Who Invented the CD Player?

James T. Russell, a senior scientist at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory, invented the technology for the compact disc in 1965. By 1985, Russell had earned 26 patents for various innovations with CD-ROM technology. History Russell earned a Bachelor's of Arts in Physics from Reed College and worked as a physicist for General Electric before landing a job at the Pacific Northwest Laboratory in Richland, Washington. Function As a music lover, he was frustrated that vinyl records were easily damageable, so he sketched out plans to record music onto a photosensitive platter that would be read by a laser. Time Frame In the 1970s, he continued to improve the compact disc technology, leading companies like Sony & Philips to purchase licenses for mass production. Benefits The CD Player caught on when manufacturers started making portable CD players in 1984. Fun Fact Russell has a total of 54 patents, including 11 patents for Optical Random Access Memory, better known as ORAM. Famous Ties The first album released on CD was the Swedish pop sensation ABBA's "The Visitors."