IN 1972, JOHN BARDEEN, A PROFESSOR AT THE

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS, BECAME THE FIRST PERSON

TO WIN TWO NOBEL PRIZES IN PHYSICS.

David Pines:

WOULD IT HAVE HAPPENED IF BARDEEN HAD GONE

TO HARVARD, BERKELEY, PRINCETON?

I DOUBT IT.

Anthony J. Leggett:

HE, NO DOUBT, ONE OF THE MOST DISTINGUISHED

PHYSICISTS OF THE 20TH CENTURY.

Nick Holonyak:

THESE OTHER GUYS ARE COMPETING AND PLAYING

PHYSICS WITH ONE ANOTHER. BARDEEN IS PLAYING

PHYSICS WITH GOD! (LAUGHING)

JOHN BARDEEN'S PATH TO SCIENTIFIC GREATNESS

BEGAN AS THE GREAT WAR CAME TO AN END.

AFTER WORLD WAR II, AMERICA WANTED TO HAVE

FUN.

AMERICAN COMPANIES WERE EAGER TO PROVIDE THE

LUXURY ITEMS THAT EVERYONE WANTED TO BUY.

THEIR PRODUCTION LINES STOPPED MAKING TANKS

AND STARTED MAKING CARS.

ONE OF THE COMPANIES THAT WAS BOOMING AFTER

THE WAR WAS AT & T, BUT THEY HAD A PROBLEM.

THEIR COMPLEX SYSTEM OF TELEPHONE LINES CRISSCROSSING

THE COUNTRY WERE POWERED AND AMPLIFIED BY

VACUUM TUBES.

VACUUM TUBES POWERED ALL ELECTRONICS.

Richard Blahut: THE VACUUM TUBES WERE BIG,

BULKY, EXPENSIVE. THEY DIDN'T LAST A LONG

TIME.

THE VACUUM TUBE WORKED IN THE WAY SIMILAR

TO A LIGHT BULB. ALSO, LIKE THE LIGHT BULB,

IT GENERATED A LOT OF HEAT, AND IT BURNED

OUT.

BY 1945, AT & T'S VACUUM TUBES WERE REACHING

THEIR LIMIT. THE COMPANY NEEDED A NEW AMPLIFIER,

SOMETHING REVOLUTIONARY. AT & T AND ITS BELL

LABS HIRED THE BEST MINDS IN SCIENCE TO FIND

THE ANSWER.

ONE OF THESE MINDS WAS JOHN BARDEEN.

Gordon Baym:

JOHN WAS COMPLETELY A GENIUS.

HE WAS JUST SO SMART AND SO CAPABLE AND SO

IMAGINATIVE.

Lillian Hoddeson: HE KNEW THAT HE WAS GIFTED.

Bill Bardeen: I THINK MY FATHER IN SOME SENSE

HAD A GOOD SENSE OF WHEN TO ATTACK.

Charles Slichter: HE WANTED TO BE THE GUY

WHO FOUND THE ANSWER TO THE BIG QUESTION.

David Pines: I THINK, ARGUABLY, MORE THAN

ANY SCIENTIST ALIVE IN THE LATTER PART OF

THE 20TH CENTURY, HE CHANGED OUR WORLD.

AT BELL LABS ON DECEMBER 16, 1947, JOHN BARDEEN

AND WALTER BRATTAIN INVENTED THE POINT CONTACT

TRANSISTOR.

IT SPARKED AN ELECTRONICS REVOLUTION.

John Bardeen: WE KNEW WE WERE ON TO SOMETHING

VERY IMPORTANT. TRANSISTORS WOULD HAVE MANY

APPLICATIONS.

(archival footage from Bell Labs) YOU MAY

BE ABLE TO GET MUSIC WITH A FLICK OF YOUR

WRIST FROM A SO-CALLED DICK TRACY RADIO.

AND WITH THE PORTABLE TELEVISION SET, YOU

MAYBE ABLE TO ENJOY VIDEO ENTERTAINMENT ANYWHERE

YOU GO.

