Deep Dive: Moore's Law and Next Steps for Silicon

What is Moore’s Law and why has it broken down? What are the different types of semiconductors? Why are companies moving towards custom-designed silicon?

Since the invention of the first silicon transistor in 1954, we have seen an exponential increase in the power of computers, in-line with a famous prediction called ‘Moore’s Law’. Moore’s Law predicted that the number of transistors on a chip would double approximately every two years, driving the development of increasingly powerful computers. As we developed new methods to print smaller and smaller transistors, this relationship held true, and we can now print integrated circuits with billions of transistors that power leading-edge machines like the new Macbook Pro. But as transistors…