Computer Abstractions and Techno

1.5 Technologies for Building Processors and Memory

首先是一些数字：

这里涉及到几个概念：

transistor An on/off switch controlled by an electric signal.

The integrated circuit (IC) combined dozens to hundreds of transistors into a single chip.

very large-scale integrated (VLSI) circuit A device containing hundreds of thousands to millions of transistors.

另外是一幅图：

这些都体现出了行业的飞速发展。

随后，作者又介绍了一下芯片的基本工艺流程 —— 因为用作者的话来说：

The manufacturing process for integrated circuits is critical to the cost of the chips and hence important to computer designers.

对应的概念如下：

silicon A natural element that is a semiconductor.

semiconductor A substance that does not conduct electricity well.

silicon crystal ingot A rod composed of a silicon crystal that is between 8 and 12 inches in diameter and about 12 to 24 inches long.

wafer A slice from a silicon ingot no more than 0.1 inches thick, used to create chips.

die The individual rectangular sections that are cut from a wafer, more informally known as chips.

defect A microscopic flaw in a wafer or in patterning steps that can result in the failure of the die containing that defect.

yield The percentage of good dies from the total number of dies on the wafer.