Gadgets. Who doesn't have a use for them today. Laptops, mobile phones, MP3/MP4 players, GPS navigators, remote-controlled car keys, flat screen TVs, and too many others to mention.

The basis for the seemingly never-ending stream of gadgets was the invention of the transistor (about 60 year ago). Millions, or even billions of those tiny 'switches' combined in high-density semiconductor devices are the reason your gadgets work and why they are constantly shrinking in size.

Those familiar looking semiconductor devices are for many people simply 'black boxes'. Most may not care how they work, some are curious about how they are made, but for others, it is their job to create and improve them.

This book gives an overview of how those semiconductor black boxes are developed, starting with the design, followed by a look at diffusion, and finally assembly/test, with the focus on how collaboration is the key to high-quality End-Products.