Moore’s law and the physical limits of computing

Expectations about faster computers often spill over into expectations about every other technology. These stories examine where that comparison works and where it breaks down.

Read the chip story for power, heat, and packaging constraints. Then turn to batteries, where storing energy poses a different problem from processing information. Together they explain why progress in one component does not guarantee the same pace everywhere else.

Questions these stories explore

• What limits faster chips as transistors get smaller?

  Follow the shift from shrinking components to managing power, heat, and the connections between chips.

• Why do batteries not improve at the same rate as computer chips?

  Compare the physical constraints of energy storage with the scaling of semiconductor devices.