Assignment # 01

PHYSICS OF NANOTECHNOLOGY

Assignment Topic: "Evolution of Semiconductor

Chips"
Submitted To: Dr. Zahid Ishaque
Submitted By: Khadija Ali
Semester: 8th
Roll No: BPHF19E072RE

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS
UNIVERSITY OF SARGODHA
 Tiny Titans
 How Semiconductor Chips Revolutionized the World
and Nanotechnology is Paving the Way for the Future

Introduction:

The world is powered by tiny titans - semiconductor chips. These marvels of engineering
have shrunk from room-sized behemoths to microscopic marvels, driving a technological
revolution that's still unfolding. This assignment delves into the fascinating evolution of
semiconductor chips, from the bulky beginnings of vacuum tube electronics to the cutting-
edge world of nanotechnology.

Part 1: The Rise of the Tiny Titans

The Bulky Beginnings - Vacuum Tubes

The earliest mechanism for manipulating the flow of

electricity in computing was the vacuum tube. The
vacuum tube involved controlling the flow of
electrons in a high vacuum between electrodes, a
crucial step in the development of electronic circuits.
This technology, while groundbreaking, was bulky,
fragile, and consumed a lot of power.

These fragile, glass-encased tubes acted as

electronic switches, allowing for basic calculations
performed by massive machines like the ENIAC
computer. Early Vacuum Tube Computer

Vacuum Tube's
History

 1904: John Ambrose Fleming invents the diode, the first vacuum tube.
 1906: Lee De Forest invents the triode, a vacuum tube with three electrodes.
 1912: Edwin Armstrong develops the regenerative circuit, which amplifies radio
signals.
 1920s: Vacuum tubes become widely used in radios, telephones, and other electronic
devices

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However, they suffered from several limitations:

 Size: Vacuum tubes were large and bulky, requiring enormous machines like the
ENIAC computer, which filled entire rooms.

 Inefficiency: Vacuum tubes consumed a lot

of power and generated significant heat,
making them inefficient for practical use.

 Reliability: Vacuum tubes were prone to

breakdowns, requiring frequent maintenance.

ENIAC computer

 The Transistor Revolution (1947):

A breakthrough in 1947 by John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley

ushered in a new era of computing with the invention of the transistor.

Transistors are microscopic electronic switches

made from semiconductor materials like silicon.
Here's how they revolutionized computing:

 Smaller Size: Transistors are significantly

smaller than vacuum tubes, enabling the
development of compact and portable
electronic devices.
 Increased Efficiency: Transistors consume
less power and generate less heat, making
them more efficient than vacuum tubes.
Point contact transistor
 Greater Reliability: Transistors are more robust and reliable than vacuum tubes,
leading to fewer breakdowns.
Feature Vacuum Tube Transistor
Size Bulky (room-sized machines) Microscopic
Efficiency Low High
Heat Generation High Low
Reliability Prone to breakdowns More reliable

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Moore's Law and Early Transistors with Table:

 Moore's Law (1965): In 1965, Gordon Moore observed a trend – the number of
transistors on a chip double roughly every two years, leading to exponential growth in
processing power. This became a guiding principle for the industry.

Year Transistor Model Material Size (μm²) Application

1947 Point-Contact Germanium ~10,000 Research
1954 Junction Transistor Silicon ~1,000 Hearing aids, Radios
1964 Planar Transistor Silicon ~100 Integrated Circuits

Moore's Law Datasheet (Table):

Yea Microprocessor Transistors Clock Speed Die Size

r Model (Millions) (MHz) (mm²)
1971 Intel 4004 2,300 1 12
1974 Intel 8080 6,000 2 6
1979 Motorola 68000 33,000 4-10 45.2
1982 Intel 80286 130,000 6-10 33
1985 Intel 80386 (i386) 275,000 16-25 25.3
1989 Intel 80486 (i486) 1.1 million 25-33 116

The Rise of the Integrated Circuit (IC)

The invention of the integrated circuit (IC), or microchip, by Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce
in 1958-59 revolutionized electronics further. ICs integrate multiple transistors and other
electronic components onto a single silicon wafer.

