IBM Unveils Most Powerful Chip Ever Created
A chip, which is two generations more advanced than today's designs, has been made using transistors just three times wider than a strand of DNA.
It is more powerful than any chip currently in existence, and could be in machines within two years. The ultra-dense chip squeezes in four times as much computing power as the best silicon chip currently available.
Creator IBM says it was made possible by using silicon-germanium in the manufacturing process, rather than pure silicon. The material means transistors can switch faster and use less power, allowing for a more-dense chip. Smaller chips mean more computing power for devices ranging from mobile phones and smart watches, to laptop and desktop computers.
So-called 'Moore's Law' says that the number of transistors per square inch on chips should double every two years.
While IBM has demonstrated the possibility of creating a chip with seven-nanometer transistors - down from the current 14 - it is still in the advanced research stage and is not consumer ready.
For size comparison, a red blood cell is approximately 7,500 nanometers in diameter.
