C2C IP Adoption Gathers Steam

The Chip to Chip Link (C2C) interchip link connectivity IP developed by Arteris Inc. and Texas Instruments Inc. is gathering more and more licensees serving the mobile and wireless application processor and modem markets.

C2C allows shared memory between two chips, such as a mobile phone applications processor and a mobile phone modem. With only 100ns latency, the C2C connection is fast enough for the modem to share the application processor’s RAM and to maintain enough read throughput and low latency for cache refills. This enables the phone manufacturer to remove the modem’s dedicated RAM chip from the phone’s bill of materials (BOM), saving a minimum $2 in cost per phone and up to 115mm² of board space.


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“Using the Chip to Chip Link allows IMC modems to connect to a wide selection of mobile phone application processors from multiple vendors, allowing our customers to choose the best products for their needs whilst saving cost and footprint without compromising performance,” said Stefan Wolff, Division Vice President and General Manager, Smart Phones and RF, at Intel Mobile Communications GmbH (IMC), in a statement.

TI’s Remi El-Ouazzane, Vice President and General Manager, OMAP Platform Business Unit, also commented, that split architecture provides the industry’s most optimal environment for innovation. “We worked with Arteris on C2C and pushed its evolution in the MIPI Alliance to help our customers turn split architecture into something advantageous regarding modem connection. In the end, OEMs and ecosystem partners alike benefit from the growth of a cost-effective thin modem market and the opportunity to combine those modems with the best-in-class OMAP applications processor,” said El-Ouazzane.

In addition to Intel and Texas Instruments, C2C licensees include Samsung, LG, ST-Ericsson, HiSilicon Technologies, and Via Telecom.

According to K. Charles Janac, President and CEO of Arteris, although licensees initially consider C2C for mobile phone DRAM memory sharing, the company is seeing new use models such as coprocessor connectivity to quickly meet market windows for new standards like LTE.

Arteris