When Sony reveals the technical details of the highly-anticipated advanced microprocessor code-named Cell, they will announce that the new processor will run at 4.6 gigahertz. IBM, Sony and Toshiba will present four technical papers at the International Solid State Circuits Conference to be held next month in San Francisco.

The Cell is a multicore chip comprising a 64-bit Power processor core and multiple synergistic processor cores capable of massive floating point processing. Sony plans to use the Cell to power its next generation PlayStation as well as home servers for broadband content and high-definition televisions.