Power Integrity Analysis and Management for Integrated Circuits

Chapter 4. Early Power Integrity Analysis and Abstraction

The Jevons Paradox¹ may be applied to accurately predict the progression of transistor integration, computing performance, frequency, and chip power over the decades since early integrated circuit (IC) development. Jevons observed that a more efficient use of a resource leads to greater utilization of that very resource, typically overcoming the cost benefit of the efficiency improvement. Reducing the cost of integration of transistors, therefore, leads to the use of more transistors, or greater integration, surpassing the initial cost benefit. Similarly, increased chip operating frequencies, or improved performance, fuels greater demand for frequency increases, and leads to transistors ...