The TC1066 is a serially programmable temperature
sensor optimized for monitoring modern high performance
CPUs with on-board integrated thermal diodes. Temperature
data is converted from the CPU’s thermal diode outputs
and made available as an 8-bit digital word.
Communication with the TC1066 is accomplished via
the standard System Management Bus (SMBus) commonly
used in modern computer systems. This permits reading the
current internal/external temperature, programming the
threshold setpoints, and configuring the device. Additionally,
an interrupt is generated on the ALERT#/COMP# pin
when temperature moves outside the preset threshold windows
in either direction. A separate CRITICAL setpoint is
provided through external hardwiring for “fail safe” operation
per ACPI guidelines.
A Standby command may be sent via the SMBus or by
signaling the STBY# input pin to activate the low-power
Standby mode. Registers can be accessed while in Standby
mode. Address selection inputs allow up to nine TC1066s to
share the same 2-wire SMBus for multi-zone monitoring.
All registers can be read by the host, and both polled and
interrupt driven systems are easily accommodated. Small
size, low installed cost, and ease of use make the TC1066
an ideal choice for implementing sophisticated system management
schemes, such as ACPI.