Sept. 08, 2008: In an effort to reduce its carbon footprint, chipmaker Intel Relevant Products/Services has rolled out four new chips designed to be faster -- while also being environmentally friendly.

Intel has launched low-power, 45nm Xeon server chips made with hafnium instead of halogen. Halogen is a member of a family of elements used primarily, in Intel products and throughout the industry, as a flame retardant. Recycling halogen-based products is done by incineration. If halogen is not incinerated properly and is inhaled, it can be toxic and harmful to people.

As the company moved from a 65nm chip to a 45nm chip, the layer of insulation in the chip became thinner and provided opportunity for electrons to travel from one point to another when they are not supposed to, leading to unwanted leakage, according to Intel.

Intel is attacking the problem by replacing components of the transistor with new materials. The company is replacing insulation with high-k material. The polysilicon gate is being replaced by a metal material. Together, the combination allows Intel to make the insulator thicker, which reduces leakage.

"There are no legislative or regulatory requirements forcing us to do this," said Joe Barletta, operations manager at Intel. "This is something Intel has chosen to do because it contributes to our environmental footprint. Doing so created some technical challenges as well, but we think this is the right thing to do."

Faster, Energy-Efficient

Intel has been working on its environmental impact since 1999, according to the company, and announced several efforts on lead reductions since 2003. Intel also has been working on halogen removal since 2004.

The new material enables more than 20 percent improvement in transistor-switching speed and includes 10 times the reduction in outside leakage, according to Intel.

All 5200 and 5400 Xeon-series chips will now be halogen-free. The low-voltage version uses 50 watts of power, while the dual-core x5270 processor uses 80 watts of power. Companies using workstation, high-performance, blade and mainstream servers are expected to benefit the most from the new halogen-free chips.

Source: http://www.toptechnews.com/story.xhtml?story_id=0200014DG4YS