Tech firm's stacked chips zip to market; But skeptics wonder: How to handle the heat?(News)

Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON

Tezzaron Semiconductor, a Naperville upstart with 21 employees, claims to have reached a breakthrough long sought by chip designers: successfully stacking and wiring microprocessors.

The goal is to make smaller, denser chips that require less energy to run-and don't melt, a hazard that other researchers have encountered when trying to pile up microprocessors.

The new technology, unveiled at a trade show earlier this month, burns less energy and processes information about five times faster than conventional semiconductor chips, company officials say.

Financed with funds from a handful of wealthy investors, the tiny firm plans …