GlobalFoundries Teams Up with Cyclos to Speed Up ARM Cortex-A15 Designs

From X-bit Labs: GlobalFoundries and Cyclos Semiconductor, the inventor of resonant clock mesh (RCM) technology for commercial chip designs, have announced plans to implement Cyclos’ RCM in ARM Cortex-A15 processors using 28nm HKMG process technology from GlobalFoundries. The resonant clock mesh will help to boost clock-speeds of appropriate chips without increasing power consumption.

Cyclos RCM IP is a unique and differentiating technology that reduces the power consumed in clock meshes, the clock distribution networks that have been used in high-performance processors for years. Cyclos employs on-chip inductors to create an electric pendulum, or “tank circuit,” formed by the large capacitance of the clock mesh and the Cyclos inductors. The Cyclos inductors and clock control circuits “recycle” clock power instead of dissipating it on every clock cycle like in a conventional clock network implementation, which results in a reduction in total IC power consumption.

The partnership will enable GlobalFoundries’ customers to design next-generation SoCs with class-leading performance and power efficiency. It also reflects Cyclos’ commitment to ensure the broadest possible availability of its RCM IP technology for reducing power consumption.

“Cyclos’ advanced clock mesh technology has already been used to demonstrate reduced power consumption while maintaining high clock speeds with our HKMG process. Now the powerful combination of our 28nm HKMG process and Cyclos’ RCM technology will be available to a broader customer base, thereby enabling them to push the envelope of PPA efficiency for ARM processor-based SoC designs at the leading edge,” said Srinivas Nori, director of SoC innovation at GlobalFoundries.

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