2016-12-23 Fri

"The transistor was probably the most important invention of the 20th Century! A transistor is a miniature electronic component that can do two different jobs. It can work either as an amplifier or a switch: When it works as an amplifier, it takes in a tiny electric current at one end (an input current) and produces a much bigger electric current (an output current) at the other.

Bell Lab’s first patent for a transistor was based on the field-effect. Transistors are used in every electronic device that switches current, with a few exceptions. Before transistors, vacuum tubes were turned on or off to represent zeros and ones. The tube would be turned off for a zero, and on for a one. It wasn't a very efficient technology. By modern standards, tube-based computers were slow and enormously bulky.

The Transistor has changed society. Look at transportation, computers, government, finance, manufacturing ... it's affected them all. Look at the change in the productivity of the whole economy. It's probably doubled because of the transistors."

Marshall Island issued a stamp on 16th November 1998; it honours the invention of the Transistor. It says ‘Transistor opens door to Miniaturization’ with the face value 60 $.