IBM today announced it has created the world's fastest silicon-based transistor.
The transistor, a key component in microchips, uses a modified design and IBM's proven silicon germanium (SiGe) bipolar technology to achieve speeds of 350 GigaHertz (GHz). IBM's new transistor performs nearly 300 percent faster than today's production devices, and is 65 percent faster than previously reported silicon transistors. A fingernail-sized microchip can hold millions of transistors.
IBM anticipates the new transistor will lead to communications chips with speeds of more than 150 GHz in about two years. The transistor is also expected to result in substantially lower power consumption and lower cost for communications systems and other electronic products.
|