Description of business, including segment and geographic area information - Segment Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2018	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2018
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total revenue	$ 3,771	$ 4,261	$ 11,033	$ 12,067
Total operating profit	1,589	1,937	4,474	5,197
Analog
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total revenue	2,674	2,907	7,726	8,163
Total operating profit	1,231	1,447	3,427	3,876
Embedded Processing
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total revenue	724	894	2,310	2,763
Total operating profit	233	309	747	971
Other
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total revenue	373	460	997	1,141
Total operating profit	$ 125	$ 181	$ 300	$ 350