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{{Short description|American electrical engineer}}
{{otherpeople|Harold Black}}
{{Infobox scientist
{{Infobox scientist
|name = Harold Stephen Black
|name = Harold Stephen Black
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|birth_place = [[Leominster, Massachusetts]]
|birth_place = [[Leominster, Massachusetts]]
|death_date ={{death date and age|1983|12|11|1898|4|14}}
|death_date ={{death date and age|1983|12|11|1898|4|14}}
|death_place =
|death_place = [[Summit, New Jersey]]
|residence =
|residence =
|citizenship =
|citizenship =
|nationality = [[United States]]
|nationality = American
|ethnicity =
|ethnicity =
|field = [[Electrical engineer]]
|field = [[Electrical engineer]]
|work_institutions =
|work_institutions =
|alma_mater = [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute]]
|alma_mater = [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute]]
|doctoral_advisor =
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'''Harold Stephen Black''' (April 14, 1898 – December 11, 1983) was an American [[electrical engineer]], who revolutionized the field of applied electronics by inventing the [[negative feedback amplifier]] in 1927. To some, his invention is considered the most important breakthrough of the twentieth century in the field of [[electronics]], since it has a wide area of application. This is because all electronic devices (vacuum tubes, bipolar transistors and MOS transistors) invented by mankind are basically nonlinear devices. It is the invention of negative feedback which makes highly linear amplifiers possible. Negative feedback basically works by sacrificing gain for higher linearity (or in other words, smaller [[distortion]] or smaller [[intermodulation]]). By sacrificing gain, it also has an additional effect of increasing the bandwidth of the amplifier. However, a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable such that it may oscillate. Once the stability problem is solved, the negative feedback amplifier is extremely useful in the field of electronics. Black published a famous paper, ''Stabilized feedback amplifiers'', in 1934.
'''Harold Stephen Black''' (April 14, 1898 – December 11, 1983) was an American [[electrical engineer]], who revolutionized the field of applied electronics by inventing the [[negative feedback amplifier]] in 1927. To some, his invention is considered the most important breakthrough of the twentieth century in the field of [[electronics]], since it has a wide area of application. This is because all electronic devices (vacuum tubes, bipolar transistors and MOS transistors) are inherently nonlinear, but they can be made substantially linear with the application of negative feedback. Negative feedback works by sacrificing gain for higher linearity (or in other words, smaller [[distortion]]/[[intermodulation]]). By sacrificing gain, it also has an additional effect of increasing the bandwidth of the amplifier. However, a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable such that it may oscillate. Once the stability problem is solved, the negative feedback amplifier is extremely useful in the field of electronics. Black published a famous paper, ''Stabilized feedback amplifiers'', in 1934.


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
He was born in [[Leominster, Massachusetts]] in 1898. He went to [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute]] (WPI) for his first degree. Subsequently, he received the B.S.E.E. degree from WPI in 1921 and then joined [[Western Electric]], which was the manufacturing arm of AT&T. He joined [[Bell Labs]] (1925), where he was a member of technical staff until his retirement (1963).
He was born in [[Leominster, Massachusetts]] in 1898. He went to [[Worcester Polytechnic Institute]] (WPI) for his first degree. Subsequently, he received a B.S.S. in Electrical Engineering from WPI in 1921 and then joined [[Western Electric]], which was the manufacturing arm of AT&T. He joined [[Bell Labs]] (1925), where he was a member of technical staff until his retirement (1963).


Black started writing his autobiography with the tentative title "Before the ferry docked".<ref name = "JB 97"/> However, he died in December 1983 at age 85 before he could finish it.
Black started writing his autobiography with the tentative title "Before the ferry docked".<ref name = "JB 97"/> However, he died in December 1983 at age 85 before he could finish it.


