5) Transistor Information Came to Japan from GHQ
Copy of the documents obtained from GHQ (Enlargeable)
"The transistor information came from GHQ," if we
follow the saying, "Lights come from the East." As soon as the transistor
invention was formally announced from Bell Telephone Laboratories (BTL) on
June 30 1948, the information was promptly sent to Japan through GHQ (General
Headquarters, the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers) in the middle of
July.
Sakuji Komagata, Chief Director at Electro Technical Laboratory and Yasushi
Watanabe, Professor of Tohoku University received the information from F.
Polkinghorn who belonged to research group of CCS (Civil Communication Section)
of GHQ.
The photographs are the copy of documents sent to Japan side. They are actually
the version which were re-typed by Wataru Sasaki who belonged to Komagata
Laboratory (later, Professor at Department of Science at the University of
Tokyo), probably because the original documents included some military related
information. That is why "Gotanda Electric Test Laboratory" is on
the upper end of the documents. Torao Ichinomiya who worked at Electron Tube
Department at Electric Test Laboratory (later, Deputy Director of Institute
of Physical and Chemical Research) showed me these copies, and I took the
pictures of the several pages. The two pages from the left in the photograph
show the document for the transistor special explanatory meeting exclusively
for military personnel on Jun 23, 1948, prior to public opening, and the rightmost
page shows the summary of the explanation by R. Born of BTL at the press release
on Jun 30 with a date of July 9 on the document.