Photographing microchips as art

[MichaelChang]

<p>I always thought it'd be neat to photograph integrated circuits as art but have never attempted it. </p>

<p>The complexity of modern ICs is staggering. According to the page below, the current record holder for density is Intel's 10-core Xeon Westmere-EX which is an FPGA containing 6.8 billion transistors.<br>

<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor_count">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor_count</a></p>

<p> <br>

More down to earth, even simple ICs are a visual marvel, and here's a page describing how to dissolve a chip's casing with boiling acid along with some photographs:<br>

<a href="http://zeptobars.ru/en/read/how-to-open-microchip-asic-what-inside">http://zeptobars.ru/en/read/how-to-open-microchip-asic-what-inside</a></p>

<p> <br>

This older Wired Magazine post contains a video describing how a software hacker uses these techniques to hack into a chip to steal satellite signals:<br>

<a href="http://www.wired.com/politics/security/news/2008/05/tarnovsky">http://www.wired.com/politics/security/news/2008/05/tarnovsky</a><br>

<br>

I imagine using high resolution camera and optics, and a micro-positioning X-Y stage that it'd be possible to stitch together a very high resolution photograph, sort of like Gigapan in reverse. <br>

<br>

Don't think I'll ever try it, but it's nevertheless fun to think about. <br>

</p>

[starvy]

<p>It is mind boggling how technology has moved in the last twenty five years!</p>

[Mattman944]

<p>Years ago I photographed ICs with a bellows. Sorry, I can't find any to post right now, they are slides.</p>

<p>If you can find ceramic parts with cavities and gold (colored) lids you can skip the acid. Some lids come off easy with a thin sharp blade, others require heat.</p>

<p>And you don't need the latest high-tech for an interesting picture, actually older stuff can be easier since the features on the chip are larger.</p>

<p>DOF and diffraction was an issue, the dies are flat, but if you include the the tiny bond wires it becomes 3D. If I can find the ICs, I will re-take them using focus stacking. </p>

 

[waltflanagan]

<blockquote>

<p>According to the page below, the current record holder for density is Intel's 10-core Xeon Westmere-EX which is an FPGA containing 6.8 billion transistors.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Read the page again. The Westmere-EX is a CPU, not an FPGa. It has 2.5 billion transistors. The Xilinx FPGA has 6.8 billion and if you look at the GPU section you will see there is an Nvidia chip with 7 billion transistors.</p>

 

[Brad_]

>>> Photographing microchips as art

 

I used to have that done for high-speed full-custom signal processing ASICs that we hand laid out to get

the highest performance/speed. But that was to visually look for issues causing anomalous behavior.

They're called photolithomicrographs.

[Andy Murphy]

<p>With such compact details, illustrations may have an advantage. Medical illustrations often rely on drawings because with pictures, the blood can obscure some of the details, for example, of a heart or other organs.</p>

[Tim_Lookingbill]

<p>Those shots of micro chips makes the human race look like superior alien intelligent creatures from another world.</p>

<p>Of course I think the same just trying to figure out how to program my TV remote.</p>

[erwin_schaefer]

<p>When photographing micro chips or any macro items I have a hangup about including a frame of reference for the viewer whenever possible. These inages lost some resolution in the process of fitting into a single frame. Rollei SL66 with a 16mm Zeiss Luminar. </p><div></div>