increase the number of part-time employees? 6. How did Benjamin Franklin’s theory of electri- cal current flow differ from the theory used in modem electronics? 7. What were Michael Faraday’s three major breakthroughs in the field of electricity’? 8. Although Joseph Henry added much to our knowledge of magnetism and electromagne- tism, his greatest contribution was operating a clearing house of information for other inven- tors. What appointment did he hold that made this service possible? 9, What important invention of Edison and Ber- liner became a vital component of the modem telephone? 10. In what two areas of electronics did Marcon see commercial possibilities? 11, What well-known American firm was originally organized to take over the patents and other assets of the American Marconi Company’? 12. How did George Westinghouse and Nikola Tesla help each other? 13, The Alexanderson alternator was quickly re placed as a generator of radio frequency waves by a purely electronic device. What was this device called? 14, What do electronics technicians call a spe ized component that shows a large change in ‘output current in response to a small, changine voltage applied to its control element? 15. What is an integrated circuit, or IC?