The most advanced manufacturers of computer processors are in the middle of the first big change in device architecture in a decade—the shift from finFETs to nanosheets. Another 10 years should bring about another fundamental change, where nanosheet devices are stacked atop each other to form complementary FETs (CFETs), capable of cutting the size of […]
There was a time, decades really, when all it took to make a better computer chip were smaller transistors and narrower interconnects. That time’s long gone now, and although transistors will continue to get a bit smaller, simply making them so is no longer the point. The only way to keep up the exponential pace […]
Intel cofounder Gordon E. Moore, the man behind Moore’s Law, died on 24 March at the age of 94. The IEEE Fellow was awarded the 2008 IEEE Medal of Honor for “pioneering technical roles in integrated-circuit processing, and leadership in the development of MOS memory, the microprocessor computer, and the semiconductor industry.” Moore founded Intel […]
For Synopsys Chief Executive Aart de Geus, running the electronic design automation behemoth is similar to being a bandleader. He brings together the right people, organizes them into a cohesive ensemble, and then leads them in performing their best. De Geus, who helped found the company in 1986, has some experience with bands. The IEEE […]
Ultraquick telecommunications at terahertz frequencies are now possible using “electronic metadevices,” which may set the stage for the next generation of speedy gadgets. The way in which these novel devices control electric fields is similar to how invisibility cloaks manipulate light, heat, and sound, a new study finds. As electronics shrink, following Moore’s Law, they […]
“Over the next decade, we must think of energy efficiency as the most important challenge,” Lisa Su, CEO of AMD told engineers at the 2023 IEEE International Solid State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) in San Francisco. Despite a slow-down of Moore’s Law, other factors have pushed mainstream computing capabilities to double about every two-and-a-half years. For […]
The next wave of Moore’s Law will rely on a developing concept called system technology co-optimization, Ann B. Kelleher, general manager of technology development at Intel told IEEE Spectrum in an interview ahead of her plenary talk at the 2022 IEEE Electron Device Meeting. “Moore’s Law is about increasing the integration of functions,” says Kelleher. […]
This is a guest post in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the invention of the transistor. It is adapted from an essay in the July 2022 IEEE Electron Device Society Newsletter. The views expressed here are solely those of the author and do not represent positions of IEEE Spectrum or the IEEE. On the […]
The most obvious change in transistor technology in the last 75 years has been just how many we can make. Reducing the size of the device has been a titanic effort and a fantastically successful one, as these charts show. But size isn’t the only feature engineers have been improving. In 1947, there was only […]
Memory and storage chip maker Micron Technology says it is shipping samples of the most bit-dense DRAM memory chips yet. Compared with its own previous generation, the 16-gigabit DRAM chip is 15 percent more power efficient and 35 percent more dense. Notably, Micron achieved the improvement without resorting to the most advanced chip-making technology, extreme […]