Richard Blahut:

WHAT WE NOW HAVE TODAY THAT WE TAKE FOR GRANTED

ARE CELL PHONES, LAP TOP COMPUTERS, INTERNET,

HOME TELEVISIONS OF ALL KINDS, ELECTRONIC

EQUIPMENT IN THE HOSPITALS THAT WE ALL DEPEND

ON. ALL OF IT ABSOLUTELY DEPENDS ON THE TRANSISTOR.

Julian Dibbel:

WITH THE TRANSISTOR, WE ARE ABLE TO DO THIS

INCREDIBLE AMOUNT OF PROCESSING AT GREAT DISTANCES,

TO THE POINT WHERE IT BECOMES MAGICAL. IN

THE BLINK OF AN EYE, THAT COMPLETELY CHANGED

OUR RELATIONSHIP TO THE WORLD AROUND US.

Nick Holonyak: WHO KNEW IT WOULD GET THIS

BIG?

WHO KNEW? NOBODY.

JOHN BARDEEN WAS BORN ON MAY 23, 1908, IN

MADISON, WISCONSIN. THE TEN POUND BOY WAS

THE SECOND SON OF CHARLES AND ALTHEA BARDEEN.

CHARLES WAS THE DEAN OF THE UNIVERSITY MEDICAL

SCHOOL, AND ALTHEA WAS A FORMER TEACHER FROM

THE PROGRESSIVE DEWEY SCHOOL IN CHICAGO.

ALTHEA REALIZED HER YOUNG SON, JOHN, HAD A

TALENT FOR MATH.

Lillian Hoddesson: HE HAD A TENDENCY TO GET

VERY BORED WHEN HE WASN'T CHALLENGED. SO HIS

MOTHER KEPT SKIPPING HIM.

Bill Bardeen: WHEN HE WAS TEN YEARS OLD, HE

WAS ABLE TO TAKE ALGEBRA. AT THE END OF THE

COURSE, THEY HAD A COMPETITION, AND MY FATHER

WON THE COMPETITION.

Lillian Hoddeson: THE FACT THAT JOHN WAS SO

MUCH YOUNGER THAN HIS CLASSMATES OBVIOUSLY

AFFECTED HIM SOCIALLY. HE JUST DIDN'T FIT

IN.

David Pines: HERE IS THIS TINY LITTLE KID

WITH ALL THESE TOWERING PEOPLE AROUND HIM,

SMARTER THAN ANYONE ELSE IN HIS CLASS. SOMEWHERE

ALONG THE LINE, HE FIGURED OUT FOR HIMSELF,

"OKAY, I AM GOING TO KEEP QUIET ABOUT THINGS

THAT I KNOW. MY PATH FORWARD IS NOT GOING

TO BE ONE OF TELLING EVERYBODY AROUND ME HOW

SMART I AM."

THE BARDEEN FAMILY WAS DEVASTATED WHEN ALTHEA

DIED FROM BREAST CANCER IN 1920. JOHN WAS

SHOCKED BY THE LOSS.

Hoddeson: I THINK THE STRENGTH THAT HE DEVELOPED

MADE HIM MORE ABLE TO HAVE A TOUGHNESS THAT

WAS NECESSARY, NOT ONLY TO SURVIVE IN THE

FIELD OF PHYSICS, BUT TO BECOME ONE OF THE

LEADING PEOPLE.

AFTER HIS MOTHER'S DEATH, JOHN STRUGGLED TO

KEEP UP HIS GRADES. BUT HE STILL MANAGED TO

FINISH HIGH SCHOOL AT THE AGE OF 13.

IN 1923, HE ENROLLED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF

WISCONSIN.

Slichter: BUT JOHN WANTED TO JOIN A FRATERNITY,

AND ACTUALLY HE SAVED SOME MONEY UP.

ONE OF THE THINGS HE DID WAS HE PLAYED POOL.

HE WAS AN EXPERT POOL PLAYER.

