Embedded Computing Down To Two Major Camps


By Pallab Chatterjee The 2011 CES show was highlighted by the large number of tablet computers and mobile devices that support Internet access. The form factor for these devices is based on use models, but the computing capabilities are based on the power and operational life between charges. The platforms are drawing diving lines between x86 cores vs ARM cores, and CPUs vs GPUs. While on t... » read more

Tailoring IP, Tools And Flows


By Ann Steffora Mutschler As SoC and system complexity rises continually and software drives much more in a system, specific vertical application areas will require tailored IP and tool flows to allow designers to meet time-to-market demands. Today, many systems are designed around a platform, which contains most of the STAR IP—processors, GPUs, memory controllers, interconnects, memory s... » read more

Embedded Computing Down To Two Major Camps


By Pallab Chatterjee The 2011 CES show was highlighted by the large number of tablet computers and mobile devices that support Internet access. The form factor for these devices is based on use models, but the computing capabilities are based on the power and operational life between charges. The platforms are drawing diving lines between x86 cores vs ARM cores, and CPUs vs GPUs. While on t... » read more

Low Power Dominates CES


By Pallab Chatterjee The 2011 Consumer Electronics Show was dominated by tablets and other mobile devices, and the common theme was communication and data access anywhere anytime. From a design perspective, that translates into two main systems targets and one major constraint. The two targets are wireless connectivity and high performance graphics. The major constraint is power use. The power... » read more

Trouble In The Patent Office


By Ed Sperling The next wave of patents being filed in the United States involves efficiency and power rather than simply speeding up performance of chips. But the patent system is moving so slowly these days that startups are unable to talk about what exactly they do, for fear of having their IP stolen, extending the time it takes to come out of stealth mode and arrange deals with potentia... » read more

Power Model Complexity Grows


By Ed Sperling The number of factors required for an effective power model has far surpassed the capabilities of even the most detailed spreadsheet at 45nm and beyond. It has now entered the realm of complex databases and architectural tradeoffs, and those tradeoffs will become even more complex as 3D stacking takes root over the next 24 months. The idea of modeling power is hardly new, but... » read more

Material Effects: Trading Performance For Power


By Ann Steffora Mutschler Power impacts everything, even when it comes to semiconductor manufacturing materials. While bulk CMOS technology still reigns supreme, there are a number of advanced materials being suggested as replacements when it runs out of steam at around 15nm, including silicon on insulator (SOI)—particularly in combination with FinFET multigate structures on SOI—silicon ge... » read more

Packaging’s Power Play


By Ann Steffora Mutschler In the not-too-distant past packaging was not an issue IC designers had to think much about. But now, due to smaller geometries and rising complexity, managing power in the entire system has become a major concern for system architects. IC and package designers now must work closely throughout the design process to make sure no surprises come up down the road. A... » read more

The Elusive Min Power Definition


By Ed Sperling Put a fully charged smart phone in a bad reception area and the battery will run out in a fraction of the time it normally lasts in a good reception area. While this may be an annoyance to consumers, who need to recharge their phones more often, it’s a serious problem in SoC design. Minimum power should be a simple number, but the reality is it’s more like a distribution ... » read more

Supply Chain Adjusts To Design At The System Level


By Ann Steffora Mutschler System-level design is impacting the supply chain at many levels. Software suppliers, IP providers, semiconductor companies, system integrators and OEMs are challenged to work ever more closely together and find a new balance of power for who controls what in the content of an SoC. “We see more and more the design chain driving how our tools work together,” Fra... » read more

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