Integrated circuits: computer 625 invention

Transistors were invented in 1947, but were not widely used in computers until about 1960. The integrated circuit was invented in 1958, but was not widely used in computers until well after 1970. In each case, it took somewhat over a decade for the new technology to be put to use. The integrated circuit chip initially involved only a few switching units, but once introduced the number increased rapidly. For example, in 1960 there were only about 10 components per chip, but by the end of the century (2000) this had increased to about 10 components per chip. 

The study of electrons trapped in matter (commonly termed solid state ) led eventually to the invention of the transistor in 1947 by Walter Brattain, John Bardeen, and William Shockley at Bell Laboratories, and then to the integrated circuit hy Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby a decade later. Use of these devices dominated the second half of the twentieth century, most notably through computers, with a significant stininlus to development being given by military expenditures. 

In 1958, Jack Kilby (1923-2005), a researcher atTexas Instruments, invented a miniature electronic circuit known as an integrated circuit. Modern integrated circuits, which contain many electronic components etched on a thin wafer of silicon, have become a vital part of many devices, especially computers. Placing a large number of electronic components in such a small area has greatly reduced the size of electronic equipment. 

Texas Instruments researcher Jack Kilby (1923-2005) invents a tiny electronic circuit known as an integrated circuit, which rapidly becomes an important component of computers and other electronic devices. 

Their pioneering efforts ushered in the age of modern electronics and the integrated circuit, which eventually spawned the computer chip and the cell phone. Arguably, the transistor (and all of the devices it has made possible) is the single most important invention of this modern age and ranks with fire for its effects upon society and civilization. 

The transistor was invented in 1947 by John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley, employees of Bell Laboratories. By soldering together boards of transistors, electrical engineers created the first modern computers in the 1960 s. By the 1970 s, integrated circuits were shrinking the size of computers and the purely electrical focus of the field. 

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