Cadence Delivers Rapid Adoption Kits Based on a 10nm Reference Flow for New ARM Cortex-A73 CPU and ARM Mali-G71 GPU

SAN JOSE, CA -- Cadence Design Systems, Inc. announces availability of a Rapid Adoption Kit (RAK) based on the ARM internal flow used for the design of the ARM Cortex-A73 Central Processing Unit (CPU) and the ARM Mali-G71 Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) that is geared toward enhancing virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experiences on 2017 flagship mobile devices. During this process, Cadence® and ARM also collaborated to develop a 10nm methodology using Cadence digital implementation and signoff tools. In addition, Cadence is working very closely with ARM to provide software technology and process design kit (PDK) updates to the RAKs to deliver faster design closure and optimal PPA results, providing engineers with a continually updated foundation for designing the highest performing and most energy-efficient mobile devices.

Also available with the RAK are Cadence offerings that increase productivity for system, subsystem and IP verification, performance optimization and software enablement. The RAK can utilize performance-leading ARM Artisan physical IP and ARM POP IP for Cortex-A73 and Mali-G71, enabling designers to meet aggressive processor power, performance and area (PPA) goals.

In support of this new processor, Cadence collaborated with ARM to:

•Optimize PPA implementation by defining a full-flow reference methodology incorporating Cadence digital and signoff solutions, including Genus™ Synthesis Solution, Innovus™ Implementation System, Quantus™ QRC Extraction Solution, Tempus™ Timing Signoff Solution, Voltus™ IC Power Integrity Solution and multiple Conformal® products
•Develop a 10nm methodology containing Cortex-A73 and Mali-G71 using the Cadence digital implementation and signoff flow
•Architect SoC power and performance using the Cadence Palladium® Z1 enterprise emulation platform; augment performance with the Cadence Interconnect Workbench for ARM CoreLink™ CCI-500 and CCI-400 based systems running stress testing on Cadence simulation, Palladium Z1 emulation and Verification IP
•Enable earlier SoC software development by integrating the Cortex-A73 Fast Models with the Palladium Z1 enterprise emulation platform; in a previous integration, ARM accelerated OS boot-up by up to 50X and software execution by up to 10X

For more information, visit
http://www.cadence.com/news/armrak
http://www.cadence.com