Why It Was Almost Impossible to Make the Blue LED

[@matthewrayner571]

One of the greatest examples of how we only see the end result of hard work. My man worked 84 hour weeks for over 18 months just to hit the first clue that he was on the right path. That's a level of tenacity that I cannot help but admire.

[@jaredf6205]

I am so thankful for people like this.

[@igx_s2745]

I love how you described this, " first clue that he was on the right path " I mean all what I was thinking about is how is he sure about the path he is into. 18 months had the chance to be a waste of time, but now and thankfully he made it .

[@takumi2023]

@@igx_s2745 i think Thomas Edison's quote applies here. he found 1000 ways not to make a blue LED but found 1 after 18 months of non-stop trial.

[@fuzzy3440]

No Unions would have prevented him from working all those hours. Never would have happened with a Union. All Unions achieve is wealth for Union leaders.@@mascambios

[@MrNicePotato]

Now this should be the inventor's "perseverance" story, not Thomas Edison.

[@CuriousMarc]

In the mid 1990s, I was working in a research lab where we were in competition with Nichia in the development of GaN blue LED and lasers, also using our home-grown MOCVD machines. Dr. Nakamura was always 2 (or more!) steps ahead of us. I still vividly remember when we got our hands on a prototype of his deep blue LEDs after a conference. We turned it on in the lab, with lights down, expecting a weak blue emission, as we got from our own devices. It came on so bright and so blue, it illuminated the whole room! It blew our mind, we couldn’t believe it. How had he done that? He was the blue LED magician. Nobel prize well deserved, and then some.

[@w6wdh]

Yeah, I was at HP Labs at that time, and we were contemplating spending $10 for a wimpy blue LED to detect yellow ink dots on paper in an inkjet printer, to determine if the inkjet printhead was working. And then came along Shuji Nakamura’s blue LED from Nichia. A mind blowing achievement!

[@doge_69]

That's really cool

[@pandoraeeris7860]

It 'blue' your mind! 😉

[@whoreslayer]

​@@pandoraeeris7860I don't understand pons 😢

[@dzibanart8521]

Nakamura single-handedly changed the world. And he only got a $170 bonus for that. 😢

[@ElectroBOOM]

What a success story! I wish he was successful in compensation side in Japan, but I guess they lost him because of that. Happy to see him thrive now.

[@aniket31415]

kek

[@zeddman]

😮

[@CSArtWrks]

doesn't surprise me Japan is a garbage country when it comes to human compassion

[@artem-kt2gh]

hi mehdi

[@kridayvij]

I love your vids mehdi ❤

[@emanwe01]

This is probably the best illustration of what makes a conductor, insulator, and semiconductor that I've ever seen. Bravo, Veritasium! My hat is off to you!

[@LarryHahn-gk2np]

While I have the utmost respect for the people that brought this vid to my eyeballs; if I didn't already understand who my God is, Shuji Nakamura would be my false idol!

[@a133m210]

yes, love the empty chairs. Clever Derek

[@RavixSomni]

So he was underfunded, underappreciated and undersold, yet he almost single-handedly created one of the most important technologies in the modern world, a true legend. And I got to learn his story from an interesting, high quality source. Thanks again Derek

[@adamlynch9153]

yeah this takes the old saying about edison creating a lightbulb to a new level

[@stevendv8487]

He wasn't underfunded. They could've been more appreciative of his work. But it's not like he didn't get anything. He got the budget to immortalize his name, and now he's getting top jobs presumably.

[@michaellavery4899]

This is such an incredible story that I stumbled upon by sheer accident. Although I wouldn't be able to explain the theory to another, I understood enough to appreciate the hurdles Nakamura had to overcome. Unfortunately he is 1 in a billion. If even a fraction of inventors or researchers in the world had the stamina, determination, resources and insight of this man, the world would be a very different place. It is worth noting, that despite the resulting animosity, his original company showed an enormous amount of faith and patience in him. His employment could have been terminated at any time when he was disregarding their orders. Maybe their are other amazing talents out there, who don't get the opportunity to refine their exceptional abilities.

[@michaellavery4899]

This is such an incredible story that I stumbled upon by sheer accident. Although I wouldn't be able to explain the theory to another, I understood enough to appreciate the hurdles Nakamura had to overcome. Unfortunately he is 1 in a billion. If even a fraction of inventors or researchers in the world had the stamina, determination, resources and insight of this man, the world would be a very different place. It is worth noting, that despite the resulting animosity, his original company showed an enormous amount of faith and patience in him. His employment could have been terminated at any time when he was disregarding their orders. Maybe their are other amazing talents out there, who don't get the opportunity to refine their exceptional abilities.

[@markstewart4501]

@@stevendv8487 ah, you be the pawn of the MBA. MBA's are the Vampires of fair compitition. There current efforts to put up pay walls, to gouge on research, is there current step to monetize "progress" for their back row statues....meanwhile, they "inadvertently" lay waste the the very social structures that garnered their surrounding pawns support and innovation. The MBA Zealot is contemporary histories growing destructive force...This is to say your attitude needs a reality check..."They could have...", but oopsy, profits...aka F"k off. Your ideological positioning in your statement leads those interested by innovation to interest more self serving and less societally beneficial...a new dark age...for your personal desires of greed.

[@BigGhoul53425]

It’s so dumb how it’s never just “this guy changed the world and got compensated fairly for it” there’s always some corporate bs in the way

[@ShaunDreclin]

Hooray, capitalism!

[@Cheezymuffin.]

what did you expect from some upper class twat that got the company trough marrying the daughter of the company?

Greed

[@JonahNelson7]

Well they’re the ones providing the money. If they don’t think they’re getting results they get nervous and pull funding. Same thing would happen if it was a person with their own money or a friend’s money

[@johnelectric933]

@@ShaunDreclin Ideal capitalism would have rewarded him. We have gone beyond that point to where past successes are use to monopolize future success. The logical end of capitalism.. It will always get here unless controls are in place. EDIT I was just making a sarcastic comment trolling "capitalists" and corporatists. I am a now retired engineer and fascinated by the invention process. not economics. I had no intension of hijacking a science based thread into some economic system debate. I apologize to Veritasium for this getting out of hand.

[@Pluvia198]

Mr. Nakamura is a hidden giant everyone should know more about. Incredible tenacity and great video.

[@parzingtheasian]

hikaru has over 1m subs so i think hes known well enough

[@dhirensdynamicchessnew2524]

I love hikaru too

[@Creator0369]

​@@parzingtheasianbro ,he is not talking about Hikaru Nakamura,he is talking about the man who invented blue LED

[@apseeiitm]

Dr.

[@parzingtheasian]

@@Creator0369 r/woooosh

[@MasterJay1985]

I am a electrician and after 15 years of experience, your are the first one, that could explain me N- and P-type transistors. Thank you.

[@muhammadtaufiqhussain5193]

Technically transistors are not P or N types. Rather the semiconductor crystal itself. To make a transistor you either need a N type semiconductor and attach it in the middle of a P type semiconductor bar to make a P-N-P transistor or do the opposite to get a N-P-N transistor. And if you attach an N type to a P type you get a Diode. It’s named diode cz N and P type apparently work as Anode and Cathode making it “Di”ode indicating a PN junction holds both the properties of Anode and Cathode

[@paytonmacdonald8916]

I came here to learn why blue was so difficult to make… I didn’t know this was the story of a man who discovered a landmark piece of technology. Just the thought of him staring at a small blue light, completely understanding it was his life’s work and his masterpiece. True happiness in a blue glow.

[@AlmostOffline]

Seriously, with a physics lesson in what makes semiconductors work thrown in the middle.

[@fireWireX4]

yeah BLUE LED is amazing for sure!!!! 🔵🔵🔵🔵

[@SayAhh]

Had he listened to his shortsighted bosses and not been stubborn then we would still be using incandesceng lightbulbs like Trump wants us to.

[@RenditionLies]

His life's work and his masterpiece... So far... I am interested to see what his contributions will be to nuclear fusion now!

[@Demiurge13]

blue is my favorite color as well.

[@DougSalad]

I'm so glad this story didn't end with "and then he died penniless and alone" because it feels like so many of these stories often do. Warms my heart to see him alive and recognized for his genius and thriving still!

[@niloytesla]

i was hare for this comment!

[@GirlOnAQuest]

Thank goodness 😢

[@asgacc8789]

It felt like the script was heading that direction 😂 soooo glad it ends well in the end🎉

[@One.Zero.One101]

Before I finished the video, I was betting that the company was gonna screw him over and he wouldn't get compensation. Lo and behold I just became a prophet. It's a sad state when everyone is expecting a screwjob to happen and it happens. Lawmakers are so head over heels with companies, when they ask for copyright laws, lawmakers would pass bills in a heartbeat. But when an individual citizen is asking for fair policy, nothing ever changes.

