Recent Advances in Semiconductor and Microprocessor Technologies

Abstract

Semiconductor and microprocessor technologies have undergone transformative changes, evolving from simple monolithic processors fabricated with micron-scale processes to heterogeneous, chiplet-based architectures implemented at advanced nodes such as 3nm. This paper surveys recent advancements across semiconductor fabrication, processor architecture, and system integration, highlighting the shift toward modularity, specialization, and heterogeneous computing to meet the demands of diverse workloads in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, automotive systems, and edge devices. Beginning with an overview of current manufacturing processes, materials innovations, and transistor structures, the survey examines historical and contemporary research, traces the evolution of microprocessor architectures, and discusses major application areas. It further analyzes challenges in power management, thermal control, verification, and supply chain security, followed by a review of cutting-edge developments such as domain-specific accelerators, high-bandwidth memory, and advanced packaging. Finally, emerging research directions are identified, including novel device materials, compute-in-memory architectures, photonic interconnects, and open-source hardware ecosystems. This comprehensive synthesis aims to serve as a reference for researchers, engineers, and policymakers engaged in advancing the semiconductor and microprocessor domains.