Introduction to Low Power Design
As electronic devices become more compact and battery-powered, power consumption has become a critical design constraint. Low power design techniques are essential for extending battery life, reducing heat dissipation, and improving overall system efficiency.
In digital circuits, power consumption occurs due to switching activity, short-circuit currents, and leakage currents. Effective low power design addresses these sources through various architectural, circuit, and system-level techniques.
Power Consumption Sources
- Dynamic Power
- Short-Circuit Power
- Leakage Power
Low Power Design Process
Key Low Power Techniques
Clock Gating
Disables the clock signal to inactive circuit blocks to eliminate unnecessary switching power.
Power Gating
Cuts off power supply to inactive blocks using sleep transistors to eliminate leakage power.
Multi-VDD Design
Uses different supply voltages for different circuit blocks based on performance requirements.
Body Biasing
Adjusts transistor threshold voltage to control leakage current and performance trade-offs.
Power Consumption Analysis
Power Consumption Chart
Power Metrics
Interactive Low Power Circuit
Circuit Controls
Advanced Power Simulations
Leakage Current Analysis
Explore how leakage current varies with temperature and process variations.
Dynamic Power Optimization
Analyze the impact of clock gating and voltage scaling on dynamic power.