Editing Integrated circuit (section)

=== Very-large-scale integration (VLSI) ===
{{Main|Very-large-scale integration}}
[[File:80486DX2 200x.png|right|thumb|Upper interconnect layers on an [[Intel 80486DX2]] microprocessor die]]

"Very-large-scale integration" ([[VLSI]]) is a development that started with hundreds of thousands of transistors in the early 1980s. As of 2023, maximum [[transistor count]]s continue to grow beyond 5.3 trillion transistors per chip.

Multiple developments were required to achieve this increased density. Manufacturers moved to smaller [[MOSFET]] design rules and [[cleanroom|cleaner fabrication facilities]]. The path of process improvements was summarized by the [[International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors]] (ITRS), which has since been succeeded by the [[International Roadmap for Devices and Systems]] (IRDS). [[Electronic design automation|Electronic design tools]] improved, making it practical to finish designs in a reasonable time. The more energy-efficient [[CMOS]] replaced [[NMOS logic|NMOS]] and [[PMOS logic|PMOS]], avoiding a prohibitive increase in [[Energy consumption|power consumption]]. The complexity and density of modern VLSI devices made it no longer feasible to check the masks or do the original design by hand. Instead, engineers use {{Abbr|EDA|Electronic design automation}} tools to perform most [[functional verification]] work.<ref>{{cite book |chapter=Engineering for Systems Using Large Scale Integration |title=International Workshop on Managing Requirements Knowledge, Dec. 9 1968 to Dec. 11 1968, San Francisco |page=867 |doi=10.1109/AFIPS.1968.93  |publisher=IEEE Computer Society }}</ref>

In 1986, one-megabit [[random-access memory]] (RAM) chips were introduced, containing more than one million transistors. Microprocessor chips passed the million-transistor mark in 1989, and the billion-transistor mark in 2005.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Clarke |first1=Peter |title=Intel enters billion-transistor processor era |url=https://www.eetimes.com/intel-enters-billion-transistor-processor-era/ |website=EETimes.com |access-date=May 23, 2022 |date=14 October 2005}}</ref> The trend continues largely unabated, with chips introduced in 2007 containing tens of billions of memory transistors.<ref>{{cite web |title=Samsung First to Mass Produce 16Gb NAND Flash Memory |url=https://phys.org/news/2007-04-samsung-mass-16gb-nand-memory.html |website=phys.org |access-date=May 23, 2022 |date=April 30, 2007}}</ref>