Bill Bardeen: THERE WERE STORIES OF HIM HANGING

OUT WITH SOME OF THE SPORTS TEAMS. EVEN THOUGH

HE WAS SO YOUNG, HE SEEMED TO BE ABLE TO GET

ALONG WITH PEOPLE WHO WERE OLDER.

JOHN JOINED THE ZETA PSI FRATERNITY AND MADE

THE VARSITY SWIM TEAM.

Hoddeson: SPORTS IN A WAY HELPED HIM TRAIN

TO BE A STRONGER PHYSICIST; TRY, TRY AGAIN

PHILOSOPHY, AND PRACTICE AND PRACTICE AND

PRACTICE, AND BUILD-UP MASTERY.

JUST AS THE COUNTRY WAS SLIDING INTO THE GREAT

DEPRESSION, BARDEEN GRADUATED WITH A MASTER'S

IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING. HE WAS LUCKY TO

BE OFFERED A POSITION WITH THE GULF OIL COMPANY.

AFTER THREE YEARS AT GULF, BARDEEN WENT BACK

TO SCHOOL AT PRINCETON. HE HOPED TO STUDY

WITH ALBERT EINSTEIN, BUT EINSTEIN DID NOT

WORK WITH STUDENTS.

BARDEEN BECAME CLOSE FRIENDS WITH FELLOW PHYSICS

STUDENT, FRED SEITZ. SEITZ WAS WORKING WITH

HIS ADVISOR EUGENE WIGNER ON GROUND BREAKING

RESEARCH INTO MATERIALS KNOWN AS SEMICONDUCTORS.

THEY COULD BOTH CONDUCT AND RESIST THE FLOW

OF ELECTRICITY DEPENDING ON THEIR CONDITION.

AFTER A FIVE YEAR COURTSHIP, JOHN MARRIED

BIOLOGIST AND TEACHER JANE MAXWELL ON JULY

18, 1938.

Pines: JANE WAS COMPLETELY THE RIGHT KIND

OF WIFE FOR JOHN. HE HAD KNOWN THIS FOR SOME

TIME.

HE JUST DID NOT ASK HER TO MARRY HIM UNTIL

HE HAD A JOB.

Bill Bardeen: IN MANY WAYS, SHE HELPED HIM

BECOME THE SCIENTIST HE WAS.

IN THE NEXT DECADE, BARDEEN WOULD INVENT A

DEVICE THAT WOULD CHANGE THE WORLD AND BREAK

APART A FRIENDSHIP.

IN 1938, JOHN AND JANE BARDEEN SETTLED INTO

A PEACEFUL ACADEMIC LIFE AS JOHN TAUGHT PHYSICS

AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA. BUT CHANGES

LOOMED ON THE GLOBAL LANDSCAPE.

HITLER ROSE TO POWER IN GERMANY AND OVERRAN

POLAND IN 1939. IT WAS A SIGNAL TO MANY COUNTRIES

TO PREPARE FOR WAR.

WASHINGTON ASKED SCIENTISTS TO SERVE IN THE

ARMED FORCES, AND BARDEEN HEARD THE CALL.

ONE OF THE MANY TECHNOLOGICAL IMPROVEMENTS

SCIENTISTS MADE FOR THE ALLIED FORCES WAS

ADVANCED RADAR.

THEY CREATED A FAR REACHING RADAR THAT COULD

SEE ENEMY PLANES AND SHIPS EVEN AT NIGHT.

THE NEW RADARS USED A CRYSTAL DIODE USING

THE MATERIALS SILICON OR GERMANIUM. A DIODE

ONLY ALLOWS ELECTRICITY TO FLOW ONE WAY. THE

CRYSTAL DIODE IN THE RADAR CONVERTED THE RADIO

WAVES OF THE RADAR SIGNAL INTO SOMETHING THAT

COULD BE SEEN ON A SCOPE.

