ABSTRACT
The understanding of semiconductors, and Si especially, in the 1940s led to a rapid development of solid-state electronics-the basis of most computer and Internet technology. Solid-state refers to the use of crystals as electronic components in circuits. This development culminated in the development in 1947 of the fi rst practical semiconductor transistor by John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley at AT&T Bell Laboratories. Although other scientists before Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley had accomplished closely related work, these three were recognized widely as having made the big breakthrough, and were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1956 for the invention of the transistor.
