But another way to boost processor power is to find new ways to design chips so that they're more efficient.

So, yes, it's more a function of the reader, although you could deliberately design chips that had a lower range.

The primary corporate product is software used to design chips and printed circuit boards.

Motorola Inc., for instance, reduced the time it took to design certain chips from 16 weeks to one week.

"You can't stop designing new chips," he said of Cadence's customer base.

Separating those functions allowed companies to design innovative chips without having costly manufacturing facilities.

Although Mentor and Quickturn both sell products used to design chips, they are in different parts of the business.

Currently, it is virtually the same process chip makers follow when designing new chips.

Or - as we do - it could involve formal verification of software, and designing new chips.

The group has also designed chips with up to 10,000 neurons and tested these in simulation, although they have not yet built them.