On the rules of low-power design (and how to break them)

Abstract

Energy and power constraints have emerged as one of the greatest lingering challenges to progress in the computing industry. In this talk, I will highlight some of the "rules" of low-power design and show how they bind the creativity and productivity of architects and designers. I believe the best way to deal with these rules is to disregard them, through innovative design solutions that abandon traditional design methodologies. Releasing oneself from these ties is not as hard as one might think. To support my case, I will highlight two rule-breaking design trends from my work and the work of others. The first trend combines low-power designs with resiliency mechanisms to craft highly introspective and efficient systems. The second trend embraces subthreshold voltage design, which holds great promise for highly energy efficient systems.