Every processor die anyone has photographed and given away

This interactive catalog brings together 356 processor-die photographs made between 1972 and 2024, largely by independent chip photographers who have shared their images freely. A die is the silicon inside a processor package; exposing and photographing it requires removing the surrounding material and using a microscope. The collection spans consumer CPUs, embedded and industrial processors, game-console chips, and experimental designs, from early devices such as the Intel 8008 and MOS 6502 to recent Apple, AMD, and Intel processors. It also includes products from a wide range of companies and countries, including Soviet-era and contemporary Russian chips.

The project makes the collection explorable by decade, manufacturer, license, date, and die size, with gallery, table, and true-scale views. The true-scale comparison includes the 114 processors with known dimensions, making the dramatic growth in physical die area visible: early chips appear tiny beside many later processors. The catalog’s breadth is a central part of its value: it documents rival architectures and second-source versions alongside major commercial designs, and links silicon images to specific models and years. It offers both a visual history of processor development and a way to compare the physical structures behind chips that are often encountered only as names, specifications, or components inside devices.