During a keynote at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, Intel announced it will ramp up performance and energy efficiency in its microprocessors by using a 32-nanometer process technology starting in 2009. Intel president and CEO Paul Otellini showed a 300mm wafer built using the 32-nm manufacturing technology which will house more than 1.9 billion transistors and Ottelini touted that its increased performance will enable "true to life entertainment and real-life graphics capabilities." Intel isn't the first to announce 32-nm chip technology: in May, a group of chipmakers (Freescale Semiconductor, Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, Infineon Technologies, and Samsung Electronics) led by IBM agreed to further collaborate to jointly develop 32-nm semiconductor production technology.
Intel currently uses a 65-nm process to manufacture chips, but the company's future processors built using the 45-nm include its Penryn processor, due in November, and Silverthorne and Nehalem processors, slated to appear early and in the second half of next year, respectively. In the first public demonstration of the Nehalem processor, Otellini said it will deliver better performance per watt and better system performance through its QuickPath Interconnect system architecture, which will include an integrated memory controller and improved communication links between system components. Otellini also announced a Penryn dual-core processor operating at 25 watts that will be available on the upcoming Montevina platform, which will also include WiMax technology. To meet multiple computing needs, Otellini said Intel also plans to introduce 15 new 45-nm processors by the end of the year and 20 in the first quarter of 2008.
News source: InfoWorld
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