25 amazing microchip designs that rocked the world (pictures and text) (Part 1)

Microchip design is like our lives. Sometimes small things slowly accumulate and become something great. Design a clever microcircuit and carve it on a piece of silicon, and your little masterpiece may trigger a technological revolution. This happened with the Intel 8088 processor. The Mostek MK4096 4-kilobit dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and the Texas Instruments TMS32010 digital signal processor also triggered technological revolutions.

In the half century when integrated circuits dominated the world, many outstanding microchips were born in the midst of people's disbelief, but only a small number of them became the best. Their designs proved to be so advanced, so avant-garde, and so far ahead that we had to create more technical words to describe them. We can even say that they brought us technology that made our lives simpler, without which our lives would become tedious.

We've compiled a list of 25 integrated circuits (ICs) that we think deserve to be named among the best in the edifice built by Jack Kilby and Robert Noyce. Some of them have become enduring monuments in the history of chips, like the Signetics NE555 timer. Some of them are textbook design examples, like the Fairchild 741 op amp. Some of them have sold billions and are still selling, like Microchip's PIC microcontrollers. A few of them have created entirely new markets, like Toshiba's flash memory. And at least one of them has become a popular culture nuisance. Question: What processor powers Bender, the alcoholic, chain-smoking bad robot from the American animated series Futurama? Answer: MOS Technology's MOS Technology 6502 microprocessor.

Of course, this list is bound to be controversial. Some may accuse us of arbitrary choices and excessive length (not the first time someone has accused us of this). Why Intel's 8088 microprocessor instead of the 4004 (Intel's first microprocessor) or the 8080 (Intel's most famous microprocessor)? Where does the cool, military-grade RCA 1802 processor, which was the brain of many space shuttles, come in?

One thing you should know from the introduction is that this list was compiled after weeks of debate between the author, his trusted sources, and multiple editors at IEEE Spectrum. We did not intend to include every microchip that has ever achieved commercial success or made a significant technological improvement. In addition, we did not include microchips that were well designed but only the five people who designed them remembered them. We focused only on microchips that proved to be unique, fascinating, and amazing. The variety of microchips we included on the list was designed by both large and small companies, some of which have a long history and some of which were recently established. Most importantly, we collected microchips that have made a difference in the lives of many people, that are part of amazing devices, that symbolize the development of technology, and that make people happy.

For each microchip, we will explain the design process and the reasons for its innovation with the introduction of the engineers and executives who designed it. Since we are not the staff of IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, we will not rank these 25 microchips in chronological order, by type or importance. We just list these 25 microchips in the order we think is easier to read. Please note that the chronological order of the 25 microchips in this article is out of order.

We also asked some of the most prominent technologists about their favorite microchips. We even wanted to know which ICs hold special significance in the minds of Intel founder Dr. Gordon Moore and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Chairman Morris Chang.

We also want to know what you think. Are you angry that we didn't include the microchip you were expecting on our list? Then take a few deep breaths, make a cup of chamomile tea, and join the discussion.

Signetic NE555 Timer (1971)

That was in the summer of 1970, and its designer Hans Camenzind can even recall one or two things about Chinese restaurants at that time. In downtown Sunnyvale, California, the company had three offices, and Camenzind's office was sandwiched between two offices, with a very small area. At that time, Camenzind was a consultant for a local semiconductor company, Signetics. Camenzind was not well off at the time, with an annual salary of no more than $15,000, and he had a wife and four children at home. Camenzind really needed to invent something outstanding.

Of course he did. In fact, it was one of the most remarkable microchips in history. The 555 was a simple IC that could act as a timer or an oscillator. It became a best-selling microchip of its kind and soon found its way into kitchen appliances, toys, spaceships, and thousands of other products.

Camenzind, now 75, still designs microchips, but his home is no longer near a Chinese restaurant. “It almost didn’t work,” Camenzind recalls.

When Camenzind came up with the idea for the 555, he was working on a system called a phase-locked loop. With a few modifications, the circuit could work like a simple timer. You set the timer, and it runs for a specific period of time. It sounds simple, but it's not.

First, the engineering department at Signetics rejected the idea. The company was selling parts that customers could use as timers. That was the end of the idea, but Camenzind persisted. He approached Art Fury, the marketing manager at Signetics. Fury liked the idea.

To this end, Camenzind spent nearly a year testing circuit breadboard prototypes, repeatedly drawing circuits on paper, and cutting Rubylith masking film. Camenzind said: "It was all handmade at the time, without computers." His final design has 23 transistors, 16 resistors and 2 diodes.

The 555 was introduced in 1971 and was a hit. Signetics was acquired by Philips Semiconductors in 1975, now NXP Semiconductors. Billions of 555s have been sold. Engineers still use the 555 to design useful modules and less useful things, like Knight Rider-style lights for car grilles.