what is moore s law 
moore s law states that the number of components on a single chip doubles every two years at minimal cost while not actual science it was an observation and extrapolation that has held steady since 1965 investopedia joules garciaunderstanding moore s lawin 1965 gordon e moore co founder of intel intc observed that the number of transistors on an integrated circuit at minimum cost had increased by a factor of two between 1960 and 1965 using his observations he predicted that the number of components on a single chip at minimum cost would reach 65 000 by 1975 in 1975 he revised the prediction to state that the number of components per single chip would double every two years 12gordon moore did not call his observation moore s law nor did he set out to create a law moore made that statement based on noticing emerging trends in chip manufacturing at fairchild semiconductor eventually moore s insight became a well known adage moore s law in an interview in 1975 he claimed his friend dr carver mead from caltech was responsible for the name 1in the decades that followed gordon moore s original observation moore s law guided the semiconductor industry in long term planning and setting targets for research and development r d moore s law has been a driving force of technological and social change productivity and economic growth that are hallmarks of the late 20th and early 21st centuries moore s law implies that computers machines that run on computers and computing power all become smaller faster and cheaper with time as processes become more efficient and components smaller and faster nearly 60 years old and still strongalmost 60 years later we still feel the lasting impact and benefits of moore s law in many ways as transistors in integrated circuits become smaller computers shrink and become faster today transistors are microscopic structures printed on small sheets of carbon and silicon molecules the number of transistors that can be printed on a small space makes computers much more efficient and faster the cost of higher powered computers has over the longterm been dropping annually partly because of lower labor costs and reduced semiconductor prices 3practically every facet of a high tech society benefits from moore s law in action mobile devices such as smartphones and computer tablets would not work without tiny processors neither would video games spreadsheets accurate weather forecasts and global positioning systems gps moreover smaller and faster computers improve transportation health care education and energy production to name but a few of the industries that have progressed because of the increased power of computer chips moore s law s impending endsome believe that the physical limits of moore s law should be reached at some point in the 2020s 4 the issues chip makers face are increasing costs to continue trying to meet the industry standard created by moore s law and the difficulty cooling an increasing number of components in a small space for instance if you keep shrinking components you can put more in a one inch square chip the more you put in that square inch the hotter it gets and the harder it is to cool it in a 2005 interview moore himself admitted that the fact that materials are made of atoms is the fundamental limitation and it s not that far away we re pushing up against some fairly fundamental limits so one of these days we re going to have to stop making things smaller 5creating the impossible the fact that moore s law may be approaching its natural end is perhaps most painfully present at the chip manufacturers themselves as these companies are saddled with the task of building ever more powerful chips against the reality of physical limitations even intel is competing with itself and its industry to create what ultimately may not be possible in 2012 with its 22 nanometer nm processor intel was able to boast of having the world s smallest and most advanced transistors in a mass produced product 6 in 2014 intel launched an even smaller more powerful 14nm chip the company struggled to bring a 7nm chip to market but finally in 2024 the company began receiving parts for a school bus sized machine that can create technology that pushes moore s law forward 78910this machine designed by asml is a high na extreme ultraviolet lithography system that can print transistors as small as 2nm 11for perspective one nanometer is one billionth of a meter smaller than the wavelength of visible light the diameter of an atom ranges from about 0 1 to 0 5 nanometers 12special considerationsthe vision of an endlessly empowered and interconnected future brings both challenges and benefits shrinking transistors have powered advances in computing for more than half a century but engineers and scientists must find other ways to make computers more capable soon instead of physical processes applications and software may help improve the speed and efficiency of computers cloud computing wireless communication the internet of things iot and quantum physics all may play a role in the future of computer tech innovation despite the growing concerns around privacy and security the advantages of ever smarter computing technology can help keep us healthier safer and more productive in the long run 