A misplaced pen dip in 1916 gave us the crystal growth method behind every chip
aakashgupta · x · 2026-11-07
In 1916 Polish chemist Jan Czochralski dipped his pen into melted tin by accident and discovered the crystal-pulling method now behind virtually every silicon wafer. Published in 1918, the technique sat unused for 30 years until Bell Labs' 1947 transistor needed single crystals. He died making shoe polish, buried in an unmarked grave.
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