[@jamirimaj6880]

He's basically an emeritus professor at one of the biggest universities in the world and a Nobel Peace price winner. Now that's a dream.

[@111hpfan]

I have a PhD in physical chemistry, studying the energy levels of semiconductors, and I've never heard as concise and clear explanation of semiconductors from any of the courses I've taken, and then that information is made tangible in this human story. Great story telling, great science communication, great animations. I absolutely love your videos.

[@lqr824]

yeah, I'm a 20 year engineer in Japan and felt the same.

[@saltfork]

That is amazing to hear from experts in the field. It seems that experts usually find shortcomings in these simplified explanations of complex phenomena.

[@KGTSI]

It made dummies like me understand it so it did a good job.

[@Arizhel6]

I never took physics past high school, and I understand the mechanisms behind electricity, conductors, and semiconductors a hell of a lot better after this video. It had never occurred to me that I'd never really seen blue LED's until I was in high school. The green and red ones were all over the place of course, but I don't remember blue ones. I'd wondered before about why LED technology seemed to just suddenly be *there*, and this video answered that for me.

[@jfmaster1507]

Do you know that structured water can pool electrons and that mercury can act as a greedy semi conductor?

[@gregscopel1294]

Thank you for your commitment to informing the public about science and technology in general, and physics in particular. I would like to support you for taking your time and effort doing so! Your content contributions are always greatly appreciated! Regards Greg Scopel

[@AbdulDsouza]

Bravo for an open mind!¡

[@Reckless211]

your the realest since kennedy

[@theseamstress6783]

Thank you for supporting Veritasium ❤

[@gregscopel1294]

@@theseamstress6783 ... you are welcome!

[@nitronix2787]

@@cloudydoomz4377 You're the only clown here. All you've done is out yourself on your deteriorated attention span. Seems 4 sentences of praise is too much for you to handle?

[@eureur]

Don’t ever go back making “television”. This is so much better. A great story from beginning to end with a spectacular entry of the main character. No spoilers, no previews. KZbin at its best. TV will never reach this level of storytelling. Hats off to your illustrator too.

[@nyendwa]

The narrator is a scientist he understands what he is talking about. TV is mostly made up of journalists with basic information on many topics generally

[@MarathonMiler]

Couldn’t agree more about the great storytelling 😊

[@AgentFire0]

I agree. This was so thrilling

[@hawdgeal]

​@@asstacoI'd also like to know

[@sarveshpadav2881]

@@hawdgeal In his life story video, he mentioned that he wanted to become a filmmaker.

[@MayurJumani]

Everything else aside, your explanation of semiconductors & the stadium seats synergy made this complex topic so easy to understand. I hope they show this in schools.

[@LuCkySlither]

Estoy triste porque es me cumpleanos y no tuve ningun suscriptor

[@prithujsarkar2010]

yess! recently learned abt semiconductors and this video was icing on the cake

[@beamshooter]

I never really got how doping worked... but the explanation of energy-bands helped a lot

[@prithujsarkar2010]

@@beamshooter yeah it's a bit messy at first, even with animations and all but they way I understood doping is literally the meaning of word itself. It's like the production quantity of free electrons (or even holes) is on steroids, so the semiconductor has more functionality!

[@196cupcake]

I'm not a boron, you are!

[@matejsmetana3165]

This video is literally golden, I was focused the whole time, not a single minute was boring. I have learn huge amount of information, but not too much. This should be shown in schools.

[@beastrule]

True

[@gunsunnuva8346]

Well, literally it's a bit more blue than golden, but... (Sorry :P)

[@PrimitiveOs]

Yes! Is the right amount of entertainment, education and story

[@glidershower]

This is real education

[@djslip_irie]

It’s even bigger.. the blue ray laser came from this too. Toshiba freaked out cause they had just wasted years on HDDVD that was obsolete before consumer release. The blue ray could put 50 gig (dual layer) while the Toshiba HDDVDs max was 30 (dual layer). Sony would invest in the blue laser and Nakamura. Toshiba terminated the HDDVD in 2008. Wikipedia has it all if you search high definition disc wars .

[@casper75559]

32:10 in a way. Bro added more color to the world. I’m sure that’s a title only held by a few. The man’s a genius but more importantly. The burning 🔥 inside him is a solid example of never giving up but also putting your maximum effort into your dream!

[@gray_gogy]

This is my favorite Veritasium video. It goes betond the science and takes us through the life of a hard working man. He started from a fishing village, ignored his companies orders, and changed the world. He still has his values to thank Nichia despite the scum of a CEO, and saved himself from a lifetime of bitterness.

[@sqarfuls8649]

100% my favorite too, this channel seems to never miss with it's content; but this one stood far and away above all others. Incredible work Veritasium team

[@TheJanitorIsIn]

Same. Taught the diode process way better then anything I've seen before, and that was just the first 10 minutes.

[@ultralysp]

Yeah, this was an awesome video. I hope folks can stomach some electron lessons to hear the rest in the video

[@cristimarius3940]

by far in top 5 best youtube videos I ever seen

[@cbuchner1]

I think what adds the cherry on top of this video is that Derek visited and interviewed the creator in person.

[@MrREDSTAR20]

I love that guy he seems friendly and open to talk to everybody who knows about his story.

[@kiruthikpranav5047]

and humble enough to pretend he wasn't the sole reason there still exists research facilities dedicated to LEDs

[@sudarshan3965]

Bloody bots everywhere

[@MrREDSTAR20]

@@kiruthikpranav5047 yes. I almost didn’t notice how humble he was truly a hero for the modern tv screen age.

[@zes3813]

wrrr, say, can say etc any nmw s perfx

[@MrREDSTAR20]

@@sudarshan3965 I ain’t no bot bud lol

[@MarkBessey]

I got to see Dr. Nakamura give a talk about his career at UCSB. It was fascinating. He got a big laugh from the audience by claiming that the secret to winning a Nobel prize is apparently "working on something nobody else thought was a viable research direction". He comes across as very humble and personable in person.

[@fireared9244]

I want to know how the people felt who talked him down after his discovery😂

[@paulis7319]

That had to be an honor to meet such an important person in today's society. The majority of things we use today were shunned by investors during their initial research and development days. Dr. Nakamura is among the few great examples of great minds who ignored investors. I hope he's heavily invested in the blue LED stocks.

[@14supersonic]

Lol, it should be obvious, but most people don't think about the fact that chasing trends usually won't work for most people, you have to be the one to set them. I guess the humor here is that it's so obvious that most people don't really realize it.

[@kyle-silver]

I saw him speak in New Jersey back in 2016. He’s an incredible person and told us about how everyone above him dismissed his efforts

[@LuisSierra42]

@@fireared9244 They are still coping

[@NeoStarImpact]

Why hasn't this story been turned into a movie. My god it filled my eyes with tears. I admire his dedication, brilliance, and tenacity from the bottom of my heart!

[@WayneTheSeine]

Amen

[@hoomansarrafan9843]

Dude, you're out there interviewing people who actually moved our species years further in terms of progress and seeing him connecting with you so well and talk about his love for physics and knowing that you will definitely match the vibe is just heartwarming specially for a person who had such a huge impact on everyone's life yet never compensated properly for it. Bless your soul, Derek.

[@SpicyTexan64]

We aren't a species. We're humans. One of a kind. We've always been human. If you believe we evolved, you must believe that humans didn't all evolve equally all over the planet and some must be behind others on the ladder of evolution. Darwin certainly did.

[@ScorpionClaws789]

​@@SpicyTexan64Wow, every word of what you just said is wrong!

[@hoomansarrafan9843]

@StayStrapped2A well, I kinda agree with the different pace of evolution you mentioned, to be honest (take remote tribes who refuse to/can't communicate with the rest of us), but that wasn't exactly my point. It's just that english isn't my first language, and sometimes I struggle to make my point come across clearly😅

[@zhongxina9420]

​@@SpicyTexan64are you saying arctic inuits and african savannah tribepeople have the same adaptation?

[@michaeld9108]

​@@SpicyTexan64 If you're a science denying religious nut why are you even here watching the evil devil's work? Don't you know the earth's flat, only six thousand years old and these so called LEDs are actually dark magic? Put down the desert cult fanfiction and use your brain.

[@DJresnoGaming]

Even though it's frustrating that he wasn't compensated properly, I appreciate you taking the time to spread this man's story. He deserves it.

[@LarryHahn-gk2np]

There is no better pay than satisfaction! Have you ever seen a rich person? Living happy, and living rich are worlds apart.

[@cantstopthepun]

​@@LarryHahn-gk2npyou can't have enough a shot of happiness without access to your material needs. Which costs money

[@brandonnesfan]

It's his own fault for doing that. He was going to get 180 mil before he appealed it.

[@LezlyBeetz]

@@brandonnesfan ? The company appealed it not him.

