6 ms·

Smart matter! So far we've only really been able to make smart paper (all chips are basically 2D). I remember reading in Stephenson's Diamond Age about a brick

by inasio 5y ago

Smart matter! So far we've only really been able to make smart paper (all chips are basically 2D). I remember reading in Stephenson's Diamond Age about a brick of compute, when I understood what it was it blew my mind...

z3t4 5y ago
Many chips today are multilayer (many sheets of paper)
- acidbaseextract 5y ago
  Multilayer interconnect or multiple layers of transistors?
  - formerly_proven 5y ago
    Many chips as in flash (and recently also DRAM), but stacking logic is fairly new.
    - inasio 5y ago
      Exactly! Stacked logic is the key to the fabled smart matter. Heat dissipation is going to be an issue, although I think IBM had some ideas on microfluidics. Also, there's been a ton of work on dilution fridges for quantum chips, and some startups are doing cryo logic, these two could complement
  - IshKebab 5y ago
    Multiple layers of transistors - at least for RAM (HBM). Multiple logic layers are coming really soon.
fulafel 5y ago
This is packaging, the chips are still square (though they do have several layers). A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow, square chips have the surface area for heat removal.
- KptMarchewa 5y ago
  Theoretically, could we run small heatpipes through chips to cool them down?
  - toqueteos 5y ago
    It's already proven to work[0], now we just have to cross our fingers that no big corp makes it super expensive for the masses. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdUgHxxVZcU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdUgHxxVZcU
    - ryder9 5y ago
      > now we just have to cross our fingers that no big corp makes it super expensive for the masses. don't waste your energy twisting your fingers, it's going to happen
  - girvo 5y ago
    I believe there is active research in micro fluidics to do exactly that.
- 01100011 5y ago
  > A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow That's not necessarily a problem if the cost of fabbing logic drops enough. It actually could make a lot of sense: throw more and more transistors and solving problems higher up the stack but use them with a lower duty cycle to avoid thermal issues. We may end up living in a world build of logic bricks, gently throwing off heat and solved problems while hiding as structural or aesthetic components.
- geertj 5y ago
  > A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow, square chips have the surface area for heat removal. If we’re talking science function anyway, could it be a superconductor at room temperature? Or would it be impossible to build logic out of that?
  - 5y ago
neurostimulant 5y ago
Kinda like magic crystals in fantasy stories. With the complexity of modern processors, they are basically slab of magic stones to most people anyway.
- abecedarius 5y ago
  That's unfair to Stephenson. The computer in his story was based on real design sketches of what you could do if you had atomically-precise manufacturing with an integrated liquid cooling network. (He did make the cooling network jet steam out at the end to go with the story's steampunk vibe -- that part seemed unrealistic.)

by inasio 5y ago

z3t4 5y ago

Many chips today are multilayer (many sheets of paper)

acidbaseextract 5y ago
Multilayer interconnect or multiple layers of transistors?
- formerly_proven 5y ago
  Many chips as in flash (and recently also DRAM), but stacking logic is fairly new.
  - inasio 5y ago
    Exactly! Stacked logic is the key to the fabled smart matter. Heat dissipation is going to be an issue, although I think IBM had some ideas on microfluidics. Also, there's been a ton of work on dilution fridges for quantum chips, and some startups are doing cryo logic, these two could complement
- IshKebab 5y ago
  Multiple layers of transistors - at least for RAM (HBM). Multiple logic layers are coming really soon.

fulafel 5y ago

This is packaging, the chips are still square (though they do have several layers). A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow, square chips have the surface area for heat removal.

KptMarchewa 5y ago
Theoretically, could we run small heatpipes through chips to cool them down?
- toqueteos 5y ago
  It's already proven to work[0], now we just have to cross our fingers that no big corp makes it super expensive for the masses. [0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdUgHxxVZcU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdUgHxxVZcU
  - ryder9 5y ago
    > now we just have to cross our fingers that no big corp makes it super expensive for the masses. don't waste your energy twisting your fingers, it's going to happen
- girvo 5y ago
  I believe there is active research in micro fluidics to do exactly that.
01100011 5y ago
> A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow That's not necessarily a problem if the cost of fabbing logic drops enough. It actually could make a lot of sense: throw more and more transistors and solving problems higher up the stack but use them with a lower duty cycle to avoid thermal issues. We may end up living in a world build of logic bricks, gently throwing off heat and solved problems while hiding as structural or aesthetic components.
geertj 5y ago
> A solid brick of compute would have to run pretty slow, square chips have the surface area for heat removal. If we’re talking science function anyway, could it be a superconductor at room temperature? Or would it be impossible to build logic out of that?
- 5y ago

neurostimulant 5y ago

Kinda like magic crystals in fantasy stories. With the complexity of modern processors, they are basically slab of magic stones to most people anyway.

abecedarius 5y ago
That's unfair to Stephenson. The computer in his story was based on real design sketches of what you could do if you had atomically-precise manufacturing with an integrated liquid cooling network. (He did make the cooling network jet steam out at the end to go with the story's steampunk vibe -- that part seemed unrealistic.)