IBM demonstrated new “high-k/metal gate” technology that boosts performance by up to 30 percent and reduces power consumption by up to 50 percent on chips manufactured using the 32-nanometer process.

IBM is also developing silicon nanophotonics technology, which could replace some of the wires on a chip with pulses of light on tiny optical fibers for quicker and more power-efficient data transfers between cores on a chip. It is also working with U.S. universities to develop carbon nanotubes, smaller transistors that could deliver better performance than current transistors.