
The MOS transistor ([MOSFET) is the key component of the Silicon Age. It was invented by Mohamed M. Atalla and Dawon Kahng in 1959.
The Silicon Age (also known as the silicon revolution) refers to the late 20th century to early 21st century.[1][2][3] This is due to silicon being the dominant material of the Silicon Age (also known as the Digital Age or Information Age), similar to how the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age were defined by the dominant materials during their respective ages of civilization.[1]
The key component or "workhorse" of the Silicon Age is the metal–oxide–silicon transistor (MOS transistor).[4][5] It was the first truly compact transistor that could be miniaturised and mass-produced for a wide range of uses.[6] Since then, the mass-production of silicon MOSFETs and MOS integrated circuit chips, along with continuous MOSFET scaling miniaturization at an exponential pace (as predicted by Moore's law), has led to revolutionary changes in technology, economy, culture and thinking.[4] The MOSFET has since become the most widely manufactured device in history, with an estimated total of 13 sextillion MOSFETs having been manufactured between 1960 and 2018.[7]
History[]
Silicon semiconductors[]
- See also: MOS transistor, MOS integrated circuit, Surface passivation, and Thermal oxidation

Mohamed M. Atalla's development of silicon surface passivation in 1957 and the metal–oxide–silicon (MOS) transistor in 1959 led to the silicon revolution.
The first semiconductor devices did not use silicon, but used galena, including German physicist Ferdinand Braun's crystal detector in 1874 and Bengali physicist Jagadish Chandra Bose's radio crystal detector in 1901.[8][9] The first silicon semiconductor device was a silicon radio crystal detector, developed by American engineer Greenleaf Whittier Pickard in 1906.[9]
In 1940, Russell Ohl discovered the p-n junction and photovoltaic effects in silicon. In 1941, techniques for producing high-purity germanium and silicon crystals were developed for radar microwave detector crystals during World War II.[8] In 1947, physicist William Shockley theorized a field-effect amplifier made from germanium and silicon, but he failed to build a working device, before eventually working with germanium instead. The first working transistor was a point-contact transistor built by John Bardeen and Walter Brattain later that year while working under Shockley.[10] In 1954, physical chemist Morris Tanenbaum fabricated the first silicon junction transistor at Bell Labs.[11] In 1955, Carl Frosch and Lincoln Derick at Bell Labs accidentally discovered that silicon dioxide (SiO2) could be grown on silicon,[12] and they later proposed this could mask silicon surfaces during diffusion processes in 1958.[13]
In the early years of the semiconductor industry, up until the late 1950s, germanium was the dominant semiconductor material for transistors and other semiconductor devices, rather than silicon. Germanium was initially considered the more effective semiconductor material, as it was able to demonstrate better performance due to higher carrier mobility.[14][15] The relative lack of performance in early silicon semiconductors was due to electrical conductivity being limited by unstable quantum surface states,[16] where electrons are trapped at the surface, due to dangling bonds that occur because unsaturated bonds are present at the surface.[17] This prevented electricity from reliably penetrating the surface to reach the semiconducting silicon layer.[18][19]
A breakthrough in silicon semiconductor technology came with the work of Egyptian engineer Mohamed M. Atalla, who developed the process of surface passivation by thermal oxidation at Bell Labs in the late 1950s.[17][20][15] He discovered that the formation of a thermally grown silicon dioxide layer greatly reduced the concentration of electronic states at the silicon surface,[20] and that silicon oxide layers could be used to electrically stabilize silicon surfaces.[21] Atalla first published his findings in Bell memos during 1957, and then demonstrated it in 1958.[22][23] This was the first demonstration to show that high-quality silicon dioxide insulator films could be grown thermally on the silicon surface to protect the underlying silicon p-n junction diodes and transistors.[13] Atalla's surface passivation process enabled silicon to surpass the conductivity and performance of germanium, and led to silicon replacing germanium as the dominant semiconductor material, paving the way for the silicon revolution.[15][16] Atalla's surface passivation process is considered the most important advance in silicon semiconductor technology, paving the way for the mass-production of silicon semiconductor devices.[24]