== Work ==
== Work ==
Amplifiers are non-linear, therefore every time a signal is amplified in a telecommunications network, which can happen dozens of times on a circuit, noise and distortion are added. Black first invented the feed-forward amplifier which compares the input and output signals and then negatively amplifies the distortion and combines the two signals, canceling out some of the distortion. This amplifier design improved, but did not solve, the problems of transcontinental telecommunication. <ref>Harold Black and the Negative-Feedback Amplifier, Ronald Kline, IEEE Control Systems, Aug 1993, Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 82-85</ref>
Amplifiers are unavoidably non-linear. Therefore, every time a signal is amplified in a telecommunications network, which can happen dozens of times in a circuit, noise and distortion are added. Black first invented the feed-forward amplifier which compares the input and output signals and then negatively amplifies the distortion and combines the two signals, canceling out some of the distortion. This amplifier design improved, but did not solve, the problems of transcontinental telecommunication.<ref name="black93">Harold Black and the Negative-Feedback Amplifier, Ronald Kline, IEEE Control Systems Magazine, Aug 1993, Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 82-85</ref>


After years of work Black invented the negative feedback amplifier which uses negative feedback to reduce the gain of a high-gain, non-linear amplifier and makes it act as a low-gain, linear amplifier with much lower noise and distortion. The Negative feedback amplifier allowed Bell system to reduce overcrowding of lines and extend its long-distance network by means of carrier telephony. It enabled the design of accurate fire-control systems in World War II, and it formed the basis of early [[operational amplifiers]], as well as precise, variable-frequency audio oscillators. <ref>Harold Black and the Negative-Feedback Amplifier, Ronald Kline, IEEE Control Systems, Aug 1993, Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 82-85</ref>
After years of work Black invented the negative feedback amplifier which uses negative feedback to reduce the gain of a high-gain, non-linear amplifier and makes it act as a low-gain, linear amplifier with much lower noise and distortion. The Negative feedback amplifier allowed Bell system to reduce overcrowding of lines and extend its long-distance network by means of carrier telephony. It enabled the design of accurate fire-control systems in World War II, and it formed the basis of early [[operational amplifiers]], as well as precise, variable-frequency audio oscillators.<ref name="black93" />


According to Black<ref name = "HB 77"/> he got his inspiration to invent the negative feedback amplifier when he was traveling from [[New Jersey]] to [[New York City]] by taking a ferry to cross the [[Hudson River]] in August 1927. Having nothing to write on he sketched his thoughts on a misprinted page of the New York Times and then signed and dated it. <ref>Harold Black and the Negative-Feedback Amplifier, Ronald Kline, IEEE Control Systems, Aug 1993, Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 82-85</ref> At that time, [[Bell Laboratories]] headquarters were located in 463 West Street, [[Manhattan]], [[New York City]] instead of New Jersey and he lived in New Jersey such that he took the ferry every morning to go to work.
According to Black<ref name = "HB 77"/> he got his inspiration to invent the negative feedback amplifier when he was traveling from [[New Jersey]] to [[New York City]] by taking a ferry to cross the [[Hudson River]] in August 1927. Having nothing to write on he sketched his thoughts on a misprinted page of the New York Times and then signed and dated it.<ref name="black93" /> At that time, [[Bell Laboratories]] headquarters were located in 463 West Street, [[Manhattan]], [[New York City]] instead of New Jersey and he lived in New Jersey such that he took the ferry every morning to go to work.


