Microprocessor Display

There are image links, click on a CPU and find out more info!

Microprocessor Facts
4-bit Intel CPU’s
8-bit Intel CPU’s
16-bit Intel CPU’s
32-bit Intel CPU’s
64-bit Intel CPU’s
Other CPU’s

Microprocessor Facts

Some must know facts about the Microprocessor:

1. CPU – Central Processing Unit
   The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the electronic circuitry within a computer that carries out the instructions of a computer program
2. Intel 4004
   The Intel 4004 is a 4-bit central processing unit (CPU) released by Intel Corporation in 1971. It was the first commercially available microprocessor by Intel.
3. It’s all about the Pentium!  https://youtu.be/xr9IZQa_vpU
4. Moore’s Law
   The number of transistors in a dense integrated circuit doubles approximately every two years. Named after Gordon Moore, the co-founder of Intel.
   

   By Max Roser, Hannah Ritchie – https://ourworldindata.org/uploads/2020/11/Transistor-Count-over-time.png, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98219918

5. Block diagram of a basic uniprocessor-CPU computer: Black lines indicate data flow, whereas red lines indicate control flow; arrows indicate flow directions.
   

   By Lambtron – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37716438

6. Here are two silicon wafers and a photomask which are used in the manufacturing process of a CPU. These samples were created at Carleton University’s Microelectric Fabrication Laboratory.
   
7. Cores
   Having multiple processing units on a single die. An 8-core CPU is equivalent to having the processing power of 8 single CPUs.
8. Ingot
   A silicon ingot is “grown” from a seed crystal that forms a large crystal. It’s then sliced into wafers and used in the manufacturing process of your CPU die.
9. CPU Frequency
   The CPU frequency or clock rate measures the number of instructions the CPU can process per second.

4 Bit CPUs

The story of the Intel 4004

Ted Hoff Inventor of the Microprocessor

8 Bit CPUs

8-bit computing wiki

Zilog Z80

The Z-80 SoftCard from 1980 is a plug-in Apple II processor card developed by Microsoft to turn the computer into a CP/M system based upon the Zilog Z80 central processing unit (CPU)

The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor launched in July 1976 and was widely used in both desktop computers and embedded systems. [Thank you John Stewart, IT staff from the school of Mathematics, for donating this item to the display]

16 Bit CPUs

“Wow this 286-CPU had contacts and not pins. Ahead of its time.”

IBM Personal Computer/AT

32 Bit CPUs

Intel 80386, 80486… and onward

Intel A80486DX2-66 with a blue heatsink

Intel DX4 FC80486DX4-75, most likely from an older laptop

Intel Pentium

The desktop version of this CPU was a large cartridge design. The laptop version seen here is unique!

Intel Pentium III Xeon cartridge with the cover removed

When the Intel Pentium 4 and D and Core2Duo CPU’s came out in 2004 Intel introduced the LGA (Land Grid Array)  sockets. Those are the CPU’s that have contacts rather than the PGA (Pin Grid Array) which are the CPU’s that have pin’s.

PGA socket: CPU Pins                     LGA socket: CPU Contacts

64 Bit CPUs

Itanium-based systems were produced by HP/Hewlett Packard Enterprise and several other manufacturers. In 2008, Itanium was the fourth-most deployed microprocessor architecture for enterprise-class systems.

Mobile Intel CPUs

Other CPU’s

AMD Athlon CPU: You can see the shiny CPU die in the middle. This becomes exceedingly hot during operation and is cooled by a large metal heatsink and fan. You can still see the white thermal paste used to help conduct the heat.

AMD CPUs

Apple & Sun CPUs

Intel 486 with an exposed die

Intel Mobile Pentium Processor

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