Atalla's pioneering work on surface passivation and thermal oxidation culminated in his invention of the MOSFET (metal–oxide–silicon field-effect transistor), along with his Korean colleague Dawon Kahng, in 1959. The MOSFET was the first mass-produced silicon transistor, and is credited with starting the silicon revolution.[16] In addition, Atalla's surface passivation process was the basis for two other important silicon semiconductor inventions at Fairchild Semiconductor, Swiss engineer Jean Hoerni's planar technology in 1958 and American physicist Robert Noyce's silicon integrated circuit chip in 1959.[23][25][24] This in turn led to Atalla in 1960 proposing the concept of the MOS integrated circuit, a silicon chip built from MOSFETs, which later became the standard semiconductor device fabrication process for integrated circuits.[26] By the mid-1960s, Atalla's process for oxidized silicon surfaces was used to fabricate virtually all integrated circuits and silicon devices.[27] Surface passivation by thermal oxidation remains a key feature of silicon semiconductor technology.[28]
Silicon Age[]
- See also: MOS revolution, Semiconductor device fabrication, and Silicon on insulator
The Silicon Age refers to the late 20th century to early 21st century.[16][29][30] This is due to silicon being the dominant material of the Silicon Age (also known as the Digital Age or Information Age), similar to how the Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age were defined by the dominant materials during their respective ages of civilization.[16]
The key component or "workhorse" of the silicon revolution (also known as the digital revolution or information revolution) is the silicon MOSFET (MOS transistor).[16][29] It was the first truly compact transistor that could be miniaturised and mass-produced for a wide range of uses,[26] The beginning of the silicon revolution has been dated to 1960, when Mohamed M. Atalla and Dawon Kahng first demonstrated their invention of the MOSFET.[16][31] Since then, the mass-production of silicon MOSFETs and MOS integrated circuit chips, along with continuous MOSFET scaling miniaturization at an exponential pace (as predicted by Moore's law), has led to revolutionary changes in technology, economy, culture and thinking.[16] The MOSFET has since become the most widely manufactured device in history, with an estimated total of 13 sextillion MOSFETs having been manufactured between 1960 and 2018.[32]
Because silicon is an important element in high-technology semiconductor devices, many places in the world bear its name. For example, Santa Clara Valley in California acquired the nickname Silicon Valley, as the element is the base material in the semiconductor industry there. Since then, many other places have been dubbed similarly, including Silicon Forest in Oregon, Silicon Hills in Austin, Texas, Silicon Slopes in Salt Lake City, Utah, Silicon Saxony in Germany, Silicon Valley in India, Silicon Border in Mexicali, Mexico, Silicon Fen in Cambridge, England, Silicon Roundabout in London, Silicon Glen in Scotland, Silicon Gorge in Bristol, England, Silicon Alley in New York, New York and Silicon Beach in Los Angeles, California.[33]
See also[]
- MOS transistor
- Silicon Valley
- Transistor
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Feldman, Leonard C. (2001). "Introduction". Fundamental Aspects of Silicon Oxidation. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 1–11. ISBN 978-3-540-41682-1.
- ↑ Dabrowski, Jarek; Müssig, Hans-Joachim (2000). "1.2. The Silicon Age". Silicon Surfaces and Formation of Interfaces: Basic Science in the Industrial World. World Scientific. pp. 3–13. ISBN 978-981-02-3286-3.
- ↑ Siffert, Paul; Krimmel, Eberhard (2013). "Preface". Silicon: Evolution and Future of a Technology. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-3-662-09897-4.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Feldman, Leonard C. (2001). "Introduction". Fundamental Aspects of Silicon Oxidation. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 1–11. ISBN 978-3-540-41682-1.
- ↑ Dabrowski, Jarek; Müssig, Hans-Joachim (2000). "1.2. The Silicon Age". Silicon Surfaces and Formation of Interfaces: Basic Science in the Industrial World. World Scientific. pp. 3–13. ISBN 978-981-02-3286-3.
- ↑ Moskowitz, Sanford L. (2016). Advanced Materials Innovation: Managing Global Technology in the 21st century. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 165–167. ISBN 978-0-470-50892-3.
- ↑ "13 Sextillion & Counting: The Long & Winding Road to the Most Frequently Manufactured Human Artifact in History". Computer History Museum. April 2, 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Timeline". The Silicon Engine. Computer History Museum. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "1901: Semiconductor Rectifiers Patented as "Cat's Whisker" Detectors". The Silicon Engine. Computer History Museum. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
- ↑ "1947: Invention of the Point-Contact Transistor". The Silicon Engine. Computer History Museum. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
- ↑ "1954: Morris Tanenbaum fabricates the first silicon transistor at Bell Labs". The Silicon Engine. Computer History Museum. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
- ↑ Bassett, Ross Knox (2007). To the Digital Age: Research Labs, Start-up Companies, and the Rise of MOS Technology. Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-0-8018-8639-3.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Saxena, A. (2009). Invention of integrated circuits: untold important facts. International series on advances in solid state electronics and technology. World Scientific. pp. 96–97. ISBN 978-981-281-445-6.