[@brandonnesfan]

@@LezlyBeetz The video clearly says he appealed it m8

[@ReneAlder]

Science dissemination is a thousand times better when historical and personal contexts are included. Very good job.

[@spaceghost8327]

*Shuji Nakamura is a professor at my school, University of California Santa Barbara. Such an honor to have him!*

[@inifin8]

This was better than most Hollywood biopics and Netflix documentaries. Absolute genius and such a great man.

[@asgacc8789]

My gripe with most tv documentaries nowadays is they linger on some scenes without narration for unnecessarily long time. Like I get it, please continue with the story

[@LuCkySlither]

Estoy triste porque es mi cumpleanos y no tuve ningun suscriptor

[@kila3477]

this could honestly be an amazing movie or a show if they execute it well

[@Heegooat]

Most documentary will show the history of semiconductors for first 20 minutes, gloss over the minute details and cut out the fallout with the CEO.

[@One.Zero.One101]

My biggest gripe with modern documentaries is the docu-drama. Either make a straight up documentary or a biopic, none of these in-between stuff. They usually have bad acting, bad dialogue, and they can become repetitive because the actors just repeat what the narrator has already said. It really kills the pacing because you have this 10-minute badly acted scene when the narrator can just explain it in 2 minutes.

[@jrodartec]

Every time I watch a Veritasium video, I get thrilled and impressed by the same 3 things: 1. How complex are the fundamentals behind solutions that we use on our daily lives. We shouldn't take them for granted. 2. How incredible are the people stories behind them. Humans can be awful and/or awesome in truly impressive ways. 3. How well scripted and executed are his videos, and how a good didactic, storytelling, and animation can make complex topics become understandable. Thank you Derek. I would pay hundreds for your content, and here it is: free. You rock.

[@KLT1003]

Exactly. Even as someone who studied electrical engineering (so the terms are not new to me), we don't pay enough attention towards the human side of it. In the end it's always about humans. Very inspiring video indeed.

[@pedroivog.s.6870]

These videos are growing in quality incredibly

[@glennbartusch7310]

I got to thinking the other day that these videos are better than the KPBS Nova series...

[@__Obscure__]

There is only one "s" in Veritasium. EDIT: Fixed now. Jrodartec had originally put "Veritassium." Too much "ass" for my taste.

[@sambeg2]

We don't deserve someone like Derek but he is someone who we definitely desperately need.

[@iveharzing]

The animations used to explain how diodes, and specifically LEDs work, is the best and most clear explanation I've EVER seen. There were multiple moments while watching that I said out loud: "Oohhhh, of course, that's why!"

[@anirbanbhattacharya3395]

Completely agree

[@vermeirenniels3464]

Did not understand it at all..

[@nathansegers9293]

I was about to say the same thing. The animation did a better job explaining LEDs than an entire semiconductor course did for me in undergrad!

[@fuomag9]

I agree!@@nathansegers9293

[@dominus6695]

I'm still lost, not sure what's atom and what there XDD, and the animations of the layers fade quickly. Might rewatch.

[@TrevinJoel88]

It would be an absolute honor to meet this intelligent inventer, his determination and strong spirit are definitely a gift.

[@Gavri1945]

Can we appretiate how Nakemura basically changed the world and yet he seems to be so humble ?

[@justinmaxon12]

I finished the video and am sitting here like why isn’t this guy talked about more? He’s literally the reason the world is as it is today. Like working on something that long that was thought to be impossible? Makes me wonder what other big technological barriers we have right now that haven’t been solved

[@RhazOfRheos]

@@justinmaxon12 Anti-matter or dark energy. The moment anyone figure them out, humanity will bend physics to its core.. But lets not get too far a head of ourselves. A true perpetual motion mechanics isn't even been solve yet.

[@ijmad]

True change begins with a humble heart. It is only through humility that we can fully grasp the complexities of our world and its flaws.

[@tapwater424]

@@justinmaxon12 Modern society is built on countless invaluable discoveries in various fields. Transistors, fertilizers, plastics, radio, cryptography and lasers are all of life-changing but most people (myself included) don't talk about their inventors.

[@psykedude]

​@@justinmaxon12 This story is amazing, but there are countless of similarly amazing stories throughout our history!

[@markusdd5]

As someone who works in semiconductor design: Hats off to the visualizations in this video. I have never seen such an amazing view of how semiconductors and their band gaps work. Not only is this story fascinating, it is an actual learning resource. Kudos!

[@Grodhar]

How does he even make them

[@Submersed24]

Lmao like tons of semiconductor people saying this

[@isobutylformate8287]

​@@GrodharHe spent a long time studying how to make videos. Videography. He has explained his story in one of his videos.

[@markusdd5]

@@Submersed24 rightfully so!

[@ljkruse]

Very good visualization for laymen. Exceptional actually. But the physics depicted are misleading because electrons never pass through the band gap. They can't or they would be observed in this region, which they never are. This is why and how the band gap is defined. When the molecule is excited an electron will essentially vanish from the lower energy band and another electron will appear in the higher energy band. When the molecule shifts to a lower energy state the opposite happens and the energy is released as a characteristic photon.

[@LittleKasai]

I dont know why but this story enthralled me in a way that no other science story has. The determination and will power to keep going is staggering. Needs to be turned into a movie for REAL.

[@ishaan863]

It's also the editing and writing of this video, absolutely expertly done. Proper documentary level work.

[@leanngugi]

I've been ignoring Veritasium lately. But today I was reminded why I subscribed.

[@juliopaveif]

If you haven't, watch the first season of cosmos with Neil degrase Tyson. It's full of theses types of stories. A masterpiece!

[@infinitesimotel]

This would have definitely been perfect movie material decades ago, but with the current attitude of using movies to push garbage anti White race propaganda just doesn't bode well. OK perhaps give it to the Japanese or Korean movie base, but for fucks sake do NOT let hollywank touch it.

[@khayyam741]

And the impact it had on the world too

[@AmirRavaille-jk3pu]

Thank you for making this beautiful documentary of Nakamura's breakthrough. Wonderful

[@AalapShah12297]

Usually, your videos are 15-20 minutes long but this one almost felt like a short documentary. It covered Nakamura's whole career and still focused on all the technical aspects of his work very well. All the electron energy band explanations and animations felt very intuitive with the subtle details like rotations being used to depict electric fields. The explanations neither felt too dumbed-down nor did the video feel overly technical and dry. You are one of the few people capable of creating this kind of content on such a technical topic. Excellent storytelling without letting the science take a backseat.

[@minhuang8848]

I mean, it was a short documentary not even that short, and definitely with better pacing and production than most stuff you see on TV pretty dang good stuff

[@zooning-6843]

I’d say about a 1/3 of his recent videos are 30 min long.

[@trogo5858]

Everyone already said basically what I'd say about this brilliant presentation, so I'll just say this.... l love science and technology underdog stories... gives me hope at 3am staring at code, a blank page, an empty canvas, or a bereft music staff. My pastor and I call this, when perseverance and faith meet opportunity... and God balances the scales. "I will bless the WORK of your hand" 😅 DJ xSUBn {(-_- )}

[@AryaStarky]

There was some BobbyBroccoli energy here

[@panner11]

He does periodically drop this type of video. The channel is diversified with a few video format like on-site interview tours, but these videos are the real gems.

[@petea]

It wouldn't be a Veritasium episode without Derek explaining something like the P-N junction better than I understand it after my semester of solid state physics. This was a good one, and touching! I am glad he is getting the recognition he deserves.

[@ictogon]

Im in EE so I havent gone too deep into the actual physics of pn junctions, but I have never understood why holes and electrons have different mobilites. Makes a lot more sense now that I know the holes are in the valence band and the electrons are in the conduction band.

[@roberthunter5059]

Right?! I never really got pn junctions in school. FETs made more intuitive sense. This would have been great back then.

[@lolz9198]

I'm in high school and nothing about the pn junction was new. In fact it's all in my finals☠️

[@whoreslayer]

I watched the hole video thrice times, but I still don't understand even though I am trying :(

[@olamideifarajimi3292]

Man the video makes all the difference. The textbooks diagrams can't come close.

[@AS_70190]

Being an electronics engineer, I would say this is one of the best animations that I have ever seen to explain the LED conduction mechanism using band diagrams. Perhaps for me, this story conveys that grit, determination, and passion towards a particular problem statement can solve any obstacle faced.

[@lostseagull-pd9vi]

My heart aches seeing people not getting appreciated when they burn the candle at both ends for achieving something...they deserve a recognition and appreciation.

[@kingbradley3402]

As an EE graduate, you explain semiconductors, diodes and doping in such an intuitive manner, I finally understood how these things work. Kudos to probably one of your best produced videos of all time

[@alexmercerind]

Truly. Why did I never fine such visualizations before. I'm final year in IT though.

[@__Mr.White__]

Why not just use blue transparent plastic?

