Self-assembled architectures and the temporal aspects of computing

• Published in: Computer (Long Beach, Calif.) Vol. 38; no. 1; pp. 56 - 64
• Main Authors: Dwyer, C., Lebeck, A.R., Sorin, D.J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York, NY IEEE 01.01.2005; IEEE Computer Society; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Application software; Applied sciences; Assemblers; Cleaning; Computer architecture; Computer programs; Computer science; control theory; systems; Computers; Delay; Design engineering; Design. Technologies. Operation analysis. Testing; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Fabrication; Flexibility; Hardware; Integrated circuits; Physics computing; Programmable logic arrays; Self assembly; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Software; Software engineering; Technology; Temporal logic; Virtual manufacturing; Wires; Self assembly; System design; Computer system; Computing; Codesign
• ISSN: 0018-9162; 1558-0814
• DOI: 10.1109/MC.2005.34

Despite the convenience of clean abstractions, technological trends are blurring the lines between design layers and creating new interactions between previously unrelated architecture layers. For example, virtual machines such as VMWare and Transmeta implement the application-software-visible architecture in virtual-machine software, allowing more flexibility in the hardware/software interface beneath the VM layer. Future technologies will likely further increase the interactions between design layers. Programmable self-assembly is an emerging fabrication technology that must be considered in the higher layers of computer system design. This technology offers an opportunity to perform computation during the fabrication process itself.