Overview
- The Fast Logic Portfolio fundamental designs that are widely used in high-speed logic circuits, and improve the speed, power consumption, and noise immunity of digital CMOS based integrated circuits.
- Fast Logic high-speed memory designs include improvements to circuit and associated transistor designs that have become fundamental building blocks for a huge variety of products because the designs are easily transferable to multiple integrated circuit families and applications through design reuse strategies, which enable design teams to significantly shorten design cycles and reduce R&D costs.
Technology & Applications
The proven Fast Logic design techniques (see the Fast Logic Portfolio Lifecycle Chart) have enabled the industry to achieve significant performance advantages across several kinds of integrated circuits including: microprocessors, microcontrollers, programmable logic, DSPs, ASICs, SoCs, SDRAM (DDR, DDR2, and DDR3), NOR flash, SRAM, MEMS devices and more.
See the Fast Logic Portfolio Lifecycle Chart.
| Fast Logic Gate US’367 |
The high-speed complementary FET logic AND (NAND)/ OR (NOR) circuits use fewer transistors. |
| Fast Buffer Cell Logic US’853 |
The high-speed ring segment buffer circuit offers increased performance when driving large capacitive loads. |
| Fast Timing US’212 |
The Fast Timing Logic circuits offer significantly increased input noise immunity for clocked logic. |
| Fast Sense Amp US’949 |
The differential latching inverter sense amp structure offers marked increase in speed. |
Fast Logic Innovator
Born in 1928, Albert (Al) Vinal was drafted into the Army Signal Corp where he earned a Distinguished Service Award for his role in design and extension of military radar capabilities. He graduated from MIT in 1954 with a BSEE and later earned a MSEE from Syracuse University.
In 1956, Al joined IBM to work on control systems and various memory technologies. He earned an Outstanding Invention Award for fundamental work in solid-state memories. As IBM’s designate, Al co-developed high-speed memory technologies with Fairchild Semiconductor’s Robert Noyce, who ultimately co-founded Intel. Upon retiring from IBM in 1987, Al had collected over 70 patents.
Having sold his cherished Ford Thunderbird to fund the effort, Al founded Thunderbird Technologies in 1989, focusing research and development on SRAM-related design innovations and FET transistor architecture. The visionary engineer, mathematician and scientist authored another 29 patents relating to high-speed memories and high-performance transistor design that became the fundamental building blocks of today’s high-speed digital circuitry.