Jan 1, 2001 12:00 PM, MOBILE RADIO TECHNOLOGY STAFF

IBM, Armonk, NY, and Infineon Technologies, Munich, Germany, announced the companies' joint development of magnetic random-access memory chips that use magnetism, rather than electrical charges, to store data bits.

The switch from electrical to magnetic memory could have a fundamental impact on cellphones and laptop computers. Turning on a computer could become an instantaneous procedure, and users could be able to leave a laptop on for years without draining the battery's power.

"Potentially this could change the memory business very dramatically," said Bijan Davari, head of IBM's technology and emerging products in the company's microelectronics division. "But the key word is `potentially.'"

The change will not, however, happen over night. Commercial production of MRAM chips will not be online in volume until 2004.

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