Transistor demonstrated December 23, 1947; Prototype transistor radio demonstrated June, 1948.
A better comparison would be "cat's whisker solid-state rectifying detector demonstrated in 1894, minority carrier current flow observed in 1943, three-terminal solid-state amplifier demonstrated in 1947. Rapid commercialization followed."
Transistor demonstrated December 23, 1947; Prototype transistor radio demonstrated June, 1948.
Yes, but the first commercial one, the Regency TR-1, did not go on sale until Nov. 1954.
Concepts come first, then materials catch up. The Field Effect Transistor (1926 application) found in digital computers, predates the junction transistor. Bell Labs scientist built one based on Lilienfeld’s functioning design, but it was still a lab curiosity due to material’s deficits.
Shockley pivoted next to the Junction Transistor concept which was found in non homogeneous regions of crystal diodes developed at Purdue University for RADAR application. Initially, point contacts to the surface of a doped crystal found the different composition of crystal zones that served as an amplifier. Hit and miss limited practical usage.
Control of the chemistry in the progressive growth of crystals, allowed forming layers with the distinct electrical properties found in junction devices. This was Bell Lab’s basis for a patent of the first practical transistor.