[@DarthVader-JEDI]

​@@__Mr.White__ I will have to watch video first to think if I could possibly answer it or not 💀

[@DiscoGreen]

​@__Mr.White__ they did. When they were showing the 70s stereo when the competitions "pseudo_Blue" were much less luminous. And how when they added yellow translucent caps to get a "pseudo-white" light.

[@rojansalinger6104]

Seriously! Like the whole N-type vs P-type which I will no longer confuse...!

[@EthanHackney]

“in front of the house was ocean. blue always” that statement made me cry. love this story

[@CocoWantsACracker]

Oh yes, that was right in the feels for me too! Especially after seeing what this man went through and achieved, and seeing how modest he still seemed to act.

[@VodHighlights]

Why?

[@PineconeSunset]

It’s amazing to find out these little details and motivations behind people. After so much work, he was able to recreate his favourite color, one that had been missing in mankind’s technology for decades. After he did his work, we were able to share in experiencing the blue that he liked so much from his childhood.

[@wotizit]

Why?

[@JuGMod]

@@VodHighlights Probably hormones out of whack.

[@teshane8784]

Working under such discouraging and debilitating conditions then to not be compensated for his incredible work is so heart wrenching. Nichia's profits off his back yet they still have him as a rogue outcast!

[@cheesebusiness]

The company paid him for years with no guarantee of result, i.e. took the financial risk from him. Would he invent the LED without the financial support? Would you risk your money like the company did?

[@lovetolive1802]

​@@cheesebusinessbut in the end they've got many folds of what they've invested, it should've been enough to reconciliate

[@bluestraw4060]

​@@cheesebusiness taking a risk to make profit is what companys exist to do. at the end of the day, his higher ups were wrong and he well and truly gave them more profit through his LED than they ever spent on him or his research. no matter how much luck was to do with it, he should be compensated because that's now the reality. if i was upset with a guy spending my money and then one day he shows me a product that will make my money back within weeks or days, i would have no problem compensating because its just a drop in the bucket and its the right thing to do.

[@Smokey298]

When he negotiated with the company to get the investment he should have asked for a contract that garaunteed compensation. OR Shop each corporation untill he found one that would compensate him.

[@zer0602]

@@cheesebusiness stfu, Results are what matters in business. HE DID GET THE RESULTS now Nichia should've paid his price

[@coolepic519]

Never thought i'd be rooting for a dude making LED's... but man i hope hes proud and happy thats crazy he helped make a whole new generation of technology

[@matthewjalovick]

This was surprisingly emotional. Watching someone go from shunned by everyone to the cover of all those magazines and then the Nobel Prize. Jeez dude. Made me teary. What an amazing human.

[@ivanleon6164]

this is what genius is about, hard work and endurance, what a Chad.

[@Chilangosta]

I was just coming to say the same; teary-eyed from Derek's storytelling is becoming the new normal for me. He does such a great job showing the human side of science and engineering, and he treats them with care and respect. I love his videos like this.

[@SPQR_14]

@@ivanleon6164 Hard work, endurance, and LUCK. Don't forget there are thousands out there like him who will never find their breakthrough.

[@zes3813]

no such thing as shunx or for or etc

[@MyVanir]

@@zes3813 Take a deep breath and type that in English.

[@justinwoods535]

I absolutely love the way Nakamura walks while wildly swinging his hands.

[@oxidizedoregano]

I thought it was so goofy and kinda reminded me of an excited little kid 😂

[@GH-bz2vl]

I also noticed that 😂

[@AeroliteSR]

The gojo walk

[@shirtstealer86]

I would 100% trust any person who walks like that. I believe its the ultimate way of telling if someone is genuine.

[@mejfuz]

​@@shirtstealer86lol then you probably never seen a meth junkie.... All of them swing their hands like that

[@domainmojo2162]

One of your African viewers here.. I just marvel at this story whenever I think about it! I'm re-visting this again, because it is such a great documentary and a celebration of the human spirit of invention. They are usually achieved by going against the stream, beating your own path and moving headstrong into the realization of an idea. Nakamura defied convention, he was a maverick who operated in an "organized chaotic" fashion. He was defiant, yet organized, dilligent and consistent. That was diety-levels of consistency and dilligence! If you look at this whole story, one can see that- at every crucial point on this journey, Nakamura decided to take the other route- going his own way. As is expected, the road less travelled is a lonely one and one could easily grow weary and self doubt creeps in, but Nakamura had an unshakable belief that he would get to his destination. He also showcased the ingenuity of the comman man and woman, and actually built, and tuned an MOCVD reactor with his bare friggin hands! Getting down and dirty with welding and a DIY/garage-tinkerer spirit. Something only a "common man" with conviction would be willing to do, while the "Ph.D's" relied on black-box solutions- fixed and maintained by someone else, and it turned out to be the most useful skill and attribute at the most critical point. Bravo, maestro! A total hero for all the mavericks out there. The Loners. The unfancied ones, the awkward and eccentric ones, the ones who no-one values(the GaN's of this world), the ones who decide not to fit in. In the end, the vindication was special! In a different era, Nakamura would've been a legendary Samurai! Great appreciation should also go towards Akazaki and Amano, who I suspect would've eventually gotten there- just in a different way, since they showed the same characterics as Nakamura, although they tended to heed convention a little bit more. Only a little bit more though, but this proneness manifested at the most crucial point- growing Indium Gallium Nitride where it appeared they approached it with the caution of the "accepted wisdom" and an expectation of extreme difficulty, while Nakamura again shunned convention, relying instead on everyday common sense, and approached it like we all- the ordinary folk and tinkerer would approach almost anything in life- pure, cold brute-force! 😀 A perfect real-life illustration of what the great Bill Shankly once said- "Me having no eduction, I had to use me brains!" It's like that scene in Ford vs Ferrari where Miles finally beats his opponent and accelerates- the future now clear and the path ahead now unobstructed, since all that stands between him and glory- the finish line, is Time and Space. Despite this, they also, are worthy role-models. Bravo!

[@Ramiarmuni]

This guy is the definition of resilience! What a humble personality glad his story is reaching more people

[@zes3813]

wrgg

[@Thatonepersonyouheard]

He should have his own film

[@ianbrudnakvoss3126]

@@Thatonepersonyouheard this IS the film

[@kenji2787]

His resilience is pretty normal when it comes to innovative fields. It’s just that a lot of the time, or most of the time when talking unsolvable problems , even resilience doesn’t get the results and you have to decide to stop. Remember, people before him tried for 30 years.

[@svmanojvarma7602]

I have a PhD in engineering. I worked on GaN diodes in the past. But if I ever have to explain a p-n diode, band gap, or doping, I will just refer to your video. Excellent job Derek.

[@asisfj]

zip it up when you're done 🙏

[@irishwristwatch2487]

​@@asisfjyouve commented this on everything in this comments section, just what are you hoping to achieve

[@chadrichardmiller790]

As an electrical engineer myself I must agree the explanation on the PN gap is brilliant

[@defnotnaruto222]

​​@@irishwristwatch2487A reaction that turns C into anger

[@Glenners]

I studied this in university so it was cool to see the visual representation!

[@WarHoover]

That blur-shot of the 3 LED colors combined - creating various combined color combinations with added labels - was AWESOME!

[@cristimarius3940]

same feeling here too

[@madhavkulkarni1]

Tmkc

[@randomgamerwithpotatoaim8611]

​@@madhavkulkarni1 paaya kya hai aapne? bkl madhav 😊

[@mcnotsodreamy]

Time stamp? I'm listening to most of this because I can't watch my screen rn

[@1tortillapls]

@@mcnotsodreamy0:41

[@GreyJediNite]

why am i just now finding your channel? this is the level of detail that i need on how all my electronics work

[@Satherian]

"And this is because of you" I'm honestly glad you said that - I feel like Nakamura doesn't get enough credit for (and might downplay) how much of a part he's played in modern technology

[@mathiacus]

The only ones who have gained from his tireless work are his old company and the parasitic lawyers who gobbled all his compensation.

[@itsbarbaric]

Yes, this is what happens daily. They would keep him in court until he would be in financial ruin. That is why he settled for the money that probably paid for his legal fees and perhaps some minor payout, but that is IF anything was left. These companies can keep you in court for as long as they like, just to prevent you from getting some. They must make an example of your, otherwise everyone would be suing companies for giving you a tiny piece of what you give them in the end. Now as your employer of course needs to profit from you in the end, but the ratio should be FAIR to some degree.

[@WumpusAlpaca]

Hikaru Nakamura

[@itsbarbaric]

@@acmhfmggrueven if so, it was not initiated by the company 😄

[@lutherburgsvik6849]

Applies to most technology and inventions to be fair.

[@iandwyer6658]

I think I found my hero. The way his company handled everything was immensely disgraceful while his attitude is so light and inspiring despite everything. Love this man

[@DJB10T1C]

it was all that stupid son in laws fault when he became the CEO, never earned his spot in the first place either, then just started making bad decisions. Blue LED's saved that company, and Nakamura didnt even get compensated.

