Leo Esaki
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Leo Esaki (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Langx; born March 12, 1925) is a Japanese solid-state physicist who shared the 1973 Nobel Prize in Physics with Ivar Giaever and Brian Josephson for his work on tunneling in semiconductors, which led to his invention of the tunnel diode that exploits this phenomenon. His research was done when he was with Sony. He has also contributed in being a pioneer of semiconductor superlattices.
Biography
Leo Esaki was born on March 12, 1925, in Osaka, Japan,<ref name=NobelFacts>Template:Cite web</ref> and grew up in Kyoto, where he attended the Third Higher School. He then went on to study physics at Tokyo Imperial University (now the University of Tokyo), graduating with a B.S. in 1947.<ref name=jp>Template:Cite web</ref>
Sony
In 1956, Esaki became chief physicist at Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo (now Sony).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1958, Esaki recognized that when the p–n junction width of germanium is thinned, the current–voltage characteristic is dominated by the influence of the tunnel effect—and, as a result, he discovered that as the voltage is increased, the current decreases inversely—indicating negative resistance.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> This discovery was the first demonstration of solid tunneling effects in physics, and it was the birth of a new electronic device called the tunnel diode (or Esaki diode), the first quantum electronic device in history. He received a Ph.D. from Tokyo Imperial University due to this breakthrough invention in 1959.<ref name=jp/>
In 1973, Esaki was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for this work.<ref>Esaki, Leo, "Long Journey into Tunneling," Nobel Lecture, December 12, 1973.</ref> He became the first Nobel laureate to receive the Prize from King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
IBM
In 1960, Esaki moved to the United States and joined IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center, where he was appointed an IBM Fellow in 1967.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In 1970, Esaki predicted that semiconductor superlattices will be formed to induce a differential negative-resistance effect via an artificially one-dimensional periodic structural changes in semiconductor crystals.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> His unique "molecular beam epitaxy" thin-film crystal growth method can be regulated quite precisely in ultrahigh vacuum. A 1987 comment by Esaki regarding the original paper notes:
"The original version of the paper was rejected for publication by Physical Review on the referee's unimaginative assertion that it was 'too speculative' and involved 'no new physics.' However, this proposal was quickly accepted by the Army Research Office..."<ref>"This Weeks's Citation Classic", Current Contents No 28, July 13, 1987.</ref>
In 1972, Esaki realized his concept of superlattices in III-V group semiconductors. Later, this concept influenced many fields like metals and magnetic materials.
Later life
In 1992, Esaki returned to Japan, where he subsequently served as President of the University of Tsukuba<ref name=jp /> and of the Shibaura Institute of Technology. Since 2006, he is President of Yokohama College of Pharmacy.
Since the death of Yoichiro Nambu in 2015, Esaki is the oldest Japanese Nobel laureate.
Esaki's "five don'ts" rules
At the 1994 Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, Esaki suggested a list of "five don'ts" which anyone in realizing his creative potential should follow. Two months later, the chairman of the Nobel Committee for Physics Carl Nordling incorporated the rules in his own speech.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
- Don't allow yourself to be trapped by your past experiences.
- Don't allow yourself to become overly attached to any one authority in your field – the great professor, perhaps.
- Don't hold on to what you don't need.
- Don't avoid confrontation.
- Don't forget your spirit of childhood curiosity.
Recognition
In recognition of three Nobel laureates' contributions, the bronze statues of Shin'ichirō Tomonaga, Leo Esaki, and Makoto Kobayashi were set up in the Central Park of Azuma 2 in Tsukuba in 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Awards
| Country | Year | Institute | Award | Citation | Template:Reference column heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Flag | 1959 | Nishina Memorial Foundation | Nishina Memorial Prize | "Invention of the Esaki diode" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1961 | Institute of Radio Engineers | IRE Morris Liebmann Memorial Prize | "For important contributions to the theory and technology of solid-state devices, particularly as embodied in the tunnel diode" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1961 | Franklin Institute | Stuart Ballantine Medal | "For the development of the tunnel diode and the discovery and utilization of quantum-mechanical tunneling in semiconductors" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1973 | Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences | Nobel Prize in Physics | "For their experimental discoveries regarding tunneling phenomena in semiconductors and superconductors, respectively" (with Ivar Giaever) | <ref name=NobelFacts/> |
| Template:Flag | 1985 | American Physical Society | International Prize for New Materials | "For their conception of artificial semiconductor superlattices and his recognition that such structures have realizable and would have novel electronic properties" (with Leroy Chang and Raphael Tsu) | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1989 | University of Pennsylvania | Harold Pender Award | "Pioneer in tunneling phenomena in semiconductors and development of quantum well structures" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1991 | IEEE | IEEE Medal of Honor | "For contributions to and leadership in tunneling, semiconductor superlattices, and quantum wells" | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1998 | Japan Prize Foundation | Japan Prize | "For the creation and realization of the concept of man-made superlattice crystals which led to generation of new materials with useful applications" | <ref name=jp/> |
Memberships
| Country | Year | Institute | Type | Section | Template:Reference column heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Flag | 1976 | National Academy of Sciences | International Member | Engineering Sciences | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1977 | National Academy of Engineering | International Member | Electronics, Communication & Information Systems | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Template:Flag | 1991 | American Philosophical Society | Member | Mathematical and Physical Sciences | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Honorary degrees
| Territory | Year | Institute | Degree | Template:Reference column heading |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Flag | 2001 | HKUST | Doctor of Science | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Family
Esaki's daughter, Anna Esaki, is married to Craig S. Smith, former Shanghai bureau chief of The New York Times and China bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
See also
References
Further reading
- Large scale integrated circuits technology: state of the art and prospects, proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on "Large Scale Integrated Circuits Technology: State of the Art and Prospects," Erice, Italy, July 15–27, 1981 / edited by Leo Esaki and Giovanni Soncini (1982)
- Highlights in condensed matter physics and future prospects / edited by Leo Esaki (1991)
External links
Template:Commons category-inline
- Template:Nobelprize including the Nobel Lecture, December 12, 1973 Long Journey into Tunnelling
- IBM record
- IEEE History Center – Leo Esaki. Retrieved July 19, 2011 from Leo Esaki - Engineering and Technology History Wiki
- Sony History – The Esaki Diode. Retrieved August 5, 2003 from Sony Global | Sony History
- Freeview video 'An Interview with Leo Esaki' by the Vega Science Trust
Template:IEEE Medal of Honor 1976-2000 Template:Japan Prize Template:Nobel Prize in Physics Laureates 1951-1975 Template:1973 Nobel Prize winners Template:Japanese Nobel laureates
- Pages with broken file links
- 1925 births
- Living people
- Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences
- Foreign members of the Russian Academy of Sciences
- Fellows of the American Physical Society
- IBM Fellows
- IEEE Medal of Honor recipients
- Japanese Nobel laureates
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- Academic staff of Kwansei Gakuin University
- Academic staff of Kyoto University
- Nobel laureates in Physics
- People from Higashiōsaka
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- Semiconductor physicists
- Recipients of the Order of Culture
- Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun
- Academic staff of the University of Tsukuba
- Foreign associates of the National Academy of Engineering
- University of Tokyo alumni
- International members of the American Philosophical Society
- Japanese men centenarians