William Shockley

Pioneering physicist known for semiconductor research and the transistor effect.

Chronology: 1910-02-13 – 1989-08-12

Origins & Early Life

William Bradford Shockley (February 13, 1910 – August 12, 1989) was an American physicist. He was the manager of a research group at Bell Labs that included John Bardeen and Walter Brattain. The three scientists were jointly awarded the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics "for their researches on semiconductors and their discovery of the transistor effect." Partly as a result of Shockley's attempts to commercialize a new transistor design in the 1950s and 1960s, California's Silicon Valley became a hotbed of electronics innovation. He recruited brilliant employees, but quickly alienated them with his autocratic and erratic management; they left and founded major companies in the industry.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

In his later life, while he was a professor of electrical engineering at Stanford University and afterward, Shockley became known for his outspoken promotion of racism and eugenics. == Early life and education == William Bradford Shockley was born on February 13, 1910, in London to American parents, and was raised in the family's hometown of Palo Alto, California, from the age of three. His father, William Hillman Shockley, was a mining engineer who speculated in mines for a living and spoke eight languages...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

Source: Wikipedia