Man forsøgte at lave forstærkende komponenter (fx [[elektronrør]]) i [[faststof]] mellem ca. 1930-1947, men uden større succes.<ref>[https://www.nutsvolts.com/magazine/article/the-story-of-the-transistor nutsvolts.com: The Story of the Transistor] Citat: "...However, behind this story of invention is one of collaborative genius, [[Serendipitet|serendipitous]] mishaps, clashing egos, and secret research...Oleg Losev (or Lossev) was a Russian scientist who made significant discoveries in the field of semiconductor junctions in the 1920s. He observed light emission from silicon carbide point-contact junctions, which was essentially the first [[lysdiode|light emitting diode (LED)]]...In 1923, Losev began studying these oscillating crystals. He discovered that biased zinc oxide crystals could [[Elektronisk forstærker|amplify]] a signal. Losev was the first to exploit [[tunneldiode|negative resistance diodes]] and he realized that they might serve as simpler alternatives to vacuum tubes. He used these diodes to build solid-state versions of amplifiers, oscillators, and regenerative radio receivers at frequencies up to 5 MHz. This was 25 years before the transistor!...In another effort to replace tubes with solid-state devices, Julius Lilienfeld filed a patent in 1926 for a “Method and Apparatus for Controlling Electric Currents”...In 1936, Mervin Kelly — now research director at Bell Labs — decided to establish a department to study solid-state physics in the hope of producing a replacement for the vacuum tube from semiconducting materials...It was here that Russell Ohl discovered the first [[PN-overgang|P-N junction]] when he accidentally cut a section of [[Silicium|silicon]] ingot across the boundary between the P and N regions...", [https://web.archive.org/web/20221212023058/https://www.nutsvolts.com/magazine/article/the-story-of-the-transistor backup]</ref><ref>[https://www.technologyreview.com/2003/02/01/234499/no-p-n-intended/ technologyreview.com: No P-N Intended. A cracked crystal launched the silicon revolution] Citat: "...Early in 1940 Ohl examined a silicon sample that had a crack down its middle. Something was strange about that crystal: when it was exposed to light, the current flowing between the two sides of the crack jumped significantly. Baffled, Ohl showed the bizarre sample to his Bell colleagues, who were equally amazed. No one had ever seen a photovoltaic reaction like it...", [https://web.archive.org/web/20220519230243/https://www.technologyreview.com/2003/02/01/234499/no-p-n-intended/ backup]</ref> Men den 17. november 1947 lavede [[John Bardeen]] og [[Walter Brattain]] fra Bell Laboratory nogle overflademålinger på et rent [[germanium]]krystal, som er en halvleder, og opdagede, at to [[elektrode]]r, med en indbyrdes afstand på langt under en mm, havde en kraftig indbyrdes strømindvirkning – i forhold til den fælles elektrode; bagsiden af [[krystal]]let – basen.
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