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Power Wall MicroSim

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Notes for CPU Clock Speed "Power Wall" Visualization

I've created a new MicroSim visualization that shows the evolution of CPU clock speeds from 1965 to 2025, highlighting the "Power Wall" phenomenon. This visualization illustrates how CPU clock speeds increased exponentially until around 2004, then hit thermal and power constraints that limited further increases in frequency.

Key Features of the Visualization

  1. Timeline: Covers 1965-2025, showing the complete history of CPU clock speeds from early computing to present day
  2. Data Points: Each point represents a significant CPU release with its clock speed in MHz
    • Color-coded by manufacturer (Intel blue, AMD red, others gray)
    • Hoverable points with detailed information including:
      • CPU name and year
      • Clock speed (MHz/GHz)
      • Manufacturer
      • Process node
      • Power consumption (TDP in watts)
      • Description of the CPU's significance
  3. Annotations: Three key moments in CPU history are highlighted:
    • The Power Wall (2004): When the Pentium 4 Prescott hit 3.4 GHz but faced severe thermal issues
    • Multi-core Transition (2006): When the industry shifted focus to adding more cores rather than increasing frequency
    • Advanced Process Nodes (2023): When newer manufacturing processes enabled clock speeds to rise again
  4. Scale Options: Toggle between linear and logarithmic scales
    • Linear scale shows the dramatic plateauing effect after 2004
    • Logarithmic scale shows the overall growth pattern across the decades
  5. Responsive Design: Automatically resizes to fit the container width

The "Power Wall" Story

The visualization effectively tells the story of how CPU clock speeds:

  1. 1965-2000: Started very low (under 1 MHz) and grew slowly but steadily
  2. 2000-2004: Increased rapidly from 1.5 GHz to 3.4 GHz (the "clock speed race" era)
  3. 2004-2010: Hit the "Power Wall" where thermal constraints prevented further increases
  4. 2010-2020: Remained relatively flat, with the industry focusing on multi-core designs
  5. 2020-2025: Began to rise again as advanced manufacturing processes improved efficiency

Technical Implementation

The visualization uses p5.js with the following technical approaches:

  • Data Structure: Contains 40+ data points with comprehensive information for each CPU
  • Interactive Elements: Hoverable data points with detailed information cards
  • Trendline: Connected points showing the overall trajectory of clock speeds
  • Annotations: Highlighted key moments with explanatory text
  • Responsive Design: Adapts to container width changes
  • Scale Toggle: Button to switch between linear and logarithmic scales

This visualization complements the Moore's Law transistor count visualization by showing how another aspect of CPU performance (clock speed) faced fundamental physical limitations that transistor counts did not, illustrating why the industry shifted to multi-core designs as the primary way to improve performance.