CPUs Are Smaller Than You Think

2021-11-09 - By Robert Elder

Ever wonder how 'small' a CPU really is? In this video, I smash open an Intel CPU and expose the silicon die and look at it under a microscope:

Here is what the silicon die looks like, still attached to the Integrated Heat Spreader after it was ripped away from the PCB. The actual 'CPU' is under the pink stuff:

Here is the corner of the CPU with the PCB and underfill away from it. You can see the bare fractured surface of the silicon beside the actual 'CPU' details, demonstrating that what we consider to be the 'CPU' is only a thin layer on top of the silicon.

Here's a closeup of the CPU surface showing the laminated layers of the CPU as it was randomly ripped apart when it was torn from the PCB:

Here's another closeup showing more detail of the CPU surface:

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