Semiconductors are materials between conductors and insulators in electrical conductivity. Impurities (doping) can modify semiconductor properties significantly. Two differently doped regions form semiconductor junctions. Silicon and germanium are most common semiconductors
First integrated circuit was created by Jack Kilby in 1958. Robert Noyce developed first true monolithic IC using planar process. MOSFET technology enabled high-density integration in 1960s. Moore's law predicted doubling of transistors every two years
Carrier generation creates mobile charge carriers in semiconductors. Electrons transition between valence and conduction bands. Fermi level lies in band gap between valence and conduction bands. Electrons gain energy to move from valence to conduction band
Transistor invention began in 1947 at Bell Labs. Integrated circuits solved circuit size problems in 1950s. First commercial MOS IC introduced by General Microelectronics in 1964
Transistor count measures electronic device's transistor density. Moore's law states transistor count doubles approximately every two years. Transistor count doesn't indicate manufacturing technology advancement
Founded in 1993 by Jensen Huang, Chris Malachowsky, and Curtis Priem. Started with $40,000 and $20 million in funding. First product was NV1, optimized for quadrilateral primitives. Survived difficult early years with Sega's $5 million investment