A list of some of the most innovative, intriguing, and inspiring integrated circuits
Which chip changed your world? The Intel 8088 for me but theTexas Instruments TMC0281 Speech Synthesizer (1978) would be a close second! Speak N Spell!
spectrum.ieee.org
We’ve compiled here a list of 25 ICs that we think deserve the best spot on the mantelpiece of the house that Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce built. Some have become enduring objects of worship among the chiperati: the Signetics 555 timer, for example. Others, such as the Fairchild 741 operational amplifier, became textbook design examples. Some, like Microchip Technology’s PIC microcontrollers, have sold billions, and are still doing so. A precious few, like Toshiba’s flash memory, created whole new markets. And one, at least, became a geeky reference in popular culture. Question: What processor powers Bender, the alcoholic, chain-smoking, morally reprehensible robot in “Futurama”? Answer: MOS Technology’s 6502.
What these chips have in common is that they’re part of the reason why engineers don’t get out enough!
Which chip changed your world? The Intel 8088 for me but theTexas Instruments TMC0281 Speech Synthesizer (1978) would be a close second! Speak N Spell!
25 Microchips That Shook the World
A list of some of the most innovative, intriguing, and inspiring integrated circuits
spectrum.ieee.org
We’ve compiled here a list of 25 ICs that we think deserve the best spot on the mantelpiece of the house that Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce built. Some have become enduring objects of worship among the chiperati: the Signetics 555 timer, for example. Others, such as the Fairchild 741 operational amplifier, became textbook design examples. Some, like Microchip Technology’s PIC microcontrollers, have sold billions, and are still doing so. A precious few, like Toshiba’s flash memory, created whole new markets. And one, at least, became a geeky reference in popular culture. Question: What processor powers Bender, the alcoholic, chain-smoking, morally reprehensible robot in “Futurama”? Answer: MOS Technology’s 6502.
What these chips have in common is that they’re part of the reason why engineers don’t get out enough!
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