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Scientists outside of Japan were the first to recognize the
significance of the Esaki diode. In June 1958, Esaki, together with two
other Japanese scientists, went to the International Conference on Solid
State Physics in Brussels to deliver an address on tunnel diodes entitled
"Solid State Physics in Electronics." In his opening address, Dr. William
Shockley, one of the discoverers of the transistor and chairman of the
conference, gave general introductions of the papers to be read. As he was
only one of 500 presenters, Esaki had only expected an introduction of
1/500 proportion. Although he could not understand all that was being said,
he did realize that Shockley was mentioning his name time and time again.
Here, before the world's most eminent scientists, Shockley was lavishing
praise on Esaki's diode as a promising new high frequency device. This
rocketed the Esaki diode to fame.
Because the diode realized negative resistance and the tunneling
effect was an extremely rapid phenomenon, the Esaki diode could be used in
high frequency oscillation, amplification, and circuit switching devices.
It gained even more attention and popularity for its capacity to increase
the operating speed of electronic computers, which was something that
American scientists had been waiting for.
The significance of Esaki's discovery was even greater considering
that it was made at Sony, which was neither a large corporation nor a
government-funded transistor research laboratory.
Indeed, this project embodied Sony's essence. The determination and
scientist-like scrupulousness of Sony engineers combined to create this
unprecedented product. In this instance, Sony engineers resolved to meet
the company's demand for a higher frequency transistor. They later
identified the cause of the trouble which arose during production with the
fastidiousness of scientists.
The intensity with which Sony engineers pursued new challenges was
truly awesome. They next devoted themselves to satisfying public demand for
a transistorized television, the next logical step after the transistor
radio. In doing so, they pursued research around the clock, day in and day
out. To the Semiconductor Department staff, however, the very difficulties
involved made the reseach and development of TV transistors all the more
rewarding.
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 | | Reailzation of a long-held dream: Ibuka inspecting a portable TV
production line. |
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In a magazine interview in early 1959, Ibuka said that his dream for
the year was the realization of a transistorized television. The TV8-301
television, the first non-projection type transistorized television in
history, completed by the end of that year, was the realization of his dream.
Turning dreams into reality is the essence of the Sony ideal. And the
Sony engineers were not about to disappoint people who believed that Sony
lived up to its ideals. This was, however, easier said than done.
Radio and telvision are fundamentally different, the main difference
being the semiconductor chips used. Transistors and diodes are suitable for
low voltage and low current circuits, but are not suited for high voltage
and high current circuits. Television, which has many high voltage, low
current circuits, required a complete redevelopment of the transistor.
More specifically, television requires frequencies one hundred times higher
than radio, about twenty times more current than radio, and transistors
with ten times higher voltage capacity. In other words, television
requires more highly sophisticated transistors.
In September 1958, four months before Ibuka's remark about his dream,
Sony staff gathered for their first discussions on transistorized
television. In reality, however, the Semiconductor Department had begun
developing a device for television much earlier.
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