INTEL has taken the wraps off a secret technique it is using to increase the speed of its Pentium and Centrino chips. The technique boosts the rate at which transistors switch, without having to make them smaller. The announcement, at the International Electron Devices Meeting in Washington DC last week, gives a glimpse into the intensely secretive way chip firms attempt to gain an edge over their competitors in a market worth over $100 billion a year.
Chip speed ultimately depends on the rate at which transistors can switch on and off. This in turn depends on the speed at…
