Energy–Performance Tunable Logic

We propose a new logic family that enables the user to tune the transistor's effective threshold voltage after fabrication for higher speed or lower power. This technique along with dynamic voltage scaling allows simultaneous optimization of static and dynamic power based on the application/workload requirements. Programmable interconnect from an FPGA was implemented using this logic family on a 90 nm CMOS test chip. Measurements show that this topology provides twice the tuning range in the energy-performance space compared to a conventional interconnect utilizing only supply voltage scaling. For most of the performance range, this circuit consumes 35% less energy compared to a state-of-the-art design. The circuit is an externally static, internally pulse-mode topology which can replace static circuits without requiring significant changes to the system.

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