Patent ID: 7295949

Claim:
A method for providing energy-efficient electrical circuit performance, the method comprising: operating an electrical circuit at a current level of performance and a current level of energy efficiency by, at least in part, providing the electrical circuit with electrical power characterized by a current set of power characteristics, the current set of power characteristics comprising a current amount of voltage ripple; determining the current level of performance; comparing the current level of performance to a desired level of performance; and if the current level of performance is higher than the desired level of performance, then operating the electrical circuit at a next level of performance, which is lower than the current level of performance, and a next level of energy efficiency, which is higher than the current level of energy efficiency, by at least in part: determining to provide the electrical circuit with electrical power characterized by a next set of power characteristics, said determining comprising determining to provide the electrical circuit with a next amount of voltage ripple different from the current amount of voltage ripple; and providing the electrical circuit with electrical power characterized by the next set of power characteristics.