Fifty years after his 1927 invention, he published an article in IEEE Spectrum regarding the historical background of his invention.<ref name = "HB 77"> Harold S. Black, "Inventing the negative feedback amplifier", IEEE Spectrum, vol. 14, pp. 54-60, Dec. 1977. (50th anniversary of Black's invention of negative feedback amplifier)</ref> He published a classical paper on [[negative feedback]] amplifier in 1934,<ref>H.S. Black, "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", Electrical Engineering, vol. 53, pp. 114-120, Jan. 1934.</ref> which has been re-printed in the Proceedings of IEEE two times in 1984 and 1999<ref>H.S. Black, [http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/wrapper.jsp?arnumber=1457189 Stabilized feed-back amplifiers], Proc. IEEE, vol. 72, no. 6, pp. 716-722, June 1984.</ref><ref>H.S. Black, {{doi-inline|10.1109/JPROC.1999.740032 |Stabilized feed-back amplifiers}}, Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 379-385, Feb. 1999.</ref> Inside his 1934 classical paper "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", he mentioned [[Harry Nyquist]]'s work on stability criterion because a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable and oscillate. Thus, with the help of Nyquist's theory, he managed to demonstrate a stable negative feedback amplifier which can be used in reality. Bernard Friedland wrote an introduction for the 1999 re-print in Proc. IEEE.<ref>B. Friedland, {{doi-inline|10.1109/JPROC.1999.740031|Introduction to "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers"}}, Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 376-378, Feb. 1999.</ref> James E. Brittain wrote about him in 1997.<ref name = "JB 97"> J.E. Brittain., "Scanning the past: Harold S. Black and the negative feedback amplifier", Proc. IEEE, vol. 85, no. 8, pp. 1335-1336, Aug. 1997.</ref><ref name = "HB 77"/>
Fifty years after his 1927 invention, he published an article in IEEE Spectrum regarding the historical background of his invention.<ref name = "HB 77">Harold S. Black, "Inventing the negative feedback amplifier", IEEE Spectrum, vol. 14, pp. 54-60, Dec. 1977. (50th anniversary of Black's invention of negative feedback amplifier)</ref> He published a classical paper on [[negative feedback]] amplifier in 1934,<ref>H.S. Black, "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", Electrical Engineering, vol. 53, pp. 114-120, Jan. 1934.</ref> which has been re-printed in the Proceedings of IEEE two times in 1984 and 1999<ref>H.S. Black, [http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/wrapper.jsp?arnumber=1457189 Stabilized feed-back amplifiers]{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}, Proc. IEEE, vol. 72, no. 6, pp. 716-722, June 1984.</ref><ref>H.S. Black, {{doi-inline|10.1109/JPROC.1999.740032 |Stabilized feed-back amplifiers}}, Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 379-385, Feb. 1999.</ref> Inside his 1934 classical paper "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", he mentioned [[Harry Nyquist]]'s work on stability criterion because a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable and oscillate. Thus, with the help of Nyquist's theory, he managed to demonstrate a stable negative feedback amplifier which can be used in reality. [[Bernard Friedland]] wrote an introduction for the 1999 re-print in Proc. IEEE.<ref>B. Friedland, {{doi-inline|10.1109/JPROC.1999.740031|Introduction to "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers"}}, Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 376-378, Feb. 1999.</ref> James E. Brittain wrote about him in 1997.<ref name = "JB 97">J.E. Brittain., "Scanning the past: Harold S. Black and the negative feedback amplifier", Proc. IEEE, vol. 85, no. 8, pp. 1335-1336, Aug. 1997.</ref><ref name = "HB 77"/>
An obituary regarding Black was published by IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control in 1984.<ref>* C.A. Desoer, [http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/wrapper.jsp?arnumber=1103645 In memoriam: Harold Stephen Black], IEEE Trans. Automatic Control, vol. AC-29, no. 8, pp. 673-674, Aug. 1984.</ref>
An obituary regarding Black was published by IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control in 1984.<ref>* C.A. Desoer, [https://archive.today/20070705091656/http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/search/wrapper.jsp?arnumber=1103645 In memoriam: Harold Stephen Black], IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. AC-29, no. 8, pp. 673-674, Aug. 1984.</ref>


He also worked on [[pulse code modulation]] and wrote a book on "Modulation Theory" ([[Van Nostrand]], 1953). He held many patents the most famous of which was US Patent 2,102,671 "Wave Translation System", which was issued to Bell Laboratories in 1937, covering the negative feedback amplifier.<ref>{{US Patent|2102671}}</ref>
He also worked on [[pulse-code modulation]] and wrote a book on "Modulation Theory" ([[Van Nostrand (publisher)|Van Nostrand]], 1953). He held many patents the most famous of which was US Patent 2,102,671 "Wave Translation System", which was issued to Bell Laboratories in 1937, covering the negative feedback amplifier.<ref>{{US Patent|2102671}}</ref>


