Makers of the Microchip: A Documentary History of Fairchild Semiconductor

by Christophe Lécuyer, David C. Brock, Jay Last (Foreword)

The first years of the company that developed the microchip and created the model for a successful Silicon Valley start-up.In the first three and a half years of its existence, Fairchild Semiconductor developed, produced, and marketed the device that would become the fundamental building block of the digital world: the microchip. Founded in 1957 by eight former employees of the Schockley Semiconductor Laboratory, Fairchild created the model for a successful Silicon Valley start-up: intense activity with a common goal, close collaboration, and a quick path to the market (Fairchild's first device hit the market just ten months after the company's founding). Fairchild Semiconductor was one of the first companies financed by venture capital, and its success inspired the establishment of venture capital firms in the San Francisco Bay area. These firms would finance the explosive growth of Silicon Valley over the next several decades. This history of the early years of Fairchild Semiconductor examines the technological, business, and social dynamics behind its innovative products. The centerpiece of the book is a collection of documents, reproduced in facsimile, including the company's first prospectus; ideas, sketches, and plans for the company's products; and a notebook kept by cofounder Jay Last that records problems, schedules, and tasks discussed at weekly meetings. A historical overview, interpretive essays, and an introduction to semiconductor technology in the period accompany these primary documents.

Genres: History, Technology, Computers, Nonfiction

328 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 2010

Reviews

[Tech Historian · Rating 5 out of 5]

The missing book in Silicon Valley History.

Bravo. A well written, well researched book that fills in the missing gaps in early Fairchild history. Using the original lab notebook of Jay Last one of the founders of Fairchild, this book sketches out the early technical decisions that the Fairchild founders made in their first three years. It traces the evolution of first silicon mesa transistors, to a race between Gordon Moore and Jean Hoerni in making the first PNP and NPN transistors. Hoerni's invention of the planar transistor was an outgrowth of that effort. Once the planar process was in hand it was clear that that someone was going to interconnect those transistors.

Lots of surprises and insights in this book. The biggest one for me was the vociferous objection to the integrated circuit product line by Fairchild's VP of Sales. In hindsight it makes sense, but I never would have guessed it.

Minor quibbles on some editing and a awkwardly constructed introduction.

Along with Broken Genius: The Rise and Fall of William Shockley and The Man Behind the Microchip: Robert Noyce and the Invention of Silicon Valley, this book makes a trilogy about the key players in the semiconductor industry.

Essential reading to anyone interested in the technical history of Silicon Valley.

[Doug O'laughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man the first chapter and the conclusion was really good - the rest felt like tedious historian notes. but it was really good! This book explains like half of the path dependency of semis today

[Steve Harvey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rare glimpse into the culture and inner workings of Fairchild Semiconductor in its early years. More of a series of notebook explanations than a free-flowing story. Readable, but a little monotonous.