Slichter: PEOPLE HAD AN IDEA THAT ONE MIGHT

BE ABLE TO REPLACE VACUUM TUBES WITH SOMETHING

MADE FROM THE MATERIALS THAT MADE THESE CRYSTAL

DIODES.

ONE COMPANY THAT DESPERATELY WANTED TO REPLACE

VACUUM TUBES WAS A T & T. AT & T'S RESEARCH

FACILITY, BELL LABS, ASKED WILLIAM SHOCKLEY

TO START A NEW SOLID STATE RESEARCH DEPARTMENT.

THE GOAL OF THE GROUP WAS FIND A NEW AMPLIFIER

AND SWITCH FOR TELEPHONE LINES.

AT THE END OF THE WAR, BARDEEN ACCEPTED A

LUCRATIVE OFFER FROM BELL LABS. HE WAS HIRED

TO WORK WITH WILLIAM SHOCKLEY AND AN EXPERIMENTAL

PHYSICIST NAMED WALTER BRATTAIN.

Nick Holonyak: WALTER WAS HANDY IN SETTING

UP THINGS AND WAS A CONSIDERABLE EXPERIMENTALIST.

BUT WITH BARDEEN AROUND, WITH WITH HIS POWER

OF THINKING AND ANALYZING AND UNDERSTANDING

THE DATA, WALTER WAS A GREAT EXPERIMENTALIST.

WILLIAM SHOCKLEY BELIEVED THEY COULD MAKE

AN AMPLIFIER BY USING A NOTION CALLED THE

FIELD EFFECT.

SHOCKLEY THEORIZED THAT AN ELECTRICAL FIELD

ERECTED PERPENDICULAR NEAR TO BUT INSULATED

FROM THE SURFACE OF A SLAB OF SILICON SHOULD

DRAW ELECTRONS OUT OF THE SEMI-CONDUCTOR MATERIAL

AND CREATE A PATH OF CURRENT.

BUT THE EXPERIMENT DIDN'T WORK.

STUMPED, SHOCKLEY ASKED BARDEEN TO TRY AND

FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THIS FIELD

EFFECT DESIGN.

BARDEEN SOON HAD THE ANSWER, STATES AT THE

SURFACE OF THE SEMI-CONDUCTOR WERE TRAPPING

THE ELECTRONS, PREVENTING THEM FROM FORMING

THE PATH OF CURRENT.

Hoddeson: BY THIS POINT, SHOCKLEY LOST INTEREST

AND LET THEM WORK BY THEMSELVES. SO HE WASN'T

IN THERE.

I MEAN HE WOULD BE AROUND TO TALK ABOUT THINGS

AND HAVE MEETINGS AND SO FORTH, BUT HE WASN'T

IN THE LAB.

USING BARDEEN'S THEORY OF SURFACE STATES,

BRATTAIN AND BARDEEN STRUGGLED ON THE LAB

FOR MONTHS TO BUILD A FIELD EFFECT AMPLIFIER.

THEY HAD LIMITED SUCCESS WHEN THEY REPLACED

THE SILICON WITH A SPECIAL KIND OF GERMANIUM.

THEY ALSO TRIED VARIOUS LIQUIDS AS THE INSULATOR

ON THE SURFACE OF THE GERMANIUM.

EVENTUALLY THEY TRIED A THIN OXIDE LAYER THAT

BARDEEN SAW GROWING ON THE SEMICONDUCTOR SURFACE.

IN ONE EXPERIMENT, BRATTAIN ACCIDENTALLY WASHED

THE INSULATOR AWAY. SO THE ELECTRICAL CONDUCTOR

WAS IN DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE GERMANIUM.

THE ACCIDENTAL CONTACT ALLOWED THE INJECTION

OF POSITIVE CHARGE CARRIERS KNOWN AS HOLES

TO ENTER THE GERMANIUM AND MODULATE THE CURRENT.

BARDEEN AND BRATTAIN COULD NOW DESIGN AN IMPROVED

VERSION OF THE DEVICE. BRATTAIN COVERED A

SMALL INVERTED PLASTIC TRIANGLE WITH GOLD

FOIL, THEN CUT A RAZOR THIN SLIT IN THE BOTTOM.

