Type an address to search for nearby blocks
Whitepaper
Explore More
Sign Up / Log In
Semiconductor History | Intel Headquarters, 23 April 2012 — Ivy Bridge Moves the Transistor into a Fin
· 2012-4
Personal memoryBy kevin · · Report an issue
Search by address
Search
Loading...
Highlighted Moments
Featured Memories
Find memories left by people near you.
Distribute Bounty
Total to distribute
0 MR
Qualifying memories
0
This will distribute the bounty equally among all qualifying memories. This action cannot be undone.
Cancel Bounty
Refund amount
0 MR
Are you sure you want to cancel this bounty? The remaining amount will be refunded to your account.
Success!
Operation completed successfully.
Error
Something went wrong.
Back to map
Back
This memory is part of
Semiconductor History | Intel Headquarters, 23 April 2012 — Ivy Bridge Moves the Transistor into a Fin
kevin
4/23/2012
Listen
Directions
The Core i5-3470 in this photograph was manufactured in 2012 and belongs to Intel’s Ivy Bridge generation. Its metal lid conceals the important change: the transistors underneath were no longer built as flat channels controlled only from above.
On 23 April 2012, Intel launched its first high-volume processors made with a 22-nanometer process and three-dimensional Tri-Gate transistors. The product release turned a structure announced the previous year into hardware customers could buy.
The transistor’s channel rose from the silicon as a narrow fin.
Wrapping the gate across the fin’s top and two sides gave it better control over current than a planar gate. That control mattered as dimensions and operating voltages shrank: a transistor needed to switch quickly when commanded while leaking as little current as possible when off.
Intel’s 2011 measurements claimed up to 37 percent better low-voltage performance, or less than half the power at equal performance, compared with its 32-nanometer planar transistors. Those were company comparisons rather than universal product gains, but they captured the good side of the geometry: designers could spend the improvement on speed, energy efficiency, or a mixture of both.
Ivy Bridge showed the process working at scale.
The first quad-core chips combined Tri-Gate manufacturing with improved integrated graphics and arrived in desktops, notebooks, and all-in-one computers. Intel’s ability to design the processor and manufacture its new transistor together gave it an advantage that rivals then had to answer with their own fin-based processes.
Three dimensions did not make scaling simple.
Fins added patterning steps, tighter dimensional control, and new sources of variability. Designers could choose only whole numbers of fins to set transistor width, while factories had to reproduce extremely narrow structures across entire wafers at high yield.
The “22-nanometer” label also named a process generation, not a single measurement shared by every feature.
The breakthrough therefore carried a warning inside the success. Tri-Gate extended Intel’s process leadership, but each following shrink demanded more complex manufacturing and more capital.
When Intel later struggled to move beyond 14 nanometers on schedule, the difficulty did not erase Ivy Bridge’s achievement; it showed how hard that achievement was to repeat.
The pin marks Intel headquarters at 2200 Mission College Boulevard, the dateline and corporate address on the Ivy Bridge launch release. Contemporary coverage says the webcast presentation occurred in San Francisco but does not identify a reliable room-level venue.
The photographed i5-3470 is an exact Ivy Bridge product made later in 2012.
Photo: Rjluna2, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Related Memories
Memory Marks
You marked this memory as
InspiringHeartwarmingEnjoyableSolemn!
You have 0 Memory Marks left to give today
Nice work! You have given out all your memory marks today!
Come back tomorrow or own more Blox to get more daily Memory Marks!
Thank you for alerting us of this Memory. We will review within the next 24 hours.
Save to Collection
Semiconductor History | Intel Headquarters, 23 April 2012 — Ivy Bridge Moves the Transistor into a Fin
New Collection
No collections yet
Create one above to get started
0
Do you want to remove this memory from the collection?
Do you want to save
changes?
changes?
The changes you made have been saved
Root to Blockchain
Do you want to root this memory to IPFS with 1 Metablox Coin?
You currently have Metablox Coins
Root to Blockchain
You need 1 Metablox Coin to root this memory to IPFS.
You don't have enough Metablox Coins
Uploading to Blockchain…
Preparing your memory for IPFS. Please don't close this window.
Upload Failed
Something went wrong while connecting to IPFS. Your Metablox Coin was not deducted. Please try again later.
Push New Version
Create a new version of this memory, preserving its current state on IPFS.
Cost: 1 Metablox Coin
You currently have Metablox Coins
New Version is on its way to the Blockchain!
Your updated memory will be available on IPFS within 10 minutes.
Your Memory is on its way to the Blockchain!
You'll be able to access it on IPFS within 10 minutes.
Uploading your memories
Are you sure you want to
delete this memory?
delete this memory?
Are you sure you want to delete this memory?
Keep
Delete
Take Photo
Add your photos
Add more photos
Preview your memory
Uploading your memory
You have successfully preserved a memory!
We detected that you have a Blox in your crypto wallet! We will import the Blox into your account.
Click on done below to complete the import.
Welcome Back!
Sign in to preserve cherished moments
Don't have an account?
Welcome!!
Sign up and start preserving cherished moments
Password Recovery
Enter the email associated with your account
Check your inbox
Use the link in the email to reset your password
Would you like to level up
?
?
Cost
MetaRent
Would you like to level up
?
?
Cost
MetaRent
reached Level !!
MetaRent / day
Max Storage
Coins Earned
+
reached Level !!
MetaRent / day
Max Storage
Coins Earned
+
Add your
photos
Tell us about this
Moment
Description (Optional)
/140 characters
Where is this moment?
location
Try searching for: Golden Gate Bridge, Miami Beach, or an address.
Uploading your moment
You have successfully preserved a memory!
Your moment is now
on .
You have successfully preserved a memory!
Your moment is now
on .
Uploading
exoangel
Hidden in 85hrs
Global Blox
Aug 31, 2026
Sprouts sandwich
exoangel
Hidden in 60hrs
Global Blox
Aug 30, 2026
Sunday beach time
exoangel
Hidden in 61hrs
Global Blox
Aug 29, 2026
Weeekend scene
exoangel
Hidden in 38hrs
Global Blox
Aug 28, 2026
Feeding the birds
exoangel
Hidden in 15hrs
Global Blox
Aug 28, 2026
Shrimp fried rice
You marked this moment as
InspiringHeartwarmingEnjoyableSolemn!
You have 0 Memory Marks left to give today
Nice work! You have given out all your memory marks today!
Come back tomorrow or own more Blox to get more daily Memory Marks!
Choose your payment method
Buy with Metablox Credit
Do you want to mint Blox with Metablox Credit?
Which Crypto would you like to use?
Payment confirmed!
Your Blox is being minted on-chain. This usually takes under a minute.
Check your Metamask extension
Step 1: Click "Confirm" to give Metamask permission to access your crypto
Important: When the extension shows up, scroll down and hit "Confirm" to mint.
Important: You must change the suggested gas fee to High in order to process the transaction.
DO NOT refresh or close the page before seeing this.
We're processing your order...
This sometimes takes a few mins.
Please bear with us 💪
DO NOT refresh or close the page
Contact the Devs
We're very sorry this happened
Your transaction record has been submitted to our team. We'll solve this situation ASAP
Purchase Confirmed!
Your Blox is being minted on-chain and will appear in your profile shortly.
Log in or sign up to claim your Blox.
How many credits do you want to buy?
$100 USD = 1 Metablox Credit = 1 Blox.
Use Metablox Credit to mint any Blox you want on the map.
expand_more