Adiabatic Logic’s Intelligent Output Driver (IOD) to deliver up to 75% power savings in chip I/O for portable devices

IOD-enabled ICs can significantly extend battery life of power-hungry portable devices such as laptops, smartphones, PDAs, digital cameras and MP3 players

Adiabatic Logic’s patented technique reduces power consumption of digital computer chips by recycling energy during inter chip communication; save a watt, save a dollar

IOD uses the speed of submicron CMOS to actively mimic the voltage-current drive characteristics of a classic output driver with a source terminator resistor

IOD also reduces component count and bill of material (BOM) cost and can improve performance of sub systems

CAMBRIDGE, England, May 12, 2003

– Adiabatic Logic Limited (www.adiabaticlogic.com), a Cambridgebased company focused on creating and licensing intellectual property (IP) in the low power technology arena, has developed an Intelligent Output Driver (IOD), which it claims can deliver up to 75% power savings in chip I/O for portable devices such as laptops, smartphones, handheld computers, digital cameras and MP3 players.

The patented technology, a complex piece of intellectual property (IP), focuses on recycling the power used during on-board communication between digital computer chips or integrated circuits (ICs). Results from SPICE (simulation programme with IC emphasis) and a discrete circuit demonstrator confirm typical power saving of between 50 to 75% compared to the fCV² power usage of a conventional output driver.

“Whilst shrinking transistor sizes have made the silicon core of today’s digital chips vastly more energy efficient, the same cannot be said of the I/O pin drivers which are burning progressively more energy,” said Geoff Harvey, Adiabatic Logic’s chief technology officer. “Our solution addresses this imbalance head-on by making the complete I/O cycle a nearly lossless or adiabatic process.”

The Intelligent Output Driver (IOD) uses the speed of submicron CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) to actively mimic the voltagecurrent drive characteristics of a classic driver with a source (or series) terminator resistor. It does this in such a way that the bulk of the current is delivered to the load capacitance non-resistively from a reservoir capacitance maintained at a mid rail voltage, assisted by the inherent inductance of the load. The on-chip reservoir capacitance delivers charge on rising edges and recovers charge on falling edges thereby recycling energy, which is conventionally wasted.

“We believe that this is a significant breakthrough that will be a major benefit to chip and system developers focused on reducing power consumption because if you are saving watts then you are also saving dollars,” added Geoff Harvey. “Our technology is backward compatible with existing IC designs and foundries and therefore can be incorporated relatively quickly into new products – and it will continue to provide added value as the industry moves towards system-onchip (SoC) solutions.”

Adiabatic Logic’s IOD solution offers a multitude of other benefits to IC and system developers. It reduces the overall component count and bill of material (BOM) cost by minimising battery size, cutting DC-DC converter/thermal management costs and eliminating the requirement for terminating resistors. Sub system performance is also significantly improved, while lower MOSFET ‘hot electron’ stress and EMC emissions are achieved.

“We expect smartphone and handheld device developers, OEMs and ODMs to be particularly interested in the benefits of our technology as consumers want more multimedia features, such as colour screens, digital cameras and MMS, as well as longer battery life,” said Simon Payne, Adiabatic Logic’s chief executive officer.

“It is our belief that IOD-enabled devices represent the future and anyone who wants to ensure they remain at the cutting-edge of technology will need to enhance their products by integrating the significant improvements that IOD provides. Devices not employing the benefits of IOD will become redundant, as faster, more power efficient IOD-enabled devices take their place.”

Adiabatic Logic’s licensable IP is available from the second quarter of 2003.

Commenting on Adiabatic Logic’s IP, Professor Steve Furber FRS FREng, coinventor of the ARM processor and now head of computer science at Manchester University, England, said: “IOD is the most elegant solution for significantly reducing the power cost of I/O drivers that I have seen. It has the potential to reduce the power budget of digital ICs dramatically, enabling highend processors and memories to deliver higher performance without exceeding power limits as well as enhancing the battery life of multi-chip mobile systems. In my view there is almost no digital IC that would not benefit from using this technology.”

About Adiabatic Logic (www.adiabaticlogic.com)

Founded in 2002, Adiabatic Logic Limited is part of the Cambridge Technology Group and was set up to exploit a portfolio of secured patents in the low power technology arena. Adiabatic Logic has a patented technique with the potential to significantly reduce the power consumption of digital computer chips, such as those found in today's laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and mobile phones.

The design team's focus is on creating and applying intellectual property (IP) to exploit the concept of 'loss-less' processes. An adiabatic process is one in which no heat is gained or lost. It is a concept normally associated with the behaviour of gases but can be applied in other physical domains, such as electronics. The company is based at Dry Drayton, on the outskirts of Cambridge, England.

About the Cambridge Technology Group (www.cambridgetechgroup.com)

Cambridge Technology Group is a holding company with three wholly owned subsidiaries - Adiabatic Logic Limited, Cambridge Technology Consultants Limited and XJTAG Limited. Cambridge Technology Consultants (www.camtechconsultants.com) offers its clients a broad range of services from high-end applications to innovative product development and technical consultancy skills. For ten years, its multi disciplinary team of hardware and software engineers have provided cost-effective solutions from concept through to pre-production. XJTAG Limited (www.xjtag.com) is a specialist design and test tool developer. Its JTAG (Joint Test Action Group) development system offers a competitive solution for designers and developers of electronic circuits.

Media contacts (to arrange interviews or for additional material and photography):

Martin Brooke
Martin Brooke Associates
Tel: +44 (0) 1223 244500
Email: martin.brooke@mba-pr.com

Simon Payne
Cambridge Technology Group / Adiabatic Logic
The Irwin Centre
Scotland Road, Dry Drayton
Cambridge CB23 8AR
England
Tel: +44 (0) 1954 211244
Email: simon.payne@adiabaticlogic.com