== Awards ==
== Awards ==
*[[National Inventors Hall of Fame]] inductee number 25, 1981<ref>[http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/16.html HS Black] in the Hall of fame.</ref>
*[[National Inventors Hall of Fame]] inductee number 25, 1981<ref>[http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/16.html HS Black] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021216210809/http://www.invent.org/hall_of_fame/16.html |date=2002-12-16 }} in the Hall of fame.</ref>
*[[Robert H. Goddard]] Award from WPI 1981
*[[Robert H. Goddard]] Award from WPI 1981
*[[AIEE Lamme Medal]] 1958<ref>{{cite web|url=http://services35.ieee.org/portal/pages/about/awards/pr/lammepr.html |title=IEEE Lamme Medal Recipients |publisher=IEEE |accessdate={{Start date|2010|12|12}}}}</ref>
*[[AIEE Lamme Medal]] 1958<ref>{{cite web |url=http://services35.ieee.org/portal/pages/about/awards/pr/lammepr.html |title=IEEE Lamme Medal Recipients |publisher=IEEE |access-date=December 12, 2010 }}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
*[[D. Eng.]] degree (honorary) from WPI 1955
*[[D. Eng.]] degree (honorary) from WPI 1955
*[[Research Corporation]] Scientific Award 1952
*[[Research Corporation]] Scientific Award 1952
*[[Audio Engineering Society#AES Gold Medal recipients|John H. Potts Memorial Award]] of the [[Audio Engineering Society]]
*[[Audio Engineering Society#Gold Medal recipients|John H. Potts Memorial Award]] of the [[Audio Engineering Society]]
*[[The Franklin Institute Awards|John Price Wetherill Award]] of the [[Franklin Institute]]
*[[John Price Wetherill Medal]] of the [[Franklin Institute]]
*Certificate of Appreciation from the [[US War Department]].
*Certificate of Appreciation from the [[US War Department]].
*WPI gives away the annual Harold S. Black Scholarship (1992-)
*WPI gives away the annual Harold S. Black Scholarship (1992-)


== References ==
== References ==
{{reflist|2}}
{{reflist|30em}}


== External Links ==
== External links ==
[http://www.wpi.edu/Images/CMS/Library/MS09_Harold_S_Black.pdf Harold S. Black Papers at WPI]
* [http://www.wpi.edu/Images/CMS/Library/MS09_Harold_S_Black.pdf Harold S. Black Papers at WPI]

{{Authority control}}


{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
| NAME = Black, Harold
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH = April 14, 1898
| PLACE OF BIRTH = [[Leominster, Massachusetts]]
| DATE OF DEATH = December 11, 1983
| PLACE OF DEATH =
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Harold}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Harold}}
[[Category:1898 births]]
[[Category:1898 births]]
[[Category:1983 deaths]]
[[Category:1983 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Leominster, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:People from Leominster, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Control theorists]]
[[Category:American control theorists]]
[[Category:Cyberneticists]]
[[Category:Cyberneticists]]
[[Category:American electrical engineers]]
[[Category:American electrical engineers]]
[[Category:American inventors]]
[[Category:20th-century American inventors]]
[[Category:National Inventors Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumni]]
[[Category:Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumni]]
[[Category:Scientists at Bell Labs]]
[[Category:Scientists at Bell Labs]]
[[Category:IEEE Lamme Medal recipients]]

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Revision as of 09:40, 26 November 2024

For other people named Harold Black, see Harold Black (disambiguation).
Harold Stephen Black
Born(1898-04-14)April 14, 1898
Leominster, Massachusetts
DiedDecember 11, 1983(1983-12-11) (aged 85)
Summit, New Jersey
NationalityAmerican
Alma materWorcester Polytechnic Institute
Known fornegative feedback
Scientific career
FieldsElectrical engineer

Harold Stephen Black (April 14, 1898 – December 11, 1983) was an American electrical engineer, who revolutionized the field of applied electronics by inventing the negative feedback amplifier in 1927. To some, his invention is considered the most important breakthrough of the twentieth century in the field of electronics, since it has a wide area of application. This is because all electronic devices (vacuum tubes, bipolar transistors and MOS transistors) are inherently nonlinear, but they can be made substantially linear with the application of negative feedback. Negative feedback works by sacrificing gain for higher linearity (or in other words, smaller distortion/intermodulation). By sacrificing gain, it also has an additional effect of increasing the bandwidth of the amplifier. However, a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable such that it may oscillate. Once the stability problem is solved, the negative feedback amplifier is extremely useful in the field of electronics. Black published a famous paper, Stabilized feedback amplifiers, in 1934.

Biography

He was born in Leominster, Massachusetts in 1898. He went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) for his first degree. Subsequently, he received a B.S.S. in Electrical Engineering from WPI in 1921 and then joined Western Electric, which was the manufacturing arm of AT&T. He joined Bell Labs (1925), where he was a member of technical staff until his retirement (1963).

