"Stressed silicon" to be used in the future for faster processors

Arris · Apr 11, 2002

From what I understand from reading the following article this change to chemical composition of the silicon will allow faster processors to be created without having to change to a different chip manufacturing process. The only downside apparently is the cost which could deter any of the major processor manufacturers from adopting it.

From The Boston Globe:
By Hiawatha Bray, Globe Staff, 4/11/2002

Unlike other techniques for boosting chip speeds, strained silicon holds out the promise of a big performance increase without the need for a major overhaul of the chip manufacturing process. Strained silicon chips are made using the same processes as today's relaxed chips. The higher performance comes from the properties of the silicon itself.

At the heart of the problem is the relentless demand for faster chips that use less electricity and run cooler. Everybody knows about Moore's Law - the principle that says chip makers can double the number of transistors on their chips, and hence their speed, every 18 months. But there are other things you can do to improve chip performance. And some of these tricks involve changing the chemical composition of the chip's foundation, or substrate.

....

The downside is that strained silicon wafers cost a lot. Byars says a standard eight-inch wafer sells for about $120, and he expects strained silicon to cost two to three times more. The chip plant in Dresden, Germany, where Advanced Micro Devices Inc. makes its Athlon processors can use up to 20,000 wafers a month. At that rate, strained silicon would cost the company an extra $58 million a year in materials. AMD would either have to eat the extra cost, or pass it on to customers, which would undercut AMD's low-price challenge to rival Intel Corp.

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"Stressed silicon" to be used in the future for faster processors

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