First Silicon for Adiabatic Logic's IOD Shows over 50% Power Savings in Chip I/O.

Business Editors/Science Writers/High-Tech Writers

CAMBRIDGE, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 13, 2003

Adiabatic Logic Limited (www.adiabaticlogic.com), a Cambridge-based company focused on creating and licensing intellectual property (IP) in the low power technology arena, has completed the first silicon implementation of its low power Intelligent Output Driver (IOD) technology - and tests show power savings of more than 50% in chip I/O for portable electronic devices.

"This is a major milestone for Adiabatic Logic as it is the first proof that our patented IOD technology delivers the power savings on silicon that our early simulated tests suggested," said Geoff Harvey, Adiabatic Logic's chief technology officer. "Achieving over 50% power savings with our first test chip is a significant achievement and we will improve this through a program of incremental development, which will include a further tape out with refinements before the year-end."

The IOD IP cell is designed to replace the conventional pad drivers in an integrated circuit (IC) and uses a patented energy recycling technique, which in simulated tests delivered 50-75% power savings in chip I/O for portable devices such as laptops, smartphones, handheld computers, digital cameras and MP3 players.

The Intelligent Output Driver (IOD) uses the speed of submicron CMOS (complementary metal oxide semiconductor) to actively mimic the voltage-current drive characteristics of a classic driver with a source (or series) terminator resistor. It does this in such a way that the bulk of the current is delivered to the load capacitance non-resistively from a reservoir capacitance maintained at a mid rail voltage, assisted by the inherent inductance of the load. The on-chip reservoir capacitance delivers charge on rising edges and recovers charge on falling edges thereby recycling energy, which is conventionally wasted.

"We have had a lot of interest in IOD in recent months from right across the electronics industry - a clear indication of just how important conserving power has become, particularly for those developing portable battery powered electronic devices," said Simon Payne, Adiabatic Logic's chief executive officer. "However, now that we have working test chips that prove out the technology at IC level we hope to be having more serious discussions with potential partners about licensing our IOD technology."

Adiabatic Logic's IOD solution offers a multitude of other potential benefits to IC and system developers in addition to power saving. For example, it can reduce the overall component count and bill of material (BOM) cost by minimizing battery size, cutting DC-DC converter/thermal management costs and eliminating the requirement for terminating resistors.

About Adiabatic Logic Limited (www.adiabaticlogic.com)

Founded in 2002, Adiabatic Logic Limited is part of the Cambridge Technology Group and was set up to exploit a portfolio of secured patents in the low power technology arena. Adiabatic Logic has a patented technique with the potential to significantly reduce the power consumption of digital computer chips, such as those found in today's laptop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and mobile phones.

The design team's focus is on creating and applying intellectual property (IP) to exploit the concept of 'loss-less' processes. An adiabatic process is one in which no heat is gained or lost. It is a concept normally associated with the behavior of gases but can be applied in other physical domains, such as electronics. The company is based at Dry Drayton, on the outskirts of Cambridge, England.

About the Cambridge Technology Group (www.cambridgetechgroup.com)

Cambridge Technology Group is a holding company with three wholly owned subsidiaries - Adiabatic Logic Limited, Cambridge Technology Consultants Limited and XJTAG Limited. Cambridge Technology Consultants (www.camtechconsultants.com) offers its clients a broad range of services from high-end applications to innovative product development and technical consultancy skills. For ten years, its multi disciplinary team of hardware and software engineers have provided cost-effective solutions from concept through to pre-production. XJTAG Limited (www.xjtag.com) is a specialist design and test tool developer. Its JTAG (Joint Test Action Group) development system offers a competitive solution for designers and developers of electronic circuits.