Hassan Kamel AlSabbah

Hassan Kamel Al-Sabbah (August 16, 1895 - March 31, 1935) was born in Nabatieh, Lebanon. He was an electrical and electronics research engineer, mathematician and inventor par excellence. He studied at the American University of Beirut. He taught mathematics at Imperial College of Damascus, Syria, and at the American University of Beirut. He is seen as being the father of the solar cell. He died in an automobile accident at Lewis near Elizabeth Town, N.Y.

In 1921, he travelled to the United States and for a short time studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before joining the University of Illinois in 1923. He entered the vacuum tube section of the Engineering Laboratory of the General Electric Company at Schenectady N.Y., in 1923, where he was engaged in mathematical and experimental research, principally on rectifiers and inverters, receiving over 70 United States and foreign patents covering his work. He was engaged in work on television and motors as well, and originated circuits for use with rectifiers. He prepared a series of articles on polyphase polycyclic static converters which were published in the Genenral Electric Review and his paper on the effect of circuits on arc backs in mercury congress at Paris in 1932. He was also on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers fellowship grade.



Mr. Al-Sabbah’s dream was to build sun-powered cells in the Arabian desert; the main ingredients for solar power are sand (making solar cells) and strong sun (powering it). In 1935, he declared that he would return to the Middle East and transform the Arabian desert into a paradise. (He was talking about using the desert to make and power the solar cells and thus producing enormous amounts of energy).

Mr. C.G. Marcy, the personnel director of General Electric Company, used these words to describe in a letter dated April 16, 1935:

"It is indeed infortunate that his genius mind should be brought to such an untimely end. His death is a great loss for the world of invention"

He is the nephew of prominent linguist and writer Sheikh Ahmad Reda.

Discoveries and inventions

It is necessary to show the application and technical importance of how Hasan Kamel Alsabbah’s inventions and patents have contributed to applied technology in North America and the entire world. These patents of highly intricate systems, instruments and equipment can be classified in six main groups as follows:
Space Industry (Solar power)

There are 27 patents (1928-35) of Hasan Kamel Alsabbah applied in space industries. Solar cells have been widely used for space vehicles and satellites as the main source of power. The original solar cell was invented and tested by Mr. Al-sabbah in 1930; solar power is by far the cleanest and safest source of energy. The solar cell was further developed after World War II by Bell Telephone Laboratories in 1955. Careful review of the aircraft, spaceship, and satellite electric systems revealed that many electronic instruments and equipments (integrators, regulators, inverters, timers, transmitters, and sensors) are major components of the assembly of these crafts and are developed from

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