Tech

Advantages and Disadvantages of Integrated Circuit (IC)

By Gareth Robinson

Posted on August 19, 2021

Almost every electronic appliance we use in our day-to-day lives consists of an array of simple and complex circuits. Regular use items like mobile phones, laptops, computers, televisions, refrigerators, etc, use multiple electrical devices and electronic components that as laymen, we are not aware of. Integrated circuits are one such device.

Integrated circuits (ICs) are primate objects in the world of electronics. They can be referred to as the hearts and brains of most electronics. They are the omnipresent small black chip that you will see on every circuit board ever. If you are not an electronic geek, it is still obvious that you have seen an IC at least once, unless you live in a world that is disconnected from technology. However, in case you don’t know what it is, how it works, the type of ICs, and the different pros and cons of integrated circuits, you should keep reading. In this article, we will discuss all there is to know about integrated circuits.

Firstly, what are integrated circuits?

Integrated circuit (IC) is also called microelectronic circuit, microchip, or chip. It is a collection of electronic components, all compacted in a single miniature unit. It contains miniaturized active devices like transistors and diodes and passive devices like capacitors and resistors. The interconnections of these devices are built upon a thin substrate of a semiconductor, generally silicon. It helps to perform operations similar to the large discrete electronic circuits made of discrete electronic constituents. As a result, we get a small monolithic chip, which is as tiny as a few centimeter squares or maybe even mm square. The individual devices and components in the circuit are generally microscopic and not visible through naked eyes. The sheet of silicon is used to get the shape of an IC. If you want to know more about what ICs are.

All these arrays of electronic components, microscopic circuits, and the thin silicon base which acts as the semiconductor wafer material base are integrated to develop a single chip. Hence, it is called an integrated circuit or integrated chip or simply, a microchip.

Electronic circuits are developed using individual or separate electronic components of various sizes. The cost and the size of these circuits increase with the number of discrete electronic components used in the circuit. This method was previously used before ICs were formed. To find a solution for this negative side, the integrated circuit technology was developed by Jack Kilby of Texas Instruments. He developed the first IC in the 1950s followed by which, Robert Noyce who worked at Fairchild Semiconductor made some serious breakthroughs to solve the practical ground problems regarding integrated circuits.

A brief history of integrated circuits

The history of integrated circuits goes long back with the invention of the first vacuum tube by J.A. Fleming in the year 1897, which was called a vacuum diode. Years later, the transistor was invented at Bell Labs in 1947. They easily replaced the vacuum tubes as they use fewer components and power to work. Different circuits were designed using discrete components as well as cumulated on the printed circuit boards by manually controlled non-integrated circuits. These circuits consumed a lot of power and space and their output was also disruptive.

Finally, in 1959, an integrated circuit was developed which included several components and electronics, all fabricated over a thin layer of the single silicon wafer. Hence, continued, the era of the ICs which we use now.

It accumulates millions of individual transistors fabricated on a single piece of material, as tiny as a pea. If we continued to use vacuum tubes, using so many at once would be difficult to operate, unreasonably expensive, and very time-consuming. The invention of the integrated circuit is the reason why technology has been able to come so far and has such an immense scope in the future. In today’s world, life without this tiny object which most people cannot even see is unimaginable. From cars to phones to microwave ovens and toasters, we are surrounded by millions of ICs containing a plethora of such electronic components.

What are the various types of integrated circuits?

Depending upon the purpose of the application, the integrated circuits are mainly classified into analog integrated circuits, digital integrated circuits, and mixed integrated circuits.

Analog integrated circuit

When an integrated circuit is operated over a continuous array of signals, it is called Analog ICs. These are further classified into linear Integrated Circuits (Linear ICs) and Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RF ICs).

Over a higher range of continuous analog signals, a non-linear relationship occurs between current and voltage.

An analog IC is an operational amplifier or an op-amp which is the same as a differential amplifier, the only difference being, it works at a very high voltage. Compared to a digital IC, an analog IC contains very few transistors for developing analog application-specific integrated circuits (analog ASICs) which are computerized stimulants.

Digital Integrated circuits

Digital ICs are those which work only on defined levels of signals, unlike all signal amplitudes. Digital integrated circuits are designed by using multiple digital logic gates, flip flops, multiplexers, and other electronic components of circuits. These logic gates are operated with the help of only binary numerics which is 0 which denotes low or false or logic 0, and 1 denoting high or true or logic 1.

There are several steps used for designing digital ICs. It requires system specification, architectural designs, functional and logical blueprint, circuit design, circuit verification and sign-off fabrication, packaging, and testing, and finally the compact microchip. Digital ICs are most common in our lives as it is present in computers, computer networks, microprocessors, digital signal processors, and frequency counters. Digital integrated circuits are further divided into several types like programmable ICs, logic ICs, memory chips, power management integrated circuits, and interface integrated circuits.

Mixed integrated circuits

Mixed ICs are those which are formed by the combination of both analog and digital integrated circuits on a single chip. They are functional as Digital to Analog converters, Analog to Digital converters (D/A and A/D converters), and clock-related ICs. The mixed integrated circuit which is formed by a combination of both digital and analog ICs is a result of advancement in integration technology, which further led to the integration of digital, multiple analogs incorporated on a single chip.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Integrated circuits?

Discussed below are the several pros and cons of integrated circuits:

Lower Power consumption – owing to their smaller size and construction, integrated circuits consume a lot less power compared to other circuits.
Small and compact size – small ICs are more functional and easier to operate compared to discrete circuits.
Highly cost-efficient – compared to discrete circuits, ICs are available at much lesser costs as the technology used for fabrication is not very expensive as well as it uses less material.
Less Weight – compared to discrete circuits, ICs have much lesser weight.
Improvement in operating speed – due to their switching speeds, integrated circuits work at very high speeds. At the same time, they have much less power consumption.
Much more reliable – compared to an entire discrete circuit, integrated circuits are highly reliable.

The Advantages and Pros of IC (Integrated Circuits)

The size of ICs, despite being small, can include thousands of smaller components on the chip.
A single chip can be used to make millions of complex designs.
They are produced in bulk, as a result of which their production cost is lower compared to discrete circuits.
Due to the lack of parasitic capacitance effect, its operation speed is high.
It can be easily changed from the mother circuit.
They can operate in extreme temperature conditions.

Summarizing the Disadvantages and Cons of Integrated Circuits

The various disadvantages of the integrated circuits are as followed:
Due to the small size of the IC, the heat distribution throughout the circuit occurs at a slower speed. It further might damage the integrated circuit.
It is not possible to incorporate both transformers and inductors in integrated circuits.
They can operate only within a limited power range
You cannot achieve an assembly of high-grade PNP with an IC
It is not possible to achieve a lower temperature coefficient
The range of power dissipation is up to 10 watts
One cannot obtain high voltage and low noise operation through integrated circuits.

The following were the advantages and disadvantages of integrated circuits.

Conclusion

This was an overview of the advantages and disadvantages of the various types of integrated circuits. When the electronic components are connected by connecting wires or conducting devices to allow the flow of electric current through the different components of the circuit, including resistors, inductors, capacitors, diodes, etc, it is all summarized together in a tiny chip called the integrated circuit. We hope this article was helpful!