The integrated circuit placed many electronic components on a single small piece of semiconductor material. The American engineer Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments demonstrated the first working example in 1958, using germanium, and shortly afterwards Robert Noyce of Fairchild Semiconductor developed a version made of silicon that could be manufactured more practically through the planar process. Integrated circuits replaced bulky wired assemblies of separate transistors, making electronics smaller, cheaper and more reliable. They led to the microprocessor and the digital revolution, and Kilby received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2000 for his role in their invention.
Before and after
- 1958Publication of Lupang Hinirang
- from 1958 to 1963Project Mercury
- 1958Great Leap Forward
- 1958Founding of Kitt Peak National Observatory
- 1958Integrated circuit
- 1958Construction of London Gatwick Airport
- 1 January 1958Founding of European Commission
- 1958Publication of Exodus
- 1958Founding of Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais
More in Science & technology
- 1945Discovery of promethium
- 1950Discovery of californium
- 1952Discovery of einsteinium
- 1976Discovery of bohrium
- 29 August 1982Discovery of meitnerium
- June 2002Discovery of oganesson
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.