It is hard to get so kept A semiconductor is a substance, usually a solid chemical element or compound, that can conduct electricity under some conditions but not others, making it a good medium for the control of electrical current. Its conductance varies depending on the current or voltage applied to a control electrode, Origin of the term "transistor" [ edit ] Bell Telephone Laboratories needed a generic name for their new invention: "Semiconductor Triode", "Solid Triode", "Surface States Triode" [ sic ], "Crystal Triode" and "Iotatron" were all considered, but "transistor", coined by John R. Pierce , won an internal ballot. The rationale for the name is described in the following extract from the company's Technical Memoranda (May 28, 1948) [26] calling for votes: Transistor. This is an abbreviated combination of the words " transconductance" or "transfer", and ...