[@AI-qd4vb]

@@DJB10T1CNO! Its the stupid capitalistic corporate culture, where engineers and technicians are being undervalued while C suits and middle management bask in riches and take the glory. How many times we hear the suits and their boot lickers say "duh, of course CEOs deserve 400x more salaries than engineers, they have more rEsPoNsIbIlItY". Best physicists, engineers, mathematicians, scientists, etc... get comparable pennies for the work and wealth they generate, while society rewards athletes, actors, managers, investors and all other kind of economy parasites.

[@yellostallion]

Love his unwavering spirits! What an inspiring a story!

[@FunkyEspelhoCat]

Corporations ☕️

[@bl8388]

Is this all from the inventor's perspective? One thing I've learned in life is there are two sides to every story. Seems like we only get one perspective. I'm glad he invented blue LED's.

[@guuslohlefink378]

Finally an extensive video on Nakamura and his invention. He deserves it! This was a real revolution (which took years and years of research), with an enormous impact. A Nobel prize is nice, but it's better when people really understand the importance of what he did.

[@BillAnt]

And here we are today basking in the light blue LED's, and using high efficiency Gallium-Nitride switching power supplies for mobile phones.... the future is bright blue. :) I remember back in 1994 hearing about the blue LED in the new, but didn't make much of it... silly me. heh

[@youtubasoarus]

Absolutely amazing Will. This man changed the world. Incredible! Thank you Mr. Nakamura! So sad that Nichia did not recognize the goose that was laying their golden eggs. I can never understand this. How companies reap all the reward without compensating people like Mr. Nakamura for their tireless effort.

[@PritishMishra]

Around the 27:45 mark, my laptop's battery was running out. The power button was blinking with a *blue light*, and I just kept staring at the blue backlit keyboard. It really made me think about how the things I use daily is someone's entire lifetime of work. Thanks for telling such stories, Veritasium. I appreciate your work.

[@petervh1301]

lenovo ideapad moment

[@PritishMishra]

@@petervh1301 bro 😂 yes I have a Lenovo IdeaPad...

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

Good timing.

[@TheBrokenEclipse]

This story really needs a movie made about it

[@xK3NY0x]

Next Christopher Nolan's Biopic. Imagine!

[@johnwalker194]

Well, your comment really came out of the blue ? I agree 👍

[@imalittlejuicebox7367]

You're so greedy, this channel already made a somewhat comprehensive narrative and you still want more, probably fictionalized and for what? Your entertainment? Can't you just appreciate it now

[@smudgey1kenobey]

Agree!

[@smudgey1kenobey]

Noticing when different LEDs became available I wondered about this for years! Thanks for the explanation!

[@keshavpareek1847]

Hands down, the best explanation of how semiconductors and p-n junction work. Should be included in every course on semiconductors.

[@minhuang8848]

I stopped early to comment because my goodness, the explanation and illustration part of this is outer-worldly if you have ever seen any book illustrations or listened to any e-prof's lectures, few examples notwithstanding. The entire concept of "holes" as this virtual entity, bandgap fun - the whole thing is so obtuse, people deep into the science of it have still such a weird time developing the proper intuition. That was great, and I definitely take recommendations of online material that does as good a job. Always has been this channel's strong suit in my eye, but that one is special and definitely belongs into every single dang curriculum even remotely discussing semiconductors.

[@thecopypaster801]

How old are you buddy ? Not an offensive comment

[@albertocanali1786]

dunno, there is really good guide written by Britney Spears on the web

[@AnalogDude_]

lol, Yeah suddenly also Tailor swift is a math teacher on KZbin. @@albertocanali1786

[@keshavpareek1847]

@@albertocanali1786 that one is also very good, though in my opinion here he presents key concepts succinctly. Ofcourse you can go into details later but the intuition remains the the same.

[@WXFD-Media]

I live in Glen Carbon IL. Just a half-mile for me, we have a road named after Nick Holonyak. Those red LEDs are the invention of Nick Holonyak, Jr. a long-time Glen Carbon resident who died Sept. 18, 2022 in Urbana at age 93. The following day, lights on the University of Illinois campus at Champaign-Urbana and Chicago glowed red in tribute. Holonyak, the son of Slavic immigrants from the Carpathian Mountains, was born in 1928. His father moved the family to Glen Carbon in 1936, when Holonyak was 8, and they lived at 130 S. Meridian Road. He attended Glen Carbon schools and graduated from Edwardsville High School in 1946.

[@aeonspast]

I have always heard about "The inventors of the blue LED won the Nobel Prize" but never understood WHY it was so complicated and important. SUPER interesting video and deep dive on the subject.

[@deepak_nigwal]

I remember the time when he was awarded nobel back in 2014 (and i was in college), but I had no idea of the multiple decades of struggle behind this. Mind blowing resilience and consistency. This is what younger generation should take inspiration from, instead of tik-f***g-tok.

[@jesser9134]

One inventor and two highly reluctant business owners..

[@jpdemer5]

@@jesser9134 Including the genius who kept trying to kiil the project.

[@sihTdaeRtnaCuoY]

This guy is awesome. He wasn't just doing some cutting edge research and happened to figure something out that lead to massive changes. He was specifically targeting a certain technology, going head to head with everyone else on Earth, and achieved his goal, which lead to his technology being used across the entire planet. What a legacy.

[@DoNotPirateNoPiracy]

fake

[@aspmusic5904]

@sihTdaeRtnaCuoY *Well said.*

[@Cum_blizzard_monkey]

Meat rider

[@Internetontheperson]

@@DoNotPirateNoPiracywdym fake?!

[@MultiChrisjb]

@@Internetontheperson Story propagated just to try to give us hope, even though it's all over now, time to give up and hand over the planet to AI and big companies. No one person can make a difference like this anymore.

[@NicolasSchmidMusic]

As an electrical engineering student, I can say this was by far the clearest and most accurate explanation of diodes I have ever heard. This video was fascinating!

[@shassett79]

Right? I had the same thought that this video was a better discussion of the topic than I got in engineering school.

[@anonymousart22]

@@shassett79 agreed. ive always had a foggy memory of whats a p type and n type semiconductor but the visualization here is outstanding. also it feels so goddamn weird that we're alive w in the same time as this guy who basically had invented displays...damn i hope theres a space resort when im 60 lol. also props to my lecturers who use youtoob vids like these for lectures lesgoooo

[@vitorarnecke944]

I was about to make the same comment. I'm a materials engineer and I feel like this video could easily replace 40+ hours worth of electrical materials and semiconductors classes

[@mbian0same762]

you better be realizing that BJT is in reality a voltage controlled device at the end of this.

[@goldenhate6649]

@@mbian0same762 Well obviously, you can't create the electrical forces necessary to force a current through the p/n divide without ample voltage (hence the energy inefficiency problem with the UV diode)

[@liminalkid]

This is great! I happened to live with a semiconductor physicist in 1993 and I remember his excitement at the achievement. He tried to explain why it was so hard but I’m afraid it went over my head. Great explanation - now I get it

[@wayyllonn]

It must be insane being him and being able to look at so many things and go "that is directly the result of MY work and research", that's so awesome.

[@Jebu911]

Yeah and we were staring at his work while watching the video too unless you had a CRT monitor.

[@RealValkor]

This is extremely inspiring honestly! I really hope he published any books I could read.

[@SacredDaturaa]

Right? That has gotta be worth waaaay more than the money Nishia denied him. To be able to look everywhere and see the result of his life's work.

[@Ricky-nw7kp]

Nikola Tesla turning over his grave righrt now "SMH"

[@darrylkid210]

that is the dream of an engineer

[@darcam]

It seems a typical historical issue, the actual inventor of a particular item tends to get the shorter end of a large stick, while the upper levels of the ladder get the best rewards.

[@candyman7084]

well, if money is the best reward for you, for me, what he ended up with is much more valuable than all the money in revenue for the whole LED industry. an achievement of that scale, having spent your whole life for a purpose and achieveing the greatest of successes is far more valuable than all the money you could get, because in the end you'll die regardless, so being able to make a contribution that size to humanity, something bigger than yourself and all of us and that will outlast us, that is the ultimate reward for me, because as long as it serves a purpose for the advancement of the civilization, it's gonna be not just worth it, but truly meaningful, even if no one remembers who made it, just as long as somebody, like you and me, can take the time to appreciate what you gave to everyone else, i think that is far more success than some green paper tickets, and that is something none of the people in the upper levels of the ladder could even fathom to assess

[@--SPQR--]

History will forget their names, while he will go down as one of the greats They won the battle, he won the war

[@eroero830]

With that said, people who progress humanity in this kind of way should be entitled to financial comforts. It's not a question of whether or not they are being exploited, of course they are- and they will hopefully be recognised fondly by the people in the know (that's the scientific and engineering communities). But they should still be rewarded with a good standard of living no matter their circumstance or future positions. @@candyman7084

[@unclejoeoakland]

That's all very nice but I gotta imagine if the guy had a few million free and clear, it would still feel pretty good. Financial security and all.

