Microelectronics is a subfield of electronics. Electronics refers to the flow of charge (moving Electrons through Nonmetal conductors (mainly Semiconductors, whereas electrical Microelectronics, as the name suggests, is related to the study and manufacture of electronic components which are very small (usually micron-scale or smaller, but not always). These devices are made from semiconductors using a process known as photolithography. A semiconductor' is a Solid material that has Electrical conductivity in between a conductor and an insulator; it can vary over that Photolithography (also called optical lithography) is a process used in Microfabrication to selectively remove parts of a thin film (or the bulk of a substrate Many components of normal electronic design are available in microelectronic equivalent: transistors, capacitors, inductors, resistors, diodes and of course insulators and conductors can all be found in microelectronic devices. In Electronics, a transistor is a Semiconductor device commonly used to amplify or switch electronic signals A capacitor is a passive electrical component that can store Energy in the Electric field between a pair of conductors An inductor is a passive electrical component designed to provide Inductance in a circuit |- align = "center"| |width = "25"| | |- align = "center"| || Potentiometer |- align = "center"| | | |- align = "center"| Resistor| | Dioden2jpg|thumb|right|150px|Figure 2 Various semiconductor diodes An insulator, also called a Dielectric, is a material that resists the flow of Electric current. In Science and engineering, a conductor is a material which contains movable Electric charges.

Digital integrated circuits (ICs) consist mostly of transistors. Microchipsjpg|right|thumb|200px|Microchips ( EPROM memory with a transparent window showing the integrated circuit inside Analog circuits commonly contain resistors and capacitors as well. Inductors are used in some high frequency analog circuits, but tend to occupy large chip area if used at low frequencies; gyrators can replace them. The gyrator or positive impedance inverter is an Electric circuit which inverts an impedance.

As techniques improve, the scale of microelectronic components continues to decrease. At smaller scales, the relative impact of intrinsic circuit properties such as interconnections may become more significant. These are called parasitic effects, and the goal of the microelectronics design engineer is to find ways to compensate for or to minimize these effects, while always delivering smaller, faster, and cheaper devices.

See also

• Electrical engineering
• Digital circuit
• Analog circuit

External links

• ERMETIS Microelectronics and Reconfigurable Systems Research Laboratory
• MIXDES - International Conference 'MIXed DESign of Integrated Circuits and Systems'
• IEEE Virtual Museum, Let's Get Small: The Shrinking World of Microelectronics
• CMC Microsystems (CMC)
• C-MAC MicroTechnology
• MIGAS, International Summer School on Advanced Microelectronics
• Microelectronic Engineering Education at Rochester Institute of Technology

Electrical engineering, sometimes referred to as electrical and electronic engineering, is a field of Engineering that deals with the study and application of Digital electronics are Electronics systems that use Digital signals Digital electronics are representations of Boolean algebra also see Analogue electronics (or analog in American English) are those electronic systems with a continuously Variable signal

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