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Development of integrated circuits
Release time:
2024-01-31 09:34
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State-of-the-art integrated circuits are at the heart of microprocessors or multi-core processors that control everything from computers to mobile phones to digital microwave ovens. While the cost of designing and developing a complex integrated circuit is very high, the cost per integrated circuit is minimised when spread out over what are often millions of products. The performance of integrated circuits is high because the small size results in short paths, allowing low power logic circuits to be applied at fast switching speeds.
Over the years, integrated circuits have continued to move to smaller form factors, allowing more circuits to be packaged per chip. This increases the capacity per unit area, which can reduce cost and increase functionality, see Moore's Law, the number of transistors in an integrated circuit doubles every 1.5 years. In short, as the form factor shrinks, almost all metrics improve, cost per unit and switching power consumption drop, and speed increases. However, there are problems with ICs that integrate nanoscale devices, mainly leakage current. As a result, the increase in speed and power consumption for the end user is very noticeable and manufacturers are faced with the acute challenge of using better geometry. This process and the advances to be expected in the coming years are well described in the Semiconductor International Technology Roadmap.
Just half a century after their development, integrated circuits are becoming ubiquitous, with computers, mobile phones and other digital appliances becoming an integral part of the fabric of society. This is because modern computing, communication, manufacturing and transport systems, including the Internet, all depend on the existence of ICs. Many scholars even consider the digital revolution brought about by ICs to be the most important event in human history, and the maturation of ICs will lead to a great leap forward in technology, both in terms of design techniques and semiconductor process breakthroughs, which are closely related.
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