Cortex-M3 Optimized for Low-Power Designs
Portable Design News, Friday April 18, 2008
ARM has announced a significant upgrade to the widely-licensed Cortex-M3 processor, which is utilized in a wide range of high-performance, low-cost applications. The latest release includes a new Wake-Up Interrupt (WIC) controller, which allows almost instantaneous return to fully active mode from an Ultra-Low Leakage (ULL) retention state and introduces enhanced power management features that address the ongoing need in the embedded market for increased performance and longer battery life in next-generation designs. The Cortex-M3 processor is now also supported by the ARM Power Management Kit (PMK) and is tightly integrated with, and optimized for, low-power physical IP standard cell libraries and memories from the ARM Artisan physical IP family. Additional enhancements include the ability to integrate solutions for safety-critical and fault-robust applications in industrial, medical, and automotive applications.
To enable ultra low-power standby operation, the processor has a new integrated Wake-Up Interrupt Controller that, when utilized with low-power cells such as the ARM Power Management Kit (PMK) and standard cell libraries and memories, enables the core and the interrupt controller to be rapidly placed in an ultra-low leakage retention mode, returning to fully active mode almost instantaneously on critical events. When combined with Partners’ unique insight into power-efficient design techniques, the WIC will lead to a new wave of extremely power-efficient microcontroller solutions.
By combining the ARM PMK, memories and standard cell libraries with the Cortex-M3 processor, designers can also gain significant time-to-market savings when targeting ultra-low leakage manufacturing processes for major power-saving benefits with very low area impact. The Physical IP memories feature byte-write capability and allow multiple power-down (with retention) modes when coupled to the PMK.
Other new benefits of the latest release of the Cortex-M3 processor include significantly extended configurability of debug and trace capabilities to enable the creation of extremely cost-sensitive, high-volume 32-bit devices, such as electronic toys and consumer electronics systems; improved operating frequency for highest performance embedded applications; and enhanced signaling to power management controllers.
Enhanced support features for the Cortex-M3 processor will be available in Q2 2008.
ARM Inc., Sunnyvale, CA (408) 734 5600 [www.arm.com]
