Up For Auction: One Of The Earliest Integrated Circuit Prototypes | TechTree.com

Up For Auction: One Of The Earliest Integrated Circuit Prototypes

The 56-year old IC was developed by Jack Kilby and is expected to fetch anywhere between $1 and $2 million.

 

The Integrated Circuit (IC) is undoubtedly one of the greatest inventions of the past century, making everything that we see around us today possible. They don't just power our smartphones and computers, but are found in everything from our microwaves to cars.

One of the earliest examples of an integrated circuit built by Jack Kilby in 1958 is going under the hammer by auction house Christie's. Unlike the silicon chips of today, Kilby's IC is made of germanium and is undoubtedly some of the most advanced technology that debuted in the 50s.

Kilby developed the chip back when he was working at Texas Instruments, in the same year that he and Robert Noyce demonstrated a functioning IC which combines multiple electronic functions on a single slab. It's the same piece of hardware that Kilby and his team won a Nobel Prize for in the year 2000.

This prime piece of computer history will be auctioned off later on Thursday, and is estimated to fetch anywhere between $1 million and $2 million.


TAGS: Jack Kilby, Integrated Circuit, modern electronics, processors

 
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