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Crystal Fire: The Invention of the Transistor and the Birth of the Information Age
On December 16, 1947, John Bardeen and Walter Brattain, physicists at Bell Laboratories, jabbed two electrodes into a sliver of germanium. The power flowing from the germanium far exceeded what went in; in that moment the transistor was invented and the Information Age was born. No other devices have been as crucial to modern life as the transistor and the microchip it spa...more
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
December 17th 1998
by W. W. Norton & Company
(first published January 1st 1997)
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Recounts the invention of the discrete transistor at Bell Labs in 1947 and the lives of its three Nobel-prize winning inventors, Brattain, Bardeen, and Shockley. A bit boring compared with other tales of invention I've read. The audiobook was annoying because the voice-actor sounded like an old cowboy reading around the campfire, which just clashed with this tale of high-tech innovation. But still a must-read if you want to follow the thread of innovation in modern technology.
An excellent history on the birth of the transistor, ergo the computer as we know it. Got a little dry at times with some of the personal history of the inventors, but it is very thorough. Perhaps it could have dug into the technical details a little bit more, but it's a biography and history book, not a engineering book.
I don't see how you can understand the latter half of the 20th century without knowing about the birth of the transistor, the engineering feat which gave us personal computers, smartphones, and so much more. This is a well-written account of the discovery. This is part of the great Sloan Technology Series.
Better than 3 stars, but dies at the end if I recall. Serious semiconductor nerds find it super readable and it's nice to know where everything came from, if you like the history of science. Otherwise, skip it.
The first third of this is all quantum physics ( finally made the connection that it's the Pauli principle that's keeping atoms from collasping, that's why it was neccessary )
Well written. Concise description of the invention and application of the transistor.
should be required reading for any modern technology student.
Awesome book for techno-history-buffs.
EXCELLENT book about the human story behind the invention of the transistor. Vivid technical details. It describes field-effect transistors in a way that is actually moving. How many authors can do that?!
I really need to read this someday.
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