Silicon Valley is the cradle of world-class IT technologies

Silicon Valley is an economic large urban agglomeration, in which more than half of the technical and scientific potential in the electronics industry is concentrated. It is located on the California territory of the peninsula of San Francisco and stretches from west to east. Its area is about 900 km2. Its name was derived from the chemical element of silicon (the English name is silicon), which is widely used in the production of semiconductor devices.

Silicon Valley is a conditional concept. It is not marked on geographical maps and has no boundaries. Currently, this term is usually called the financial zone, which is concentrated in the major cities of Palo Alto, San Jose, Sunnyvale, Los Altos, Santa Clara. This word combination first appeared in 1971 thanks to journalist Don Hoffler.

Silicon Valley USA is the third largest technological center of America in terms of the number of employees working in the field of IT technology. Almost 40% of the engineers employed in the information systems industry live here with their families. More than three thousand major centers, corporations, start-ups, innovative companies are concentrated in this area. They are engaged in the creation of high-tech software, microchips, biotechnologies, mobile communication devices, etc. The intensive development of electronic and information technologies in this place is connected with the financing and investment of start-up companies, the close location of large cities and the collective work of advanced American universities.

Silicon Valley began its historical journey in 1951. At that time, Terman Fred (vice president of the Stanford University located here) began to lease land for the purpose of attracting finances for the rapid development of high-tech research. The circle of tenants boiled down only to high-tech companies that could be useful for the research work of the university. A couple of decades, the valley became the world center of the electronics industry.

In a well-known name, Fairchild Semiconductor played a big role, which became the first in the world to introduce devices using a silicon (silicon) integrated microcircuit. Later this company became the creator of new structural divisions, such as Philips Semiconductors, Intel, AMD, National Semiconductors. It is to them that Silicon Valley owes its name.

In Russia, in 2009, there was a project plan called Skolkovo. According to the supporters of the innovation center, after a while it will be Silicon Valley in Russia, a Russian analogue of the California Valley. But the opponents of the project are confident that this will be an offshore zone of privileged government companies.

It is planned to form attractive places in this suburban center for the work of programmers, scientists, designers, engineers and financiers. In the future, Russian specialists will create competitive technologies here. The main goal of the project is to stop the leakage of Russian scientists, specialists and promising students abroad and to return the country to those who left. To date, Skolkovo has already recruited staff who will be able to begin their fruitful activity in the near future.