Fifty Years of Moore´s Law

The 1959 invention of the planar silicon transistor led to the development of the integrated circuit (IC) and the growth trend in IC complexity known as Moore´s Law. While Moore´s observation came in 1965, his original trend line showing a doubling of components per chip each year began with one component in 1959. Thus, we have now experienced 50 years of Moore´s Law. This paper provides a history of Moore´s Law through its many changes and reinterpretations, containing possibly a few new ones as well.