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Life
Born in Vicenza, Federico Faggin received a Laurea Degree in physics, summa cum laude, at the University of Padua. At age 19, after his graduation from technical high school A. Rossi (Vicenza), he took a job at Olivetti, in Italy, where he co-designed and led the implementation of a small computer. After obtaining his university degree he worked at SGS Fairchild in Italy, where he developed SGS's first MOS process technology and designed its first integrated circuits. In 1968 he moved to Palo Alto and worked at Fairchild Semiconductor, where he created the MOS Silicon Gate technology, the basis of all modern CMOS computer chips. At Fairchild he produced the world's first commercial integrated circuit using Silicon Gate Technology: the Fairchild 3708.
In 1970 he joined Intel where Marcian (Ted) Hoff, with Stanley Mazor and Intel's customer Masatoshi Shima, had formulated a new architecture for a family of Busicom calculators. Federico Faggin was hired as project leader to implement such architecture, which had been idling for many months. Independently, and without any help from Hoff and Mazor, Faggin created a new methodology for random logic chip design using silicon gate technology, previously non existent, and several design innovations that made it possible to fit the microprocessor in one chip. He developed the chip and logic design together with the layout of all the chips of the 4004 family (MCS-4). He built the tester to prove that the 4004 could be used for applications different from calculators (Hoff and Mazor considered the 4004 good only for calculators), and successfully transferred the first microprocessor to production. During the project development he was assisted only by Masatoshi Shima, who had come from Japan to check on the progress and stayed-on to help, and a couple of technicians. Faggin also convinced Bob Noyce to negotiate the exclusivity clause, in order to open the marketing of the 4004 which originally was a custom design for Busicom.
The design methodology created by Faggin was utilized for the implementation of all Intel’s early microprocessors. The 8008 development was originally assigned to Hal Feeney in March 1970 but was suspended until the 4004 was completed. It was resumed in January 1971 and Hal Feeney did the detailed design under Faggin’s direction and following his new methodology. Faggin developed the architectures and led the development of the 8080 and the 4040 microprocessors. When Faggin left Intel at the end of 1974 to found Zilog with Ralph Ungermann, he was department manager for MOS Research and Development with almost 80 engineers reporting to him and more than a dozen of products under development.
Zilog was the first company entirely dedicated to microprocessors while Intel was principally dedicated to memories. At Zilog, Faggin conceived the architecture of the Z80 microprocessor and helped Shima, who had joined the new company, in its design. He was Zilog's President and CEO until the end of 1980. In 1982, he co-founded Cygnet Technologies, Inc., maker of the Cygnet CoSystem personal telecommunications device, and was President and CEO of the company until 1986. In 1986 he co-founded and was CEO of Synaptics a company which produces the most widely used touchpad in the industry. He is presently CEO of Foveon Inc., a company making image sensors with a novel technology.
Original articles on Silicon Gate Technology
Faggin, F., Klein, T., and Vadasz, L. :"Insulated Gate Field Effect Transistor Integrated Circuits with Silicon Gates", presented at the IEEE International Electron Device Meeting. Washington, D.C., October 1968
Federico Faggin and Thomas Klein.: "A Faster Generation of MOS Devices with Low Thresholds is Riding the Crest of the New Wave, Silicon-Gate IC's". "Electronics", September 29, 1969
F. Faggin, T. Klein: "Silicon-Gate Technology". "Solid State Electronics", 1970, Vo. 13, pp. 1125-1144
Original articles on the MCS-4, the first microprocessor
F. Faggin and M. E. Hoff: "Standard Parts and Custom Design Merge in a Four-chip Processor Kit". "Electronics" , April 24, 1972
F. Faggin, et al: "The MCS-4 An LSI Microcomputer System". "IEEE 1972 Region Six Conference"
Awards
- 1988: Marconi International Fellowship Award "for his pioneering contributions to the implementation of the microprocessor, a principal building block of modern telecommunications"
- 1988: Golden Medal for Science and Technology from the Italian Prime Minister
- 1988: title of "Grande Ufficiale" from the President of the Italian Republic
- 1994: IEEE W. Wallace McDowell Award "for his outstanding contributions to the computer field through the development of the Silicon Gate Process, and the first commercial microprocessor, one of the most important developments of the last 50 years"
- 1994: a doctorate honoris causa in Computer Science from the University of Milan (Italy).
- 1996: Ronald H. Brown American Innovator Award, with M. Hoff and S. Mazor
- 1996: a Lifetime Achievement Award by P.C. Magazine for "technical excellence".
- 1997: Kyoto Prize, with M. Hoff, S. Mazor and M. Shima
- 1996: inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame, with M. Hoff and S. Mazor
- 1997: George R. Stibitz Computer Pioneer Award by the American Computer Museum, with M. Hoff and S. Mazor
- 2001: Dr. Robert Noyce Memorial Award by the Semiconductor Industry Association, with M. Hoff and S. Mazor
- 2003: doctorate honoris causa in Electronic Engineering from the University of Rome Tor Vergata (Italy)
- 2003: AeA/Stanford Executive Institute Award for Outstanding Achievement in the High Tech Industry by an Alumnus
- 2006: European Inventor of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award by EPO (European Patent Office)
Federico Faggin is currently the CEO of Foveon, a Santa Clara (CA) company with a new technology for developing image sensors used in digital photography. He is also chairman of Synaptics and Zilog.
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