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A microprocessor (abbreviated as µP or uP) is an electronic computer central processing unit (CPU) made from miniaturized transistors and other circuit elements on a single semiconductor integrated circuit (IC) (aka microchip or just chip).
Before the advent of microprocessors, electronic CPUs were made from discrete (separate) TTL integrated circuits; before that, individual transistors; and before that, from vacuum tubes. There have even been designs for simple computing machines based on mechanical parts such as gears, shafts, levers, Tinkertoys, etc. Leonardo DaVinci made one such design, although none were possible to construct using the manufacturing techniques of the time.
The evolution of microprocessors have been known to follow Moore's Law when it comes to steadily increasing performance over the years.
The world's first commercial microprocessor was the 4-bit 4004, released on November 15, 19711971 is a common year starting on Friday (click for link to calendar). Events January January 1 British divorce Reform Act comes into force January 2 66 die in stairway crush at Rangers v Celtic football match, Glasgow, Scotland. See Ibrox disaster. Janua, invented by Federico FagginFederico Faggin (born 1941) is a physicist and electrical engineer often considered the inventor of the microprocessor. Born in Vicenza, he received doctorate in physics, summa cum laude, at the University of Padua, then went to work at Olivetti. In 1968. The 4004 was later followed by the 8008The Intel 8008 was an early microprocessor designed and manufactured by Intel, and introduced in April, 1972. It was originally commissioned by Computer Terminal Corporation for use in its Datapoint 2200 programmable terminal, but because the chip was del. These processors are the precursors to the very successful Intel 8080The Intel 8080 was an early microprocessor designed and manufactured by Intel. The 8-bit CPU was released in April 1974 running at 2 MHz, and is generally considered to be the first truly usable microprocessor CPU design. Description The Intel 8080 was th, Zilog Z80The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed and manufactured by Zilog from 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs, and is one of the most popular CPUs of all time. Although Zilog made several attempts to move, and derivative Intel 8-bit8-bit refers to the number of bits used in the data bus of a computer. It is the number of bits of data transferred on each read or write of the memory, and the number of bits used internally in the CPU to carry out processing. Similarly, a 4-bit CPU woul processors. The competing Motorola 6800The 6800 is a microprocessor produced by Motorola and released shortly after the Intel 8080 in 1975. It had 78 instructions, including the (in)famous, undocumented Halt and Catch Fire (HCF) bus test instruction. It may have been the first µP with an index architecture was cloned and improved in the MOS Technology 6502The MOS Technology 6502 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by MOS Technology in 1975. When it was introduced it was the least expensive full featured CPU on the market by far, at about 1/6th the price, or less, of competing designs from larger companies, rivaling the Z80 in popularity during the 1980s.
The 8080 is the ancestor of the 16-bit Intel 8086, the first member of the x86 family which powers most modern PC type computers. Intel introduced the 8086 as a cost effective way of porting software from the 8080 lines, and succeeded in winning much business on that premise. Following up their 8086 and 8088, Intel released the 80186, 80286 and, in 1985, the 32-bit 80386, cementing their PC market dominance with the processor family's backwards compatibility.
Examples of other 16-bit microprocessor families include the Motorola 68000, used in early Apple Macintosh computers; and the Zilog Z8000.
This page needs updating with post-1985 summary µP history
In 2003, about 44 billion US$ worth of microprocessors were manufactured and sold. [1] Although about half of that money was spent on CPUs used in desktop or laptop personal computers, those count for only about 0.2% of all CPUs sold.
About 55% of all CPUs sold in the world are 8-bit microcontrollers. Over 2 billion 8-bit microcontrollers were sold in 1997. [2]
Less than 10% of all the CPUs sold in the world are 32-bit or more. Of all the 32-bit CPUs sold, about 2% are used in desktop or laptop personal computers. "Taken as a whole, the average price for a microprocessor, microcontroller, or DSP is just over $6." [3]
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