ASIC stands for Application Specific Integrated Circuits. Almost everyone is aware of what is an integrated circuit (IC) – it is a set of multiple electronic circuits placed on a single small flat piece. By making ICs specific to a given application, one can reap benefits of enhanced performance and optimized power consumption. A common example is a chip designed to run a digital voice recorder.
What are the latest uses of ASIC?
Bitcoin uses blockchain technology and needs a lot of computational power to mine new bitcoins. There have been multiple ASIC developed for mining the bitcoins and have varied performances. Some of them have also been developed which mine Bitcoin as well as Litecoin. You can check this list for Bitcoin mining ASICs.
More Information about ASIC
In general, you will find such ICs in almost every electronic device. Typically, it does one thing and it does it well! These circuits embed custom logic and hence are considered as proprietary devices. An extension on ASIC is ASSP – Application-specific standard product. ASSP implements a specific function that in itself is a product.
Since ASICs are custom made, the design team focuses on speed optimization and also ensure lowest power consumption. It usually involves a lot of R&D work. This pushes the cost northwards, however, you tend to gain on mass production and long-term benefits to retain market position.
Reasons why it is used:
- Compact size
- Power and performance
- IP Protection
- Speed
- Reliability
Types if ASIC
- Gate-Array Design
- Full-custom
- Semi-custom
- Platform