The European Union is taking measures against those dreaded vampires that feed off of energy while in sleep mode. This isn’t a flesh and blood problem but rather an electronic one. See the problem is that most of our electronics, like the PC, have a ‘hibernation’ function built into it that, when not in use, still consume some amount of power.
Over time the power that’s consumed by these sleeping electronics can add up to almost 10% of your electric bill! However we may have an unsung hero to combat this problem in the form of semiconducting nanowires or silicon and silicon germanium. Called ‘Project Steeper’, the EU is sponsoring a multimillion dollar research program to eliminate the problem of transistor leak. Transistor leak is when energy escapes from a microprocessors circuits or ‘gates’, just as a leaky faucet might drip water. The weapon of choice to combat this problem is called ‘tunnel field-effect transistors.’
These transistors will incorporate a steeper slope between the on/off transitions rather than the standard MOSFET (metal oxide semiconductor field transistor). One group of researchers plan on using silicon and silicon germanium to make these new transistors, while another group plans on using semiconducting nanowires. Since the wires are cylindrical the group can wrap the gate around the cylinder giving better control over the opening and closing of the gate, which like a diaper, would prevent less electrical leakage.
Both transistors from the two groups would use less than 0.5 volts, which in turn use less power than traditional transistors, and would ultimately save us money. Project Steeper is being led by Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, IBM, and a number of European academic and commercial research organizations. Hopefully we will see a working transistor within three years, but until then it’s wise to just turn off your electronics while not in use. I actually unplug most of my devices. The original Xbox 360 eats 6W even when off!
Eavesdropper