THE TRIANGLE WITH THE ATTACHED TWO LINES OF

FOIL WAS PRESSED INTO THE GERMANIUM SLAB AND

CARRIED AN ELECTRICAL CURRENT.

Nick Holonayk: IF I PUT SOME CURRENT IN HERE

AND GET ALMOST ALL OF THAT OUT OVER HERE,

AND I PUT IT IN LOW VOLTAGE HERE AND TOOK

IT OUT AT HIGH VOLTAGE HERE, I HAD AN AMPLIFIER.

AND THAT'S THE POINT CONTACT TRANSISTOR, AND

THAT'S THE BIG BREAKTHROUGH DECEMBER 16, 1947.

AFTER THAT, ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE.

Blahut: THE TRANSISTOR IS VERY SMALL, VERY

CHEAP.

AT THAT TIME ONE COULD FORESEE THAT VERY COMPLICATED

DEVICES COULD BE MADE OUT OF THE TRANSISTOR.

John Bardeen: CERTAINLY A VERY EXCITING DAY,

THE FACT YOU CAN CHANGE THE CONDUCTIVITY OF

A SEMICONDUCTOR BY CURRENT FLOW...HAD IT HOOKED

UP SO YOU COULD AMPLIFY VOICE AND REALLY SHOW

WHAT IT COULD DO. IT IS REALLY A VERY EXCITING

DAY.

Pines: JOHN REALIZED WHAT WAS HAPPENING, REALIZED

ITS POTENTIAL RIGHT AWAY. WENT HOME QUITE

EXCITED FOR JOHN, TOLD HIS WIFE THAT SOMETHING

INTERESTING HAPPENED AT THE LAB TODAY. SHE

IS FOCUSED ON GETTING DINNER ON THE TABLE

FOR THE FAMILY. SHE SAID 'JOHN, COULD YOU

WAIT AND TELL ME ABOUT IT LATER. I REALLY

HAVE TO GET DINNER READY.' HER MOMENT PASSED.

BARDEEN GOT A DIFFERENT REACTION WHEN HE SHARED

THE GOOD NEWS WITH SHOCKLEY. HE WAS STUNNED.

Pines: I THINK HE WAS ENORMOUSLY FRUSTRATED

BY THE FACT THAT BARDEEN AND BRATTAIN HAD

FOUND THIS ON THEIR OWN WITHOUT ANY DIRECT

INVOLVEMENT OF SHOCKLEY. BUT HE ALSO TOOK

OVER IN SAYING TO BARDEEN "I WANT YOU ONLY

TO WORK ON A AND B, AND KEEP YOUR COTTON PICKING

HANDS OFF C, D, AND E. THAT'S MY TERRITORY".

Holonyak: JOHN'S PERSONALITY WAS SUCH THAT

HE WAS NOT GIVEN TO ARGUMENT. HE WAS A DEEP

THINKER, AND HE WAS METICULOUS THINKER AND

ALL THAT, BUT HE WASN'T A QUICK TONGUE GUY.

JOHN WOULD SIT THERE AND NOT SAY ANYTHING.

Hoddeson: HE WAS VERY, VERY, VERY ANGRY, BUT

THE ANGER WAS MOSTLY BOTTLED UP.

BARDEEN MADE A DECISION TO LEAVE BELL LABS.

HE ASKED HIS FRIEND, FRED SEITZ IF HE KNEW

OF ANY JOBS IN ACADEMIA. SEITZ WAS A PHYSICS

PROFESSOR AT ILLINOIS.

HE MADE A PROPOSAL TO THE DEAN OF THE COLLEGE

OF ENGINEERING, WILLIAM EVERITT.

Holonyak: SEITZ WENT TO BILL EVERITT AND SAID

"WE HAVE A CHANCE NOW TO GET A REAL BIG GUY."

