Leo Esaki

Reona Esaki (江崎 玲於奈 Esaki Reona, born March 12, 1925), also known as Leo Esaki, is a Japanese physicist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1973 with Ivar Giaever and Brian David Josephson. He won the prize for his discovery of the phenomenon of electron tunneling. 

He is known for his invention of the Esaki diode, which exploited that phenomenon. This research was done when he was with Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo (now known as Sony). He has also contributed in being a pioneer of the semiconductor superlattice while he was with IBM.

Esaki was born on March 12, 1925 in Higashiōsaka, Japan.Esaki, Leo, "Long Journey into Tunneling," Nobel Lecture, Dec 12, 1973. He studied at the University of Tokyo.

References

Other websites
 Leo Esaki – Biography.  Retrieved Aug. 5, 2003 from http://www.nobel.se/physics/laureates/1973/esaki-bio.html 
 IBM record
 IEEE History Center – Leo Esaki. Retrieved Jul. 19, 2011 from http://www.ieeeghn.org/wiki/index.php/Leo_Esaki
 Sony History – The Esaki Diode.  Retrieved Aug. 5, 2003 from http://www.sony.net/Fun/SH/1-7/h5.html 
 Freeview video 'An Interview with Leo Esaki' by the Vega Science Trust

Category:1925 births
Category:Living people
Category:Japanese physicists
Category:People from Osaka
Category:Japanese Nobel Prize winners
Category:University of Tokyo alumni
Category:American physicists
Category:Japanese inventors
Category:Kyoto University alumni
Category:Kyoto University faculty
Category:Nobel Prize in Physics winners
Category:Theoretical physicists