Intel Atom Processor

Intel Atom is the brand name for a line of x86 and x86-64 CPUs (or microprocessors) from Intel, previously code-named Silverthorne and Diamondville processors, designed for a 45 nm CMOS process and intended for use in ultra-mobile PCs, smart phone and other portable and low-power applications.

Produced	2008
Common manufacturer(s)	Intel
Max CPU clock	800 MHz to 1.866 GHz
FSB speeds	400 MT/s to 533 MT/s
Min feature size	0.045 µm
Instruction set	x86, x86-64
Cores	1, 2
Package(s)	441-ball µFCBGA
Core name(s)	Silverthorne Diamondville

Architecture:-

Intel Atom can execute up to two instructions per cycle (similar to the 1993 Pentium). Atom implements the x86 (IA-32) instruction set; x86-64is so far only activated for the Atom 230 and 330 desktop models. N and Z series Atom models cannot run x86-64 code. Like many other designs it divides certain x86-instructions into simpler internal operations prior to execution, but to a significantly lesser extent (only ~4%) than in the Intel P6 (microarchitecture) and NetBurst families. In the Atom, internal μ-ops can contain both a memory load and a memory store in connection with an ALU operation, thus being more similar to the x86 level and more powerful than the μ-ops used in previous designs.This enables relatively good performance with only two integer ALUs, and without any instruction reordering, speculative execution, or register renaming. Atom therefore represents a partial revival of the principles used in earlier Intel designs such as Intel P5 and the i486, with the sole purpose of enhancing the performance per watt ratio.

It has been speculated that the die space used to perform x86-decoding will put the Atom design at a disadvantage compared to other mobile architectures, such as the ARM architecture.The Moorestown platform which is the successor of the Menlow Platform will be a system-on-a-chip design that uses half the power of a Silverthorne processor. The reduced power consumption will make the platform more desirable for use in smartphones and other mobile internet devices.

 

Power requirements:-

While the Atom processor itself is relatively power efficient for an x86 instruction set chip, the chipsets used with it are currently not as power efficient. For example while the N270 chip itself commonly used in netbooks has a maximum TDP of 2.5 W, the Intel Atom platform with the 945GSE Express chipset has a specified maximum TDP of 11.8 W, with the processor only making up a relatively small portion of the total power. Individual figures are 2.5W for the N270 processor, 6W for the 945GSE chipset and 3.3W for the 82801GBM I/O controller. Intel also provides the Intel System Controller Hub US15W chipset with a TDP of less than 5W for the Atom processor Z5xx (Silverthorne) series to be used in ultra-mobile PCs/Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs).

Future:-

The next generation of the Atom, "Lincroft," architecture will be launched in the second half of 2009 and is code-named Pineview. It will be used in Netbook/Nettop systems, and feature a system-on-chip (SOC) with an integrated single-channel DDR2 memory controller and an integratedgraphics core. Pineview, like Diamondville, will be available in single and dual-core versions. It will feature HyperThreading, and is to be manufactured on a 45nm or 32 nm process.

Intel CEO Paul Otellini has stated that, along with other improvements, Atom (specifically Silverthorne) will shrink to the 32 nm process in 2009. It has been suggested that the Atom will be the first Intel chip to transition to 32 nm due to its small size and low complexity.