Indian at MIT, associates develop ultra-low-voltage chip

[sams.raghu]

Hi Acumen's

A scientist of Indian origin from MIT, along with colleagues and researchers from Texas Instruments (TI), has developed an energy-efficient microchip for portable electronics, which could lead to longer-lasting, self-charging cellphones and can be used on devices as varied as medical implants to sensors that detect enemy tanks..

The project was carried out by Anantha Chandrakasan, the Joseph F and Nancy P Keithley Professor of Electrical Engineering MIT; Joyce Kwong, a graduate student in MITs Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS), and colleagues from MIT and Texas Instruments.

This newly-developed chip design for portable electronics would be up to 10 times more energy-efficient than present technology. In fact, the design could lead to cell phones, implantable medical devices and sensors that last far longer when running from a battery.



The team demonstrated the ultra-low-power design techniques on TI's MSP430, a widely used microcontroller. The work was conducted at the MIT Microsystems Technology Laboratories, which Chandrakasan directs.The key to the improvement in energy efficiency was to find ways of making the circuits on the chip work at a voltage level much lower than usual, explained Chandrakasan.

"If semiconductor companies can overcome production obstacles, such a chip could be ready for commercial use in five years," he said.

While most current chips operate at around one volt, the new design works at just 0.3 volts. One key to the new design, was to build a high-efficiency DC-to-DC converter-which reduces the voltage to the lower level-right on the same chip, reducing the number of separate components, said Chandrakasan.

The redesigned memory and logic, along with the DC-to-DC converter, are all integrated to realise a complete system-on-a-chip solution, he added. Chandrakasan says the researchers had to design new memory and logic circuits, and new computer tools will be needed to finish the job.

At lower power, imperfections in the silicon used to make chips become more noticeable, posing another hurdle to production. The researchers were scheduled to discuss their work Tuesday at a semiconductor conference in San Francisco.


SOURCE - ibnlive.com