A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal

A robust ultra-low voltage CPU utilizing timing-error prevention




AuthorsMarkus Hiienkari, Jukka Teittinen, Lauri Koskinen, Matthew Turnquist, Jani Mäkipää, Arto Rantala, Matti Sopanen, Mikko Kaltiokallio

PublisherMDPI AG

Publication year2015

JournalJournal of Low Power Electronics and Applications

Volume5

Issue2

First page 57

Last page68

Number of pages12

eISSN2079-9268

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3390/jlpea5020057

Web address www.mdpi.com/2079-9268/5/2/57/


Abstract

To minimize energy consumption of a digital circuit, logic can be operated at sub- or near-threshold voltage. Operation at this region is challenging due to device and environment variations, and resulting performance may not be adequate to all applications. This article presents two variants of a 32-bit RISC CPU targeted for near-threshold voltage. Both CPUs are placed on the same die and manufactured in 28 nm CMOS process. They employ timing-error prevention with clock stretching to enable operation with minimal safety margins while maximizing performance and energy efficiency at a given operating point. Measurements show minimum energy of 3.15 pJ/cyc at 400 mV, which corresponds to 39% energy saving compared to operation based on static signoff timing.


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Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 22:34