52.092 MOLECULAR ELECTRONIC AMPLIFIER, Science Service Historical Image Collection

1960 - button-like object by the model with a pair of tweezers is actually an amplifier

MOLECULAR ELECTRONIC AMPLIFIER SMALLER THAN A DIME

CD 1967031 E&MP52.092

Electronics

January 22, 1960

The button-like object by the model with a pair of tweezers is actually an amplifier, which performs the same function as the conventional amplifier on the table.

The tiny unit was developed and built by scientists of Westinghouse Electric Corporation in cooperation with the Air Force to demonstrate the feasibility of molecular electronics -- a new electrical engineering concept that could revolutionize the electronics industry and extend man's reach into space.

A tiny amplifier just like th[is one] was incorporated into a phonograph system to replace a conventional audio amplifier. Westinghouse and Air Force officials report that molecular electronic units, or sub-systems, are more reliable and as much as 1000 times smaller than the most advanced electronics devices in use today.