ARM buys Cadence’s display core IP; Mentor wins GaAs DFM deal; Synopsys rolls out 4K video IP; Dassault acquires fatigue simulation firm; Intel slices up data center.
By Ed Sperling
ARM acquired Cadence’s high-resolution display processor cores, which it helped to co-develop. Coupled with ARM’s own graphics, the move sets up ARM to sell complete subsystems. Cadence also won a deal with SMIC, which is using Cadence’s low-power flow and signoff technology for its 40nm process.
Mentor Graphics won a deal with Advanced Wireless Semiconductor Co., which is using Mentor’s DFM platform to verify gallium arsenide-based RF chips. The chips are slated for smart phones and tablets. AWSC, based in Taiwan, is a specialty fab for monolithic microwave ICs.
Synopsys rolled out new controller and PHY IP for 4K ultra-high-definition video at 60Hz frame rates. Synopsys also reported that Samsung is widely using its RTL synthesis tool to reduce power and area for mobile SoCs.
Dassault Systemes acquired Safe Technology Ltd., which makes fatique simulation software for predicting product life. Safe’s product is used by some of the largest automotive, industrial and aerospace companies. The purchase price was not made public.
Intel rolled out 13 customized configurations of its Atom chip aimed at “microservers,” entry-level networking and cold storage. Microservers are aimed at the lightweight jobs inside a data center that don’t require the same performance as full-sized server racks, but which also consume far less power. This adds a whole new level of granularity to data centers.
The mobile phone market is expected to grow 7.3% this year, with units shipped within a single year topping the 1 billion mark for the first time, according to IDC.
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