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1950s • 1960s • 1970s • 1980s • 1990s • 2000s

1960

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First Planar Integrated Circuit


Jay Last of Fairchild Semiconductor led development of the first commercial IC based on Hoerni’s planar process and Noyce’s monolithic approach. The first working monolithic devices produced used physical isolation to achieve electrical separation between components. Deep channels were etched from the rear of the silicon wafer and filled with non-conducting epoxy.

1961

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Silicon Exceeds Germanium Speed


Seymour Cray funded development of the first silicon device to meet the performance demands of the world's fastest machine. Fairchild Semiconductor met the specifications by combining "gold-doping" - the addition of gold impurities - together with the new epitaxial deposition process.

1963

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Complimentary MOS Circuit


In a 1963 conference paper C. T. Sah and Frank Wanlass of the Fairchild R & D Laboratory showed that logic circuits combining p-channel and n-channel MOS transistors in a complementary symmetry circuit configuration drew close to zero power in standby mode. Wanlass patented the idea that today is called CMOS.

1967

Applied Materials is founded and becomes one of the earliest companies to make wafer fabrication equipment for semiconductor manufacturing.

1968

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Intel Founded


Intel (originally incorporated as NM Electronics) is formed when Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore leave Fairchild Semiconductor to produce memory.

1969

Advanced Micro Devices is founded by ex-Fairchilder, Jerry Sanders.

Valley of the Heart's Delight

The term Silicon Valley was coined by Ralph Vaerst, a Northern California entrepreneur. Its first published use is credited to Don Hoefler, a friend of Vaerst's, who used the phrase as the title of a series of articles in the weekly trade newspaper Electronic News. The series, entitled "Silicon Valley USA," began in the paper's issue dated January 11, 1971.

The "Valley" in "Silicon Valley" refers to the Santa Clara Valley, located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay. "Silicon" refers to the high concentration of companies involved in the semiconductor and computer industries that are concentrated in the area. From the 1950s forward firms slowly replaced the fruit orchards which gave the area its initial nickname, Valley of the Heart's Delight.
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