Appearance of the world’s first plastic ARM processor chip, paving the way for the “Cyberpunk” world

With the arrival of plastic ARM semiconductor chips, a world like Cyberpunk will soon cease to be fiction.

Previously, the image of semiconductor chips was always associated with silicon, but now that is different. ARM and PragmatIC researchers have successfully developed the world’s first plastic-based semiconductor chip. This chip model is based on the M0 design, a micro 32-bit ARM chip model with 18,000 logic gates, a microprocessor, with built-in memory, a controller, and the ability to input and output signals. The research, published in the scientific journal Nature, ushers in an era of chips that are flexible, bendable, and cheaper to manufacture than silicon chips.

Silicon has been the base element for semiconductor chips since the dawn of computing, starting more than 50 years ago with Intel’s 4004 CPU. The reason it was chosen is because of 2 factors. First, it is the second most abundant element on earth, which is both cheap and readily available. The second is because it can potentially be a conductor or an insulator depending on how it is finished.

However, Silicon also has a number of disadvantages that make it increasingly limited in terms of application scope. First, it is hard and brittle, making it difficult to implant in organisms or apply in many other biotechnologies. Second, it’s cheap, but it’s still not cheap enough to be applied in every everyday product. And plastic semiconductor chips have emerged to overcome those limitations of silicon chips.

Remember that plastic is not a substitute. Silicon chips still have the advantage in terms of performance, transistor density and power efficiency. Plastic chips appear to make up for the shortcomings of Silicon, bringing semiconductor chips to more corners of people’s lives. Plastic chips can be used on food packaging (the bottle can analyze whether the milk or juice in the bottle has gone bad), clothing (a shirt can adjust the density of the fabric to help keep warm). cooler or cooler), smart bandages, in-body chips for diagnosis, skin monitors, etc. All these will create a modern world where semiconductor technology is everywhere. rank. Since then a world like Cyberpunk will soon cease to be fiction.

The researchers predict the chip will be capable of scaling up to 100,000 logic gates before power consumption becomes an issue and requires additional materials for the manufacturing process. The test chip consumes only 21 milliwatts of power, most of which is consumed during idling, easily using the power of a solar panel smaller than a postage stamp.

Synopsis:

– ARM and PragmatIC researchers have successfully developed the world’s first semiconductor chip using plastic as the base material.

– This chip is based on the M0 design, a micro 32-bit ARM chip model with 18,000 logic gates, a microprocessor, built-in memory, controller, and input and output capabilities.

This research has ushered in an era of flexible, bendable chips that are also cheaper to manufacture than silicon chips.

– The researchers predict the chip is capable of scaling up to 100,000 logic gates before power consumption becomes an issue.

Source Tom’s Hardware compiled GVN360

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