Early IC Applications: Early ICs were used in simple electronic devices due to the limited
number of transistors that could be integrated. Examples include:

o Calculators
o Radios
o Hearing aids
o Televisions (later models)
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 Integrated Circuit Transistors Diagram
Year Model Manufacturer (Count) Application Link

196 Fairchild SLINEAR Fairchild

1 Micrologic Semiconductor ~10 Logic Gates

196 Texas Instruments

4 SN7400 Texas Instruments 14 Logic Gates

196 Intel 3101 Schottky Memory

8 TTL Intel 23 (SRAM)

The Rise of Microprocessors (0.5 Pages):

The invention of the IC paved the way for the development of microprocessors, the central
processing units (CPUs) of modern computers. Microprocessors are essentially ICs
specifically designed to perform complex calculations.

 Challenges of Miniaturization: As transistors shrink, new challenges arise:

o Leakage Current: Smaller transistors struggle to contain electrical current,
leading to wasted energy.
o Heat Dissipation: Packing more transistors into a smaller space makes heat
dissipation a growing concern.

The Limits of Miniaturization:

 Approaching Physical Limits: As transistors approach atomic size (around 1-10

nanometers), further miniaturization based on traditional techniques becomes
increasingly difficult. Quantum mechanical effects become more prominent, making
it challenging to control electron behavior.

The Connection to Nanotechnology:

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  The Realm of the Tiny: Nanotechnology refers to the manipulation of matter at the
atomic and molecular scale (typically 1-100 nanometers). This field holds immense
potential for revolutionizing various industries, including semiconductors.

Nanotechnology in Semiconductor Manufacturing:

New Materials and Devices: Nanotechnology offers exciting possibilities for creating new
materials and devices for chip manufacturing:

 Carbon Nanotubes: Cylindrical molecules with unique properties that could be used
for transistors and interconnects due to their excellent conductivity. (Image of Carbon
Nanotube)
 Nanowires: Ultra-thin wires made from various materials like silicon or gallium
nitride, potentially used for transistors and other components. (Image of Nanowire)
 Quantum Dots: Semiconductor particles with size-dependent properties that could be
used for memory and transistors, offering potential advantages in density and power
consumption.
 The Promise of Nano-Chips: Nano-chips could offer significant advantages:
o Increased Performance: Smaller, faster, and more energy-efficient chips.
o New Functionality: Development of entirely new types of devices and
functionalities not possible with traditional technologies.

Today's Fastest Chips (as of March 11, 2024):

 Fastest CPU for Servers:

o AMD EPYC 9754 'Bergamo': This processor boasts a monstrous 128 cores
and 256 threads, making it the current leader in server CPU performance
according to PassMark benchmarks.
 Fastest Desktop CPU:
o Intel Core i9-14900K: While AMD's Ryzen 7 8700X3D offers superior
gaming performance due to its larger cache size, the Intel Core i9-14900K
takes the crown for raw clock speed, reaching up to 5.5 GHz.
 Fastest Gaming CPU:
o AMD Ryzen 7 8700X3D: This CPU utilizes a unique 3D V-Cache technology
that significantly boosts gaming performance by providing more cache for
frequently accessed data.
 Fastest Laptop CPU:
o AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX: This high-performance mobile processor offers
excellent performance for demanding tasks on laptops, with a Cinebench R23
score of over 34,000.
 Fastest Graphics Card (GPU):
o Information on the absolute fastest GPU can be subjective and depends on
benchmarks used. However, Nvidia's latest high-end offerings like the RTX
4090 and RTX 4080 are generally considered top contenders, delivering
exceptional performance for graphics-intensive tasks like gaming and video
editing.

Evolution of semiconductor chip node; A journey of innovation and progress

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