Zilog Z80

Zilog Z80

A Z80 manufactured in June 1976 according to the date stamp
General information
Launched	July 1976
Discontinued	June 2024
Marketed by	Zilog
Designed by	Federico Faggin, Masatoshi Shima
Common manufacturer	Zilog, Mostek, Synertek, SGS, NEC, Sharp, Toshiba, Rohm, GoldStar, Hitachi, National Semiconductor,[a] and others
Performance
Max. CPU clock rate	2.5 MHz to 8 MHz[b]
Data width	8 bits[1]
Address width	16 bits[1]
Architecture and classification
Application	Embedded, desktop, handheld
Technology node	4 μm process
Instruction set	Z80[c]
Physical specifications
Transistors	8,500
Packages	40-pin DIP 44-pin PLCC 44-pin QFP
History
Predecessor	Intel 8080
Successors	Z180 Z280 eZ80

The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog that played an important role in the evolution of early computing. Launched in 1976 and software-compatible with the Intel 8080, it offered a compelling alternative due to its better integration and increased performance. As well as the 8080's seven registers and flags register, the Z80 had an alternate register set that duplicated them, two 16-bit index registers and additional instructions including bit manipulation and block copy/search.

Initially intended for use in embedded systems like the 8080, the Z80's combination of compatibility, affordability, and superior performance propelled it to widespread adoption in video game systems and home computers during the late 1970s and early 1980s, fueling the personal computing revolution. Products it was used in include the Osborne 1, Radio Shack TRS-80, ColecoVision, ZX Spectrum and the Pac-Man cabinet; in later years it remained used in portables, best known for use in the Game Boy and TI-83 series.^[2][3]

The Z80 was the brainchild of Federico Faggin, a key figure behind the creation of the Intel 8080. After leaving Intel in 1974, Faggin co-founded Zilog with Ralph Ungermann. The Z80 was released in July 1976. With the revenue from the Z80, the company built its own chip factories.^[4] Zilog licensed the Z80 to the US-based Synertek and Mostek, which had helped them with initial production, as well as to a European second-source manufacturer SGS. The design was also copied by several Japanese, Eastern European and Soviet manufacturers.^[d] This won the Z80 acceptance in the world market since large companies like NEC, Toshiba, Sharp, and Hitachi started to manufacture the device (or their own Z80-compatible clones or designs).

The Z80 continued to be used in embedded systems for decades after its introduction, with ongoing advancements. The latest addition to the Z80 family is the eZ80, which was offered alongside successor chips. Zilog announced the discontinuation of the Z80 in April 2024 after nearly five decades of production.

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