> and can't really imagine MBE being used to produce millions of chips Cell phones are example application for millions of chips. There's really nothing that

> and can't really imagine MBE being used to produce millions of chips Cell phones are example application for millions of chips. There's really nothing that magic about it. What is difficult is the large-scale integration of transistors, which is why you don't see CPUs (for example). There's a number of reasons, mostly relating to the nature of III-V materials. One example is the lack of a decent oxide: SiO2 is god's gift to electronics. However, Si is not a direct bandgap, so it is next to useless for devices involving light. It's why the bazillions of lasers on the planet are III-V.