William Shockley
Nobel-winning co-inventor of the transistor who brought silicon to Silicon Valley
- Lived
- 79 yrs
- 1910 – 1989
- Works listed
- 1
- Book
- Honours
- 3
- Most recent 1980
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William Shockley was an American physicist who led the Bell Labs group that invented the transistor and shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics. His Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory brought silicon research to California, but his management drove away the staff who founded Fairchild. His later promotion of racist eugenics views damaged his reputation.
Biography
Background
Shockley was born in London to American parents and raised in Palo Alto, California. He studied at Caltech and earned a PhD at MIT in 1936 before joining Bell Labs.
The transistor
Shockley led Bell Labs’ solid-state physics group. In December 1947 his colleagues John Bardeen and Walter Brattain built the first point-contact transistor. Shockley, upset at being left out, developed the more practical junction transistor in 1948. The three shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Shockley Semiconductor
In 1956 he founded Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Mountain View, recruiting brilliant young scientists. His suspicious, autocratic management led eight of them to leave in 1957 and found Fairchild Semiconductor, starting the chain of start-ups that created Silicon Valley.
Controversy
As a Stanford professor from 1963, Shockley promoted discredited theories linking race and intelligence and advocated eugenics, which made him widely condemned. He died in 1989, estranged from most of his family.
Timeline
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1910
Born in London, England
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1936
PhD from MIT; joins Bell Labs
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1947
Point-contact transistor invented by his team
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1948
Junction transistor
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1956
Nobel Prize; founds Shockley Semiconductor
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1957
“Traitorous eight” leave
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1963
Professor at Stanford
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1989
Dies in Stanford, California
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1989
Died, aged 79
Notable works
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1950
Electrons and Holes in Semiconductors Book
Awards and honours
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Comstock Prize in Physics
1953
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Nobel Prize in Physics
1956
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IEEE Medal of Honor
1980
Did you know?
-
1
The eight who left him included Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore.
-
2
He was born in London but raised in Palo Alto.
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3
His racial views are widely rejected by scientists.
Connections
Related people
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Walter Brattain
Science · Bell Labs physicist who co-invented the transistor
Nobel co-recipient
-
Robert Noyce
Technology · Co-inventor of the integrated circuit and co-founder of Intel, the “Mayor of Silicon Valley”
Former employee
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Gordon Moore
Technology · Intel co-founder who formulated Moore’s law
Former employee
Frequently asked
Who is William Shockley?
William Shockley was an American physicist who led the Bell Labs group that invented the transistor and shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics. His Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory brought silicon research to California, but his management drove away the staff who founded Fairchild. His later promotion of racist eugenics views damaged his reputation.
When did William Shockley die?
William Shockley died on 12 August 1989 at the age of 79.
Where is William Shockley from?
William Shockley was born in London, England.
What is William Shockley known for?
William Shockley is best known for Co-inventing the transistor; the junction transistor; Shockley Semiconductor; Nobel Prize in Physics 1956.
What awards has William Shockley received?
Notable honours include Comstock Prize in Physics (1953), Nobel Prize in Physics (1956), IEEE Medal of Honor (1980).
References
- William Shockley — Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- William Shockley — Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- William Shockley — Nobel Prize facts. NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- William Shockley — Hindi Wikipedia. Wikipedia (Hindi). Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- William Shockley (Q163415) — structured data. Wikidata. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
Includes material from the Wikipedia article “William Shockley”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. That text is available under the same licence. Learn more
External links
About this profile
- Researched by the TrackFame editorial team; reviewed by Sanjay Sokal under our editorial policy
- First published 4 November 2026
- Last updated
Cite this page
“William Shockley.” TrackFame, last updated 4 November 2026. https://trackfame.com/person/william-shockley
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