IBM has confirmed that it is working with ARM to design a new generation of mobile processors optimized for both performance and power efficiency.
The next-gen chips are expected to facilitate extended battery life, uninterrupted Internet access, high end multimedia and support for secure online financial transactions.
“ARM’s Cortex processors have become the leadership platform for the majority of smart phones and many other emerging mobile devices,” explained IBM Microelectronics general manager Michael Cadigan.
”We plan to continue working closely with ARM and our foundry customers to speed the momentum of ARM technology by delivering highly advanced, low-power semiconductor technology for a variety of new communications and computing devices.”
According to Cadigan, the above-mentioned collaboration between the two industry heavyweights will result in a lineup of optimized physical and processor IP “tuned” to IBM’s advance manufacturing process – down to 14nm.
Cadigan also noted that IBM-ARM cooperation on advanced geometries actually kicked off in 2008, which resulted in the immediate improvement of SoC density, routability, manufacturability, power consumption and performance.
“[With] previous collaboration on the 32nm and 28nm, ARM has already delivered eleven test chips that provide concrete research structures and early silicon validation.
“In addition, ARM developed specific optimizations targeting [RISC-based] processor cores, including a complete ARM Cortex-A9 processor core implemented on 32nm High-K Metal Gate technology.”
