ULSl CUSTOM M ICROELECTRON ICS

robertqi

The development of microelectronics spans less than one half century—less than
one person’s life expectancy—but during this short period it has become the
most pervasive technology that has yet been developed. It touches all aspects
of our lives, embracing communications, transportation, entertainment, medical
matters, comfort and safety, and yet many professional design engineers have still
to become involved in the design of original products using the full advantages of
microelectronics.
In this introductory chapter we will survey the developments which have
led to the present levels of microelectronic expertise. As noted in the Preface, it
will be assumed that the reader is already familiar with basic electronic components,
particularly bipolar and MOS transistors, and also with basic electronic
circuit configurations and semiconductor physics. We will not attempt to deal
with these important fundamentals in any depth, but instead we will attempt to
cover the subject in a way that is relevant to a design engineer who incorporates
microelectronics as a means of producing new and innovative company products.
The commercial hardware and software which may be mentioned in this text
must not be taken as representative of what may be available now and in the
future, since both are in a continuous dynamic state of rapid change and development,
but rather are used in the following pages as illustrations of the principles
and practice of the areas being discussed.