A system and method to optimize multi-core microprocessor performance
using voltage offsets is presented. A multi-core device tests each of its
processor cores in order to identify each processor core's optimum supply
voltage. In turn, the device configures voltage offset networks for each
processor core based upon each processor core's identified optimum supply
voltage. As a result, the offset voltages produced by the voltage offset
networks are subtracted from the multi-core device's main voltage, which
results in the voltage offset networks supplying optimum supply voltages
to each processor core. The voltage offset networks may include fuses to
generate a fixed voltage offset, or the voltage offset networks may
include a control circuit to dynamically adjust voltage offsets during
the multi-core device's operation.