Microprocessor Power Reduction
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The U.S. Navy seeks to commercialize U.S. Patent number 7,153,749 (Method of tuning voltages of interdiffusible structures).
The Technology
With the use of portable and wireless electronic systems increasing, reduction in power/energy consumption has become one of the most important design concerns. Power dissipation not only affects performance and battery life, but also has a large impact on packaging, reliability, and heat removal costs. Threshold voltage is the minimum amount of power necessary to turn on a microprocessor. By fine-tuning this threshold, a much more efficient system can be created. Threshold tuning has been shown to decrease power consumption by as much as 10% (1), and power leakage by as much as 80% (2); however, current threshold tuning technology is limited by the physical dimensions of the microprocessor itself. SSC Pacific has patented a pulsed laser method that overcomes this limitation allowing the threshold voltage of a microprocessor to be tuned regardless of its physical dimensions.
Key Benefits
Development Status
(1) Recent applications demonstrated by IBM’s G6 microprocessor lead to a 10% improvement in power consumption (2007).
(2) Records of the 1999 IEEE International Workshop “Memory Technology, Design and Testing” show an 80% improvement in power leakage.
- For more information on technology transfer, please contact us at (619) 553–5118 or email ssc_pac_t2@navy.mil
- SD 687, February 2007. SSC Pacific, San Diego, CA 92152–5001. Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.