How Small Is A Transistor, Really?

Did you know your phone has around 10 BILLION electrical switches inside it? They’re each 10,000 times smaller than a human hair. They’re transistors, basically an on and off switch, generating what we call 1s and 0s. Those billions of 1s and 0s then get translated into the data we see on our screens.

Over time, we’ve made transistors SO much smaller, allowing us to fit more in the same space, making our devices WAY more powerful. But we're reaching a limit with the tech we use today... so researchers are working on new ideas...

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#animation #stem #transistor #computer #hugeiftrue

[CleoAbram]

*the invention of silicon transistors :)

[krysftw]

Electronics engineer here. Single nanometer transistors aren't what you think they are. The 1nm is just a generation name (like the current 4nm and the new 3nm) for the process node used by semiconductor fabs and is only used for marketing. The actual transistors are much larger, although they do indeed shrink with each generation. At one point of time they did indicate the gate length of the transistor used, but even that varies for different parts of the same die. So in short, physically, it is impossible to make a transistor thats only 1nm across. Rather than making the transistors simply smaller, new technologies like GAAFET are being developed and are most likely to replace the current FinFET that almost every modern device uses. Explaining the differences between the 2 is a bit more complex but yea, we're still a decade or so away from reaching the limits of silicon.

[BrockAry]

I was a computer programmer and system analyst. The mainframe we were using filled up a good-sized room. I retired in 1991. The cephone I carry today has more memory than that mainframe had.❤

[MugiwaraGuy]

Imagine having to be the little goblin in the phone having to work overtime to turn these switches on and off while youre watching this video at 3 AM

[Oak_II]

At the end we will just use electrons; 0 - no electron,
1 - yes electron.

[BajkonurBobby]

Mooore of this please. Super interesting and current. 👍👍👍

[s.......]

Who says im watching this from my phone. I'm viewing this through my smart fridge

[doinkus_tinglebottom]

For clarification on how we're reaching a size limit for silicon transistors: because of the quantum properties of an electron, its position in space is not absolute. There is a small area in which it is possible for the particle to be located (this is an electron orbital, for those familiar with atomic models). Because it can be anywhere in this field at random, if part of the field is on the other side of the transistor, there is a non-zero chance that the electron simply appears on the other side, therefore flipping the 0 to a 1. This, obviously, wreaks havoc on programs and renders processors useless.

[LoveCanadaEh]

I have no need for coffee to wake me up in the morning anymore.
Cleo's energy and enthusiasm wires me until at least 4pm.

[Destiano.Y]

And people have the nerve to say that pyramid can't be built today

[bernhardpyka]

Just for visualization, the transistors don't generate 1s and 0s by getting switched on and off. Instead the transistors themselves are either a 1(on) or a 0(off). Basically a computer is a collection of different 1/0 storages (typically made up of 64 bit blocks), with the main ones being the RAM, Caches and CPU registers, and a clock which generates a power signal every few tenths of a nanosecond. That signal then starts some circuits which perform the next CPU operation by reading and writing 1s and 0s from storages to other storages

[iRossco]

That's pretty impressive but the little dude flicking all those tiny little switches is way more impressive 😎

[JasherRex]

The fact that scientists never take a so-called limit for reality, but keep on researching on newer ways is very encouraging to me.

[sonnyca]

Always a pleasure to watch your videos and shorts. Your enthusiasm is infectious.

[yiyodrago]

The Apollo mission computer was less than a today's calculator...

[Pyshgaming-vd]

"the phone you're watching this on right now"
me, watching this on a laptop:

[xPRIMExNITROx]

Shoutouts the scientist that “invented” silicon

[AtoleDeJicama]

TRANSISTOR???
LEMKUUJA MENTIONED
**360 Boogie aggressively starts playing**

[abhaypathak]

that image of the 1 nanometer transistor is such bad cap 😂

[Ahris_aus_der_._Dimension]

"One day, a computer will fit on a desk"