The Basics of Integrated Circuits

The Basics of Integrated Circuits

Integrated circuits (ICs) are what make modern computers, phones and much of all other electronic equipment work.integrated circuits They’re tiny flat chips that contain a multitude of microscopic components that are arranged to perform a specific function, such as signal amplification or memory storage. ICs are so important that every electronic device that uses power—from children’s toys to cars, airplanes and subway trains to toothbrushes and video games—depends on them.

The history of ICs began in 1947, when William B.integrated circuits Shockley and his team at the American Telephone and Telegraph Company’s Bell Laboratories discovered that under the right circumstances, electrons would form a barrier at the surface of certain crystals. The team then learned how to control this barrier, enabling them to perform electrical operations such as signal amplification that were previously possible only using vacuum tubes.

Shockley’s invention led to the development of an entirely new kind of electronic component, which came to be called a transistor.integrated circuits As the era of the computer started to dawn, engineers realized that they could pack many of these small crystal-based transistors into a single integrated circuit. The idea was revolutionary, and it changed the way that electronic devices were built, lowering their costs and making them more compact.

In an IC, the active components—such as transistors and diodes—that are responsible for converting electricity into and from electronic signals are etched onto a chip of semiconductor material—typically silicon, which is both a conductor of electricity and an insulator.integrated circuits This chip is then combined with passive components—such as resistors and capacitors—that are used to store and limit the flow of electricity. The result is a fully functional electronic circuit that can perform a variety of functions, from arithmetic and logical operations to analog and digital signal processing and communication.

Building a functioning integrated circuit is a huge undertaking.integrated circuits To do this, engineers must start with a high-level functional description of the circuit’s functionality that is decomposed into its required low-level circuit elements. These are then simulated to verify that they will function correctly and are optimized for size, performance and power consumption. The resulting collection of devices is then assembled on a wafer of semiconductor material—usually silicon—that can be produced in a factory.

The process is complex, and it requires spotless labs with scrupulously filtered air and workers wearing protective clothing. To prevent contamination, the semiconductor wafer is prepared in an environment called a clean room where only the most critical and essential activities take place.

In the 1960s and 1970s, engineers were able to increase the number of components that they packed onto a single chip, first with what is known as Small-Scale Integration (SSI), which contained dozens of components. Then Medium-Scale Integration (MSI) came along, offering thousands of components on a single chip. Next came Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI), with tens of thousands of components in an area no bigger than the SSI chip.

The production of ICs is now done on a massive scale, with billions of them being made each year. This has resulted in significant cost savings for companies that produce them and for consumers who use the products they make. ICs are typically less expensive than the individual components they replace, and they can be far more reliable since the production process is so robust.