Co-developed technology solution enables power and die size reductions
Globalfoundries and eVaderis have announced that they are co-developing an ultra-low power microcontroller (MCU) reference design using GF's embedded magnetoresistive non-volatile memory (eMRAM) technology on the 22nm FD-SOI (22FDX) platform. By bringing together the superior reliability and versatility of GF's 22FDX eMRAM and eVaderis' ultra-low power IP, the companies will deliver a technology solution that supports a broad set of applications such as battery-powered IoT products, consumer and industrial microcontrollers, and automotive controllers.
eVaderis designed their MCU to leverage the efficient power management capabilities of the 22FDX platform, achieving more than 10 times the battery life and a significantly reduced die size compared to previous generation MCUs. The technology, developed through GF's FDXcelerator Partner Program, will help designers push performance density and flexibility to new levels to achieve a more compact, cost-effective single-chip solution for power-sensitive applications.
"The innovative architecture of eVaderis' ultra-low power MCU IP, designed around GF's 22FDX eMRAM technology, is well suited for normally-off IoT applications," said Jean-Pascal Bost, President and CEO of eVaderis. "Utilizing GF's eMRAM as a working memory allows sections of the eVaderis MCU to power cycle frequently, without incurring the typical MCU performance penalty. eVaderis looks forward to making this silicon-proven IP available to our customers by the end of this year."
"Wearable and IoT devices require long-lasting battery life, increased processing capability, and the integration of advanced sensors," said Dave Eggleston, VP of Embedded Memory at GF. "As an FDXcelerator partner, eVaderis is developing an optimized MCU architecture in GF's 22FDX with eMRAM that helps customers meet demanding requirements."
The jointly developed reference design with GF's 22FDX with eMRAM will be available in Q4 2018. Process design kits for 22FDX with eMRAM and RF solutions are available now. Customer prototyping of 22FDX eMRAM on multi-project wafers (MPWs) is underway, with risk production planned for 2018. Off-the-shelf eMRAM macros are available now, featuring easy design-in with both eFlash and SRAM interface options.
