Does this new development mean we'll be having really fast computers and other consumer devices soon, since this is 250 times faster than chips used today?

The research team - composed of students from Georgia Institute of Technology and Korea University, and researchers from IBM Microelectronics - was able to develop a silicon-based semiconductor that can operate at a jaw-dropping 500 gigahertz.

This technology, which operates at 350 gigahertz at room temperature, was placed in a cryogenic test station with a temperature of 451 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. The team used liquid helium to help the chip achieve this desired operating speed.

According to researchers, this development is crucial. Not only will it enable the creation of affordable processors for consumer applications in the future (the chips being silicon-based), but this also proves that the physical limitations of chip performance have not been reached yet.

IBM's vice-president and chief technologist, Bernard Meyerson, confidently stated that most developments like this usually find their way into commercial devices after a year or two.

A representative of a technology consulting firm, Dan Olds, stated that although this development was positive for the industry, it would still be a little while before it can be used for commercial products. At present, most of the fast and feature-packed machines operate at about three gigahertz.