A Fujitsu FACOM 201 parametron computer in the Science Museum of the Tokyo University of Science

The parametron is a logic circuit element invented by Eiichi Goto in 1954.[1][2] The parametron is essentially a resonant circuit with a nonlinear reactive element which oscillates at half the driving frequency.[2][3] The oscillation can be made to represent a binary digit by the choice between two stationary phases π radians (180 degrees) apart.[2][4]

Parametrons were used in early Japanese computers from 1954 through the early 1960s. A prototype parametron-based computer, the PC-1, was built at the University of Tokyo in 1958 and later recognized as part of the IEEE Milestone for the parametron.[5] Parametrons were used in early Japanese computers due to being reliable and inexpensive but were ultimately surpassed by transistors due to differences in speed.[6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Information Processing Society of Japan - Parametron
  2. ^ a b c Goto, Eiichi (August 1959). "The Parametron, a Digital Computing Element Which Utilizes Parametric Oscillation". Proceedings of the IRE. 47 (8): 1304–1316. doi:10.1109/JRPROC.1959.287195.
  3. ^ "Parametron". The history of computing project 17 March 2010. Retrieved 15 February 2011.
  4. ^ U.S. Patent and Trademark Office - Class 307, Electrical Transmission or Interconnection Systems - Subclass 402, Parametrons
  5. ^ "Milestones: Parametron, 1954". Engineering and Technology History Wiki. IEEE. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  6. ^ Rojas, Rául; Hashagen, Ulf (2002). The First Computers: History and Architectures. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. p. 429. ISBN 0-262-68137-4.
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