Web Resources

Background & Support

Looking for extra resources?

SCALE K-12 has collected a set of curated third-party videos and articles that cover topics related to microelectronics. You will find resources to help you gain valuable background information, learn more about a specific ME topic, and support your ME knowledge as you teach.

These resources align with topics found in SCALE K-12 units. They cover a wide range of topics and knowledge levels.

As these are third party resources, their creators are responsible for their content. If you wish to share a resource with your students, ensure it meets your school and classroom guidelines and grade-level appropriateness.

Microelectronics Overview
Look Inside a Chip
Circuits
Transistors
Photolithography
Careers
Silicon / Raw Materials
Other Topics
Digital Logic
Chip Kids

Microelectronics Overview

These resources discuss how microelectronics are made and why they are important to everyday life.

A thorough and technical explanation of the microelectronics manufacturing process. Branch Education

News story that includes history and current affairs along with some of the manufacturing steps and challenges. Story on Scripps News

Animated overview accessible to a wide age range. TED Ed lesson page

One-minute overview that is appropriate for a wide age range.

Other media sources

Roadtrip Nation > Chip In (alternate source on PBS Learning Media)

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Look Inside a Microchip / Nanoscale

These videos show magnified views of microchips. Could be useful for discussing scale and complexity of circuits.

Walkthrough of an old model microchip, scale of circuits is still relevant today even if the chip itself is obsolete.

Short, silent magnified view of an old model microchip.

Focus is on scale of transistors, images are animations.

A digitally-created zoom-in of a smartphone chip. Images from different microscope sources are stitched together but the effect is good.

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Circuits & Electricity

Gain background and insights into how electricity and circuits work.

Simple circuit demonstration and explanation. Geared towards elementary and middle school students. Chip Kids

Series and parallel circuits, with a focus on resistance and the application of Ohm’s law. Episodes 25-31 cover electrical and circuit basics. Crash Course Physics

Overview of electricity and circuit basics that is accessible to a range of teacher backgrounds.

Focus is on how electricity works, has reference to circuits embedded.

Articles / Other media sources

More from Chip Kids: Season 1, Episode 2 “Light It Up”

Georgia Public Broadcasting > Physics in Motion > Unit 5: Electricity & Magnetism

SparkFun > What is a Circuit?

All About Circuits > What Are Electrical Circuits

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Silicon, Semiconductors, & Raw Materials

Learn about silicon as a raw material and how it becomes silicon wafers. Note that there is a lot of similarity between the silicon used in solar cells and microelectronics. The silicon in microelectronics goes through extra purification.

Shows how quartz rock is smelted into molten silicon for use in solar cells. Similar process works for microelectronics.

Explanation of semiconductors as a class of materials. Non-Youtube source on PBS Learning Media

Discusses the process of making pure silicon and references US quartz resources.

Somewhat technical, but primarily shows a little bit about the many steps that go into making silicon wafers.

Articles / Other media sources

WUNC’s The Broadside > The rock that runs the world

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Photolithography & Etching

Photolithography and etching are two fundamental processes used to build transistors on silicon wafers.

Describes the processes of extreme ultraviolet photolithography using thorough but technical language.

Explanation of the basics of etching. Non-Youtube source on PBS Learning Media

Highlights the engineering of the EUV machine and how the machine makes the EUV light necessary for the process. Has a good overview of how chips are made.

Covers the basics of photolithography and etching, along with some of the other processes.

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