Adiabatic circuits are low power circuits which use "reversible logic" to conserve energy. Unlike traditional CMOS circuits, which dissipate energy during switching, adiabatic circuits attempt to conserve charge by following two key rules:
- Never turn on a transistor when there is a voltage potential between the source and drain.
- Never turn off a transistor when current is flowing through it.
While this is an area of active research, current techniques rely heavily on transmission gates and trapezoidal clocks to achieve these goals.
Famous quotes containing the word circuit:
“Within the circuit of this plodding life
There enter moments of an azure hue,
Untarnished fair as is the violet
Or anemone, when the spring strews them
By some meandering rivulet, which make
The best philosophy untrue that aims
But to console man for his grievances.
I have remembered when the winter came,”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)