[@Leeengold]

​@@unclejoeoaklandHe had plenty of job offers from the US and now is a professor at UCSB. I'm sure he is more than secure financially.

[@davec.1045]

I spent 20 years in the lighting industry before retiring in 2020. This is the best video on LEDs I have ever seen. The history and explanations are clear and concise. Thank you for the presentation and thank you Mr. Nakamura!

[@devvaish6870]

Superb comment

[@houseblaster5656]

Dr. Nakamura :)

[@austinshoemaker]

100% agree, have taken numerous university level courses on this stuff and never seen it explained as well as he did in like 5 minutes!

[@jmemusic]

@@houseblaster5656 I would say that Mr. or Dr. Nakumura won't mind if you remove his title. You see that he is not that kind of guy on the video. After all, a title is just a piece of paper that everybody can get. There are even useless PHD works and they get their title. Anyway, the point is that Mr. Nkumura doesn't need a title to prove what he did.

[@fadeout007]

From a mere technician to an inventor and then awarded nobel in physics. *Nakamura* you are a gem of Japan.

[@afzalahsan4767]

Being an electronics engineer I can assure you guys this 30 mins video almost covered 100hrs of lectures and all the major topics about semiconductors.💙

[@Greg-yu4ij]

This was so good I watched it twice. For a young engineer who finds themselves working thousands of extra hours on their own time to prove their ideas to management, don’t give up. If management can’t give you enough leeway, then it’s better to push it until you’re successful or fired. My whole career I did this. It led to several breakthroughs where the leads would ask how did you do that? Stuff like claiming Java could run as fast as C and proving it out. Never retreat, attack in a different direction. I never got fired for working an extra 4 hours for the company 😂

[@peorakef]

... almost...

[@Degenerates-re5wc]

Shut up

[@Lonely_x_Wanderer]

yeah... true

[@kodakeller6353]

True! And better explained 🤣

[@JoshSaysStuff]

I’m so happy Nakamura is being properly compensated for his work now. Nichia completely took advantage of him and he deserved so much more.

[@julliferjosephtuba2202]

The part where Nichia still kept being stubborn despite Nakamura himself choosing to be the bigger man and offer his hand out first later on, really got my blood boiling. Well, I guess money really can't buy class.

[@hivetyrant7]

@@MostIntelligentMan Did you skip the first half of the video? Literally half the worlds experts in that space were trying to crack the puzzle, Toshiba alone spend millions in research. lmao 20 people

[@richiehoyt8487]

It's like, for years, Nichia indulged Nakamura's tinkering, distinctly against their better judgement, in his lab which must have seemed to them like nothing more than a money pit... and then, when Nakamura succeeds against all the odds and hands them the Golden Goose, _that's_ when they decide to screw him over?! Go figure them Japanese, huh?!

[@fabiankaczmarczyk709]

oh wow, you are not a smart one huh@@MostIntelligentMan

[@DUD3H0WD4R3U]

​@@MostIntelligentManobvious rage bait

[@scottmanley]

This is great, I knew the story already, but the presentation is excellent.

[@hobogrifter]

If you see this thanks for the KSP tutorial!

[@mycroft3322]

I didn’t know the story, and his explanation of the concepts is so clear that even peons like me could get it

[@frantabor315]

I didn't know it -- and am very thankful for having learned it. Love your program, too. Perhaps you could do a new take on this story?

[@slavko321]

Hey, it's scott manley here!

[@Kevin2341]

Fly safe Mr Manley!

[@DrDarioPalhares]

He did what he did because he was not simply theoretical, as most reseachers are. He knew how to build, fix and adapt the machine. The double flux was the key point.

[@olehborys1462]

This video feels like I've watched a movie - the story is so well constructed, the music is so well chosen, and the amount of scientific explanations per unit of time is simply off the charts. Definitely one of the best videos on your channel.

[@kevincarlos973]

I completely agree! The explanations, animations and storytelling are top notch, but even the music has the perfect balance. Not excessive, repetitive and loud as the Nolan style copycats (or the real Nolan's choices, lol). No cheesy generic trailer music or happy ukuleles. It enhances the flow of the video instead of being distracting. I really appreciate that. It's great.

[@olehborys1462]

@@kevincarlos973 Good addition, I agree

[@asisfj]

zip it up when you're done 🙏

[@ElectronFieldPulse]

Yep. I was constantly amazed that the guy was able to push through so much to achieve his goal, and he comes across as such a humble and likable guy. Props to him for going down in history books!

[@dananajj]

Was intending the be in toilet for 5 minutes. Ended up being in toilet for 30 minutes. Success.

[@nessman543]

Hey, I work in the semiconductor industry as a chemist, and I just wanted to let you know that even after I had already watched this video, one of our engineers sent it to all of us in our email. Your videos are really wide spread and it's awesome to see.

[@lucassalazar5669]

This animation for how band gaps and semiconductors work is absolutely beautiful. I am an electrical engineering student in my senior year and, It took me weeks to grasp this and this video would have been so helpful if I had it a year ago. This is art and I appreciate what you do!

[@minhuang8848]

lucky, only taking weeks to internalize all this

[@tylerrolfe8516]

Honestly this videos just explain it to me very happy

[@aneesh8963]

For all the things we take granted, there was someone who worked so hard to invent it, hats off to Nakamura

[@minutesock9649]

31:00 the way he swings his arms while talking about nuclear fusion is so precious. What a happy dude

[@bitkarek]

he seems quite hyperactive

[@piotrgraniszewski8544]

​Mental disorders and old age

[@unity3934]

The second I saw it, I went straight to the comments to see if anyone else saw it haha

[@ThePandaKingFTW]

​@@piotrgraniszewski8544 "Anyone who isnt completely normal has a mental disorder." My brother I think you should look in the mirror if you're looking for someone with a mental disorder

[@azioprism3635]

he wants to get hired to work on deep state projects, the weird walking is not enough and his expertise is too late for going into exotic physics.

[@eottago]

I did electronics at university. This was the best description of how N and P type material works I've ever seen. I wish it had been introduced with this claraty back then. Cudos to Nakamura for never giving up.

[@marcioo00oo]

Same for me. I feel like I finally really understood the concepts behind it rather than memorizing it.

[@pilotdog68]

It seems Derek's style of illustrating really works for some learning styles and really doesn't for others. I often struggle with his explanations, and go to other more "boring" videos to understand.

[@Chemistorian]

I completed my PhD in chemistry a few years ago. My research was on semiconducting transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) and aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD), and I thought that the concepts were explained beautifully in this video.

[@sl4tra]

​@@pilotdog68 learning styles are a myth.

[@azamuddinsuhaily]

@@sl4tra for me it is not. because I learn how to learn efficiently at high school

[@KrisDouglas]

Nakamura sounds like a true enthusiastic scientist. And a lovely character. The world needs more of him.

[@ItsTimDatMan]

Giving very much anime movie I would watch!

[@universaltoons]

*Veritasium inspires me... My parents said if I reach 25K followers, they will buy me a professional camera for recording... literally begging you guys* ❤️ ....

[@tech9803]

He teaches at UC Santa Barbara where I work. I've seen him give talks, he's an engaging speaker.

[@Simple_City]

For real. He didn't even seem to really care all that much about the money he could have made. He just knew he could make a blue LED work.And he did, with essentially home made machines, by himself, with no support from his company. And he is still working on the next evolution of LEDs, it's honestly amazing.

[@mrbantythe8055]

@@universaltoons bro stop for begging you begger 🤬

[@orion5964]

This scientist was so determined that it blows my mind, the fact that you spend time to make this video about him is extraordinary on it's own. Thank you, you have inspired thousands to pursue their dreams and innovation. 😋👍

[@parthsrinivasan]

Dayumm..! That was probably one of the best explanations of semiconductors..and the story around Nakamura, his trials and tribulations, his hero’s quest, is well at par with quality entertainment. Thanks Derek! This is science communication at its finest.

[@fuzzblightyear145]

absolutely. WIsh they did it like that when i was at school ( though that was long before blue LEDs LOL) So sad that he got shafted by his company

[@tHaTsWhAtI.mSaYiNg]

Seriously! As an electrical engineering student in college, this explanation was way better than my professors. Also the story is super inspiring for future innovation, because no matter how advanced technology gets there may always be some miracle inventions around the corner only requiring the grit and determination and vision of someone like Nakamura

[@Moldyvoldym]

As a technician in the semiconductor industry I found this video incredibly interesting. I don't know if it's from Nakamura, but CVD chambers that I've worked on use a "showerhead" above the wafer to deposit the gasses on the the wafer. Nakamura must have affected the semiconductor industry in so many ways. What an amazing engineer.

