Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD)

[Milo Morai]

clip form EEtimes story

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Nathan Brookwood, a microprocessor analyst at Insight64 (Sarasota, Calif.), said leakage is the likely culprit behind delayed product introductions at Intel, which is locked in a close race with Advanced Micro Devices Inc. to bring new process technology to the microprocessor market.

Intel is sampling a 90-nm version of its desktop Prescott P4, which heads for market this quarter, as well as the 90-nm Dothan version of the Banias mobile processor, which Brookwood said is being pushed out slightly to the second quarter. If AMD is able to execute on its promise to ramp 90-nm versions of its Opteron processor in the second quarter, Brookwood said, then "AMD will only be one quarter behind Intel, which is kind of amazing when you remember that AMD has been as much as three quarters behind in previous product introductions."

Brookwood also cited a trend that casts a shadow on the industry's continued ability to scale as fast as the ITRS predicts. When Intel, for example, moves from one technology node to the next, it has been able to cut power as it boosted frequency. The 180-nm Pentium running at 2 GHz drew 72 watts; the 130-nm Pentium at 2 GHz draw 52 W.

The shift to 90 nm has not resulted in a similar drop. The 130-nm P4 at 3 GHz draws 82 W, but when shifted to a 90-nm process, it draws more power, "in the high 80s or maybe even 90 W," Brookwood said. "Most of the problem is with static power consumption. These devices leak like crazy."




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http://www.eetimes.com/story/OEG20040123S0041