Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Hafnium the new chip metal - new in microprocessors
In Jan 2007, Intel and IBM announced that their faster and more efficient microprocessors would be constructed using Hafnium.
The silvery metal Hafnium has the number 72 in the periodic table and is not available in plenty - not at least in practical terms. Every year only about 50 T of Hafnium is produced. Since it does not occur as a vein it can be extracted only as a by-product of zirconium oxide.
Some consider that this metal could signal the next breakthrough in semiconductors as chipmakers plan to use it in everything from computers to cell phone chips. In these microprocessors, Hafnium oxide will replace the layer of silicon oxide in the small transistors or microprocessors that constitute a computer chip.
The Hafnium chips are expected to reduce power loss significantly resulting in excellent power savings. Semiconductors based on Hafnium are also estimated to run run 20% faster.
The main users of Hafnium currently are in the domains of nuclear control rods and high-specification jet engine metals.
Los Angeles based American Elements is one of the producers of hafnium, doing about half a tonne per year.
Would the fact that the world produces so little Hafnium be a constraint for use in chips? Apparently not, since each transistor / microprocessor would be using such miniscule quantities of this metal.
The silvery metal Hafnium has the number 72 in the periodic table and is not available in plenty - not at least in practical terms. Every year only about 50 T of Hafnium is produced. Since it does not occur as a vein it can be extracted only as a by-product of zirconium oxide.
Some consider that this metal could signal the next breakthrough in semiconductors as chipmakers plan to use it in everything from computers to cell phone chips. In these microprocessors, Hafnium oxide will replace the layer of silicon oxide in the small transistors or microprocessors that constitute a computer chip.
The Hafnium chips are expected to reduce power loss significantly resulting in excellent power savings. Semiconductors based on Hafnium are also estimated to run run 20% faster.
The main users of Hafnium currently are in the domains of nuclear control rods and high-specification jet engine metals.
Los Angeles based American Elements is one of the producers of hafnium, doing about half a tonne per year.
Would the fact that the world produces so little Hafnium be a constraint for use in chips? Apparently not, since each transistor / microprocessor would be using such miniscule quantities of this metal.
Labels: metals, microprocessors
