Odd 970 Photos

[szark]

They're all working for me...


As far as the shape differences, these pictures show the wafer-level packaged die. (The actual die which sits in the middle of the larger full-size chip package.)

 

[scem0]

how crazy. lol. Im so confused yet amused. That rhymes......

I need to get more sleep.

 

[RandomDeadHead]

Re: confirmed 970??

WYI

Here is a screenshot of page six of the pdf

 

[DTphonehome]

Very Nice

These pics shouldn't be derided as trash! They are very tastefully done! And I'm sure the accompanying article is fascinating, too.

 

[arn]

The PDF is not an official IBM document.

It's a reprint from the Microprocessor Report which was discussed already here.

arn

 

[RandomDeadHead]

Oh I see.


Don't you just love the taste of re-hashed rumors?

 

[cubist]

Originally posted by RandomDeadHead
Don't you just love the taste of re-hashed rumors?

Especially if you eat them at 3.

 

[Mudbug]

Ooooooh. IBM's website.


I read it for the articles. *chuckle*

 

[voyagerd]

OMG... This is one of the funniest forum topics ever. Even more funny than the "Why Florida" topic at a Star Trek site about Enterprise. I love the picture with the slave


SPADAVECCHIO!!!!!

 

[PyroTurtle]

wow, this just made my day better, thank you all

 

[sedarby]

Re: Re: How about some G4 on G4 action?

Originally posted by maradong
lol ?
come on people. if ibm has got it , and it is rumored to be already in production, and well, it seems apple will use it as their next prozessor ( don t know anymore where i read that ) when will we get it. that is the question. it s a matter of time, not of : if.

It will be a matter of IF up until the time Apple announces their plans to use the 970.

 

[sedarby]

Re: confirmed 970??

Originally posted by littlerich
woo.. take a look at this.. i think we can take this as ibm confirmation that the 970. read the last paragraph of this pdf from ibm.. it explains it all...

http://www-3.ibm.com/chips/techlib/techlib.nsf/techdocs/A2CE393ABF2CE99787256D21006AE8A2

Unless the writer of this article works for IBM then anything said about Apple using the processor is pure speculation. The article suggests that Apple would be using the 970 since OS X deserves a more powerful processor. Until Apple says it, it is just a rumor.

 

[chewbaccapits]

Re: Re: Re: How about some G4 on G4 action?

Originally posted by vniow
The 970 is a little touchy though, it doesn't like being the one to sleep in the wet spot...

Nice, vniow...nice

 

[sibtrag]

Feathers

I would take the feathers as an insider joke on one of the development code names for 970 (ultralight).

I compared the photos with the feathers to the 970 die photo available from the same gallery.

The aspect ratio of the chip pictured with the feathers appears to match the aspect ratio of the die photo of the 970. The die photo is likely of a chip pulled from the line before the upper metal layers were deposited. This gives a picture which highlights the floorplanning.

Chips fabricated all the way to the C4s (like the one pictured with the feather) are pretty boring and uniform looking because most of what you're seeing are the C4s (solder balls), power grid, and clock grid.

As an aside, it is not clear to me whether that "die photo" is an actual photo. It looks suspiciously regular. Real die photos have variations in color between different instances of the same circuit because of the different light paths and interference patterns.

The "IBM 64-bit PowerPC 970 microprocessor chip die. (#88)" looks too regular. Notice how the different sub-blocks of the caches are all exactly idential to each other. This reminds me of the fake die photo plots we use internally for presentations, posters, etc. They are much more satisfying than an actual die photo because they reveal more of the internal structure...it's easier to point to "what I designed".

C4 = Controlled Collapse Chip Connection, introduced in products in 1964.

 

[Abstract]

Ah geez, this is like porn for nerds.

 

[jethroted]

Originally posted by Abstract
Ah geez, this is like porn for nerds.

I think that is exactly what it is. Who's idea was this at IBM anyway? They actually had pro photographers come in and do this, but for what reason?

 

[PatrThom]

Feathers = substrate?

Actually, I'm wondering if the fact that the chip is among feathers might not somehow be a reference to the fact that compressed feathers are being suggested by some as a replacement for the silicon wafers currently used in semiconductor manufacturing.

Check out the details at the following URLs:

https://www.ccm.udel.edu/news/July02News/July02News-ACRES1.htm
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0708m.html
http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20020802S0025
http://www.acm.org/technews/articles/2002-4/0708m.html

Most of these articles are dated July of last year, so it isn't all that brand new. Even the people over at IBM could've possibly heard about it by now.

--Patrick