Dynamic frequency scaling

Dynamic frequency scaling is a technique in computer architecture where a processor is run at a less-than-maximum frequency in order to conserve power. Dynamic frequency scaling is most commonoly used in laptops and other mobile devices, where energy comes from a battery and thus is limited.

Power consumption on a chip is given by the equation:

$P=C\times V^{2}\times F$

where P is power, C is the capacitance being switched per clock cycle, and F is the frequency (cycles per second). Frequency reduction reduces power consumption linearly.