Predicting Voltage Droops Using Recurring Program and Microarchitectural Event Activity

Vijay Janapa Reddi, Meeta Sharma Gupta, Glenn H. Holloway, Michael D. Smith, Gu-Yeon Wei, David M. Brooks

Abstract: Shrinking feature size and diminishing supply voltage are making circuits more sensitive to supply voltage fluctuations within a microprocessor. If left unattended, voltage fluctuations can lead to timing violations or even transistor lifetime issues. A mechanism that dynamically learns to predict dangerous voltage fluctuations based on program and microarchitectural events can help steer the processor clear of danger.