Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor

Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) is the semiconductor technology used in the transistors that are manufactured into most of today's computer microchips. CMOS transistors use almost no power when not needed.

CMOS transistors use almost no power when not needed. As the current direction changes more rapidly, however, the transistors become hot. This characteristic tends to limit the speed at which microprocessors can operate.