Today, May 5, 2026, what is probably the most famous integrated circuit in the world turns 55: the NE555 timer chip. An occasion that the well-known YouTuber Big Clive also celebrates in a particularly creative way – with a 5 minute and 55 second long video that is published exactly at 5:55 a.m. on the 5th day of the 5th month. Additionally, there will be a 55-minute live stream at 5:55pm (UK time).
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A chip that made history
The NE555 was designed by Hans Camenzind for Signetics in 1971 and is one of the first integrated circuits that is still in mass use today – 55 years later. Camenzind created an exceptionally versatile building block that can best be described as a collection of electronic Lego blocks: It can be used as a timer, oscillator, threshold detector and for many other applications.
The chip’s great strengths include its wide supply voltage range of 4.5 V to 16 V and the ability to directly drive loads of up to 200 mA at the output – properties that still make it competitive today. If you want to know exactly what’s going on and want to look at the silicon on the chip, Ken Shirriff is the right person for you.
(Image: ZeptoBars)
By the way: The popular opinion that the name “555” is derived from the three 5 kΩ resistors in the internal voltage divider was rejected by Camenzind himself. According to him, we owe the catchy name to a marketing employee with the almost too nice-sounding name Art Fury. However, whether Fury was inspired by the three resistances remains his secret.
Hans Camenzind (d. 2012) himself is said to have once said that he would design the chip differently today – but as we all know, hindsight is always smarter. In 1971 he broke new ground and hit the jackpot with the 555, which continues to shape the world of electronics to this day.
Big Clive’s NE555 video (5min 55s) provides an entertaining and practical insight into how this exceptional chip works.
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Well-known and lesser-known applications
Virtually everyone has a 555 somewhere in their electronic devices – often without knowing it. Here is a small selection:
Classic applications:
- Flashing circuits: From simple LED indicators to hazard warning lights
- time relay: Delay circuits in household appliances, stairwell lights
- Barrel generators: doorbells, simple sirens, electronic toys
- PWM generators: For brightness or speed control
- Debounce of buttons: In control panels and input devices
Lesser known missions:
- Metronome and simple musical instruments
- If Clock generator in some old (retro) computers
- Theremin-like synthesizers in DIY projects
- Capacitive touch sensors
- Servo-Tester for model makers
- Logic probes and simple measuring devices
- Modulation circuits for infrared remote controls
- Geiger counter high voltage generator in craft projects
- Polygraph/lie detector kits
- Fence inspector in agriculture
The other “Daddy Chips”
In the video, Big Clive (see video above) also pays tribute to other long-lasting classics that are similarly ubiquitous: the LM358 dual op-amp, the LM324 quad-op-amp, the LM393 comparator as well as numerous TTL and CMOS logic devices. Even in the world of microcontrollers there are such veterans: The 8051 architecture from 1980 can still be found in many generic chips made in China – and is therefore over 45 years old.
Happy birthday, little Chip – here’s to the next 55 years!
(caw)