Hoddeson: FRED UNDERSTOOD HOW SMART BARDEEN

WAS BECAUSE HE HAD KNOWN HIM SINCE GRADUATE

SCHOOL.

Blahut: IT TOOK A VERY GOOD ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT, VERY GOOD PHYSICS DEPARTMENT,

AND MADE THEM ABSOLUTELY THE BEST IN THE WORLD.

BARDEEN NEVER FORGOT THE WAY HE WAS TREATED

BY WILLIAM SHOCKLEY. YEARS LATER HE WAS SHOWING

A COVER OF AN ELECTRONICS MAGAZINE TO NICK

HOLONYAK, AND IT REMINDED HIM OF HIS LAST

YEARS AT BELL LABS.

Holonyak: HE SAID, "BOY, WALTER HATES THIS

PICTURE."

AND I SAID "WHY, JOHN? NOT FLATTERING OR SOMETHING?"

HE LOOKED AT ME AND MADE A FACE, AND HIS HEAD

WENT LIKE THIS, "NO." HE SAYS, "THAT'S WALTER'S

EQUIPMENT AND OUR EXPERIMENT, AND BILL DIDN'T

HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT."

DURING THE SUMMER OF 1951, JOHN BARDEEN MOVED

HIS WIFE AND THREE CHILDREN TO CHAMPAIGN,

ILLINOIS.

Hoddeson: THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT ILLINOIS

OFFERED HIM WAS A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY IN

WHICH HE COULD SOLVE THE PROBLEMS THAT HE

SELECTED TO SOLVE.

THE BARDEEN'S BOUGHT A HOUSE NEAR THE GOLF

COURSE FOR JOHN TO ENJOY HIS FAVORITE PASTIME.

BARDEEN'S LOVE OF SPORTS EXTENDED TO FOOTBALL,

AND HE TOOK HIS FAMILY TO ALL THE HOME ILLINI

GAMES.

Bill Bardeen: WE WENT TO THE ROSE BOWL ONE

YEAR WHEN ILLINOIS WAS PLAYING. HE SPENT HOURS

BEING CATCHER AS I WAS A LITTLE LEAGUE PITCHER

HELPING ME IMPROVE MY FAST BALL. SOMETIMES

PEOPLE THINK "WELL, DID HE SIT YOU DOWN AND

TEACH YOU PHYSICS AT THE BREAKFAST TABLE WHEN

YOU WERE FIVE YEARS OLD?" IT WASN'T THAT WAY

AT ALL.

Pines: YOUR AVERAGE REALLY GREAT SCIENTIST

IS NOT AN ESPECIALLY SUCCESSFUL FATHER. JOHN

WAS AN AMAZINGLY SUCCESSFUL FATHER.

THE FALL OF 1951, BARDEEN LED A SEMINAR ON

THE TRANSISTOR. SITTING IN THE AUDIENCE WAS

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING GRADUATE STUDENT, NICK

HOLONYAK.

BARDEEN USED A SMALL PLASTIC BOX TO DEMONSTRATE

HOW THE TRANSISTOR WORKED.

WHEN HE TURNED IT ON, IT PLAYED THE TUNE "HOW

DRY I AM."

Holonyak: HE FLIPPED ON A SWITCH, AND THE

THING WAS ON INSTANTLY. SEE, EVERYTHING THAT

WE KNOW ABOUT IN ELECTRONICS IS VACUUM TUBES,

YOU FLIP ON A SWITCH, AND YOU WAIT FOR EVERYTHING

TO WARM UP.

I ALMOST FELL OUT OF THE CHAIR BECAUSE I KNOW

HOW TO DO ELECTRONICS. I AM ALREADY A GRAD

STUDENT AND.

I UNDERSTAND THIS STUFF, AND NOTHING WORKS

LIKE THAT.

UH-OH, I KNOW THIS IS DIFFERENT.

I COULD SEE RIGHT AWAY THAT THIS MAN PLAYS

A DIFFERENT GAME.