Black started writing his autobiography with the tentative title "Before the ferry docked".[1] However, he died in December 1983 at age 85 before he could finish it.

Work

Amplifiers are unavoidably non-linear. Therefore, every time a signal is amplified in a telecommunications network, which can happen dozens of times in a circuit, noise and distortion are added. Black first invented the feed-forward amplifier which compares the input and output signals and then negatively amplifies the distortion and combines the two signals, canceling out some of the distortion. This amplifier design improved, but did not solve, the problems of transcontinental telecommunication.[2]

After years of work Black invented the negative feedback amplifier which uses negative feedback to reduce the gain of a high-gain, non-linear amplifier and makes it act as a low-gain, linear amplifier with much lower noise and distortion. The Negative feedback amplifier allowed Bell system to reduce overcrowding of lines and extend its long-distance network by means of carrier telephony. It enabled the design of accurate fire-control systems in World War II, and it formed the basis of early operational amplifiers, as well as precise, variable-frequency audio oscillators.[2]

According to Black[3] he got his inspiration to invent the negative feedback amplifier when he was traveling from New Jersey to New York City by taking a ferry to cross the Hudson River in August 1927. Having nothing to write on he sketched his thoughts on a misprinted page of the New York Times and then signed and dated it.[2] At that time, Bell Laboratories headquarters were located in 463 West Street, Manhattan, New York City instead of New Jersey and he lived in New Jersey such that he took the ferry every morning to go to work.

Fifty years after his 1927 invention, he published an article in IEEE Spectrum regarding the historical background of his invention.[3] He published a classical paper on negative feedback amplifier in 1934,[4] which has been re-printed in the Proceedings of IEEE two times in 1984 and 1999[5][6] Inside his 1934 classical paper "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", he mentioned Harry Nyquist's work on stability criterion because a negative feedback amplifier can be unstable and oscillate. Thus, with the help of Nyquist's theory, he managed to demonstrate a stable negative feedback amplifier which can be used in reality. Bernard Friedland wrote an introduction for the 1999 re-print in Proc. IEEE.[7] James E. Brittain wrote about him in 1997.[1][3] An obituary regarding Black was published by IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control in 1984.[8]

He also worked on pulse-code modulation and wrote a book on "Modulation Theory" (Van Nostrand, 1953). He held many patents the most famous of which was US Patent 2,102,671 "Wave Translation System", which was issued to Bell Laboratories in 1937, covering the negative feedback amplifier.[9]

Awards

References

  1. ^ a b J.E. Brittain., "Scanning the past: Harold S. Black and the negative feedback amplifier", Proc. IEEE, vol. 85, no. 8, pp. 1335-1336, Aug. 1997.
  2. ^ a b c Harold Black and the Negative-Feedback Amplifier, Ronald Kline, IEEE Control Systems Magazine, Aug 1993, Volume 13, Issue 4, Pages 82-85
  3. ^ a b c Harold S. Black, "Inventing the negative feedback amplifier", IEEE Spectrum, vol. 14, pp. 54-60, Dec. 1977. (50th anniversary of Black's invention of negative feedback amplifier)
  4. ^ H.S. Black, "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers", Electrical Engineering, vol. 53, pp. 114-120, Jan. 1934.
  5. ^ H.S. Black, Stabilized feed-back amplifiers[dead link‍], Proc. IEEE, vol. 72, no. 6, pp. 716-722, June 1984.
  6. ^ H.S. Black, Stabilized feed-back amplifiers , Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 379-385, Feb. 1999.
  7. ^ B. Friedland, Introduction to "Stabilized feed-back amplifiers" , Proc. IEEE, vol. 87, no. 2, pp. 376-378, Feb. 1999.
  8. ^ * C.A. Desoer, In memoriam: Harold Stephen Black, IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. AC-29, no. 8, pp. 673-674, Aug. 1984.
  9. ^ U.S. patent 2,102,671
  10. ^ HS Black Archived 2002-12-16 at the Wayback Machine in the Hall of fame.
  11. ^ "IEEE Lamme Medal Recipients". IEEE. Retrieved December 12, 2010.[dead link‍]
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