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Cover StoryImagine a chip that waits in Off mode for an input, that instantly turns on the power for processing when an input is detected, and then turns itself off again. An integrated circuit (IC) technology that might make possible this type of "normally-off" equipment will enter practical use in 2009: zero-standby-dissipation chips, achieved by making the entire chip, including logic, nonvolatile.
The MFF is an implementation of nonvolatile logic circuit in an SoC, based on an application of magnetic random access memory (MRAM) technology. If embedded static RAM (SRAM) is replaced by MRAM in addition to utilizing MFF for the logic, the entire chip can be made nonvolatile. Performance drops very little as a result of these changes, and the only manufacturing process modification is inserting a magnetic layer between the metallization layers of the integrated circuit (IC).
FeaturesNikkei Electronics |
Nikkei Monozukuri |
Nikkei Automotive Technology |
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