CIMdata PLM Industry Summary Online Archive
2 April 2007
Product News
Magma Announces Availability of Advanced Low-Power Reference Flow for Chartered-IBM-Samsung
Magma® Design Automation Inc. announced the availability of an advanced low-power IC implementation reference flow for the 65-nanometer (nm) low-power process offered through the Common PlatformT technology initiative by Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, IBM and Samsung Electronics. The Magma flow, featuring Blast PowerT, Blast Fusion®, Blast CreateT and Blast RailT NX, enables designers to address power considerations during implementation within a single environment, minimizing the power consumption of the design while reducing die size and turnaround time.
Blast Power optimizes dynamic power by using the flexibility of a virtually flat multi-Vdd flow to selectively shut down different regions of a chip. It minimizes leakage power by automatically inserting MTCMOS switches during floorplanning and power-grid synthesis, and it enables optimal power distribution through automatic power-grid synthesis. Blast Power and Blast Fusion also enable users to employ Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVFS) in their designs to maximize total power savings for devices that can operate through a range of frequencies.
"Magma's technology flows have demonstrated a proven approach to dealing with the challenges of low-power design," said Ana Hunter, vice president of technology, System LSI Division, Samsung Semiconductor. "This offering extends the successful relationship we have had at 90 nm, and addresses power management with features such as MTCMOS and dynamic voltage and frequency scaling. The Magma flow is well-suited to provide mutual customers a smooth integration into our leading-edge 65-nm low-power manufacturing environment."
"Moving to design at 65 nm, the most sophisticated design tools and flows are required to deal with the emerging challenges, notably power issues, especially in consumer applications. By working together with Magma, the Common Platform partners are able to provide our mutual customers support for an advanced methodology that addresses critical design issues and streamlines the process of getting to working silicon as quickly as possible," said Kevin Meyer, vice president of Worldwide Marketing and Platform Alliances at Chartered.
"Reaching this milestone with Magma for our 65-nm offering underscores both the efficiency as well as the commitment to openness of Common Platform technology. IBM's, Chartered's and Samsung's approach to developing a comprehensive design ecosystem allows Magma's tools flow to be supported at three leading-edge foundries simultaneously, giving customers unmatched flexibility and choice," said Steve Longoria, vice president of Semiconductor Technology Platforms for IBM Global Engineering Solutions.
The low-power reference flow guides designers through an RTL-to-GDSII methodology enabling fast, optimal timing-versus-power and area-versus-power tradeoffs at different stages of the implementation flow. The low-power reference flow is part of Magma's design enablement kit for the Common Platform 65-nm (CMOS10LP) process technology, which also includes a test design that exercises all the low-power features, including automatic de-cap insertion, dynamic IR drop and MTCMOS switches insertion. The ARM® MetroT low-power standard cell library and the Power Management Kit (PMK), part of its family of Artisan® physical IP, were used in the flow development.
"Extending ARM's relationship with Magma on the IBM, Chartered and Samsung Common Platform at 65-nm technology offers SoC designers advanced design methodologies, physical IP and silicon processes that result in superior power-management solutions," said Tom Lantzsch, vice president, ARM Physical IP. "Collaborating with Magma and our Common Platform technology Partners reinforces our commitment to enable a successful design-to-silicon path that provides real benefits to our mutual customers."
The RTL-to-GDSII scripts and methodology guide comprise the rest of the kit, which is qualified by the Common Platform. For more information, please visit the Foundry Partners page on the Magma website at: http://www.magma-da.com/FoundryPartners .
"We're pleased to extend the benefits of the Common Platform for customers through our advanced low-power flow," said Kam Kittrell, general manager of Magma's Design Implementation Business Unit. "By enabling designers to optimize timing-versus-power and area-versus-power throughout the flow, our low-power reference flow helps mutual customers build leading-edge designs that consume the least amount of power."
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