Big Blue's Wafer-Thin Victory

NEW YORK: Big Blue is back with a bang. After decades of languishing behind Intel and Motorola, IBM looks as if it will be taking the lead in the chip-making business with a new technology that, it claims, will boost the performance of microprocessors by more than a third. It's called Silicon On Insulator (SOI), and it works by inserting a wafer under the main chip layer that helps to reduce the amount of electricity your transistors have to store each time they're used.

By this process, say IBM scientists, a 400 MHz chip will be transformed into a nippy little 500 MHz. That's good news for Apple, whose IBM-made PowerPC chips will be faster than ever. IBM itself, which stuck with SOI research years after companies such as Intel decided to stick with pure silicon, has had its faith vindicated. And speedier chips pay dividends, says TIME Science Writer Joshua Ramo: "Microprocessors are going to be one of the future's biggest businesses."

Why? Because they're everywhere. And SOI will mean speedier service and longer battery life for your mobile phone and Palm Pilot, as well as your desktop computer. There is a drawback, however. The new technology will initially add 10 percent to the cost of chip manufacturing. And you can bet your bottom silicon wafer that Big Blue will pass those expenses on to the consumer.