- ↑ Dabrowski, Jarek; Müssig, Hans-Joachim (2000). "6.1. Introduction". Silicon Surfaces and Formation of Interfaces: Basic Science in the Industrial World. World Scientific. pp. 344–346. ISBN 978-981-02-3286-3.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Heywang, W.; Zaininger, K.H. (2013). "2.2. Early history". Silicon: Evolution and Future of a Technology. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 26–28. ISBN 978-3-662-09897-4.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.6 16.7 Feldman, Leonard C. (2001). "Introduction". Fundamental Aspects of Silicon Oxidation. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 1–11. ISBN 978-3-540-41682-1.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Kooi, E.; Schmitz, A. (2005). "Brief Notes on the History of Gate Dielectrics in MOS Devices". High Dielectric Constant Materials: VLSI MOSFET Applications. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 33–44. ISBN 978-3-540-21081-8.
- ↑ "Martin (John) M. Atalla". National Inventors Hall of Fame. 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ↑ "Dawon Kahng". National Inventors Hall of Fame. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Black, Lachlan E. (2016). New Perspectives on Surface Passivation: Understanding the Si-Al2O3 Interface. Springer. p. 17. ISBN 978-3-319-32521-7.
- ↑ Lécuyer, Christophe; Brock, David C. (2010). Makers of the Microchip: A Documentary History of Fairchild Semiconductor. MIT Press. p. 111. ISBN 978-0-262-29432-4.
- ↑ Lojek, Bo (2007). History of Semiconductor Engineering. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 120 & 321–323. ISBN 978-3-540-34258-8.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Bassett, Ross Knox (2007). To the Digital Age: Research Labs, Start-up Companies, and the Rise of MOS Technology. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-8018-8639-3.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Sah, Chih-Tang (October 1988). "Evolution of the MOS transistor-from conception to VLSI" (PDF). Proceedings of the IEEE. 76 (10): 1280–1326 (1290). Bibcode:1988IEEEP..76.1280S. doi:10.1109/5.16328. ISSN 0018-9219.
Those of us active in silicon material and device research during 1956–1960 considered this successful effort by the Bell Labs group led by Atalla to stabilize the silicon surface the most important and significant technology advance, which blazed the trail that led to silicon integrated circuit technology developments in the second phase and volume production in the third phase.
- ↑ Wolf, Stanley (March 1992). "A review of IC isolation technologies". Solid State Technology: 63.
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 Moskowitz, Sanford L. (2016). Advanced Materials Innovation: Managing Global Technology in the 21st century. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 165–167. ISBN 978-0-470-50892-3.
- ↑ Donovan, R. P. (November 1966). "The Oxide-Silicon Interface". Fifth Annual Symposium on the Physics of Failure in Electronics: 199–231. doi:10.1109/IRPS.1966.362364.
- ↑ "Surface Passivation – an overview". ScienceDirect. Retrieved 19 August 2019.
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Dabrowski, Jarek; Müssig, Hans-Joachim (2000). "1.2. The Silicon Age". Silicon Surfaces and Formation of Interfaces: Basic Science in the Industrial World. World Scientific. pp. 3–13. ISBN 978-981-02-3286-3.
- ↑ Siffert, Paul; Krimmel, Eberhard (2013). "Preface". Silicon: Evolution and Future of a Technology. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 978-3-662-09897-4.
- ↑ "100 incredible years of physics – materials science". Institute of Physics. December 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- ↑ "13 Sextillion & Counting: The Long & Winding Road to the Most Frequently Manufactured Human Artifact in History". Computer History Museum. April 2, 2018. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
- ↑ Uskali, T., and Nordfors, D. (2007, 23 May). The role of journalism in creating the metaphor of Silicon Valley. Paper presented at Innovation Journalism 4 Conference, Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif."Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2016-08-08.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link), retrieved 8 August 2016
Bibliography[]
- King, R. Bruce (1995). Inorganic Chemistry of Main Group Elements. Wiley-VCH. ISBN 978-0-471-18602-1.
External links[]
- "Silicon Video - The Periodic Table of Videos - University of Nottingham". www.periodicvideos.com. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
- "CDC - NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards - Silicon". www.cdc.gov. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
- "Physical properties of Silicon (Si)". www.ioffe.ru. Retrieved 2021-06-08.