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chip Last modified: Tuesday, January 06, 2004
A small piece of semiconducting material (usually silicon) on which an integrated circuit is embedded. A typical chip is less than ¼-square inches and can contain millions of electronic components (transistors). Computers consist of many chips placed on electronic boards called printed circuit boards. There are different types of chips. For example, CPU chips (also called microprocessors) contain an entire processing unit, whereas memory chips contain blank memory. Chips come in a variety of packages. The three most common are: DIPs : Dual in-line packages are the traditional buglike chips that have anywhere from 8 to 40 legs, evenly divided in two rows. PGAs : Pin-grid arrays are square chips in which the pins are arranged in concentric squares. SIPs : Single in-line packages are chips that have just one row of legs in a straight line like a comb. In addition to these types of chips, there are also single in-line memory modules (SIMMs), which consist of up to nine chips packaged as a single unit.
Semiconductor Industry Association Web site  Contains links to an overview on semiconductors, industry news, worker safety and environment, chip stats, trade, research and technology, publications, and members and related organizations. Chip Directory This directory lists chips numerically and by function. It also includes lists of worldwide manufacturers and distributors, related books and magazines, and other sites. Chip Directory Provides access to chip information by number, function or manufacturer and links to CD-ROMS, magazines, FAQs, and other chip related Web sites. Chip Shots microprocessor photographs Hosts a large collection of full-color photomicrographs of several of the most popular microprocessors. Comparison of Pentium Pro P6 and the P5 chip Contains a detailed, illustrated comparision of the Pentium Pro P6 and P5 chips in the areas of performance, specifications, and manufacturers of motherboards. Intel's single-chip PC peripheral hub controller This Intel press release, from November 1, 1996, describes a new single-chip hub controller that will enable plug and play convenience of Universal Serial Bus PCs. Physical Chip Characteristics Describes the different physical characteristics of chips. These are factors related to the design and manufacture of the physical chip itself, and have a direct impact on the chips' size, performance, power consumption, heat generation and price. This page is from "The PC Guide." Absolutely Fab-ulous: Changes in CPU Manufacturing Bigger wafers, smaller dies, new technologies. A November 2002 article from CPU Planet. ATM Chip Web database Home page for The ATM Chip Database of the World Wide Web. It contains more than 130 descriptions of ATM chips (integrated circuits). You can search this database by keyword, vendor or product. Hardware Central Detailed test reports on the latest desktop and laptop computers. Plus news on trend-setting products just coming into the pipeline. The ChipList This is The ChipList, by Aad Offerman, which answers questions about the differences between chips that are available for PC's and compatibles. Your PC's Second Most Important Silicon: The Chipset If the CPU is the brain of a personal computer, the motherboard is its nervous system.	Related Categories Hardware Integrated Circuits (ICs) Microprocessors Related Terms AMD ASIC bunny suit chipset clean room controller CPU die fab fabless FC-PGA FPGA integrated circuit lithography MEMS microprocessor Moore's Law MOSFET PGA PIA pinout PLCC PLD printed circuit board semiconductor silicon SIMM SOI transistor wafer