Solid state switching device

Claim 1

A SOLID STATE SWITCHING DEVICE WHICH, WHEN SEMICONDUCTIVE, IS CAPABLE OF ONE OR TWO OF THREE DISTINCT SWITHCING CYLES RESPONSIVE TO PRESELECTED ELECTRIC FIELDS APPLIED THERETO, ONE SWITCHING CYCLE BEING CHARACTERISTICALLY NON-POLAR AND SYMMETRICAL WHEREIN SWITCHING OCCURS UNDER APPLED VOLTAGE AND CURRENT CONDITIONS, THE OTHER CYCLES BEING CHARACTERISTICALLY SEQUENTIALLY POLAR WHEREIN SWITCHING OCCURS UNDER BOTH FINITE VOLTAGE AND CURRENT CONDITIONS AND ALSO UNDER NEARLY ZERO VOLTAGE AND ZERO AMPERAGE CONDITONS, SAID DEVICE COMPRISING: (A) A WAFER OF A GLASS COMPOSITION AS DEFINED BY AREA A OF FIGURE 1 AND AS FURTHER MODIFIED BY PARTIAL REPLACEMENT OF ANTIMONY WITH A MATERIAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF FROM GREATER THAN 0 TO ABOUT 24 ATOMIC PERCENT COPPER, FROM GREATER THAN 0 TO ABOUT 24 ATOMIC PERCENT SILVER, AND FROM GREATER THAN 0 TO ABOUT 5 ATOMIC PERCENT GOLD BUT CONTAINING NOT LESS THAN ABOUT 15 ATOMIC PERCENT OF ANTIMONY. (B) TOW ELECTRODES, EACH ONE FUNCTIONALLY ASSOCIATED WITH A DIFFERENT SURFACE REGION OF SAID WATER; (C) THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SAID WAFER AND SAID PAIR OF ELECTRODES BEING SUCH THAT (1) SAID WAFER HAS A CHARACTERISTIC INITIAL RESISTANCE STATE MEASURED THROUGH SAID ELECTRODES GREATER THAN SAID CHARACTERISTIC HIGH RESISTANCE STATE; AND (2) WHEN A SUFFICIENT MINIMUM ELECTRIC FIELD IS APPLIED TO SAID WAFTER THROUGH SAID ELECTRODES, SAID WAFER BECOMES SEMICONDUCTIVE AS INDICATED BY A CHANGE FROM SAID CHARACTERISTIC INITIAL RESISTANCE STATE TO SAID CHARACTERISTIC LOW RESISANCE STATE.