Sandia National Labs SA3000 8085 CPU
This article details the history of Sandia National Laboratory's semiconductor fabrication efforts during the 1970s and 80s. It focuses on their development of radiation-hardened components for space missions and nuclear weapons, specifically highlighting the conversion of the Intel 8085 processor into the rad-hard SA3000.
Why it matters
It provides historical context on the origins of specialized, high-reliability computing hardware essential for national security and space exploration.
Back in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s Sandia National Laboratory (in Albuquerque NM USA) began building the capacity to design, fab, and test IC’s at scale (packaging was handled by Fairchild and Allied Signal). Why would a National Laboratory need the capacity to do this? To provide components that were not available commercially. In this case, Sandia’s goal was to make radiation hardened devices for use in weapons and space missions. The harshest environments and where reliability was paramount.
The content is a technical historical account of hardware engineering with no political or social commentary.
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