– What is limiting computer processors to operate beyond the current range of clock frequencies (from 3 to up 5GHz)?

Question

– What is limiting computer processors to operate beyond the current range of clock frequencies (from 3 to up 5GHz)?

In: Engineering

Answer 1

Mostly heat generation and lack of dissipation.

Faster things produce substantially more heat than slower things, and with as dense as we pack that stuff in, there’s only so much heat we can get rid of so quickly.

Eventually it’ll just melt. Or at least it will cease to perform as a computer needs to perform.

edit:: Making the CPU larger serves to increase the length between each transistor. This introduces a time delay that reduces overall clock speeds. CPU’s are packed as densely as they are because that’s what gives us these insanely fast clock speeds that we’ve become accustomed to.