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Glite Dictionary
silicon chip

silicon chip

3 3.7
A small, flat piece of material with tiny electronic parts that makes computers and phones work
  • noun
  • /ˈsɪlɪkən ʧɪp/
  • Specialized
translation icon : chip de silicio
  • Many household appliances now use silicon chips to control various electronic functions.
  • silicon chip computer

So my friend end up ends up working on hardening silicon chips against nuclear war.

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Examples

  • A silicon chip is less than 2 percent raw materials.

    Academic text (1991)

  • There were no active devices underneath this area of the silicon chip.

    Academic text (1995)

  • The one trend that caught the world flatfooted is the power, ubiquity, and cheapness of the silicon chip.

    Blog text (19)

  • This is a button-size gas turbine built on silicon chips measuring 2 cm on a side and about 3 mm thick.

    Academic text (2002)

  • They have developed manufacturing methods to build magnetic actuators directly on a silicon chip, where they are integrated with sense-and-drive electronic circuits.

    Academic text (1994)

  • If this latter sounds like science fiction, consider that scientists in both Canada and Germany have recently reported using a silicon chip to communicate between living nerve cells, causing the neurons to remember and relearn responses.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The smartphone contains a powerful silicon chip that enables fast processing and high-quality graphics.

  • Engineers have designed new silicon chips that improve the efficiency of solar panels.

Synonyms

chip
vssilicon chip
  • Specialized
249 4.1

A small piece inside electronic devices that makes them work

is specifically a thin silicon piece designed for electronic functions in computers
microchip
vssilicon chip
  • Specialized
45 3.7

A very small electronic part inside devices like phones or computers that stores and uses information

focuses on performing electronic functions in computers and other devices

How Complex

SoC
  • Specialized
3 7.2
microprocessor
  • Specialized
17 4.2
silicon chip
  • Specialized
3 3.7
discrete
24 6.1

Surface Forms

silicon chip singular
silicon chips plural

Morphology

silicon + chip

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'silicon' (the semiconductor material) with 'chip' (a small piece of semiconductor containing circuitry): together they denote a small piece of silicon that contains an integrated circuit. This is a literal noun-noun compound following regular composition patterns, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The name silicon chip comes from the material and the size: engineers made tiny chips from pure silicon and put very small electrical circuits on them to make them work. So silicon chip means 'a small piece of silicon that does electronic work'.