Cell Processor

A new processor that will power the next-generation Play Stations, High Definition TVs and supercomputers

Monday, January 03, 2005

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I BM, Sony and Toshiba have re- leased details of a new processor being jointly developed by the three giants. Codenamed Cell, this processor is intended for use in a variety of applications from consumer electronics to desktops and supercomputers.

The three companies have been working on this 64-bit processor for the past four years. Though a lot of details about the processor are being kept under wraps for now, a Sony press release describes the . Cell as "a multicore chip comprising a 64-bit power processor core and multiple synergistic processor cores capable of massive floating point processing" that is "optimized for compute-intensive work- loads and broadband rich media applications".

To drive home the advantage of multiple cores in the simplest of terms, having multiple cores means that these cores can divide the work between themselves and get it done faster with simultaneous processing. This is made possible by having support for multiple threads at the processor level. Some unconfirmed reports have indicated that the Cell can integrate between four and 16 cores into a single chip. While lower-end versions with four cores would power embedded devices (such as set-top boxes),the 16-core versions would find their way into desktops.

Implemented in 90 nanometer (nm) silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology, the Cell is designed to support multiple OSs and offers real-time resource management for real-time applications. Work is still underway to reach 65 nm levels, which is what the Cell was sup- posed to achieve when the three companies set out. The bus band- width offered to and from the main memory and other companion chips is much greater than present-day processors.

Production of the chip is slated to begin at IBM's 300mm wafer fabrication facility in East Fishkill, New York, during the first half of 2005.Thefirst product to showcase the Cell processor would be a PC being jointly developed by Sony and IBM, which will go on sale in 2005. This PC would be targeted at accomplishing animation work and other high-end graphics-intensive tasks. Both Sony and Toshiba are looking to come out with high-definition television sets powered by the processor in 2006. But the Cell-based product that will probably make the maximum noise at ground level is the next version of Sony's popular gaming console, Play Station. Sony is banking on this processor to take the gaming experience to a whole new level, when it releases the Play Station3 in the middle of 2005. But, as we said before, Cell isn't all about fun and games. To get an idea about the power of the Cell processor, consider this: just a single rack full of Cell-equipped systems would be powerful enough to find itself all the way into the top 10 list of present-day supercomputers.

Further technical details about the processor would be released by the three companies at the International Solid-state Circuits Conference scheduled for February 6 to 10, 2005 in San Francisco. Stay tuned.

Kunal Dua

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