WHEN HOLONYAK LEARNED BARDEEN WAS GOING TO

SET UP A SEMICONDUCTOR LABORATORY, HE RUSHED

TO JOIN THE GROUP.

SOME OF HIS FELLOW GRADUATE STUDENTS LAUGHED

AT THE IDEA.

Holonyak: YOU ARE NUTS. THAT'S NOT GOING ANYWHERE.

WELL, OF COURSE, THE JOKE NOW IS ON THEM.

AT ILLINOIS, JOHN WANTED TO TACKLE A PROBLEM

THAT HAD DOGGED HIM SINCE GRADUATE SCHOOL.

HE WANTED TO SOLVE THE MYSTERY OF SUPERCONDUCTIVITY.

Slichter: IF YOU GOT CERTAIN METALS LIKE LEAD

OR TIN, VERY COLD, DOWN NEAR THE ABSOLUTE

ZERO, THAT IF YOU STARTED THE ELECTRIC CURRENT

FLOWING IN A WIRE, THAT THE CURRENT WOULD

KEEP ON GOING EVEN IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE A BATTERY.

SO IT WAS LIKE A PERPETUAL MOTION MACHINE.

HE WAS CHALLENGED BY THAT THING, AND IT WAS

A CHALLENGE AGAINST HIM.

Leggett: IT HAD BEEN RECOGNIZED FROM THE VERY

START AS A KEY MYSTERY OF CONDENSED Matter

PHYSICS.

JUST ABOUT EVERYONE WHO HAD ANY KIND OF REPUTATION

IN NOT JUST condensed matter PHYSICS, BUT

PHYSICS in GENERAL HAD A SHOT at EXPLAINING

SUPERCONDUCTIVITY.

BARDEEN'S THOUGHTS WERE TAKEN AWAY FROM SUPERCONDUCTIVITY

WHEN HE HEARD THE NEWS ON THE MORNING OF NOVEMBER

1, 1956.

HE DROPPED A FRYING PAN OF EGGS WHEN HE LEARNED

HE HAD WON THE NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS.

BARDEEN, BRATTAIN AND SHOCKLEY WON FOR THE

INVENTION OF THE TRANSISTOR.

WHEN BARDEEN RETURNED FROM STOCKHOLM, HE ACHIEVED

ANOTHER LIFELONG GOAL, A HOLE-IN-ONE. YEARS

LATER, CHARLES SLICHTER WAS AMAZED TO LEARN

THAT SOME OF BARDEEN'S GOLFING BUDDIES DID

NOT KNOW HE HAD WON A NOBEL PRIZE. TRUE TO

FORM, BARDEEN DID NOT BRAG ON THE COURSE.

Slichter: MY FEELING WAS THAT SOMEHOW OR ANOTHER,

IF I HAD WON A NOBEL PRIZE, I WOULD MANAGE

TO GET IT IN THE CONVERSATION SOMEHOW.

IN THE NEXT THREE MONTHS, BARDEEN'S GOOD LUCK

STREAK CONTINUED.

HE ANNOUNCED HE, ALONG WITH ROBERT SCHRIEFFER

AND LEON COOPER, HAD SOLVED A 45 YEAR OLD

MYSTERY THAT PUZZLED THE GREATEST MINDS IN

SCIENCE.

Break 3

BARDEEN WAS EAGER TO GET BACK TO WORK AT ILLINOIS

AFTER WINNING THE 1956 NOBEL PRIZE.

HE FELT HIS TEAM WAS CLOSE TO AN ANSWER ABOUT

THE MYSTERY OF SUPERCONDUCTIVITY.

Bill Bardeen: WHEN THEY LEARNED A LOT ABOUT

WHAT WAS GOING ON, BUT HADN'T QUITE PUT ALL

THE PIECES TOGETHER, MY FATHER HAD A COCKTAIL

PARTY FOR SOME VISITING RUSSIAN SCIENTISTS.

MY FATHER SEEMED TO BE STARING OFF INTO SPACE

EVERY SO OFTEN AND DIDN'T SAY VERY MUCH.

