1985

present

Microprocessor
-

A silicon chip that contains a CPU.

asmall piece of circuitry, fabricated on a
silicon die, which integrate control logic
and memory.
electronic circuit on a single chip that
functions as the central processing
unit (CPU) of a computer.
Central chip in microcomputer: the
central processing unit that performs
the basic operations in a
microcomputer, consisting of an
integrated circuit contained on a single
chip.
CPU (Central Processing Unit) - main part of the computer:
the part of a computer that performs operations and executes
software commands.
Typical Features of Microprocessor (and Microcontroller):
Smaller size
Lower cost (the cost of 1 transistor in
1965 was about $10 and $0.1 in 1988,
$0.000,000,1 in 2001)
Higher reliability
Lower power consumption
Higher versatility
More powerful
Historical Background
1947 Invention of transistor in Bell Labs.
1959 Fabrication of several transistors on a single chip
(Integrated Circuit).
1965 Birth of Moores Law
1971 Development of the first Microprocessor CPU on
a chip by Intel
1978 Development of the first Microcontroller Computer
on a chip
Moores Law Law for predicting future of microprocessor in
industry.
1965 Based on simple observation, Gordon Moore predicted
that the complexity of ICs, for minimum cost, would double
every year.
1975 Moore revised his law, stipulating the doubling in circuit
complexity to every 18 months.
1995 Moore compared the actual performance of two kinds
of devices, DRAM and Miicroprocessors, and observed that
both technologies have followed closely the revised Moores
Law
Evolution of Microprocessor:
Year
Technology
No. of
Typical
devices
Products
1947
Invention of
1
transistors
1950
Discrete
1
Junction
1960
components
diodes and
transistors
1961
SSI
10 100
Planar
1965
devices, logic
gates, FFs
1966
MSI
100 1,000
Counters,
1970
MUX,
Decoder,
Adder
1971
LSI
1,000
8 bit uP,
1979
20,000
RAM, ROM
1980
VLSI
20,000
DSP, RISC,
1984
50,000
16-bit, 32-bit
uP

ULSI

>50,000

64-bit uP

Evolution Tree of Microprocessors Consists three

branches:

Main branch comprises Microprocessors, starting

from 4-bit 4004 to 64-bit Itanium. These processors
are typically used to realize general-purposes
computers.

Second branch comprises Microcontrollers like 8048,

8051, 8096, PIC etc. These processors are typically
used to realize embedded systems.

Third branch comprises Special Purpose Processors

like DSP processors, Network processors, etc. These
are typically used in specialized applications such as
DSP and Communication Equipment.
Application of Microprocessor

General Purpose uPs

o desktop PCs, laptops, workstations, servers,
supercomputers,

Microcontrollers(Embedded sytems) :
o Consumer electronics/products toys,
cameras, camcorders, robotics, washing
machine, microwaves, etc.
o Instrumentation oscilloscopes, medical
equipments, etc.
o Process Control data acquisition and
control
o Communications telephone sets,
answering machines, cordless phones, ect.
o Office equipments FAX machines, printers,
ect.
o Emerging Multimedia Application cell
phone tele-conferencing equipments
o Special Purpose DSP, switches, routers,
intrusion detector, ect.
Top 10 list of microprocessor manufacturers:

1.) Intel
2.) AMD
3.) Via Technologies
4.) Motorola
5.) DEC
6.) Transmeta
7.) MIPS
8.) Texas Instruments
9.) National Semiconductor
10.) NEC