Free, optimized ARM Cortex-M1 Processor for low power FPGAs
( 01 Jan 2008 )
Enabling system designers to extend the battery life of their handheld and portable designs, Actel Corporation has optimized the ARM Cortex-M1 processor core for its IGLOO family of field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The combination of what’s said to be the industry’s lowest power FPGA family, with a pervasive, 32-bit ARM processor specifically designed for use in FPGAs, gives designers the ideal, low-power integrated platform for rapidly deploying portable products. Furthermore, as the only FPGA supplier to offer the industry-standard processor free-of-charge to customers, Actel enables designers to cost-effectively leverage the large installed base of software and design tools available for the ARM architecture, reducing their time-to-market and development costs.
Attractive for portable applications with 5µW static power, IGLOO FPGAs consume more than 200x less static power than competitive FPGA offerings, and deliver more than 10x the battery life of the current leading PLDs in portable applications. In an IGLOO FPGA, the Cortex-M1 core features very low operating current and static power, consuming only 24µA in static mode and 3µA in sleep mode. The IGLOO Flash*Freeze mode, which enables easy entry and exit from ultra-low power modes while retaining SRAM and register data, reduces quiescent current to 20µA. The Flash*Freeze feature also allows instant on/off cycling of the Cortex-M1 core for maximum performance and minimum power consumption.
