Stanford R. Ovshinsky
Source: Web (invent.org)
Sciences & Discovery • Historical Archive • 🇺🇸 United States • 9 views

Stanford R. Ovshinsky 🇺🇸

Stanford R. Ovshinsky
Inventor, Energy Pioneer, NiMH Battery and Solar Cell Creator
Born Nov 24, 1922 🇺🇸 Akron, United States
Passed Away Oct 17, 2012 Bloomfield Hills, United States
Lifespan 89 years old
9 views
Notice / Correction
"If you want to do something new, you have to break through the established boundaries of what experts think is impossible."

Archival Overview

Prolific, self-taught American inventor described as the Thomas Edison of modern clean energy, who created the nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) battery that powered the first hybrid cars, rewriteable CDs, and thin-film solar panels.

Biographical Record

Stanford Robert Ovshinsky was the son of a Lithuanian Jewish scrap metal dealer and had no formal university degree, teaching himself physics, chemistry, and metallurgy in public libraries and working as a machinist in Akron rubber factories.

In 1960, Ovshinsky and his wife Iris founded Energy Conversion Devices (ECD) in Detroit. He discovered the 'Ovshinsky effect' in amorphous semiconductors, founding the field of amorphous and disordered materials. His over 400 patents yielded the nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) battery (powering the Toyota Prius and early laptops), phase-change optical memory (CD-RW, DVD-RW), and continuous roll-to-roll thin-film solar photovoltaics.

Key Life Milestones

1968

The Ovshinsky Effect Announcement

Published his discovery of reversible switching in amorphous semiconductors, creating a new branch of physics.

1997

Commercialization of the NiMH Battery

Licensed his NiMH battery technology to power the Toyota Prius and the first mass-market hybrid automobiles.

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Final Resting Place

Perpetual Memorial
Cremated, private memorial
Bloomfield Hills, United States
GPS: 42.5836, -83.2455
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