Author: Robert Hyatt
Date: 20:58:18 06/07/02
Go up one level in this thread
On June 07, 2002 at 16:41:17, Tom Likens wrote: > >Actually, as the wire gets thinner the resistance goes up not down. > I hope I didn't say resistance went down... >regards, >--tom > > >On June 06, 2002 at 18:02:24, Robert Hyatt wrote: > >>On June 06, 2002 at 17:38:07, Russell Reagan wrote: >> >>>What I would like to know is if there is a theoretical limit to the speed >>>processors can reach. >>> >>>I'm not sure if this is related or not, but I'll throw this out there also. I >>>recall long ago hearing or reading about how the electrons passing through a >>>wire (or whatever medium) bang into each other and thus cause the travel time >>>from one end of a wire to the other end to take longer, and also causing heat to >>>be generated from the collisions. It went on to talk about how the smaller the >>>wire gets, the fewer the number of collisions, the faster the travel time, and >>>less heat is generated. So is the theoretical limit to processor speed when we >>>are able to create a wire (or whatever medium) that has the width of a single >>>electron, and can thus move freely with no collisions? Sorry if this has nothing >>>to do with my original question. >>> >>>I'm not talking so much about other approaches to computing such as quantum >>>computing. I'm speaking in terms of our current architecture. >>> >>>Russell >> >> >>This is a lot of physical nonsense. IE an electron is not a "particle" and so >>it has no "width". >> >>There are problems with electron movement down a wire, as any good E&M course >>will explain. When an electron moves, it propogates a magnetic field. And >>while that field builds up, it hinders the electron's movement. No way to >>control that. >> >>There are other issues related to resistance, capacitance and inductance that >>influence electron movement as well. All cause problems (heat, delay, loss of >>signal strength). >> >>That is one reason for the great interest in optical circuitry where the >>problems are different.
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