Transistor

Amplifier · switch · 1947

A three-terminal semiconductor device where a small input signal at one terminal controls a much larger current between the other two. The transistor replaced the vacuum tube, made the integrated circuit possible, and is now the most-manufactured artefact in human history — trillions are produced every second on silicon wafers worldwide.

Key specifications

Invented

1947 · Bell Labs (Bardeen, Brattain, Shockley)

Families

BJT (NPN/PNP) · MOSFET (NMOS/PMOS)

Terminals

Base–Emitter–Collector / Gate–Source–Drain

Smallest gate

~2 nm (modern logic)

Sheet 004 · Plate 1 of 1 · 1:1 infographic

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