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Intel 4004 microprocessor — Federico Faggin

1971 AD · Transmission: Silenced
TechnologyInventionItalian

Federico Faggin, an engineer born in Vicenza (Italy), designs and leads the development of the Intel 4004 in 1971 — the first commercial microprocessor in history — integrating on a single 4-bit silicon chip an arithmetic-logic unit, registers, and control. Faggin also invents the silicon-gate MOS technology that makes the chip possible, previously developed at Fairchild Semiconductor (1968). Intel commercialized the 4004 without naming Faggin as the principal inventor in its public communications for years; he himself publicly claimed recognition starting in the 1990s. Faggin later founded Zilog (Z80 microprocessor) and Synaptics (capacitive touchpad). The central processing unit of every computer, phone, and smart device descends directly from the 4004.

InstitutionIntel Corporation, Santa Clara / Fairchild Semiconductor
Historical regionItaly (Vicenza) / United States (Silicon Valley)
Primary sourceFaggin, F.; Hoff, M.E.; Mazor, S.; Shima, M. — "The history of the 4004" (IEEE Micro, 1996, vol.16 no.6, pp.10-20)
Secondary sourceBritannica — microprocessor; Faggin, F. — Silicon: From the Invention of the Microprocessor to the New Science of Consciousness (2021)
Original languageEnglish
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