[@Dr.Sortospino]

Ex PDE in Semi, now selling tools. yes exactly it comes from it! now actually we do directly the deposition super close to the surface exactly because of his research and many others after him! Before was kinda a box, gas in , pump, gas out. My ALD tool for my phd was that kind. 😂 Now is few millimeters from the top of wafers (also to decrease precursor consumption!)

[@very-mean-spirited-lizard]

Hey, I am using a similar tool at work. It is a magnetron sputter deposition system but we also have CVD and ALD.

[@kj_H65f]

I'm an ex-equipment tech with 20 years (primarily in PVD but also extensive CVD and some ALD) systems and I always assumed that the showerheads were 70s tech. It just seems like it "makes sense" but of course thats only after the fact. The gas mixing bowls above the shower heads have changed a lot in the 20 years I worked, especially as it pertains to the ALD systems. I'm so amazed at people like Nakamura, who through their own tenacity and dedication and trial/error, discovered the processes we take for granted in the semiconductor industry today.

[@charlesyoung7436]

I know an electrical engineer who troubleshot an expensive product which used red, green, and blue LED's. The blue ones were failing after a relatively short period of use (within warranty). Others had been unable to fix the problem, so he got the "hot potato" job next. Upon disassembling a returned product, he used a microscope to check the serial numbers of the LED's against specs his company's prototypes used before production had been moved overseas. The blue LED's that failed were not the ones called for, and a cheaper, weaker type had been substituted. The LED's could not take it for the long haul and just "blue out," so to speak. Apparently, the overseas company did not understand what this excellent video explained---and it may have cost them.

[@AndreVanKammen]

I remember seeing my 1st blue LED in the 90ties, it was something like $50 at a local electronics store, displaying it in the stores window.

[@mrvoidhiker]

As someone with a degree in EE, I wish I had this visual explanation of LEDs, doping, p/n junctions and such back then. Fantastic

[@RenditionLies]

As someone with a degree in Material Engineering, I completely agree with you.

[@WithTwoFlakes]

As someone who quit after the 1st year of a degree in EE in the 1970's, I also wish I'd had a visual explanation like this. I just didn't "get it", I couldn't get my head around electrons, holes and junctions, etc😵‍💫 I watched this video and must've said "Oh, I get it now" at least half a dozen times😄 After quitting EE, I ended up doing Comp Sci which I did "get". Most lectures I was sat there thinking - Well, that's surely the obvious way to do it. Sailed through the course, had a good career as a Software Engineer - mostly Radar, Comms, C3I, etc. Most of my career was as a freelancer, so luckily I never got shafted by the Company like Nakamura did. I kinda feel for the guy, he made them untold millions and they *%$!'ed him over...

[@kamilerastene5275]

Same! Mine is more on the Information and Computer Engineering end, but perhaps I finally understand how p/n junctions work, textbook drawings were confusing.

[@casper75559]

30:55 the walk of a man who put all his points into intelligence and stubbornness. Love it!

[@umadowd7672]

My mom worked for Shuji Nakamura’s LED lighting startup company, Soraa, during the 2010s. Apparently he’s a really nice guy, and he even let my mom hold the Nobel Prize medal once. He made such a huge contribution to society, but is still a down-to-earth guy.

[@Name-lt2tz]

and what is better - be down to earth or not? If it is better to be down to earth, then why others are not down to earth?

[@shlokbhakta2893]

@@Name-lt2tzit’s called being humble and some people just won’t be “down to earth” for control and profit

[@Name-lt2tz]

@@shlokbhakta2893 so control and profit is good. I know it is called humble.

[@jason-te6je]

@@Name-lt2tzIt’s just human instinct to be greedy and immediately take the chance to steal something away from someone. In the ancient times this is what made the difference between life or death. Nowadays it’s just the difference between excessive and excessively excessive. It’s just that if you chose the latter you end up ruining someone’s life and happiness.

[@tihonannenkov4114]

@@Name-lt2tz to understand the answer, you have to look at the people who achieved a lot and are down to earth vs. filled with greed and pride and try to judge for yourself who is happier. The reality is, the human mind and psyche perceive wildly different things the same, which is why research shows that having more money over a certain limit has no impact of happiness. To be happy, you need self-esteem, being happy with your life and, very importantly, a genuine connection to other people. Being down to earth means that a person didn't lose their ability to connect with others and their world perception didn't become warped and corrupted by fame and wealth.

[@weiyutong579]

I went to UC Santa Barbara when Prof. Nakamura received his Nobel Prize and I was at his sold-out Nobel prize presentation at the biggest lecture hall on campus. I remember he had a blue LED laser pointer and he waved it around saying to the crowd how cool it was, even though the audience was probably not so astounded because we've gotten used to his technology over the decades. Also the audience gave a minutes long standing ovation at the end of his presentation.

[@christopherleubner6633]

Yup I remember that violet laser pointer he had, was so unique at that time, really wanted one of them. Then later ended up with one of those nichia laser diodes back when they were rare and very expensive. Ended up putting it in a small HeNe laser tube case mounted in a lense assenbly from a cheap red laser pointer powering it with a 9V and a resistor. Wasn't pretty but was the only one at college with one. Then they released Blue Ray, and made much better ones from broken optical sled assemblies from old PS3 game systems. They actually used the GaN laser die as the heat spreader for a dual GaAlAs red and Ir laser on top. Also worked at Boston Lasers running a MOCVD machine making watt range IR and red laser wafers. Once the machine misfired and dumped an extra 2 shots of Et3Al in the chamber and we rolled with it. The result was some 604nm bright orange laser chips. ❤

[@branman399]

Campbell hall woot

[@thisisasomething9436]

Science is amazing, it is like the universe was made for these inventions to come to life! edit: sorry i meant to post this as a comment, didnt reallse it went under here

[@tedsteiner]

Aww yiss where my Gauchos at

[@krystaljohnson9005]

My 12 year old daughter showed me this video last night. The intent look on her face as she was so excited and interested was brilliant. Thank you Dr.Shuji Nakamura for your dedication to engineering science, creating solutions, and leading by example - as well as to everyone at Vertasium, to the graphic designers / motion graphics that put this educational video together and Dr.Nakamura - you all are inspiring our youth and the next generation.

[@mrhaze000]

That's wonderful Godbless you both❤

[@MikStorer]

My 8 year old daughter was thrilled too. Een though we had to stop a few times to explain that she already knew about conductors and insulators. I agree ... this is really nice for kids.

[@panelty8379]

i showed this to my sister, she called me a nerd

[@1984isnotamanual]

Sounds like you have a future scientist or engineer!

[@chazbarnes230]

OMG teared up !!😪

[@marksaunders4485]

This is an incredible story. I never realised how precious the the blue led was until now. If it wasn't for this incredible breakthrough, we wouldn't have all the lighting we have today. This is an incredible video, I really enjoyed watching it

[@chakster]

I love how they only revealed nakamuras real life interview at the end. Such a humble, cheerful, brilliant man

[@vipe650r]

Yes. And what it cost to keep that cheer and determination.

[@Rangeofranges]

Knew him personally for a long time, an incredibly intelligent and humble guy

[@michaelpessin7233]

I respect the maker of this video for interviewing the humble man of such large accomplishments* (spell check out of order) Mp

[@vipe650r]

I'm so jealous. People like him are a genuine treasure. And so very rare. I hope to become one myself, someday. It's a deeply expensive process.@@Rangeofranges

[@boysenbeary]

He seems so friendly and humble. What a cool guy

[@Vtrontv]

Most Japanese in general but this guy is at another level.

[@joeSeggiola]

And the way he walks, yo!

[@lancepharker]

@@joeSeggiola That man earned the right to walk however he pleases.

[@dumbahhperson]

bro is cute

[@joeSeggiola]

@@lancepharker Everyone has that right, but his walk is the best!

[@emmetthowell899]

Why did that ending statement about his favorite color almost make me cry. The fact that his favorite color being blue is so rooted in how he grew up and he was the person who finally figured out how to display it with a LED

[@j03man44]

It's great poetry!

[@emrek99205]

Electric Blue has always been my favorite color. Add in a highlight color of white and it's perfect.

[@aayushstudies6546]

I love how veratisium always choses to explain things rather than just telling p and n there are two type of semiconductor. I am in 12th boards India science stream and I have never understood semiconductor this beautifully though I am doing JEE

[@adi5877]

How does that make one cry?

[@emmetthowell899]

@@adi5877 because I’m a very emotional and sensitive person and I’m 100% fine with that

[@maskedillusion704]

What a brilliantly researched, narrated piece of goodness! I don't know advanced electronics but they you explained certainly had me interested and wasn't even bored a bit! Brilliant! And thank you 🙂

[@Sans-ih2el]

Look at him speaking, walking, always smiling. He's so happy to talk about his accomplishment. That's a fulfilled man right there. That's what excruciating work gets you.

