Warren Palmer Waters (8 September 1922 – 17 July 2000) was an American physicist, electrical engineer, and semiconductor pioneer. He filed several device and process patents in the field of solid state engineering and was the manager of the solid state research center for the Hughes Aircraft Company. Walter's innovative circuit designs led to the success of NASA's Surveyor program.
Education and military service
Waters was born in Sanger, California on 8 September 1922.[1] He graduated with honors from Sanger High School, winning the Bausch+Lomb Honorary Science Award for chemistry.[2]
Waters joined the U.S. Army in 1942 and trained to be a pilot during World War II. He was later deployed to the 386th Infantry division in northern France.[1] He lost a leg in combat on 12 April 1945, and received a Purple Heart[3][4] and a Bronze Star for his service.[1]
Waters graduated from Caltech in 1949.[5] He received his master's degree from the University of Southern California in 1954[6] and completed coursework there for a Ph.D. in physics.[1]
Scientific career
Warren P. Waters at Hughes Aircraft, 1954
Waters spent his summers between 1947 and 1951 working at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, helping test new rocket designs.[1]
Waters joined the Hughes Aircraft Company in 1952[5][7] and was involved in pioneering research on germanium[8] and silicon bipolar transistors.[9][10][11][12] He filed five patents during this period.[13][14]
In 1962, he joined Texas Instruments to manage its department for semiconductor research and advanced device development.[15]
In 1966, Waters returned to Hughes as the manager of its solid state research center in 1966,[7][15][16] working on microwave devices and designing integrated circuits using gold and silicon Schottky diodes.[17] His patent (with Belardi) is part of the Smithsonian Chip Collection.[18]
In his obituary, the Los Angeles Times reported that Waters' integrated circuit designs were used in NASA's Surveyor program, which landed some of the first unmanned spacecraft on the moon.[19] The Atomic Heritage Foundation credits him with developing the components used in the landing mechanisms; later Waters helped invent the silicon wafer used in the electronics for telecommunication satellites.[1][20]
In 1980, Waters joined Rockwell International to work on silicon wafer doping. In 1987, he worked for Western Digital on silicon disk purification and the development of early computer hard disk drives.[1][17]
Personal life and death
Waters married Lois Lockwood in 1951[21] in what the Covina Argus-Citizen called "an impressive ceremony";[2] the wedding was reported in several local newspapers.[22] He was the father of three children: Andrea Rosney, conductor Carolyn Waters Broe, and Lisa Waters.[19]
Waters died on 17 July 2000 and is buried at Pacific View Memorial Park in Corona del Mar, California.[19]
Waters patents
U.S. Patent 2,817,609 Alkali Metal Alloy Agents for Auto-Fluxing in Junction Forming, filed June 24, 1955, issued Dec. 24, 1957
U.S. Patent 2,829,992 Fused Junction Semiconductor Devices and Method of Making Same, filed Feb. 2, 1954, issued April 8, 1958
U.S. Patent 2,829,993 Process for Making Fused Junction Semiconductor Devices with Alkali Metal-Galium, filed June 24, 1955, issued April 8, 1958
U.S. Patent 2,854,366 Method of Making Fused Junction Semiconductor Devices, filed Nov. 25, 1957, issued Sept. 30, 1958
U.S. Patent 2,854,610 Semiconductor Transistor Device, filed Mar. 24, 1955, issued Sept. 30, 1958
U.S. Patent 3,088,856 Fused Junction Semiconductor Devices, filed Sept. 2, 1955, issued May 7, 1963
U.S. Patent 3,388,000 Method of Forming a Metal Contact on a Semi Conductor Device, filed Sept. 18, 1964, issued June 11, 1968
U.S. Patent 3,518,751 Electrical Connection and/or Mounting Arrays for Integrated Circuit Chips, filed May 25, 1967, issued July 7, 1970[18]
U.S. Patent 3,615,929 Method of Forming Epitaxial Region of Predetermined Thickness and Article of Manufacture, filed July 8, 1965, issued Oct. 26, 1971
U.S. Patent 3,651,384 Planar Schottky Barrier, filed March 8, 1971, issued Mar. 21, 1972
U.S. Patent 3,836,991 Semiconductor Device Having Epitaxial Region of Predetermined Thickness, filed Feb. 23, 1973, issued Sept. 17, 1974
External links
Biographical website: warrenpwaters.org
References
"Warren P. Waters". Atomic Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
"Impressive Ceremony Unites Lois Lockwood, Warren Waters". Covina Argus-Citizen. 1951-08-24. p. 5. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
"National Purple Heart Hall of Honor". www.thepurpleheart.com. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
"Purple Heart Recipient". The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor. thepurpleheart.com. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
"Personals: 1949" (PDF). Engineering and Science. No. pg. 24–26. Caltech. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
Waters, Warren P. (June 1954). "Some Experimental Studies with AC Operated Positive Ion Space Charge Detector". University of Southern California Library, M.S. Thesis.
"Hughes Tabs NB Research Center Chief". Independent Press-Telegram. Hughes News. 3 March 1966. p. 157. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
Sverre T. Eng; Warren P. Waters (14 October 1959). "A Gold-Bonded Germanium Diode for Parametric Amplification". Proceedings of the National Electronics Conference. XV: 15, 83–91.
Waters, Warren P. (1961). HIGH FREQUENCY TRANSISTOR STUDY. WorldCat Idendities. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
R. A. Gudmundsen; A. L. Wannlund; W. P. Waters; W. V. Wright (December 1945). "Recent Developments in Silicon Fusion Transistors". Tele-Tech & Electronic Industries: 76–78, 149–150.
Arthur L. Wannlund; Warren P. Waters (1957). "A Silicon PNP Fused-Junction Transistor". IRE 1957 WESCON Convention Record Part 3 "Electron Devices". Hughes Semiconductors: 3–13.
Warren P. Waters; H. G. Dill; C. H. Fa. "Molecular Bandpass Amplifiers". AF Report. ASD-TDR-62-21.
Warren P Waters; Jon H Myer (24 Dec 1957). "Alkali metal alloy agents for autofluxing in junction forming". Hughes Aircraft Co. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
Warren P Waters (8 April 1958). "Process for making fused junction semiconductor devices with alkali metalgallium alloy". Hughes Aircraft Co. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
"Waters back with Hughes". Newspapers.com. Long Beach, California: Independent. March 6, 1966. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
"Warren Waters: Man-of-the-hour". Hughes. 1966.
"Biography - Warren P. Waters". warrenpwaters.org. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
Warren P. Waters; Richard J. Belardi (25 May 1967). "Electrical Connection And/Or Mounting Arrays For Integrated Circuit Chips". Retrieved 24 June 2015.
"The Los Angeles Times 22 Jul 2000, page Page 246". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
US3836991A, Portnoy, W.; Waters, W. & Wisman, E., "Semiconductor device having epitaxial region of predetermined thickness", issued 1974-09-17
"Puente Girl Is Married in Pasadena Church Ceremony". No. Pg 2. La Puente Valley Journal. 23 August 1951.
"Sunset Wedding In Pasadena United Lois Virginia Lockwood and Warren Palmer Waters". Sanger Herald. 30 August 1951.
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