I. Based on the number of microelectronic devices integrated on a single chip, integrated circuits can be classified into the following categories:
Small-scale integrated circuits (SSI, whose full English name is Small Scale Integration) contain fewer than 10 logic gates or fewer than 100 transistors.
Medium-scale integrated circuits (MSI, whose full English name is Medium Scale Integration) contain between 11 and 100 logic gates or between 101 and 1,000 transistors.
Large-scale integrated circuits (LSI, whose full English name is Large Scale Integration) contain between 101 and 1,000 logic gates or between 1,001 and 10,000 transistors.
Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI, whose full English name is Very Large Scale Integration) involves logic gates ranging from 1,001 to 10,000, or transistors ranging from 10,001 to 100,000.
Ultra Large Scale Integration (ULSI, whose full English name is Ultra Large Scale Integration) contains between 10,001 and 1 million logic gates or between 100,001 and 10 million transistors.
GLSI (whose full English name is Giga Scale Integration) comprises more than 1,000,001 logic gates or more than 10,000,001 transistors.
II. Classification by Functional Structure: Integrated circuits can be broadly categorized into two major types— analog integrated circuits and digital integrated circuits—based on their different functions and structures.
3. Classification by Manufacturing Process: Integrated circuits can be categorized into monolithic integrated circuits and hybrid integrated circuits based on their manufacturing process. Hybrid integrated circuits, in turn, are further divided into thick-film integrated circuits and thin-film integrated circuits.
4. Classification by Conductive Type: Integrated circuits can be categorized into bipolar integrated circuits and unipolar integrated circuits based on their conductive type. Bipolar integrated circuits have a complex manufacturing process and relatively high power consumption; typical examples include TTL, ECL, HTL, LST-TL, and STTL. Unipolar integrated circuits feature a simpler manufacturing process and lower power consumption, making them easier to fabricate into large-scale integrated circuits; typical examples include CMOS, NMOS, and PMOS.
5. Classification by Application: Integrated circuits can be categorized by application into integrated circuits for televisions, integrated circuits for audio equipment, integrated circuits for DVD players, integrated circuits for video recorders, integrated circuits for computers (microcomputers), integrated circuits for electronic organs, integrated circuits for telecommunications, integrated circuits for cameras, remote-control integrated circuits, voice-processing integrated circuits, integrated circuits for alarm systems, and various specialized integrated circuits.