You can also view previously answered questions in the HSW Question Archive . What I don't understand is why they can't just clock the G4 or any microprocessor at 1,000 MHz. My machine has a 333 MHz Celeron. For example, the chip might indicate that it is a 450 MHz part. This means that the chip will perform without error when executed at that speed or below within the chip's normal temperature parameters.
Transmission delays occur in the wires that connect things together on a chip.
A chip is nothing more that a collection of transistors and wires that hook them together. When a switch changes its state from on to off or off to on, it has to charge up or drain the wire that connects the transistor to the next transistor down the line. The wire it is driving is filled with electrons. The bigger the wire, the longer it takes. As the size of the wires has gotten smaller over the years, the time required to change states has gotten smaller too.