IBM developed transistors 100 times faster

Source: Reuters IBM has successfully developed a transistor that is 100 times faster than the current chip generation - an achievement that could pave the way for super-fast computers and wireless networks in the future.

Transistors are the basic components of microprocessors, the "brains" of all hi-tech devices from supercomputers to digital music players. IBM set a speed record when it developed a silicon magnetic transistor with imported germanium elements surrounding it.

" What we have done over the past few years is to extend the limits of silicon technology ," said Bernie Meyerson, IBM semiconductor research director. " And what has been achieved is far from reaching the final threshold of silicon performance, and this information is encouraging ."

The new transistor reaches speeds of 500 GHz, which is 100 times faster than the fastest PC chip in the market today, and about 250 times faster than a conventional mobile chip.

However, this speed was only achieved when IBM experts cooled the transistor to temperatures near 0 degrees Celsius, and at room temperature, the transistor still clocked at 300 GHz.

Clay Ryder, president of Sageze Group, a technology market research firm, said this was a "breakthrough" and could pave the way for faster processors. Of course, these chips cannot reach the aforementioned 500 GHz "peak" speed.

" We can build a race car that runs at 240 miles per hour, but do you drive it to work? No, but you'll learn how to apply it to mass-produced cars. " , he said.

Most of the improvements in chip speed in the past are mainly due to the reduction in transistor size, but IBM's method is to transform silicon from the atomic level. This means that the manufacturer can design the transistor from scratch with specific application orientations.

Meyerson predicts the new generation of chips will appear in commercial products in a few years, possibly super-fast wireless networks with the ability to transfer a DVD-quality movie in just 5 seconds.

Thien Y