Scaling of Semiconductor Process Technology and its Effects

Gordon Moore, Intel co-founder observed in way back 1965 that the number of transistors on a chip will double every two years. This observation, popularly known as Moore?s Law has stood the test of time for decades and the processor speed and power doubled every two years. The process technology used to manufacture integrated circuits (IC) has been developing rapidly and every major player is trying to outdo the other so as to squeeze in more transistors in a wafer and thereby increase power and performance of the IC. Hence Moore?s law held good until Intel announced 22nm fabrication technology and more recently when Samsung announced the 14nm technology. This paper talks about the challenges of shrinking of fabrication technology and the effect it has had on different stakeholders.