Chapter 88: Transistor
After we finished breakfast, I drove Haley to school, but I didn't go inside because I had received a message asking me to head to the Moore-Pritchett Complex.
"Just tell them I might not come today," I said, hugging Haley before she stepped out. "I might stay there all morning instead."
"Okay, but don't forget about today!" she reminded me again.
"I will not, you two would make it impossible for me to forget," I replied. I had promised to model for Haley and Marissa, since the new clothes they had designed were finally ready.
"Love you, cousin," she waved and walked into school. I drove toward my complex.
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"These are the results from the latest experiment," Eric, the lead engineer of the project in partnership with Intel, presented.
"The MoS₂ - based transistor is a success!" he announced professionally - yet excitement was clearly present in his voice.
He continued, "It's a 1 µm channel, and based on our research, there's a possibility of reducing it to a quarter of that, though there are significant challenges."
"It seems you'll have to create a Moore's Law 2.0, Gordon," I joked, glancing at him seated beside me.
"It looks like it," he responded, visibly emotional - it was an achievement that struck directly at the core of his career.
"Currently, using silicon, Intel are at 90 nm commercially and 65 nm in ramp-up," I commented, using information that was publicly known. "I bet you already have 25-45 nm in advanced research."
"I don't think we'll see silicon being replaced anytime soon, but MoS₂ might be the future where silicon simply cannot reach," I concluded, echoing what was likely the consensus in the room.
Craig Barrett, Intel's current CEO, remained thoughtful and silent, still withholding his opinion.
Pat Gelsinger, his CTO, commented, "We need more projections: switching energy, leakage at sub-30nm, and heat density compared to strained silicon."
1 nm is complex. Commercially, the industry will obviously aim for something easier to manufacture first.
We discussed the next steps for quite some time.
Intel will immediately invest another $120 million into the project, with the potential for billions once commercial viability is demonstrated.
After that, I went to check on a side project we started months ago (not really a side project for me, given the potential financial impact) - solar panel improvements (still without using perovskites).
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Gordon and I were watching Leonard adding one more element - the 30th - to the chart: VS₂, Vanadium Disulfide.
"Pritchett-Moore table," Gordon said aloud. "You know you didn't need to put my surname there."
"You're the main investor and the director of our complex, I thought it was fair enough," I replied, unfazed. I'm not someone who cares about taking all the credit, especially when someone I value greatly contributed just as much.
"You'd have enough money to do it alone, even if it took longer," Gordon noted.
"Yeah," I didn't deny it, "but no offense, Gordon - but I expect to live way longer than you."
Before I could continue, he spoke, "I hope so. I really hope so. I'd be really sad otherwise," patting my shoulder soberly.
"As I was saying, there's another reason I don't mind calling it Pritchett-Moore - I'll have several opportunities in the future to put only my name on things," I smirked. "I don't plan on stopping anytime soon."
"What is your goal for the future, Jake?" he wondered. "What's the big dream?"
"Hmm, the answer is still to live a happy life. And for me right now, that means having happy moments with my friends and family," I continued. "Professionally, I want to be the one leading the future of science."
"In the end, I want to be rich enough to have a large-scale impact on home care in the U.S."
I turned to Gordon. "You once said I wasn't driven by money. That's not entirely true. The difference is that the amount required to move me would be in the hundreds of millions or even billions."
I whispered a secret to him. "I'm not as rich as you, but you are not the only billionaire here."
He looked at me wide‑eyed. "You never stop surprising me, Jake," he laughed. "You will become the first billionaire Nobel laureate," he added, amused.
"Maybe you'll break the Nobel record too. With all these 2D materials discovered, and now the MoS₂ transistor, it should be worth at least two prizes - Physics and Chemistry," Gordon remarked.
"I'm not really bothered by that, Gordon" I commented. If the Nobel were my concern, I would already be pursuing other initiatives that would win easily as well.
We talked more about several other subjects.
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I went to the Dunphys' house, since Haley, Marissa, and Summer were there.
When I walked in, Claire and Phil were on the couch talking to a woman - probably Denise, the one Phil had mentioned.
"Oh, this is my nephew - well, actually my cousin," Claire said, pointing at me as she introduced us.
The woman turned to greet me, but froze midway.
I raised an eyebrow. "Denise Melnick? Wait... you're Phil's ex?"
"Dr. Pritchett?!" she shouted, shocked.
"You two know each other?" Phil asked, equally surprised.
Marissa, Haley, and Summer appeared from the kitchen. My girlfriend walked straight into my arms.
"Answering your question, Phil - Denise is one of my assistants, along with Alex Jensen and two others," I replied to him.
"Wait!" Haley looked at Denise. "Does that mean your hot, intelligent boss is Jake?" she asked, suspicious and mildly offended.
I stared deadpan at my cousin. Funny how she remembered things like that so easily.
"I just wanted to provoke Phil," Denise defended herself. "I think I'd better go," She quickly left the house.
"Who wants... ice cream?" Phil tried to break the awkward atmosphere, making everyone stare at him in disbelief.
I ended up amused. "If she tries anything inappropriate with me, I'll just fire her," I said, squeezing Summer's cheeks (the upper ones).
Denise never tried anything with me, and Alex was more like a fangirl. Gabriely, the one who actually tried something, I fired on the spot.
"Now let's see the clothes you two designed."
We headed to Haley's room.
Claire went back to her tasks, not bothered by what had happened. She had full confidence in Phil.
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