New Biomedical Disciplines and Advances in Computer Performance through Speed Enhancements - Convergence of Problems and Solutions

A class of signal processing problems has been identified which is characterized by input data bandwidths greater than 100 × 106 bytes/second and/or by throughput requirements beyond 5 × 108 arithmetic operations/second, thereby requiring specialized hardware processor implementations for their solution. Examples of such problems from biomedical environment will be presented and discussed. These large computational problems may be suitable candidates for solution by means of an emerging digital integrated circuit technology based upon Gallium Arsenide substrate material, in which the switching speed of the basic gates is enhanced. The technology of GaAs devices, the digital systems which will employ them in an optimal manner, and the tools necessary to design these systems to operate in very high frequency regimes, are described and reviewed.