Intel Eliminates Lead From 45 Nanometer CPUs

Intel announced earlier this week that its future 45nm processors are going to be entirely lead free. This is good news for those concerned about the dangerous health risks that lead poses. Lead is a poisonous metal which causes both blood and brain disorders in humans. Lead is particular damaging to the nervous connections (especially in young children). The cognitive problems caused by lead in children have brought about widespread reduction in lead use around the world. The EU's RoHS directive has given electronics manufactures an even stronger incentive (and mandate) to eliminate lead and other toxic materials from their products.

"Intel is taking an aggressive stance toward environmental sustainability, from the elimination of lead and a focus on greater energy efficiency of our products to fewer air emissions and more water and materials recycling," said Nasser Grayeli, Intel vice president and director of assembly test technology development. In 2002, Intel produced its first lead-free flash memory products. In 2004, the company began shipping products with 95 percent less lead than previous microprocessor and chipset packages. Now, Intel is taking the further step of entirely eliminating lead from its future CPUs.

In other eco-friendly Intel news, their 45nm processors also make use of the company's Hi-k silicon technology for reduced transistor leakage, enabling more energy-efficient, high-performance processors. The company's 45nm Hi-k silicon technology also includes third-generation strained silicon for improved drive current and a lower interconnect capacitance using low-k dielectrics for increased performance and lower power. The end result is less power usage (and heat) along with more performance per watt.

This latest news marks a continued trend on Intel's part to emphasize energy efficiency. Much of the impetus for the efficiency overhaul at Intel was cause by AMD making inroads into the server market a few years ago. AMD's Opteron trounced the Intel Xeon in performance per watt, as well a performance per gigahertz. However, Intel has since caught up with AMD and now exceeds them with many parts currently being shipped.