Temperature-limited microprocessors: Measurements and design implications

• Published in: 20th International Conference on VLSI Design held jointly with 6th International Conference on Embedded Systems (VLSID'07) pp. 427 - 432
• Main Authors: Hamann, H.F., Weger, A., Lacey, J., Zhigang Hu, Bose, P., Cohen, E., Wakil, J.
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 01.01.2007
• Subjects: Drives; Energy management; Manufacturing; Microprocessors; Power distribution; Power measurement; Semiconductor device measurement; Temperature distribution; Temperature measurement; Thermal management

The details of the power distribution of state of the art CMOS chips (e.g., local regions of high power (or hotspots), which disproportionally drive up junction temperatures) can have a severe impact on reliability, manufacturing yield and chip performances. In this paper we discuss the results of a...