YOU COULD TELL THAT MY FATHER'S MENTAL WHEELS

WERE TURNING. SATURDAY MORNING, I THINK SCHRIEFFER

GOT A CALL RATHER EARLY IN THE MORNING SAYING

"I THINK I HAVE SOLVED IT."

BARDEEN RAN INTO CHARLES SLICHTER IN THE HALLWAY

OF THE PHYSICS BUILDING.

Slichter: I WAITED FOR HIM TO SAY WHAT IT

WAS HE WAS PLANNING, AND HE FINALLY SAID "WELL,

I THINK WE HAVE FIGURED OUT SUPERCONDUCTIVITY."

THAT WAS, I SUPPOSE, ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING

TIMES, EVENTS IN MY WHOLE SCIENTIFIC LIFE.

BARDEEN SHARED THE CREDIT WITH DOCTORAL STUDENT,

BOB SCHRIEFFER, AND HIS POST-DOC, LEON COOPER.

IT BECAME KNOWN AS "BCS."

Slichter: IT IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT

THEORETICAL DEVELOPMENTS OF THE PREVIOUS CENTURY.

THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT.

FOR THE FIRST TIME, SCIENTISTS UNDERSTOOD

ON A MICROSCOPIC LEVEL HOW MATERIAL BECAME

A SUPER CONDUCTOR.

Pines: WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE IS TO BE ABLE TO

MAKE A POWER LINE OUT OF SUPER CONDUCTING

WIRES.

Slichter: YOU WOULDN'T WASTE ANY OF THE ENERGY

TRYING TO GET THE ELECTRICITY FROM THE PLACE

WHERE YOU GENERATE IT TO THE PLACE WHERE YOU

USE IT.

ON OCTOBER 19, 1972, BARDEEN LEARNED HE HAD

BECOME the FIRST PERSON TO WIN A SECOND NOBEL

PRIZE IN PHYSICS.

BARDEEN, COOPER AND SCHRIEFFER WON FOR THEIR

THEORY OF SUPERCONDUCTIVITY.

Baym: Leo Kadenoff SENT A WONDERFUL NOTE SAYING

ON THE SECOND PRIZE "CONGRATULATIONS, JOHN.

WITH WITH THE THIRD, YOU GET TO KEEP THE KING."

Bill Bardeen: 1956, THE KING ASKED MY MOTHER,

"WELL, WHERE IS THE FAMILY?" AND SHE SAID

"WELL, THEY ARE AT HOME IN SCHOOL." HE SAID,

"WELL NEXT TIME BRING THEM."

BARDEEN RETURNED TO ILLINOIS AND CONTINUED

TEACHING UNTIL MARCH OF 1975. IN HIS RETIREMENT,

HE CONTINUED TO BE A LEADER IN SCIENCE BY

SERVING AS AN ADVISOR TO THE YOUNG HAILOID

COMPANY WHICH BECAME XEROX.

HE WAS ALSO CLOSE TO THE SONY CORPORATION

AND MADE MANY TRIPS TO JAPAN.

JOHN BARDEEN PASSED AWAY ON JANUARY 30, 1991.

Baym: JOHN WAS FULFILLED, BUT CERTAINLY JOHN

WAS STILL DRIVEN. HE WAS after NOBEL PRIZE

NUMBER THREE. I THINK

HE WAS ONE OF THE GREAT SCIENTISTS OF ALL

TIME.

Blahut: JOHN BARDEEN DID A LOT FOR THE WORLD.

HE DID A LOT FOR CIVILIZATION. HE DID A LOT

FOR THE FUTURE.

Holonyak: AND HE WASN'T THERE TRYING TO MAKE

THE WORLD BETTER FOR BARDEEN. HE WAS TRYING

TO MAKE THE WORLD BETTER BECAUSE WE HAVE TO.

Slichter: HE WASN'T JUST A SCIENTIST. HE WAS

TRULY A GREAT HUMAN BEING.