Nobel prize winner and Blu ray LED development story (on)

Because the blue LED, three scientists won the Nobel prize for physics epoch-making. It is related with blue LED, have to say is nichia.

Nichia chemical industries is headquartered in Tokushima Prefecture of Japan Anand city (hereinafter referred to as local Nichia quite famous company). Because the company has a three week summer vacation system. The staff will use the holiday all awa dance exercises. And to the AWA dance performance was held, the company will send staff consisting of "Nichia phalanx" jump on the street.

In Nichia has become one of the world famous company is at the end of 1993. This stems from the company developed a brightness of 1CD blue light emitting diode, and the successful implementation of mass production. Was once recognized as "to be achieved in twenty-first Century," the high brightness blue light-emitting diode thus successfully entered the practical period.

For Nichia feat, technical personnel in the field and researchers feel like shocked the world. What is even more surprising is that the achievement of such a feat, not in the field of long-term research at home and abroad well-known universities, nor large electronics manufacturers, but a local city of chemical manufacturers. Thus, Arias called from the summer vacation Nichia "into the" blue light emitting diodes arias".

For the children choose to return home into the Arias

To become almost synonymous with Nichia blue LED, it is Nakamura Shuji.

Almost all rely on their own efforts to develop high brightness blue light-emitting diode is the 40 year old researcher Nakamura Shuji. In 1979 the village from the Graduate School of The University of Tokushima after graduating Nichia, majored in electronic engineering.

Students, of course, in the village of longing for Tokyo or Osaka and other big cities. But when he graduated, he had a child, because he got married when he was in college.

"If you are single, you can stay in the city. But if you have a child, it is better to live in the country. I don't want to sacrifice my family for work". It is this idea eventually in the village of Nichia and indissoluble bound.

But not to say that the village did not hesitate. In fact, the village has also been headquartered in Kyoto KYOCERA interview. Despite the rigorous examination, the smooth access to the opportunity to enter the KYOCERA, but the results of the village or give up. Finally, chose to stay in the local village, is the wife's phone number where the island city.

Arias are in the village of university tutor introduction. Although his major is electronic engineering, but the village hopes to engage in the development of materials, so the teacher recommended him to the company. However, when it came to the village which Nichia surprised. This is just a small chemical company with only 200 employees, there is a pungent smell of hydrogen sulfide (H2S), similar to the smell of rotten eggs. "How the company is so dirty," this is the first impression to the left in the village of arias.

The initial development of the project was to extract the metal Ga material used in compound semiconductor GaP. Although the development of the course, but in fact only a director with two developers and several small department assistant. The office space is made up of a parking lot with a roof, but the walls are added around.

In a few months after the beginning of refining the metal Ga, the business sector in addition to the requirements of the metal Ga is also expected to manufacture the best-selling GaP. At that time, the development of the course has been in a state of death, and even began to say that "will soon be withdrawn". In this case, I am afraid that only the start-up is expected to form a profitable business. The company then designated the village to develop. There were two developers. One continues to be responsible for the refinement of the metal Ga, and the other, which is in the village, began to develop GaP.

In order to make GaP crystal growth, the need to use expensive quartz tube. The quartz tube is expensive, and therefore can not be used to throw away, at least at the time of the arias cannot do. So, the village began to endlessly welding quartz tube. And the most troublesome is the frequent occurrence of explosion. The quartz tube with Ga and P is heated at high temperature, so that the pressure in the tube will rise to 20 ~ 30 atmospheric pressure. At this time, as long as there is a small weld damage or lack of strength, the quartz tube will rupture.

Seal the material in the quartz tube in the morning. It begins to heat in the afternoon, when the temperature reaches the maximum. Explosions always happen when you're off duty. The noise often spread throughout the Nichia corporation. "Is also the village". The staff side ridicule, and hurried home.

From the beginning of 1981, the village began to manufacture GaP sales. It is due to pay so much effort, when the products listed on their own, the village is very emotional. GaP's manufacturing development was finally successful. However, GaP sales of only a few million yen per month. As a business, not too much success. In the end of the village development in 1982, manufacturing is handed over to the younger generation. In the village of GaP from the development of the completely removed out.

From this process, the village learned is welding technology, quartz face explosion also fearless courage, and not blindly follow the company "this lesson.

Since 1982, the village began to study the crystallization of GaAs related issues. Although the development of the material has changed, but the company's internal development environment as always. First, the production equipment, followed by the welding of quartz tube. Nakamura