Power seems to be the buzzword for 2012. Of course, it always
has been important but, for some reason, it seems to be even
more important now. Why is that? Perhaps it is because the
number of mobile devices is growing at an extraordinary pace and
the competition is fierce. Or, maybe it’s because desktop and
server environments (read: cloud and server farms, for example)
are hungrier than ever for watts. Or, what if gates really are
“free” as we approach smaller design nodes? Has the pendulum
swung away from critical area requirements toward power
reduction? In reality, the push for lower power probably is a
combination of a number of factors including those above. It
also depends on the application for the design. What is certain
is that power, just as with area, seems to be important to every
design team to some extent. It is up to the tool vendors to find
ways to allow design teams to consistently improve quality of
results (QoR) in multiple dimensions, including power.
Traditionally the power problem has b