‘Self-healing’ chip can recover after transistor failure

Researchers at Caltech have developed a “self-healing” chip that can recover from issues like reduced power and transistor failure. The chips are capable of recovering within microseconds and are small enough to fit on the surface of a penny, reports Parity News. Sensors on the chip monitor power, voltage, current, and temperature, and a separate integrated circuit is programmed to determine errors using the sensors’ input. When the system detects an issue, it can reconfigure the chip to work around it. Though the researchers refer to the system as “self-healing,” nothing is explicitly being rebuilt.

This isn’t the first instance of self-healing electronics that we’ve seen. In December, researchers at the University of Illinois developed circuitry that could restore conductivity by releasing liquid metal onto the board. There’s no hint as to when either technology could make it into consumer electronics, however.