[@wawawuu1514]

Not really. Excruciating work mostly leads nowhere. Stop using singular examples to the contrary to sing praise to wage-labour.

[@LordCapsis]

the painful thing is, that 99% of the time excruciating work only helps the higher ups.

[@jasons8479]

Gotta love the dedicated worker. Driven by *progress* over money. Bringing success _in spite of_ corporate executives.

[@Wizardboz]

Then fucked at the end of the

[@channelname7105]

agree, very inspirational too

[@Greg-yu4ij]

It’s okay, you can change the world, or get rich, but it’s rare to do both at the same time

[@shealee3198]

And then a businessman steps In and steals all the credit 😂

[@andyh8239]

I think you misunderstood the video. Corporations / Progress / money and pride is exactly why this succeeded.

[@alexanderzozulya259]

As a researcher in semiconductor physics, I would like to point out a factual error at 9:13. Si is an indirect bandgap semiconductor, so in its pure crystal form it cannot emit light at all, rather, the transition of electrons through the bandgap results in a phonon (crystal lattice mechanic vibration). There are some very recent studies on Si emitting light, but it needs to be grown in a special hexagonal lattice. Other than that, great video, and I am very happy to see Derek exploring my favorite technology field! And the story of Nakamura is very emotional, it's a great example of success against all odds.

[@stgo.s.4067]

Good coment!. @veritasium look

[@jameshughes6078]

So what what atom releases the light then if not silicon?

[@yay90productions49]

Gallium Arsenide @@jameshughes6078

[@souravdebnath5339]

​@@jameshughes6078those are called direct band gap semiconductors

[@estebanvprado]

From my understanding, in indirect semiconductors, the energy level transitions require a photon and a phonon. So my guess would be that the more correct formulation is that "light" is emitted, but it's not "visible light". Is this correct?

[@taotzu1339]

Early to mid 90's, I worked at a lab that was making Zn and other precursors for the CVD market. Gallium was brought up and may have been tried less than a handful of times. The gentleman that ran the department scoffed at the idea that gallium would ever be used. When Nakamura's discovery was revealed to the scientific community, there was rapid scrambling to catch up. Matter fact, the gentleman who ran the lab did a 180, and ended up starting his own company with gallium precursors as the main product.

[@RodriguezReel]

Mechanical Engineer here - this is by far the best explaination I have ever seen for transisters and diodes. Excellent work!

[@Vew82]

I'm an EE, and he did a better job explaining some of these concepts than my graduate school professors.

[@Panic0mode]

I am a computer and communications engineer. I wish my electronics instructor explains like this, yes we learned this all but the hard way.

[@dantheanimator5072]

As a blue light lover…..I agree 😂

[@Rudra_om]

Where?

[@Jojoplayz1939]

As a 13 year old I’m gonna start figuring out how hard it is to pick or even find the job that I want man

[@TheLuckymod13]

As an 80's kid, with a early obsession with component circuitry, I remember how shocking and amazing it was when blue LED became available. I appreciate you covering this, as it's one of my favorite and most memorable moments in my electronics journey.

[@LinuxJediMaster]

Same here!

[@BenjamintheTortoise]

Same. Fun and fascinating back story...

[@tcmtech7515]

I bought one when they first came out. It cost me $20 something in 1990's money and lasted about 20 minutes before it gave up. They were electrically super fragile and just handling one without static straps on would kill them.

[@RandoManFPV]

Lol damn ​@@tcmtech7515

[@EXAML]

Hello,Uncle

[@playzx1260]

It's surprising that the invention of blue LEDs was so recent, yet they're used literally everywhere now. The complex principles behind how it works was really fascinating. I learnt a lot as well. Great work!

[@hurbrowns5397]

Well no. As the video said over and over again. Blue LED is the last missing piece to complete the RGB colours. Red is there, green is there but not blue. So as soon as the blue LED was invented, it just took off pretty much straight away. Thus, the lighting revolution happened.

[@devinisreal9356]

​What part of OP's comment are you saying "Well no" to?

[@sciptick]

There are some important things they don't tell you. First, most of the blue you see is not from the process described, but from numerous other processes, such as reflecting through a frequency-doubling crystal, or annihilating excitons, or using silicon carbide semiconductor materials. I.e., industry has since discovered a variety of other, often simpler and cheaper ways to produce blue. Second, an incandescent bulb that is cheaper to make than an LED bulb, and equally efficient, has been developed. It works by reflecting the infrared emission back to the filament, so only the visible light escapes the bulb. These will be much better than LED bulbs for many applications, because they don't flicker, and produce a nice black-body radiation profile instead of sharp monochromatic lines, and work in very hot environments. Ironically, these could have been invented anytime in the last 100 years. Third, fusion will go nowhere: it would cost more to make and operate a fusion plant than a fission plant, and fission is already not competitive, and gets even less competitive as each year passes. Finally: a far-UV source at 222 nm would be safe to have operating around you all the time, because it does not penetrate the skin or eye, but kills bacteria and viruses.

[@Nova32x]

​@@sciptickyou're the biggest wet blanket in the world, talking out of your ass.

[@hurbrowns5397]

@@devinisreal9356 "No, it's not surprising" is what I meant to say.

[@ajb7530]

He should have been worth billions. He should have been well rewarded for all his efforts.

[@cartesiancoordinates]

Hats off to Derek for effortlessly elucidating the core concept of band gaps in materials. His simple yet vivid visual demonstration made understanding the concept a breeze.

[@imstupid880]

30:54 I love how he still walks like a kid, you can see how much energy he still has in him.

[@motopolak]

Absolutely. Best part for me was part of that conversation: "I love physics... I'm studying nuclear fusion so I just started a nuclear fusion company" Like holy cow dude! Despite his age he's still getting after it as if he was in his 30s! Love to see that kind of drive 🤠

[@imstupid880]

@@pepito-ky8qp how else do you think he managed to come up with a groundbreaking discovery 😂

[@GRAITOM]

@@pepito-ky8qp saying nakamura has autism is a pretty ironic thing to say, no? i mean look at you.

[@eranwilliams4098]

@@motopolak Drive like that is often a double edged sword. But, he seems to be invigorated and satisfied by his drive instead of consumed by it.

[@nawra77]

@@eranwilliams4098 Yes, I was thinking this isn't usually a good thing.

[@aemmelpear5788]

I'm a physics PhD (in photonic quamtum information theory) and thus studied solid state physics in my undergraduate but never really since, and the whole band theory (especially semi-conductors) never clicked for me.. Your explanation and animation finally made it click for me! The best explanation I've seen of this so far.

[@jacobsan]

Most people in academia wouldn't do well as a teacher

[@sleepingduty2987]

I am a material science undergraduate and couldn't agree more.

[@sykn5422]

As a flexible electronics phd student, I have to agree. I spent years trying to understand this through various means. This video has got to be the easiest to learn from.

[@Chemistorian]

I completed my PhD in chemistry a few years ago. My research was on semiconducting transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) and aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD), and I thought that the concepts were explained beautifully in this video.

[@sid6645]

Yeah the animation was just brilliant!

[@joshuaroughan3350]

I could binge watch 12 of these style 30min documentaries, so enjoyable, emphasising the human element behind scientific discoveries makes these unique.

[@DG-mk7kd]

This is an excellent example of why it is important to understand a problem all the way down to the most basic nuts and bolts fundamentals. You need to be able to tear down and rebuild the basic machines in order to understand how it all fits together

[@MrFox1231]

Also an example of the science community getting stuck in a local optima!

[@colebevans8939]

Yup, hubris gets in the way of so many things. Even though someone may have a PHD being humble enough to ask the technicians how their equipment worked, and in what ways it could be modified may have led some of these other individuals to build a blue LED decades earlier. It's only because Nakamura was forced to learn the technical and mechanical side of things due to his haughty coworkers that he invented it. Good lesson for us all, treat everyone around you like they are valuable and learn what you can from them - no matter their job title. @MrFox1231

[@NONO-hz4vo]

The problem though as technology gets increasingly complex is being able to comprehend all the facets for a given product. Perhaps AI is the answer to this but we will see.

[@frankjohnson123]

@@MrFox1231 *optimum

[@colebevans8939]

@@NONO-hz4vo I think as technology progresses we also have to rethink what we consider “valuable”. The ability to memorize massive amounts of information to pass a standardized test seems pretty useless in the modern era. Say I was a med student; I could just google all the parts of the human nervous system in half a second so why bother asking about it on a test. What seems far more valuable today would be things like reading comprehension and communication skills. Technically speaking all the math and data is available for free online for me to design the next LED light. All I need to know is what questions to ask and how to relay that information into a piece of software like CAD or to a lab technician who will assemble it. We have to figure out how teach and test for those intangible skills more effectively.