Intel: Near-Threshold-Voltage CPU consumption lower and lower

We have already spoken briefly a couple of days ago : Intel's IDF in San Francisco on the stage, showed a location in which the processor, identified as Claremont, operated with only the energy provided by a tiny solar cell . During the closing keynote address Justin Rattner, Chief Technology Officer of Intel, wanted to say something more on the interesting project, and especially on the way that research is taking. If technological progress in the chips, has for years taken the path of multi core and many core, this does not mean that research is continuing to search for in the individual business units, new ways to improve.



Rattner demonstrated a processor so called Near-Threshold Voltage, which uses low-power circuits, new concept that can dramatically reduce consumption. To do so, these circuits operate near the threshold, or ignition voltage, the transistor. A CPU is an experiment, as we said two days ago, able to work at standard frequencies when needed, reducing power consumption to below 10 milli watts when the workload is light. This explains why a very small solar cell is sufficient to ensure the operation of the system: 10 milli watts are very few.


We will not see this very chip trade dress under the brand names of the classic Intel, more than anything else, research it online to the integration of circuits with a voltage close to the threshold in a wide range of future products. Direct consequence of consumption will be about 5 times lower than current technologies, as well as allowing you to make laptops can stay connected, standby, up to tens of days.




The plans for the future are very ambitious, as you can see in the slide. If today is an Intel Xeon 200W 100Gflops to achieve, in 2018 you think you can get the same results with a machine 2W. Reduce by one hundred times the consumption for the same computational result is not how to say it and 2018 is not that far away: we have to wait and see if the forecasts have been too optimistic.

Posted by: Wasim Javed