Since the mid-1960s, miniaturization has been a dominant theme in technology, especially in the electronics industry. Simple extrapolation of the computers of the 1960s would have predicted that the powerful desktop computers of today would have to be as large as buildings. This miniaturization of electronic components is primarily the result of advances in lithography for the fabrication of integrated circuits. This process involves using electromagnetic radiation, such as light, to carve very small devices from large ones. However, it is generally believed that there are limitations to this top-down approach for construction of small devices, particularly with sizes in the nanometer range.