3D transistors? Ugh. Dude, that’s so 2011. IBM’s new design for RAM, employing a 3D manufacturing process, is where the real future magic lies.
Developed in conjunction with Micron, the Hybrid Memory Cube uses a 32nm manufacturing process and is 15 times faster than current RAM. The secret to the technology lies in the use of TSV’s which are vertical rods which link stacks of chips together.
HMC delivers bandwidth and efficiencies a leap beyond current device capabilities. HMC prototypes, for example, clock in with bandwidth of 128 gigabytes per second (GB/s). By comparison, current state-of-the-art devices deliver 12.8 GB/s. HMC also requires 70 per cent less energy to transfer data while offering a small form factor – just 10 per cent of the footprint of conventional memory.
Initially, this technology will be used for large scale IT and server applications, but will eventually trickle down into the consumer products we all use. [IBM/Physorg]