Chip voltage: Why less is better: A reduced power-supply standard is in the offing as manufacturers and designers grapple with the tradeoffs of submicrometer devices

1 April 1987

journal article
Published by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in IEEE Spectrum

Vol. 24 (4) , 39-43
https://doi.org/10.1109/MSPEC.1987.6447969

Abstract

The benefits of using chips that operate at 3.3 V rather than the standard 5 V are enumerated, and the factors impeding their adoption are examined. The main concern is that since TTL-compatible circuits cannot be replaced overnight by equivalent chips at the lower voltage, 5-V and 3.3-V chips are likely to be mixed in systems for a long time. If they need external interface circuits to allow them to communicate, system cost will go up and performance could be severely degraded. Fear of novelty and the difficulties of scaling down are also discussed.

Keywords

STANDARDS
TRANSISTORS
LOGIC GATES
POWER SUPPLIES
RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY
CMOS INTEGRATED CIRCUITS
VOLTAGE CONTROL

This publication has 0 references indexed in Scilit: