Technolog y F o c u s :

Technolog y F o c u s :

Power Management

Can Nanoelectronics Deliver a Universal Memory?

MOBILE VIDEO DISPLAY UPDATE POWER EFFICIENT PROGRAMABLE ARCHITECTURES Featured Product: Flexis QE128

July 2007

www.portabledesign.com

0.3-V Input Boost DC/DC Converter Manages Single Solar and Micro-Fuel Cells Applications – Single solar cell and micro-fuel cell powered products – 1-/2-/3-cell alkaline, NiMH or 1-cell Li-Ion battery-powered products – Portable solar charger – Portable audio and media players – Digital still camera – Digital radio player Features – Input voltage: 0.3 V to 5.5 V – Start-up into full load at 0.5 V input voltage – Automatic down conversion mode enables continuous operation during VIN > VOUT conditions – Power save mode for improved efficiency at light loads – Switch current limit: 1.5 A (max)

The TPS61200 is the industry’s lowest input-voltage boost converter, enabling portable electronic end equipment to draw power from new energy sources such as solar and micro-fuel cells. This tiny power management circuit can operate with input voltages as low as 0.3 V with high efficiency, and provides an extremely low 0.5-V start-up capability under any load condition.

Device

VIN (V)

Switch Current Limit (A)

VOUT

Efficiency (%)

Package

Price (1k)*

TPS61200

0.3 to 5.5

1.35

1.8 to 5.5

95

3 x 3 mm QFN-10

$1.70

TPS61081

2.5 to 6.0

1.3

VIN to 27

85

3 x 3 mm QFN-10

$1.65

TPS63000

1.8 to 5.5

1.8

1.2 to 5.5

96

3 x 3 mm QFN-10

$2.75

TPS717xx

2.5 to 6.5

–

0.9 to 6.2

–

1.5 x 1.5 mm SON

$0.40

*Suggested resale price in U.S. dollars in quantities of 1000

High-Performance Analog >> Your Way, Technology for Innovators and the red/black banner are trademarks of Texas Instruments. 1871A0 © 2007 TI

Evaluation Modules, Samples and Power Management Selection Guide >> www.ti.com/tps61200 800.477.8924, ext. 3941

contents

Bit Line MTJ: Storage Layer Tunnel Barrier Pinned Layer

departments

editorial letter 6

dave’s two cents 8

High Re

Digit Line

analyst pages 14

technology focus 30

product feature 40

products for designers 42

design idea 48

16 nanoelectronics Sleep

Dynamic

Static

Stopped Clock

erat Tem p

Power

John Donovan

consumer mobile

Mobile Video Display Update 24

John Donovan

portable power

ure

Can Nanoelectronics Deliver 16 a Universal Memory?

Mag

erat

cover feature

Read-Selection Transistor Sleep Shutdown

Static

ure

industry news 10

p Tem

Resistance (kΩ)

C

Word Write Line

Stopped Clock

34 power-efficient architectures

Time (or Frequency) SRAM Nonvolatile Memory

Power-Efficient Programmable 34 Architectures for Portable Design

Martin Mason, Actel Corporation

42 products for designers 2.4V TO 5.5V

VCC

1K

0.1µF

RESET

MR

WDO

MAX6814

I/O

RESET μP GND

MAX6361 WDI

GND Artist’s rendering of methane molecules flowing through a carbon nanotube less than two nanometers in diameter.

3.6V Li+ BATTERY

+

BUS

On the Cover:

VCC

VCC

OUT

BATT GND

48 design idea

VCC 0.1µF

SRAM GND

Artist: Scott Dougherty, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory JULY 2007

team editorial team

Editorial Director Editor-in-Chief Senior Editor Managing Editor Copy Editor

Creative Director Art Director Graphic Designer Director of Web Development

Web Developer

Warren Andrews, warrena@rtcgroup.com John Donovan, johnd@rtcgroup.com Dave Cotton, davec@rtcgroup.com Marina Tringali, marinat@rtcgroup.com Rochelle Cohn

art and media team Jason Van Dorn, jasonv@rtcgroup.com Kirsten T. Wyatt, kirstenw@rtcgroup.com Christopher Saucier, chriss@rtcgroup.com Marke Hallowell, markeh@rtcgroup.com Brian Hubbell, brianh@rtcgroup.com

management team Untitled-1 1

Associate Publisher

Product Marketing

Manager (acting) 6/15/07 10:14:46 AM

Advertising Sales Manager

Business Development Manager

Marina Tringali, marinat@rtcgroup.com Aaron Foellmi, aaronf@rtcgroup.com

Shannon McNichols, shannonm@rtcgroup.com

Circulation

Michael Bognacki, michaelb@rtcgroup.com Jessica Grindle, jessicag@rtcgroup.com

executive management

HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW THE INDUSTRY?

Chief Executive Officer Vice President Vice President of Finance Director of Corporate Marketing Director of Art and Media

John Reardon, johnr@rtcgroup.com Cindy Hickson, cindyh@rtcgroup.com Cindy Muir, cindym@rtcgroup.com Aaron Foellmi, aaronf@rtcgroup.com Jason Van Dorn, jasonv@rtcgroup.com

portable design advisory council Mark Davidson, National Semiconductor Doug Grant, Analog Devices, Inc. Dave Heacock, Texas Instruments Kazuyoshi Yamada, NEC America

home office WWW.EMBEDDEDCOMMUNITY.COM

The RTC Group 905 Calle Amanecer, Suite 250 San Clemente, CA 92673 Phone 949.226.2000 Fax 949.226.2050 www.rtcgroup.com

For reprints contact: Marina Tringali, marinat@rtcgroup.com.

Published by the RTC Group. Copyright 2007, the RTC Group. Printed in the United States. All rights reserved. All related graphics are trademarks of the RTC Group.

All other brand and product names are the property of their holders. Periodicals postage at San Clemente, CA 92673. Postmaster: send changes of address to: Portable Design, 905 Calle Amanecer, Suite 250, San Clemente, CA 92673.

Portable Design(ISSN 1086-1300) is published monthly by RTC Group 905 Calle Amanecer, Suite 250, San Clemente, CA 92673. Telephone 949-226-2000; 949226-2050; Web Address www.rtcgroup.com. embeddedcommad_14v.indd 1 PORTABLE DESIGN

11/13/06 5:55:59 PM

Intersil Battery Authentication High Performance Analog

We’re On It.

Intersil’s ISL9206 FlexiHash+TM Engine delivers high-security battery authentication at a low cost.

Intersil’s ISL9206 is an easy-to-use, robust, and inexpensive battery authentication solution for 1-cell Li-Ion/Li-Polymer or 3-cell NiMH series battery packs.

64-bit Secret 32-bit Hash Function 32-bit Hash Function

32-bit pseudo-random challenge word from host FlexiHash+ Engine

8-bit authentication code

ISL9206 Key Features: Challenge/response-based authentication scheme using 32-bit challenge code and 8-bit authentication code.

Oscillator

1-Wire Comm Interface

FlexiHash+ engine uses two sets of 32-bit secrets for authentication code generation.

16x8 OTP ROM

FlexiHash+ Engine

POR/2.5V Regulator

Control Register

16x8 one-time programmable ROM memory.

Additional programmable memory for storage.

Go to www.intersil.com for samples, datasheets and support

Intersil – Switching Regulators for precise power delivery. ©2007 Intersil Americas Inc. All rights reserved. The following are trademarks or services marks owned by Intersil Corporation or one of its subsidiaries, and may be registered in the USA and/or other countries: Intersil (and design) and i (and design).

Patent pending FlexiHash+ engine consists of four separate programmable CRC calculators. Two sets of 32-bit secret codes are used for authentication code generation.

XSD single-wire host bus interface communicates with all 8250-compatible UARTs or a single GPIO pin. Supports CRC on read data and transfer bit-rate up to 23Kbps.

16 bytes of one-time programmable ROM memory for storage of pack information and ID, device authentication secrets, device default settings, and factory-programmed trim parameters.

editorial letter

I

In his keynote address kicking off their third annual tech forum, Freescale CEO Michel Mayer explained his vision of reshaping the semiconductor industry around three megatrends: going green, serving the needs of an aging population and helping the world to be increasingly connected. It was a message worth sharing.

On the subject of green technology, Mayer rolled out some sobering statistics. In the U.S., energy costs consumers 200 billion dollars and manufacturers 100 billion dollars annually.

Worldwide energy consumption is expected to increase 50 percent by 2010. On average, the worldwide population currently emits 16 mil-

On Going Green, Getting Older, Staying Connected— and Changing john donovan, editor-in-chief

lion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every 24 hours. So with increased energy consumption, emissions could reach 25 million tons a day by the beginning of the next decade.

Perhaps the most sobering statistic of all: while America represents only 5 percent of the world’s population, the U.S. consumes 26 percent of the world’s energy, or almost 15 times more energy per person than the typical developing country.

All of this underlines the need for energy efficiency, in both electrical appliances—which constitute 90% of household energy use—and also in cars.

Appliances now contain multiple MCUs to control motors, water levels and temperature. Electric companies are distributing new smart thermostats and equipping meters with ZigBee mesh networks to temporarily shut down air conditioning systems, creating smart grids that help prevent brownouts.

Mayer pointed out that over the last 20 years— thanks primarily to the increased use of MCUs in automobiles—cars have improved fuel efficiency by 60% and decreased emissions by 90%.

Mayer’s second trend is an aging population, with their increased health needs. Almost 80 million children were born between 1946 and 1964, and in 2006, the first members of the Baby Boom Generation began turning 60. “Boomers represent the first generation to grow up with semiconductor technology. They are a demanding generation that prides itself on remaining youthful and there is an expectation that tech

PORTABLE DESIGN

nology will meet their needs as they age.”

Biometric health care devices of all kinds, some new, others embedded in products we already use, will see wide adoption. Geriatric telemedicine will allow people to “age in place,” in safety, with dignity and with their autonomy intact. Sensor-enabled devices will help caregivers and family members monitor aging parents in the comfort of their own homes. Medical electronics will experience explosive growth over the next 20 years as aging Boomers look to technology to help keep them healthy.

Mayer’s final trend is universal connectivity, bringing about “the passage from the information age to the participation age,” with MySpace, Facebook and Wikipedia being examples of the latter.

“When the Berlin Wall fell,” said Mayer, “We got the story from CNN. When tragedy hit Virginia Tech, CNN got its story from MySpace.”

According to Mayer, “Almost 90 percent of the U.S. teenage population, or 21 million kids, have been weaned on the Internet.” Up the age scale, 62 percent of Americans 50-58 years old are currently attached to the online world. The demand for content is rapidly surpassing the networks’ ability to deliver it. The answer is an almost limitless expansion of bandwidth and connectivity, both of which are waves that the semiconductor is already riding.

Mayer’s particular contribution is to point out demographic trends that the semiconductor and electronics industries would do well to catch.

Changing

This issue sees some changes to Portable Design, designed to sharpen our focus and increase our value to our readers. We trust that these changes will expand and deepen the quality content that you’ve come to expect from Portable Design, and we thank you again for your ongoing support.

• First, we’ve added a Technology Focus section that each month will highlight key products that address areas of concern to portable designers. This month we’re looking at Power Management. September will focus on Low-Power Memory; October on Data Conversion; November, Video Processors; December, Programmable Logic.

• We’ve added an Analysts’ Pages section, examining trends and technologies that will impact your future designs, not to mention your future.

• Starting next month we’re expanding the Cover Feature, which will now become “cover features.” We’ll carry 2-3 contributed articles that address the theme for that month. In August that will be Embedded Software; in September, Memory Interfaces; October, Green Design; November, High-Speed Interconnects; December, Next Year in Portable Electronics.

Intersil Handheld Products High Performance Analog

We’re Hip to Handheld.

Improve your performance in portable media players with Intersil’s high-performance analog ICs.

Analog Mixed Signal: Amplifiers DCPs Light Sensors Real-Time Clocks RS-232 Interface Sub Ohm Analog Switches Switches/MUXes Video Drivers Voltage References

Go to www.intersil.com for samples, datasheets and support

Intersil – An industry leader in Switching Regulators and Amplifiers. ©2007 Intersil Americas Inc. All rights reserved. The following are trademarks or services marks owned by Intersil Corporation or one of its subsidiaries, and may be registered in the USA and/or other countries: Intersil (and design) and i (and design).

Power Management: Backlight Drivers Battery Authentication Battery Chargers Fuel Gauges Integrated FET Regulators LCD Display Power LDOs Memory Power Management Overvoltage and Overcurrent Protection Voltage Monitors

dave’s two cents

D

Do you remember the old 1950’s “Rocket Radio,” a little AM radio receiver made from a tuning coil, capacitor, diode, alligator clip and ear phone—and packaged as a little rocket? You tuned the receiver to an AM station by sliding a metal rod that extended from the rocket nose.

This determined the resonant frequency of the coil and capacitor circuit. The alligator clip connected the antenna (a long wire of about 100 feet). I connected my antenna to a guy wire that supported a utility pole. Recently, I looked online to see if there are any toys like this now. It turns out you can buy the original model from collectors for about $150. I am not sure what it cost originally, but it could not have been more than a couple of dollars—otherwise I would not have had one. In today’s terminology, this Rocket Radio would be called a “music/news harvester.”

Today’s electronic industry differentiates between alternative power sources and energy harvesting. They are quite similar in that energy is collected and either applied to a load, or stored.

Collecting minute amounts of energy is com-

dave’s two cents on...

Energy Recycling monly referred to as energy harvesting, or energy scavenging. Personally, I like energy scavenging as this implies the act of gathering something that otherwise would have been wasted.

My favorite personal energy harvesting device is my kinetic auto-relay wristwatch. For more than six years, it has operated simply from my day-to-day wrist movement. This is a good example of symbiotic energy harvesting.

Energy harvesting is more than just putting photo-voltaic cells on a very low-power calculator with an LCD display. Its popularity is due in part to advances in ultra low-power DSPs and microcontrollers. For example, some 32-bit DSPs have 100 uW standby power and about 500 uW per MIP. This allows an application to harvest and store energy in a battery, so that periodically the DSP can be brought out of standby mode to process and communicate data. Microcontrollers are used to meet even lower power applications. Today’s ultra low-power MCUs have standby current of about 500 nano amps.

How much energy is available for harvesting (scavenging)? Indoor lighting provides

PORTABLE DESIGN

less than 10 uW per cm2. If you could get 100 percent of all the energy from the surface of a business card, then you could get about 450 uW. With 20 percent efficiency, you could get about 0.2 MIPs effective. Other forms of refuse energy, like vibration, may provide more energy in certain applications. Energy from sources like vibration or motion can provide as much energy as 200uW/cm3. All in all, not a lot of refuse energy is available for portable devices, but also it is not zero.

Last month, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) announced that they can light a 60W bulb wirelessly from seven feet away. Energy transfer efficiency was estimated to be a little over 40 percent. The scheme was based on resonant coupling between receiver and transmitter. Another childhood memory is when a friend and I built several Tesla coils in our early high school years. Our largest had 24-inch discharges into the air, and would light a fluorescent tube from about eight feet away.

The primary power was delivered from a 450W neon sign transformer. The spark gap sounded like a 22-caliber rifle on full auto. My parents were convinced this was not a safe thing to operate, so they restricted us to only a few minutes a day. Looking back now, it was probably more due to the disruption of our TV reception.

Collecting refuse energy will create new applications, especially as power requirements for portable services continue to decrease. I am not sure how valuable the convenience of wireless energy transmission will actually be. Maybe the receiver coils can be built into the notebook carrying case so you can just set your case down near an energy transmitter. For my two cents, there are symbiotic applications for energy scavenging, and the future will certainly bring more applications. But let’s not get in the mode of throwing away energy so that the scavengers can have their fill. The best source of refuse energy could be ourselves. For example, somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of your caloric intake is used for physical activity. If you take in 2000 food calories per day, then you would have an average power intake of 100W—which might provide as much as 20 to 30 watts for scavenger power. Maybe the best deal is to make all workout centers reclaim physical exercise energy, and put it on the grid. Or, exercise could be the only way to charge your cell phone or notebook.

Yes, I could eat that candy bar and charge my notebook, although I would not want to stay on the treadmill for an hour.

Dave Freeman, Texas Instruments

Cool & Compact 2A Charging Efficiency vs Battery Voltage 100

SENSE

PVIN

BAT

PGND

LTC4001

NTC

LTC4001

90

4.2V Li-Ion/ Polymer

Efficiency (%)

SW

5V VIN

Higher Efficiency = Less Heat

80 70

Linear Charger VIN = 5V ICHARGE = 1A

60

EN PROG

TIMER

GNDSENS

50

3

3.2

3.4

3.6

3.8

4

4.2

VBAT (V) 9mm 14mm Actual Size Demo Circuit

Less Heat & Higher Current than Linear Chargers Is too much heat from your high current linear regulator-based battery charger killing your system? If so, try our new LTC ®4001, a monolithic synchronous switching step-down Li-Ion/Polymer charger, capable of delivering 2A of charge current with over 90% efficiency. The highly integrated LTC4001 includes on-chip MOSFETs and current sense resistor. With its 4mm x 4mm QFN package and 1.5MHz switching frequency operation, only five external components are needed for a simple, compact and cost-effective solution.

Features

Power Solutions Brochures

• Low Power Dissipation • 2A Maximum Charge Current • No External MOSFETs, Sense Resistor or Blocking Diode Required • Synchronous Rectification • 1.5MHz Switching Frequency • Input Voltage: 4V to 5.5V • Only 5 External Components Needed • Low Profile 16-Lead (4mm x 4mm) QFN Package

Info & Free Samples www.linear.com/4001 Literature: 1-800-4-LINEAR Support: 408-432-1900

www.linear.com/ad/batsolutions www.linear.com/ad/portsolutions

, LTC and LT are registered trademarks of Linear Technology Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

news Wibree Forum Merges with Bluetooth SIG

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), the more than 8,000-company strong trade association responsible for advancing Bluetooth wireless technology, joined Nokia in announcing that the Wibree Forum, the group specifying

the Nokia-developed ultra low power (ULP) wireless technology, will be merged with the Bluetooth SIG. With this announcement, the Wibree specnd ification will become part of the Bluetooth specification as an ultra low power Bluetooth er exploration ether your goal technology. Because Wibree addresses despeak directly vices with very low battery capacity and can ical page, the ght resource. be easily integrated with Bluetooth technoltechnology, ogy, it will round out Bluetooth technology’s es and products wireless Personal Area Networking (PAN) ed offering and strengthen the technology’s ability to provide wireless connectivity for smaller devices.

Wibree’s development started at the Nokia Research Center in 2001. Wibree was announced to a broader audience in companies providing solutions now October of 2006 Nokia stated its inexploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research the latest datasheet fromand a company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchtention with the right Whichever leveltechnology of to resource. incorporate the and gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you areits searching for. current forum into an open, preferably onnected existing industry forum to ensure Wibree’s wide adoption.

To this day, Broadcom, Casio, CSR, Epson, ItoM, Logitech, Nordic Semiconductor, ST Microelectronics, Suunto, Taiyo Yuden Co., Ltd. and Texas Instruments have contributed to the interoperability specification, profiles and use case definitions of Wibree in their respective areas of expertise and will continue this work in the Bluetooth SIG working groups. Several new companies, including device, watch and Get Connected with companies mentioned in this article. access systems manufacturers will join the fiwww.portabledesign.com/getconnected nalization of the specification. Once the specifi-

End of Article

10

PORTABLE DESIGN

Get Connected with companies mentioned in this article.

cation is finalized, the technology will be made broadly available to the industry via the Bluetooth SIG. At the recent Freescale Technology Forum, Portable Design asked Bob Heile, chairman of the Zigbee Alliance, whether Wibree would compete with Zigbee, which also focuses on ULP wireless applications.

Describing Wibree as “Bluetooth with hopping turned off,” Heile foresees Wibree being confined to the human-interface device (HID) market, mainly wireless keyboards and mice, where Bluetooth has been too power hungry to compete. Wibree can only connect to a maximum of eight devices, which puts it out of contention in Zigbee’s main market, namely wireless mesh networks in the industrial, commercial and residential spaces.

Bluetooth SIG, Inc., Bellevue, WA. (425) 691-3535. [www.bluetooth.org].

Ultra Low Power Bluetooth Wireless Technology Products for Portable Devices

Texas Instruments has announced that the company will leverage its expertise and leadership in ZigBee technology, low-power RF and mobile connectivity to develop leading products and solutions for ultra low power (ULP) Bluetooth wireless technology (previously known as Wibree). The recent merger between the Wibree Forum and the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) created ULP Bluetooth wireless technology, the first open technology extending wireless connectivity between mobile devices or PCs and small, button cell battery human interface devices (HIDs), such as watches, wireless keyboards, toys and sports sensors.

july 2007

TI will utilize the company’s radio technology in the 2.4 GHz frequency band to meet ULP Bluetooth wireless technology specifications and drive affordable wireless connectivity into the mass market. TI is already a leading provider of mobile connectivity solutions, such as Bluetooth and ZigBee/802.15.4 technology, making the company well positioned to address the ULP Bluetooth wireless technology market.

TI will be one of the few companies to support this technology for both mobile handsets and portable, low-power devices—providing seamless interoperability between devices.

TI is developing solutions for both types of ULP Bluetooth wireless technology implementations: a single-mode implementation for watches, sensors and other tiny devices; and a dual-mode implementation for communication with both single-mode and traditional Bluetooth wireless technology-enabled devices such as handsets.

ULP Bluetooth and ZigBee wireless technology represent complementary technologies, as ZigBee technology is a low-power infrastructure-oriented mesh networking technology supporting thousands of nodes, while ULP Bluetooth wireless technology is a low-power ad hoc networking technology that links a small number of nodes to devices such as computers and mobile phones.

Texas Instruments Inc., Dallas, TX. (800) 336-5236. [www.ti.com].

SmartPower and Ultra Low Power Technology

AMI Semiconductor and MagnaChip Semiconductor have announced that MagnaChip will manufacture AMI Semiconductor’s 0.35micron SmartPower technology and continue existing joint development of ULP technology. This agreement follows a November 4, 2005 announcement of a 0.18-micron development and foundry relationship between the two companies.

MagnaChip and AMIS have developed a 0.18-micron ultra low power (ULP) process

that enables customers to extend battery life by combining a typical off-current of 0.1 pA/um2 for the core logic transistor with an optimized design environment including low-power standard cells and SRAM compilers from Virage Logic. The ULP process offers embedded EEPROM, all standard mixed-signal modules and ultra-high reliability. Developed in conjunction with AMIS, the process is targeted at batterypowered and other key low-power consumer and medical devices.

Another part of the agreement covers the SmartPower process transfer from AMIS to MagnaChip along with a capacity agreement that allows AMIS to utilize MagnaChip’s foundry services to address significant growth opportunities in the high-voltage telecom market. AMI Semiconductor’s SmartPower 0.35-micron mixed-signal process supports up to 80V operation and combines high-density digital circuits, high-voltage circuitry and highprecision analog blocks on a single chip.

AMI Semiconductor, Pocatello, ID. (208) 233-4690. [www.amis.com].

Magnachip, Seoul, Korea. 82-2-3459-5884. [www.magnachip.com].

40 μW Energy Harvester

IMEC, together with its sister company IMEC-NL at the Holst Centre, has fabricated an energy harvester to generate energy from mechanical vibrations by using micromachining technology. Output power as high as 40 μW was obtained, thereby achieving the range of

required power for wireless sensor applications.

The harvester comes with a model that can be used to optimize the device during design.

Energy harvesters, which transform ambient energy into electrical energy, are of great value for situations where batteries cannot be easily replaced. A typical example is autonomous sensor networks that are spread over large areas or placed in locations that are difficult to access.

Vibration harvesters in general make use of electromagnetic, electrostatic or piezoelectric conversion to generate electrical power. IMEC and IMEC-NL developed, modeled and characterized a miniaturized vibration harvester based on a piezoelectric transducer.

For an input vibration with a resonance frequency of 1.8 kHz and an amplitude of 180 nm, a maximum experimental output power of 40 μW was measured. This comes well in range of the amounts of power needed by wireless sensor applications, such as the pulse-oximeter developed earlier by IMEC and IMEC-NL, operating from the Holst Centre in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.

The device consists of a piezoelectric capacitor formed by a Pt electrode, a PZT layer and a top Al electrode. This capacitor is fabricated on a cantilever that supports a mass on its tip.

As the harvester is subjected to oscillations, the mass causes the piezoelectric layer to be stretched. By doing so, it induces an electrical power when an electrical load is connected to the device.

JULY 2007

11

news IMEC is seeking industrial partners for further joint research on the development and application of energy harvesters for wireless sensor nodes.

IMEC, Leuven, Belgium. +32 16 28 12 11. [www.imec.be].

FLO Chip Agreement

QUALCOMM and Siano Mobile Silicon have announced that the companies have signed a royalty-free agreement that enables Siano to use QUALCOMM’s patented technologies to design, manufacture and sell certain semiconductor chip products that implement FLO technology. This license agreement paves the way for Siano to develop a multi-standard MDTV receiver chip supporting FLO, in addition to nd other standards.

FLO technology, a key component of the er exploration ether your goal MediaFLO System, is a globally recognized speak directly air-interface technology with multiple technical ical page, the ght resource. specifications ratified by the Telecommunicatechnology, tions Industry Association (TIA). Furthermore, es and products the International Telecommunication Union ed (ITU-R), recently recognized FLO as an ITU-R recommended technology for the broadcasting of multimedia and data applications for mobile reception on handheld devices. The FLO air interface is designed to increase capacity and coverage and reduce cost for multimedia concompanies providing solutions now tent to mobile handsets. exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research thedelivery latest datasheet from a company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touch with the right Siano, a resource. global Whichever providerlevel ofofmulti-standard gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you areMDTV searching receiver for. chips, has been a member of onnected the FLO Forum for the past year. The agreement with QUALCOMM enables Siano to develop and market FLO chips to its customers, with possible integration onto its multi-standard chip.

On September 8, 2006, QUALCOMM announced a broad-based licensing program to enable the development, manufacture and sale of FLO-enabled handsets. Subject to QUALCOMM’s standard terms and conditions, QUALCOMM will license its esGet Connected with companies mentioned in this article. sential FLO patents for use in multi-mode www.portabledesign.com/getconnected CDMA/FLO handsets with no increase to

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12

PORTABLE DESIGN

Get Connected with companies mentioned in this article.

its standard royalty rate for CDMA-based handsets. CDMA includes CDMA2000 and/ or WCDMA (UMTS). For FLO handsets that do not also implement CDMA, QUALCOMM will license its essential FLO patents on terms and conditions that the company claims are fair, reasonable and free from unfair discrimination.

QUALCOMM Incorporated, San Diego, CA. (858) 587-1121. [www.qualcomm.com].

Grandis Awarded NSF Grant for Next-Generation Memory Development

Grandis, Inc. has received a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for use in the development and commercialization of spin-transfer torque RAM (STT-RAM) memory. STT-RAM is a next-generation nonvolatile memory solution designed to enable excellent scalability and unlimited endurance with low power and fast read/write capability.

The NSF grant will support Grandis’ research into innovative STT-RAM cell architectures that enhance the thermal stability of STTRAM memory.

The NSF SBIR programs are sponsored by the Small Business Administration, and are designed to stimulate technological innovation and provide opportunities for small businesses.

To date, the NSF has awarded Grandis approximately $700,000 in grants to develop its STTRAM technology.

STT-RAM exploits the spin of electrons to create a novel universal memory solution.

Its inherent low 1.2-volt internal voltage is in stark contrast to existing memory technologies, such as DRAM and flash, which makes it ideal for mobile electronic appli-

july 2007

cations. Its performance, particularly its sub-10-nanosecond write time and unlimited endurance, also exceeds that of other prospective non-volatile memory technologies, such as phase-change RAM (PRAM). Another major benefit of STT-RAM is its low writing current, which can continue to scale down with shrinking design rules—translating to greater density and, ultimately, lower cost per die.

With this latest NSF grant, the Grandis team, under the leadership of principal investigator, Dr. Eugene Chen, will explore the enhance-

a letter to President Bush asking him to veto the ITC’s ban, saying its enforcement would cause disruption to the telecom industry, which CTIA represents. Verizon Wireless joined in the call for a veto. The Bush administration has 60 days from the date of the ITC’s decision in which to veto it.

Broadcom Corporation, Irvine, CA. (949) 926-5000. [www.broadcom.com].

QUALCOMM Incorporated, San Diego, CA. (858) 587-1121. [www.qualcomm.com].

Freescale to Exit Crolles2?

ment of STT-RAM thermal stability in singlebarrier magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) by engineering the preferred magnetic orientation of the MTJ’s storage layer. This research is designed to help ensure the long-term data retention of STT-RAM memory without requiring an increase in switching current. These innovative MTJs, which are the building blocks of STT-RAM, are covered by Grandis’ U.S. patent applications.

Grandis, Inc., Milpitas, CA. (408) 945-2160. [ww.grandisinc.com].

ITC Denies Appeal in Broadcom, Qualcomm Case

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has denied a request to stay its exclusion order banning imports of cell phones containing chips that it had determined infringe on a Broadcom patent.

In May, a federal jury in California found that Qualcomm had infringed on three Broadcomm patents and awarded Broadcom $19.6 million in compensation. Following the ITC’s decision, CTIA president Steve Largent sent

According to press reports—though not confirmed by the company—Freescale Semiconductor is planning to withdraw from the Crolles2 alliance. Set up in 2002 by STMicroelectronics and Philips Semiconductors—now NXP—the group was to spearhead European semiconductor R&D, concentrating on process technology from 90 nm down to 32 nm. In 2002 TSMC became an associate partner; Freescale joined in 2004.

NXP announced in January 2007 that it would not renew its membership in the alliance after the end of the year; instead it formed a fab alliance with TSMC. Freescale, for its part, while claiming it will not abandon the alliance, has joined IBM’s “fab club” to share R&D and manufacturing expenses at 32 nm and below— effectively making irrelevant its relationship with Crolles.

STMicro’s trade unions are pressing the German and French governments to take steps to safeguard European semiconductor leadership and for STMicro to hire any engineers who may be laid off by NXP or Freescale.

Freescale Semiconductor, Austin, TX. (800) 521-6274. [www.freescale.com].

JULY 2007

13

analysts’ pages Enough China! Contract Manufacturers Head to Vietnam

For years, electronics contract manufacturers have flocked to Chinese cities including Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Suzhou, Wuxi and Beijing to maximize their revenues and minimize their costs. Accordingly, iSuppli Corp. projects that 52.4 percent of all contract-manufacturing revenues were generated by companies operating in ChiEMS/ODM Revenue Forecast For na, including Foxconn, FlexSoutheast Asia (2006 and 2011) tronics, Quanta and Compal.

(Revenue in Millions of U.S. Dollars) However, a new hot spot has emerged in electronics manufacturing: Southeast Asia, namely Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and—most prominently—Vietnam. The Southeast Asian contract2006 2011 manufacturing market, consisting of Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) and Original Design Manufacturing (ODM) providers, will rise to $24.9 billion by 2011, a nearly $9 billion increase from $16.2 billion in 2006, according to iSuppli. By 2011, Southeast Asia will rise to account for 7 percent of global electronics contract-manufacturing revenue, up from 6.3 percent in 2006.

$30,000 $25,000 $20,000 $15,000 $10,000 $5,000 -

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iSuppli Corporation, El Segundo, CA. (310) 524-4000. [www.isuppli.com].

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to Radically Change the Navigation Device Market

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Mobile phone operators now have the ability to market a downloadable navigation application that is just as good as, if not better than personal navigation devices (PNDs), reports In-Stat. As a result, handset-based mapping and navigation applications could cause a major change in the overall navigation market, which is now dominated by relatively expensive stand-alone devices, the high-tech market research firm says.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following: • Cellular operators whose service is based

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on CDMA (and iDEN) have an advantage over other mobile operators in nearly every region of the world, largely because of the A-GPS technology originally driven by mandates to support E911 services.

• In-Stat surveys of U.S. subscribers find navigation applications have a strong ability to draw subscribers from other operators and keep them loyal.

• The total number of mapping and navigation mobile phone subscribers could exceed 42 million worldwide by 2012.

In-Stat, Scottsdale, AZ. (480) 483-4440. [www.in-stat.com].

Opportunities Abound in the Structured ASIC Market

According to Semico Research, the emerging Structured ASIC segment breathed new life into an ailing overall ASIC market. Structured ASICs allow previous users who have left overall ASIC market to once again contemplate using a Structured ASIC solution for their application. Semico defines a Structured ASIC as an ASIC with: • Use of movable (re-usable) Intellectual Property (IP) • Use of internal on-chip buses • Use of “real-world” interfaces such as IEEE 1394, USB, etc.

• A design of greater than 500,000 gates • Embedded memory of 1Mb or greater • An embedded CPU core with a clock speed of 100 MHz or greater • Silicon fabricated starting at 0.25 mm and moving downward • Software drivers or “APIs” are on-chip • Medium performance mixed-signal blocks are part of the solution Revenue for the Structured ASIC category grew 20% in 2006 and is projected to increase 13% in 2007 according to Semico. Unit growth of the worldwide Structured ASIC market is forecasted at a CAGR of 28.2% in the years 2007 through 2011.

Semico Research Corp., Phoenix, AZ. (602) 997-0337. [www.semico.com].

Portable Connectivity Driving Wi-Fi Chipset Market

Portable connectivity applications are driving the global Wi-Fi chipset market, with shipments growing on account of big growth from the mobile PC segment, the Portable Consumer Electronics segment, and the dual-mode handset segment, reports In-Stat. Although dual-mode cellular/Wi-Fi handsets represented only 3% of total shipments in 2006, this category will be the breakout market segment in 2007, and will reach 20% of the total chipset market in 2009, the high-tech market research firm says.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following: • In 2006, 213 million Wi-Fi chipsets shipped out worldwide, representing a 32% growth rate over 2005 shipments.

• A notable market subsegment to watch in 2007 is the portable media player market, with Microsoft’s Zune ramping up, and a Wi-Fi-enabled Apple iPod scheduled to hit shelves in the second half of 2007.

• Although 802.11n is expected to provide for +100 Mbits/s, In-Stat expects Wi-Fi uptake in device categories such as DTVs and set-top boxes to be very slow.

In-Stat, Scottsdale, AZ. (480) 483-4440. [www.in-stat.com].

India’s Consumer Electronics Industry Scales New Heights

According to iSuppli, the consumer electronics market is one of the largest segments in the electronics industry in India. With a market size of US$3.89 billion in 2006, catering to a population of more than 1 billion people, the consumer electronics industry in India is poised for strong growth in the years to come. iSuppli Corp. predicts the Indian audio/video consumer electronics industry will grow to $6.59 billion by 2011, rising at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.0 percent from $4.5 billion in 2007. The growth will be aided by a multitude of factors, including: • Growing consumer confidence due to rising disposable incomes

India’s Consumer Electronics Market Revenue for Video and Audio Applications (Revenue in Millions of U.S. Dollars)

$7,000 $6,000 $5,000 $4,000 $3,000 $2,000 $1,000 $0 -

Audio Video

• Easy financing schemes that are making purchases possible • Increased local manufacturing • Expanding distribution networks • Sporting events, such as the Cricket World Cup. iSuppli Corporation, El Segundo, CA. (310) 524-4000 [www.isuppli.com].

IEEE 1394 Interface Headed for Slow Decline

IEEE 1394 faces major challenges, and its market share is stagnating, reports InStat. The peak year for 1394 devices is expected to be 2008, and a slow decline will set in beginning in 2009, the high-tech market research firm says. IEEE 1394, also called FireWire or i.Link, is a high-speed serial bus specification found primarily in three markets: PCs, PC peripherals and Consumer Electronics.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following: • 1394-enabled device shipments will grow by only 0.2% annually through 2011.

• 1394 had created an ecosystem, with digital camcorders at the center, but there has been slippage in this ecosystem recently.

• From 2005 to 2006, 1394 penetration of digital camcorders fell from 85% to 77%.

In-Stat, Scottsdale, AZ. (480) 483-4440. [www.in-stat.com].

JULY 2007

15

cover feature nanoelectronics

Can Nanoelectronics Deliver a Universal Memory?

With semiconductor structures approaching atomic scale, the search for scalable technologies has gotten serious—and promising.

A

by John Donovan, Editor-in-Chief As semiconductor line widths move to 32 nm and below, Moore’s Law is starting to run headlong into the laws of physics. Gate leakage below 32 nm—where doping variations of several atoms may cause a gate to fail—makes capacitor-based DRAM and floating-gate flash memories increasingly unreliable. High-k materials and metal-gate structures are a shortterm fix that won’t scale very far. The next generation of chips—logic, and in particular memories—needs a solution in the nanoscale region, where the Holy Grail of an ultra-lowpower and ultra-fast, non-volatile “universal memory” is reputedly waiting to be found.

After several years of hype about its potential, the fledgling nanoelectronics industry could be in real trouble if it doesn’t start delivering real products into the market soon. This article will focus on nanomemory technologies that are already available or seem likely to be commercialized in the near future.

16

PORTABLE DESIGN

One such technology, magneto-resistive RAM (MRAM), has recently started shipping in volume, aiming to replace SRAM and flash in a variety of applications. MRAM is a leading contender for the title of “universal memory,” combining the speed of SRAM at a comparable cost structure and durability several orders of magnitude better than flash.

While MRAM is the first “next-generation memory” out of the chute, other more exotic technologies are threatening to follow suit, including silicon nanocrystals, phase-change memories and carbon nanotubes. In terms of scaling, molecular memory—yes, we’re being serious here—is in a class by itself.

MRAM

Magneto-resistive RAM (MRAM) devices store data as a magnetic state rather than a charge. Each memory element in an MRAM consists of a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ).

cover feature

figure 1 Current I

Word Write Line Bit Line

{1}

MTJ: Storage Layer Tunnel Barrier Pinned Layer

Digit Line

Read-Selection Transistor

Resistance (kΩ)

High Resistance

Low Resistance Magnetic Field (Oe)

MRAM cell structure.

An MTJ is composed of fixed magnetic layer, a thin dielectric tunnel barrier and a free magnetic layer (Figure 1). When the bias is applied er exploration ether your goal to the junction, electrons that are spin polarized speak directly by the magnetic layers tunnel through the diical page, the ght resource. electric barrier and change the polarization on technology, the other side. The junction resistance is low es and products (0) when the two layers are spin aligned and ed high (1) when they are not. Hence the name “magneto-resistive RAM.” Since data is stored as a magnetic state rather than a charge, it can be sensed by measuring the resistance without disturbing it; a typical MRAM memory element consists of a 1-Trancompanies providing solutions now sistor 1-Magnetic Tunnel Junction (1T-1MTJ) exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research the latest datasheet from a company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchcell. with Magnetic the right resource.

Whichever level polarization doesof not leak away gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you areas searching for. charge does when the power is turned off. onnected And since switching the magnetic polarization does not involve the movement of electrons, there is no known wear-out mechanism. This gives MRAM a major advantage over flash, which has serious endurance issues that only get worse as it scales downward. With the density of flash, significantly faster read/write speeds (35 ns typical), plus unlimited endurance—a minimum of 10 years, MRAM is well positioned to replace flash going forward. It’s also more cost-effective than nvSRAM or EEGet Connected with companies mentioned in this article.

PROM and integrates easily with logic, MCUs www.portabledesign.com/getconnected and mixed-signal circuits.

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MRAM emerged from the laboratory a few years ago but is only now starting to become a catalog item. In 2003, IBM and Infineon developed a 128 Kbit MRAM core using 0.18micron CMOS technology. In 2004 IBM and Infineon demonstrated 4-, 16- and 32-Mbit 30 nsec MRAM devices. In 2005 Freescale demonstrated a 4 Mbit MRAM (MR2A16A), which it began shipping in production quantities in July 2006. Not to be outdone, Toshiba and NEC have demonstrated working 16 Mbit MRAMs. Taking another approach to MRAMs, Grandis Technologies has developed spin-transfer torque random access memory (STT-RAM).

Writing data to an MTJ MRAM involves changing the polarization of the free magnetic layer (“flipping the bits”); this can be done quickly, but doing so consumes a good deal of power. Spin-transfer torque writing is a second-generation writing technology for magnetic memory in which a spin-polarized current, flowing through a magnetic tunnel junction, is used to change the state of the bit. STT-RAM has the advantages of lower power consumption and better scalability over first-generation MRAM, since no external magnetic field is required. Grandis claims a low writing current in the order of 100-200 µA at the 90 nm node and under 100 µA at 45 nm. Also, the architecture is simplified because STT-RAM does not require the additional metal wires needed to produce magnetic fields, thus reducing manufacturing costs over MRAM. Grandis is fabless, but to date it has licensed its SST-RAM technology to Sony and Renasas, who decidedly aren’t. In May Grandis opened an R&D fab in Silicon Valley to speed development of SST-RAM, which it hopes to license more widely for high-speed embedded applications. This can only accelerate the acceptance of MRAM generally. The race is on.

Silicon Nanocrystals

One of the most promising flash replacements is silicon nanocrystals, which Freescale intends to use as embedded non-volatile memory in their MCUs. In 2003 Freescale demonstrated a 4 Mbit nanocrystal memory device, the first of its kind. In 2005 Freescale an-

cover feature Compared with conventional NOR flash memory, silicon nanocrystals offer lower operating voltages, reduced memory module size, simpler process flow and lower manufacturing costs.

Phase-Change/Ovonic Memory

Another long-time lab experiment reportedly approaching mass production—some would say perennially—is phase-change random access memory (PCRAM). This is the same basic technology used in CD-ROMs, but in this case the phase changes are triggered by transistors instead of lasers.

Phase-change memory—known in some quar-

figure 2 1E+6

Amorphous

Programmed Resistance (Ohms)

nounced that it had manufactured the world’s first 24 Mbit memory array based on silicon nanocrystals. Compared with conventional NOR flash memory, Freescale’s technology offers lower operating voltages, reduced memory module size, simpler process flow and lower manufacturing costs.

Silicon nanocrystal memories are part of a class of memory technologies called thinfilm storage. Freescale replaces the floating gate used in flash cells with a charge-storage medium consisting of vertically aligned silicon nanocrystals that are roughly 50 angstroms in diameter. Nanocrystals are almost immune to capacitive coupling, enabling them to achieve a density of 1012 per square centimeter. They are more scaleable than conventional floating-gate-based flash, since their tunnel oxide thickness can be reduced without impacting data retention. The charge is stored on isolated nanocrystals and is lost only from those few nanocrystals that align with defects in the tunnel oxide; the same defects would result in significant charge loss from a conventional floating gate. Because the nanocrystal layer is so much smaller than its flash counterpart, Freescale claims a reduction in memory size of 50 percent and operating voltage of 33%—from 9V to 6V—at the 90 nm node, as well and the need for six fewer masks. The die shrink alone at highvolume production would result in a considerable cost savings vs. flash.

Freescale claims that its nanocrystals integrate readily with a standard bulk CMOS process, since they’re just another form of silicon; a passivation layer keeps the nanocrystal properties intact during subsequent processing.

In contrast, flash doesn’t integrate well with CMOS processes, leading to stacked-die solutions or resorting to off-chip memory.

Freescale may continue to use high-speed SRAM for L2 cache but silicon nanocrystals for on-chip non-volatile memory. A year ago Freescale indicated that they expected to ship a 65 nm product in 2007—skipping the 90 nm node—but more recently a Freescale executive, when asked by Portable Design about their product plans for silicon nanocrystals, simply smiled and indicated that we should stay tuned for further announcements.

1E+5

1E+4

Crystalline 1E+3

0.0

0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

Programming Current (mA) Ovonic memory state changes.

JULY 2007

19

cover feature

figure 3

a1

T

a2

(n,0) zigzag Ch = na1 + ma2 (n,n) armchair

(0, 10) nanotube (zig-zag)

Carbon Nanotubes

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indicating considerable commercial interest in the technology, though products are still largely pending, with a few exceptions. In 2006 BAE Systems introduced a radiation-hardened, 4 Mbit chalcogenide random-access memory (CRAM) semiconductor for space applications based on Ovonyx’ OUM technology.

Ovonic memory and MRAM are the likeliest flash replacements over the next few years.

Both Intel—who has a large investment in Ovonyx—and STMicro have indicated that they consider ovonics to be the best prospect for flash replacement after 2010.

(7, 10) nanotube (chiral)

(10, 10) nanotube (armchair)

ed Carbon nanotubes.

ters as ovonic unified memory (OUM)—exploits a reversible phase change between the amorphous anddatasheet crystalline that can be affected exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research the latest from astates company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchinwith the right resource.

Whichever level ofan alloy of anchalcogenide alloys, typically gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you aretimony searchingtelluride for. and germanium telluride. When onnected the ovonic alloy changes states, the junction resistance changes dramatically (Figure 2). PCRAM memories are non-volatile, durable (10+ year data retention), fast, low power (1 µA standby), low voltage and—assuming that all process hurdles can be surmounted—presumably cheap.

The company at the forefront of PCRAM memories is Ovonyx, in part by having inherited the patents to most of the underlying technology from its parent company Energy Conversion Devices. STMicro, Intel, SamGet Connected with companies mentioned in this article. sung, Qimonda, Elpida and Nanochip have www.portabledesign.com/getconnected all signed licensing agreements with Ovonyx,

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Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are the ultimate in miniature wiring. A single-wall carbon nanotube (Figure 3) is a one-atom-thick sheet of graphite rolled up into a seamless cylinder a nanometer in diameter and over 10,000 nm long. Far from being fragile, carbon nanotubes are one of the strongest known materials. They also have an electrical current density more than 1,000 times greater than copper or silver, enabling them to carry substantial currents despite their diminutive size.

The company closest to commercializing carbon nanotube memories is Nantero. Nantero has spent the last several years developing its CNTbased nonvolatile RAM (NRAM) technology, which it claims “will replace all existing forms of storage, such as DRAM, SRAM and flash memory, with a high-density nonvolatile RAM—‘universal memory’.” Nantero hopes to replace all the memory in cell phones, MP3 players, digital cameras, PDAs and routers with NRAM. Instant-on notebook computers are another target—also coveted by MRAM—that could sell a lot of cheap, nonvolatile memory if in fact it can be made cheaply enough. At the very least, Nantero’s nanotube technology could replace on-chip SRAM in L2 cache, certainly a good beginning.

Nantero’s design for NRAM involves the use of suspended nanotube junctions as memory bits, with the “up” position representing bit zero and the “down” position representing bit one; bits are switched between states through the application of electrical fields. Nantero deposits nanotubes in a single layer as a fabric using a spin coating process at room temperature, then uses standard lithography and etching to

cover feature define the cells. The company claims its CNT technology is compatible with standard CMOS processing down to a theoretical 5 nm node, adding no extra mask layers and requiring no specialized equipment.

Nantero has partnered with ON semiconductor to commercialize NRAM at ON Semi’s Gresham, Oregon fab (acquired from LSI Logic). Last year Nantero announced that it had fabricated and successfully tested a 22 nm memory switch with a 3 ns read/write cycle time. Last November Nantero announced that it had “resolved all of the major obstacles that have been preventing carbon nanotubes from being used in mass production in semiconductor fabs,” declaring that the “carbon nanotube electronics era has begun.” With all due respect, we’ll have to see how the economics shake out once the technology is actually productized; we’d also like to see in which applications NRAM makes the most sense versus other emerging technologies.

In many ways, each molecule acts like an individual capacitor device, similar to a conventional capacitor, but storing only a few electrons of charge, which are accessible only at specific, quantized voltage levels. The key

figure 4

Molecular Memory Array

Memory Element Molecule

Molecular Information Storage ZnP Neutral Neutral + ++

Molecular Memory

If you’re looking for compact memory, it’s hard to find a much smaller storage medium than a molecule. The company closest to commercializing molecular memories is ZettaCore, Inc., a small Colorado company. ZettaCore molecular memory is based on the properties of specially designed molecules. ZettaCore stores information by adding or removing electrons and then detecting the charge state of the molecule. The molecules, called multi-porphyrin nanostructures, can be oxidized and reduced (electrons removed or replaced) in a way that is stable, reproducible and reversible. In this way, molecules can be used as reliable memory locations for electronic devices.

ZettaCore memories (Figure 4) are essentially tiny DRAMs, though they can clearly scale better than DRAM. According to ZettaCore’s CEO Subodh Toprani, “You can’t build a planar capacitor in 65 nm technology where you can reliably detect a charge. You need to build a 3D structure, which is not a standard process today, and it’s expensive. With us you don’t need to build 3D structures, you can just add a couple of chemicals.” Toprani did add, however, “We still have some work before we’re there,” especially in the metallization process.

Fc Neutral + + +

Memory 00 01 10 11

ZettaCore molecular memory.

difference between ZettaCore memory and conventional memory is that as the size of a memory element becomes smaller, the properties of semiconductor materials change in undesirable ways, while the properties of molecular capacitors remain the same. This allows scaling to the molecular level, where molecular memories would no doubt be wired together using carbon nanotubes.

Another unique property is chemical selfassembly. This allows the molecules to attach only to a particular type of surface (for example, gold, silicon, various metals and oxides), to pack tightly on that surface, and to align properly on the surface for electronic operation.

Because of chemical self-assembly, ZettaCore molecular memory chips can be manufactured using equipment and processes common in the JULY 2007

21

cover feature

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semiconductor industry. Molecules are applied to an entire wafer by spraying or dipping and attach only to those exposed surfaces they are designed for. Unattached molecules are simply washed away from the other surfaces.

ZettaCore has produced working prototypes of its memories and had earlier predicted having products and production by 2007. It hasn’t happened by midyear, but keep an eye out for further announcements.

probably a longer-term play than the other contenders covered in this article. Carbon nanotubes will potentially have the greatest long-term impact, but only time will tell how quickly the market will accept such a radical entry.

Defending flash memory against its wouldbe replacements, Intel’s CTO Pat Gelsinger was quoted a few years ago as saying, “Nobody has any other memory technology that is manufacturable. Everybody could build something—but

figure 5 Nanomemory Technologies

DRAM

SRAM

Flash (NOR)

Flash (NAND)

MRAM

SST-RAM

Silicon Nanocrystals

Ovonics

CNT

Molecular

Non-Volatility

No

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Cell Size (F²)

6-10

50-120

10

5

16-40

6-20

.2-.3μm

6-12

5nm

?

Read Time (ns)

30

1-100

10

50

3-20

2-20

35

20-50

<2

?

Write/Erase Time (ns)

50/50

1-100

1μs/10ms

1ms/0.1ms

3-20

2-20

35

50/120

<2

?

Endurance

1016

1016

105

105

>1015

>1015

>1015

1010

>1015

>1015

Write Power

Low

Low

Very High

Very High

High

Low

Low

Low

Low

Very Low

Other Power Consumption

Refresh Current

Current Leakage

None

None

None

None

None

None

None

None

High Voltage Required

2V

No

6-8V

16-20V

3V

<1.5V

3.3V

1.5-3V

Low

Very Low

Comparison of nanomemory technologies.

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Whichever level of Road Ahead gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you are searching for.

Clearly, it remains to be seen how

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22

well these new nanomemory technologies (Figure 5) will perform, what niches they will wind up occupying relative to one another—and whether they can be manufactured economically in quantity. In terms of capabilities, they all look quite promising.

In terms of market acceptance, MRAM has the edge, being the only currently shipping nanomemory product. Ovonic memories may perform better, only to find that by the time they arrive in quantity they will have trouble grabbing back market share from MRAM. The same is even truer of molecular memory, which is

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nobody could build lots.” Gelsinger’s observation is now four years old and therefore dated, but his essential challenge still holds. Once the new “universal memories” break out of the chute— and assuming that they work as promised—their success or failure will ultimately be determined by economics more than technology.

But if these new nanoscale technologies are indeed cheaper, faster and lower power than existing ones—and if they can be layered smoothly on top of existing bulk CMOS processes, scaling better than current approaches—then Moore’s Law will have a new lease on life and we’ll be treated to an endless stream of increasingly clever and highly portable devices.

cover feature BAE Systems London, UK. + 44 (0)1252 37 3232. [www.baesystems.com].

Qimonda North America, Inc. San Jose, CA. (408) 501-7000. [www.qimonda.com].

Elpida Memory (USA) Inc. Santa Clara, CA. (408) 970-6600. [www.elpida.com].

Samsung Semiconductor Inc. San Jose, CA. (408) 544-4000. [www.ssi.samsung.com].

Freescale Semiconductor Austin, TX. (800) 521-6274. [www.freescale.com].

STMicroelectronics Geneva, Switzerland. +41 22 929 29 29. [www.st.com].

Grandis, Inc. Milpitas, CA. (408) 945-2160. [ww.grandisinc.com].

Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. San Jose, CA. (408) 526-2400. [www.toshiba.com/taec].

Infineon Technologies North America Corp.

Milpitas, CA. (866) 951-9519. [www.infineon.com].

ZettaCore, Inc. Englewood, CO. (303) 300-2900. [www.zettacore.com].

Intel Corporation Santa Clara, CA. (408) 765-8080. [www.intel.com].

Nanochip, Inc. Fremont, CA. (510) 770-2500. [www.nanochip.com].

Nantero, Inc. Woburn, MA. (617) 670-1763. [www.nantero.com].

NEC Electronics America Santa Clara, CA. (408) 588-6000. [www.am.necel.com].

Ovonyx, Inc. Rochester Hills, MI. (248) 842-6096. [www.ovonyx.com].

Correction: The excellent ESL graphic on page 23 of our June cover story on ESL tools was courtesy of Gary Smith EDA, to whom I belatedly offer my thanks and apology for the lack of attribution.

JULY 2007

23

consumer mobile mobile video

Mobile Video Display Update The recent Society for Information Display (SID) show introduced a wide range of high-speed, high-quality displays for portable devices.

by John Donovan, Editor-in-Chief

N

Now that the Apple iPhone has finally been launched, one part of it that most reviewers agree has lived up to the hype is its dramatic display. Apple upgraded iPhone’s entire top surface from plastic to optical-quality glass for superior scratch resistance and clarity.

The touch-screen interface aside, the iPhone’s half-VGA screen (HVGA: 480 x 320 pixels) substantially raises the bar for cell phones, where quarter-VGA (QVGA) has only recently caught on.

At the recent Society for Information Display (SID) show in Long Beach, scores of companies showcased new display technologies, some representing incremental advances while others were quite innovative. Recent advances in screens and backlighting have resulted in handset displays that are brighter, lower power and have wider color gamuts, viewing angles and faster response times than anything previously available. Better displays,

24

PORTABLE DESIGN

plus the arrival of more efficient H.264 codecs, make the “third screen” a serious contender for watching streaming video—whether broadcast feeds delivered over MediaFLO or downloads from YouTube.

Touch Screens

The iPhone’s touch screen has been a big hit, thanks in no small part to the attractive software interface running behind. The screen does away with buttons altogether, which may require the reprogramming of a generation of cell phone users trained to communicate with their thumbs. The iPhone touch screen, reportedly supplied by Balda AG of Germany—a report the company refuses to either confirm or deny—uses multitouch technology based on a projective capacitive design. Apple’s patent application for multitouch claims such a screen has “a transparent capacitive sensing medium configured to detect multiple touches or near

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consumer mobile

touches that occur at the same time and at distinct locations in the plane of the touch panel and that produces distinct signals representative of the location of the touches on the plane of the touch panel for each of the multiple touches.” The ability to work through a glass nd screen is a distinct plus not shared by earlier touch-screen technologies. er exploration ether your goal Cypress’ CapSense is the current mainstream speak directly technology. A CapSense keyboard is an array of ical page, the ght resource. paired capacitive plates; a finger brought into technology, near proximity changes the output frequency es and products of a relaxation oscillator, which in turn triggers ed a switch. The technology is simple, extensible and easily configured as buttons or even linear slide switches. CapSense could theoretically work through a thin glass screen, though the separation between buttons would have to be increased, as would the size of the buttons. companies providing solutions now Atlatest SID2007, Immersion exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research the datasheet from a company,Corp. introduced mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchTouchSense with the right resource. tactile Whichever feedbacklevel forofportable devicgy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you arees, searching for. technology that provides confirming tactile onnected response to user touch-screen interactions. Comprising circuit and mechanical specifications, firmware, APIs and vibration, or tactile “effect” libraries, TouchSense technology provides highspeed control over a small electromechanical actuator, like those in mobile phones.

Using the TouchSense API, the portable device’s software application is programmed to respond to touch input by making calls to the TouchSense executable, running in the background on the host processor. The executable Get Connected with companies mentioned in this article. generates signals through the Immersion-speciwww.portabledesign.com/getconnected fied drive circuit, which controls the vibrations

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26

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of the actuator, mounted to the side or rear of the device’s display. These vibrations create sensations that can feel to the user like a button press or release.

Also at SID, QSI Corporation displayed InfiniTouch, which it claims is the only technology that directly measures the force of a user’s touch instead of measuring changes in resistance or capacitance. Location and force are determined by four force sensors near the corners of the touch surface. The differential pressure on the sensors makes it possible to locate where the surface was touched, and the total pressure on all four sensors indicates the applied force. This makes sense in outdoor environments such as tollbooths, where QSI is currently testing InfiniTouch. For handsets, capacitive sensing seems to work just fine.

Display Backlighting

Seiko Epson Corp. has introduced a new automatic luminance controller IC that the company says makes it possible to automatically control backlight luminance in real time relative to ambient brightness by simply connecting an external ambient light sensor. The S1F87110 IC allows users to utilize the PWMcontrolled automatic luminance control function just by hooking it up to their existing LED drivers. Epson claims that use of this automatic luminance control function reduces LED current consumption by 20-30%, while simultaneously improving the picture quality of the display. The S1F87110 also comes equipped with an I2C interface, allowing users to set their own customized luminance control specifications in order to achieve automatic luminance control that is appropriate for any kind of display.

Clairvoyante has introduced PenTile Mode Control technology, a new set of backlight control options for statically or dynamically selecting varying levels of power consumption and color purity. The initial features include three static modes that enable a user interface to control the amount of power reduction or color control, and one dynamic mode that uses dynamic backlight control (DBLC) to automatically analyze image content in order to provide variable power savings of 15 to 65 percent.

consumer mobile Low-Power Displays

Phillips’ Taiwan affiliate TPO Displays Corp. introduced its Self-Refreshing-Pixel (SRP) - Memory-in-Pixel (MIP) technology, which the company said allows mobile displays to achieve low power consumption and high transmittance aperture at the same time, offering higher luminance without affecting usage time.

TPO based its proprietary SRP-MIP technology on DRAM-MIP technology for low-temperature polysilicon (LTPS) processes. The key to TPO’s SRP-MIP technology is in its refresh function, which is fully integrated within the pixel, thereby eliminating the transfer of data between the pixel and outside circuit. By this process that is only achieved on LTPS panels, the number of voltage transitions applied to the Column bus lines and common electrode for the frame refresh is dramatically reduced.

TPO claims that mobile phones equipped with TPO’s SRP-MIP sub-displays can extend the battery life two days longer than mobile phones with conventional displays.

OLEDs

Universal Display Corporation presented recent advances in white phosphorescent OLED (WOLED) technology. Universal Display’s Dr. Brian W. D’Andrade, senior scientist, discussed a novel white OLED structure with an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 20%, corresponding to a luminous efficiency of 33 cd/A. With CIE coordinates of 0.38, 0.39 and operating lifetime exceeding 4,000 hours at 1,000 cd/m, this is believed to be the highest EQE reported to date for a single, non-stacked WOLED. MicroEmissive Displays Group plc has packed a 0.24-inch organic color-polymer-OLED QVGA display in sunglasses and hooked it up to an iPod. The eyescreen ME3204 is a color P-OLED QVGA (320 x RGB x 240) microdisplay featuring 230K dots in a compact 6 mm (0.24”) diagonal pixel array. It is mounted on a flex assembly to enable simplified design-in to end products. The eyescreen ME3204 has a two-wire serial interface, BT.656 and 8-bit serial RBG digital inputs, and runs off a single 2.5V supply. With

no backlight required, the integrated display driver electronics and digital video interface simplify integration into a wide range of systems and enable product designers to develop smaller and lighter weight products. The very

AMOLED benefits include better color contrast and video playback quality than today’s LCD displays. With recent progress in durability, they become a low-power alternative to LCD displays in cell phones.

high optical contrast ratio gives pictures with a vivid 3-D like appearance, and the eyescreen is effectively free from visible pixelation or “chicken wire effect,” thanks to this P-OLED microdisplay’s high fill factor.

OLED durability has long been an issue.

At the SID show, Novaled announced that a red bottom-emitting Novaled PIN OLED displayed a luminance drop of only 4% after 6,000 hours at a starting brightness of 3,700 cd/sqm. The record top-emitting red PIN OLED shows a luminance drop of only 1% after 1,000 hours measurement at a starting brightness of 12,000 cd/sqm. Both OLEDs are down calculated to more than one million hours (corresponding to one century) at a starting brightness of 1,000 cd/sqm. Novaled claimed 50,000 hours at 500 cd/sqm blue fluorescent PIN OLEDs and 100,000 hours at 500 cd/sqm for green OLEDs. Sony has developed what it says is the first full-color active-matrix organic-LED display on a flexible plastic substrate. Sony used C22H14 pentacene material to form organic transistors with 0.1 cm2/Vs mobility. The prototype is a 2.5-inch display with 120 x 160 JULY 2007

27

consumer mobile

pixels and 8-bit gray scale, delivering a 16.8 million colors. The electrodes were fabricated before the organic TFT layer without damaging the semiconductor layer.

ON Semiconductor introduced the NCP5810, a 2W dual output DC/DC converter that offers both positive and negative output. The device’s output voltage accuracy, high switching frequency and small package size make it particularly suitable for powering a display driver in active matrix organic lightemitting diode active-matrix (AM) OLED panels, the company said.

AMOLED benefits include better color contrast and video playback quality than today’s LCD displays, but they can create added power management challenges for design engineers. For example, because AMOLED displays are sensitive to changes in power supply voltages, ON Semiconductor said it designed the NCP5810 to provide accurate feedback voltage with 1% tolernd ance and a fast line transient response with overshoot of 4 mV, given a 500 mV input er exploration ether your goal voltage variation. speak directly According to ON, features include a high ical page, the ght resource. overall efficiency up to 85% at 1.75 MHz technology, oscillator frequency; a converter switching es and products frequency of 1.75 MHz, allowing the use of ed small inductors and ceramic capacitors; and an ultra-thin package with 0.55 mm thickness, allowing the NCP5810 to fit into the thinnest portable design form-factor. In addition, it preserves battery power in shut-down mode with true cut-off function that limits the leakcompanies providing solutions now age current exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research thedisplay latest datasheet fromtoa typically company, 1 µA, the commp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchpany with the rightAdditionally, resource. Whichever of said. thelevel NCP5810 features gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you arecycle-by-cycle searching for. peak current limit and thermal onnected shut-down protection.

End of Article Get Connected

Epson America, Inc. Long Beach, CA. (800) 463-7766. [www.epson.com].

Immersion Corporation San Jose, CA. (408) 467-1900. [www.immersion.com].

MicroEmissive Displays plc Edinburgh, Scotland. + 44 ( 0 ) 131 650 7764. [www.microemissive.com].

Novaled AG Dresden, Germany. +49 351 796580. [www.novaled.com].

ON Semiconductor Phoenix, AZ. (602) 244 6600. [www.onsemi.com].

QSI Corporation Salt Lake City, UT. (801) 466-8770. [www.qsicorp.com].

Sony Electronics Inc. San Jose, CA. (408) 432-1600. [www.sony.com].

Apple Cupertino, CA. (408) 996-1010. [www.apple.com].

TPO Displays Corp.

Chunan, Taiwan. + 886-37-586 393. [www.tpo.biz].

Clairvoyante Corp.

Cupertino, CA. (408) 200-7300. [www.clairvoyante.com].

Universal Display Corporation Ewing, NJ. (800) 599-4426. [www.universaldisplay.com].

with companies mentioned in this article. www.portabledesign.com/getconnected

28

Cypress Semiconductor San Jose, CA. (408) 943-2600. [www.cypress.com].

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Dream of Darkness,

Wasteman!

technology focus Dual, 2-Phase Synchronous StepDown DC/DC Controller in 4 x 4 QFN

Linear Technology Corporation has announced the LTC3850, a 95% efficient, dual output synchronous step-down switching regulator controller that drives all N-channel power MOSFET stages with coincident or ratiometric tracking. The 4V to 24V input range encompasses a wide variety of applications including most intermediate bus voltages and battery

VIN 4V to 24V PLL 0.8V<VOUT2<5.5V @<20A

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(PLL) frequency from 250 kHz to 780 kHz. Power loss and supply noise are minimized by operating both stages 180° out-of-phase.

OPTI-LOOP compensation allows the transient response to be optimized over a wide range of output capacitance and ESR values, including all ceramic input and output capacitors. Output current sensing is accomplished by measuring the voltage drop across the output inductor (DCR) or by using an optional sense resistor.

Current foldback limits MOSFET heat dissipation during short-circuit conditions. In addition, the LTC3850 has adjustable soft-start to control the turn-on time. Selectable Burst Mode operation, pulse skipping mode or continuous inductor current mode is user controlled to optimize light load efficiency vs. output ripple. The LTC3850 features a precision 0.8V reference with an accuracy of ±1% over a -40° to 85°C operating temperature range. With up to 97% duty cycle, the LTC3850 has a very low dropout voltage, a useful feature for extending runtimes in battery-powered applications.

The LTC3850 is offered in a thermally enhanced 4 mm x 4 mm QFN-28 and SSOP-28 packages. Pricing for 1,000-piece quantities begins at $2.40 each.

Linear Technology, Milpitas, CA. (408) 432-1900. [www.linear.com].

QFN-28 (4mm x 4mm)

SSOP-28

chemistries. The strong onboard driver allows the use of high-power external MOSFETs to produce output currents up to 20A with output voltages ranging from 0.8V to 5.5V. Applications include notebook and tablet PCs, portable instruments, datacom, telecom, set-top boxes, basestations, and multifunction printers where a step-down DC/DC converter must deliver high power with low heat dissipation in a small solution size.

A constant-frequency current mode architecture allows a selectable fixed or phase-lockable 30

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3 MHz/60 0mA Synchronous Buck Converter with 94% Efficiency

Fairchild Semiconductor has introduced the FAN5350, a 3 MHz/600 mA DC/DC synchronous buck converter featuring 16 µA quiescent current, 20 mV transient response and low-voltage ripple. Designed to power DSP core processors, application processors and I/ O interfaces, the FAN5350 utilizes Fairchild’s proprietary new ultra-fast architecture that is specifically designed to simultaneously provide industry-leading quiescent current and transient-response performance.

The FAN5350’s 3 MHz switching allows the device to employ small chip inductors (1 μH) and still maintain low ripple. Package options include both 1.00 mm x 1.37 mm WLCSP and 3 mm x 3 mm MLP packages, making it the

power management

smallest buck converter on the market. This high-performance, compact converter enables designers to meet next-generation load requirements while preserving battery life and saving board space in cell phones, media players, GPS devices, Bluetooth headsets and other singlecell 2.7V to 5.5V Lithium-ion-powered portable applications.

Highlights of the FAN5350 include: • Best-in-class 16 µA quiescent current to save battery life • Transient response that is more than two times better than the closest competitive devices (20 mV vs. 50 mV) • High-speed 3 MHz switching enables lowprofile 1 µH chip inductors to reduce board footprint and height • High efficiency of over 90 percent in both PFM and PWM modes • Industry’s smallest wafer-level chip scale package (WLCSP) to save space in portable applications The FAN5350 is a lead (Pb)-free product that meets or exceeds the requirements of the joint IPC/JEDEC standard J-STD-020C and is compliant with European Union regulations now in effect. The FAN5350UCX (1.00

mm x 1.37 mm WLCSP) is available now for $0.84 and the (3 mm x 3 mm MLP) for $0.80 (1000 pcs).

Fairchild Semiconductor Corporation, South Portland, ME. (207) 775-8100. [www.fairchildsemi.com].

Highly Integrated Single and Dual Regulator and DC/DC Converters

Freescale has introduced a series of singleand dual-power regulator integrated circuits (ICs) that provide efficient power management for double-data-¬rate (DDR) applications.

Freescale’s MC34712/3/6/7 regulator ICs efficiently power data-dense DDR1/2/3 memory systems and handle DC/DC conversion in a wide range of power conversion applications.

Found in graphics cards and virtually all computing systems, DDR memory delivers a dramatic increase in bandwidth over other conventional memory systems. Computing platform and DDR memory manufacturers require compact, flexible, integrated and efficient power management solutions that provide extensive, sophisticated control within the tightly designed real estate of today’s computing, networking and mass storage platforms.

VOUT(AC), 20mV/div.

Operating as synchronous 20mV buck switching converters, 15mV Freescale’s MC34712/3/6/7 series devices are designed to increase power manage∆ILOAD=300mA ment efficiency by up to 93 percent in most DDR appliH scale: 20μs / div. cations, and with less power dissipation for DC/DC conversion. The MC34712/3/6/7 devices provide programmable high-current switching frequency of up to 1 MHz for smaller inductors 1.0 mm 1.37 mm and capacitors.

Freescale’s MC34712/3/6/7 series single- and dual-pow3MHz 600mA Step Down Converter Delivers Best-in-Class er regulator ICs are available Transient Response with 16μA Quiescent Current now in production quantities. Suggested per-unit re-

sale pricing in 10,000-piece quantities: MC34712 single-output DDR version at $1.00; MC34716 dual-output DDR version at $1.37; MC34713 single-output DC/DC version at $1.00; MC34717 dual-output DC/DC version at $1.37.

Freescale Semiconductor, Austin, TX. (800) 521-6274. [www.freescale.com].

Negative Charge Pump for LCD Display Backlights

Maxim Integrated Products has introduced the MAX8647, a negative charge pump that provides the industry’s highest efficiency in powering LCD display backlights. An innovative, negative charge-pump architecture eliminates in-line resistance from battery to LEDs. This design delays mode switching from 1x to 1.5x during battery discharge.

A proprietary, adaptive-mode switching technology controls each of the six white or RGB LEDs independently. As a result, the MAX8647 achieves a significant 12% boost in efficiency, even with large LED forward-voltage (VF) mismatch. This superior power management is ideal for complex handheld devices that need long battery life and benefit from total light management.

Typical applications are cell phones, smartphones, and portable media players where every milliamp-hour (mAh) of battery life is paramount.

JULY 2007

31

technology focus Ideally, designers want to directly drive (i.e., 1x mode with no voltage drop) white and RGB LEDs for all battery voltages without losing any efficiency. However straightforward this objective, it has not been possible to achieve with “positive” charge pumps, which are located between the battery and LED. This configuration forms an undesirable dropout along the power line, causing a lower driving voltage to the LEDs. The charge pump turns on whenever the driving voltage is inadequate.

MAX8647 EFFICIENCY

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90% 80% 70% 60%

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companies providing solutions now

Asthealatest result, the from positive charge pump starts exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research datasheet a company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touchoperating with the rightatresource. of higherWhichever batterylevel voltages, leading gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you areto searching for. very poor efficiency.

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End of Article Get Connected

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32

The MAX8647’s negative charge-pump architecture eliminates in-line resistance from battery to LEDs. As a result, mode switching from 1x to 1.5x is delayed during battery discharge.

The adaptive-mode switching technology supplies, dims and regulates each LED individually.

The net result of this innovative technology is a 12% increase in LED efficiency.

The MAX8647/8648 are available in a tiny 16-pin TQFN (3 mm x 3 mm footprint, 0.8 mm height, max). They are screened for the -40° to +85°C extended temperature range.

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An evaluation kit (MAX8648EVKIT) is available to speed design. Prices start at $1.95 for the MAX8647, and $1.70 for the MAX8648 (2500-up).

Maxim Integrated Products, Inc., Sunnyvale, CA. (408) 737-7600. [www.maxim-ic.com].

Powering Digital Processors

National Semiconductor has introduced two new power management ICs: the LP5552 for video applications and the LP3919 for baseband functions.

Before video can be displayed, it must be decoded and processed by the application processor. Video processing consumes substantial energy, a major factor limiting battery life on mobile terminals. National’s PowerWise technology enables intelligent energy management of the processor using adaptive voltage scaling (AVS). Using National’s PowerWise intellectual property integrated onto the processor along with compatible power management ICs such as the LP5552, reduces energy consumption up to 70 percent, extending the life of the battery.

National’s LP5552 is an advanced power management IC that supports AVS to enable the processor to adaptively adjust its supply voltage to the minimum level needed, greatly reducing its energy consumption. Offered in a 36-bump micro SMD package, the LP5552 includes two 800 mA buck regulators and five low-dropout regulators (LDOs).

For powering baseband functions, National offers the highly integrated LP3919 power management IC. Offered in a 49bump micro SMD package, the LP3919 is the smallest integrated power management IC on the market that features high-efficiency switching regulators, LDOs and a battery charger. The LP3919 powers the baseband processor as well as other support circuitry in the system.

Available now, the LP5552 is $4.50 and the LP3919 is $2.35 in 1,000-unit quantities.

National Semiconductor Corporation, Santa Clara, CA. (408) 721-5000. [www.nsc.com].

power management

PWI 2.0 BUS

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Programmable LDO Programmable LDO Programmable LDO GP01 GP02 GP03

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Programmable LDO Programmable LDO

1.2A High-Brightness Flashlight LED Driver with I2C-Compatible Interface

Texas Instruments has introduced a device based on a high-frequency synchronous-boost topology with constant current sink to drive single, high-brightness white light emitting diodes (LEDs). The tiny 2 mm x 1.5 mm x 0.625 mm device uses an inductive fixed-frequency pulse-width modulation (PWM) control scheme using small external components, minimizing input ripple current for applications, such as a white LED flash for camera phones, smart phones and PDAs and other general lighting applications and reduces total solution size to less than 25 mm2.

TIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s TPS61050 integrated circuit (IC) uses a 2 MHz switching frequency that allows the use of small and low-profile 2.2 uH inductors. The TPS61050 device operates as a regulated current source, as well as a standard voltage-boost regulator. This additional operating mode can be useful to supply other high-power devices in the system, such as an audio power amplifier, or any other component requiring a supply voltage higher than the battery voltage.

For highest flexibility, the deviceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s LED current or the desired output voltage can be

VPLL/Analog VIO

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programmed via an I2C-compatible interface.

The TPS61050 also simplifies design by integrating four pre-set operation modes. To simplify flash synchronization with the camera module, the device offers a trigger pin for fast LED turn-on time. When the TPS61050 is not

in use, it enters into shutdown mode via the I2C-compatible interface, reducing the input current to 0.3-uA. During shutdown, the LED pin is high impedance to avoid leakage current through the LED. Key features of the TPS61050 include torch and flash up to ILED = 1200 mA; Voltage-regulated boost converter: 4.5/5.0/5.25V; shutdown: 0.3 mA (typ); total solution circuit area < 25 mm2; up to 96 percent efficiency; I2C-compatible interface up to 400 Kbits/s; integrated LED turn-on safety timer; integrated analog to digital converter for LED forwardvoltage monitoring; integrated low light dimming mode; LED disconnect during shutdown; open/shorted LED protection; and over-temperature protection.

The TPS61050 is shipping in volume production today in 2 mm x 1.5 mm, 12-pin wafer chip scale and 10-pin QFN packages. Suggested resale price starts at $1.40 in 1,000-unit quantities.

Texas Instruments Inc., Dallas, TX. (800) 336-5236. [www.ti.com].

JULY 2007

33

portable power power-efficient architectures

Power-Efficient Programmable Architectures for Portable Design Now CPLDs arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t your only option if you need more flexibility in your portable application.

by Martin Mason, Director, Silicon Product Marketing, Actel Corporation

A

As recently as early 2006, designers would have been hard pressed to find many portable design-friendly, low-power offerings from programmable logic vendors. Field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) in the dot-com boom were focused on density and speed, and with the turn of the millennium their focus turned to cost with the introduction of competing low-cost architectures. The few programmable offerings, often complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs) for portable applications, offered very limited features and modest 32 to 512 macrocell densities. Fabricated on 0.18-micron technologies, these sub-1mW power products launched the use of programmable logic in portable applications.

The advent of portable medial players and the emergence of more sophisticated smart phone technologies have been powerful application drivers for programmable logic vendors.

The competitive nature of the smart phone

34

PORTABLE DESIGN

business, for example, requires lightening fast design cycles for products with a life expectancy closer to a fruit fly than to the marvel of engineering that they are. These rapid-fire design cycles and the increasingly lower volume product offerings mean that, more than ever, programmable logic solutions are needed in smart phone designs.

Handset Complexity

In fact, as cell phones have evolved from candy bar sized phones to sophisticated convergence devices offering multimedia, e-mail, GPS, Web and camera, the requirements for programmable logic solutions in those products has increased. The challenge is they need to interface between the central processor, bulk data memory, such as CE-ATA interfaces, SDCard interfaces or simple NAND flash, display technology and ever more sophisticated human interface technology. Exceeding 128 macro

FREE on-line tutorials with Demos On Demand

A series of compelling, highly technical product demonstrations, presented by Xilinx experts, is now available on-line. These comprehensive videos provide excellent, step-by-step tutorials and quick refreshers on a wide array of key topics. The videos are segmented into short chapters to respect your time and make for easy viewing.

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Š2007 Xilinx, Inc. All rights reserved. XILINX, the Xilinx logo, and other designated brands included herein are trademarks of Xilinx, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

portable power

cell CPLD densities and routinely using small amounts of on-chip SRAM as a FIFO and PLLs for clock management and distribution, these applications are also growing in gate count and design complexity. Further complicating the matter, there are the complexities of interfacing 1.2V, 1.5V, 1.8V, 2.5V and 3.3V subsystems through the programmable logic device and the need for minimal printed circuit board (PCB) area consumption.

The current smart phone trend to keyless, all-glass touch screens is an area where ultra low-power FPGA technology finds a home. In these applications, FPGAs perform the combined tasks of phone stimulus monitoring and power system management. Most of the time, the smart phone is in sleep mode with the FPGA as a system master, scanning for exter-

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exploration into products, technologies and companies. Whether your goal is to research the latest datasheet from a company, mp to a company's technical page, the goal of Get Connected is to put you in touch with the right resource. Whichever level of SRAM gy, Get Connected will help you connect with the companies and products you are searching for.

Nonvolatile Memory

onnected

Operating power profile of SRAM-based vs. Non Volatile FPGAs

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36

nal stimulus. The FPGA is clocked with a very low-speed (32 kHz) clock, which allows the FPGA to detect and respond to human interface activity. Most of the time there is no stimulus, making it imperative that the FPGA have the lowest possible static current to provide the longest possible “stand-by” product life. The 32 kHz dynamic power consumption is negligible in this use model. In these applications,

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care should be taken in FPGA part selection as habitation or, stand-by modes, where the FPGA is powered-off, cannot be used as the FPGA is required to be functional. On detection of an external stimulus, the FPGA wakes up the main power management or processor subsystem. The FPGA also manages additional housekeeping tasks, such as reading and monitoring in-phone ADCs being used for low-battery monitoring and controlling ambient light sensors (for efficient backlighting adjustment) and phone-to-ear proximity sensors.

Like these applications themselves, programmable logic devices and architectures have come a long way in the past few years.

Feature-rich, single-chip FPGAs are now offered that include PLLs, on-chip SRAM and multiple voltage I/O standards in addition to 1.2V operation and static current consumption below 5 uW. Additionally, these feature-rich products are offered in 8 mm x 8 mm high pin count packages with enough I/O and logic resource to handle bulk memory interfaces in addition to human interface and display drivers.

In addition to the application drivers from the smart phone market, there is also strong market desire to make many applications mobile that were once tethered to a wall with a power and data cable. Whether it is point-of-sales terminals at the rental car return line, check stands at the local superstore to help personalize or speed up service, or a veterinarian’s portable ultrasound equipment, the industry call is for a highly flexible and integrated portable solution suitable for moderate volume applications. The advent of wireless technology and flash memory has addressed the ability to either transmit or store data. However, the integrated logic parts of these systems face an economic challenge. Once within reach of moderately priced application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) solutions, these power-sensitive sockets are no longer economically viable using ASIC technology given the exponential increasing nonrecurring engineering (NRE) costs associated with these devices.

Architectural Advances

FPGAs have long been promoted as ASIC alternatives, and the number of ASIC design starts has been steadily eroded by both FP-

portable power

GAs and application-specific standard products (ASSPs) in the past five years. However, ASICs have maintained two dominant market positions. The first is in the area of low-power, high-density logic requirements and the second is in the area of integrated, mixed-signal solutions, particularly for area-constrained portable applications. Recent architectural advances in both process technology and in FPGA design techniques now allow for low-power programmable logic devices to provide low-cost, low-power devices without NREs to these application areas and even some mixed-signal applications can be addressed with integrated programmable logic solutions.

FPGAs now offer devices with densities to 3M system gates with sub-500 uA static power consumption. This new breed of programmable logic devices enables low-power system designers to meet both power and cost goals, and with the constant push to use advanced process technologies by FPGA suppliers, expect more interesting low-power, higher-density products in the future.

FPGA suppliers are some of the first to use advanced process technologies. While the push to ever finer process geometries makes the headlines, an even more interesting revolution has been taking place with less fanfare. In most portable designs utilizing programmable logic, the need for speed has long been met by older technologies and architectures. Newer FPGA architectures, therefore, have chosen to trade speed for significantly lower static power (Figure 1). This trade-off is done by selecting a higher voltage threshold (Vt) during device manufacturing. Additionally, selective transistor threshold changes are implemented to optimize datapath speed (low Vt) while still minimizing leakage current in configuration memories (high Vt). In addition, power-hungry circuits—usually associated with power-on detection circuitry (Figure 2)—can be selectively disabled once a device is powered up leading to further static power savings.

In some technologies, these process and design changes are needed just to offset inherently higher leakage current, and so the net gain in power consumption may be modest and mostly from dynamic power reductions. For example, the static current consumed at 90 nm or 65 nm

process technologies is still higher at each successive process node despite advanced process and design techniques; most power savings on these devices can be attributed to lower overall operating voltage and not lower leakage cur-

FPGAs now offer devices with densities to 3M system gates with sub-500 uA static power consumption. This new breed of programmable logic devices enables low-power system designers to meet both power and cost goals.

rents. However, there are devices available where the savings in leakage combined with lower voltage can have a dramatic effect on static (and dynamic) power consumption. Process-related leakage power issues emerge at 130 nm technologies and it is this process node that seems to benefit the most from current power optimization techniques. The datasheet numbers from different FPGA suppliers speak for themselves. Low-voltage, low-leakage 130 nm flash-based FPGAs offer the lowest static and, for most designs, the lowest dynamic power consumption Process and temperature variations can also have a significant effect on power consumption.

Many designers are caught out by bench testing a sample of devices and claiming victory to their power budgets only to find that the next shipment of parts fails miserably. Care should be taken to understand how power is quoted in datasheets. Typical power often refers to devices tested with typical temp, voltage and process. Worst-case conditions are the best to rely on as these are usually the final test conditions that the device had to pass at temperature and have taken process variations into account.

Power increases exponentially after the leakage “knee” temperature has been exceeded. Many JULY 2007

37

portable power

Choose Wisely

Considering the major architectural advances in programmable logic over the last couple of years, these devices are well worth considering in your next portable design.

portable applications do not exceed this power threshold due to their lower <50째C operating limits. However the leakage knee can be as low as 25째C for some smaller geometry (<90 nm) processes. The better solution is not to rely on bench testing, but to use available analysis tools to estimate design-specific power consumption numbers.

figure 2

To aid in the selection of programmable logic technology, there are tools provided by all programmable logic vendors that allow for prelayout power estimates and post-layout power analysis. Most of the pre-layout tools are downloadable for free from vendor websites and take a pre-populated spreadsheet format. After entering in some basic design details, they will estimate a power consumption number at a given temperature and frequency. Care should be taken to ensure that any assumptions used by the tools are understood and most come with supporting user guides or application notes.

The breadth of the data available in tools offered for post-layout power analysis varies significantly. Some of the more sophisticated tools will take simulation files as input and offer power consumption by type of resource used (clocks, I/Os, core tiles, etc.) or hierarchical instance names used in your design. Most will also calculate junction temperature based on power consumption, which allows for a much more accurate estimation of overall power consumption.

Considering the major architectural advances in programmable logic over the last couple of years, these devices are well worth considering in your next portable design.

Actel Corporation, Mountain View, CA. (650) 318-4200. [www.actel.com].

Power

Power-On Inrush SRAM FPGAs

Operation, Frequency-Dependent

System Supply Voltage Configuration SRAM FPGAs

Time (or Frequency) SRAM Nonvolatile Memory

Power-up profiles of SRAM-based vs. Non Volatile FPGAs.

38

PORTABLE DESIGN

product feature Pin-Compatible 8/32-Bit MCUs A drop-in, painless upgrade for 8-bit MCUs direct to 32 bits? It may no longer be a dream.

More microcontrollers are sold every year than there are people on the earth. Most of the world—from your toaster and coffee maker to your garage door opener—is run by 8-bit MCUs. High-end applications—from the car you drove out of the garage to your set-top box when you get back—are run by much more powerful 32-bit devices. Pity the poor 16-bit MCU; like Rodney Dangerfield, it “don’t get no respect.”

While MCU vendors don’t care to position them this way, 16-bit MCUs exist primarily as a migration path from the vast array of 8-bit devices to a much more powerful, complex— and incompatible—32-bit world. Rewriting thousands of lines of code and re-engineering

proven designs is a price designers don’t want to pay if they can possibly avoid it. While 16 bits may be “good enough” for many applications, more often than not it’s a holding pattern before ultimately going to 32 bits.

Emphasizing 8- and 32-bit compatibility, Freescale has introduced the first two members of its new Flexis series of MCUs. The MC9S08QE128, based on the S08 core, and MCF51QE128, the first device based on the ColdFire V1 core, are the industry’s first 8- and

40

PORTABLE DESIGN

32-bit MCUs with pin-for-pin compatibility and a common set of on-chip peripherals and development tools.

The Flexis series provides the 8- to 32-bit “connection point” on Freescale’s Controller Continuum, its roadmap for compatible 8- and 32-bit architectures. The Flexis QE128 family enables developers to migrate between low-end and high-performance embedded designs with exceptional ease, speed, cost-effectiveness and ultra-low-power operating efficiency.

By providing a clear migration path, the Flexis QE128 MCUs open up a wide range of possibilities in a variety of consumer and industrial applications, including health care instrumentation and monitoring; factory automation; pointof-sale equipment; fire and security systems; HVAC and building control; metering and consumer appliances. The compatible architectures and tools make it easy to expand into new embedded markets without having to invest heavily in software rewrites and conversion to a new architecture.

Flexis QE128 MCUs offer ultra-low-power features to help minimize operating costs and extend battery life. The MC9S08QE128 and MCF51QE128 can run off of an external 32 kHz oscillator that consumes less than 1 µA of current. The Flexis QE devices also have an internal voltage regulator, which helps enable fast wake up from stop modes with a typical wake-up time of 6 µs. Stop modes for the Flexis QE128 devices are extremely low power, offering 370 nA of current in the lowest power stop mode. Clock gating also can be used to disable clocks to unused modules, further reducing run-mode power consumption by as much as 33 percent.

The Flexis QE128 family features a 50 MHz S08 or Cold Fire V1 core operating frequency and 25 MHz bus frequency; up to 8 Kbytes of RAM and 128 Kbytes of flash; 24-channel, 12-bit analog-to-digital (ADC) converters; two analog comparators; one 6-channel and two 3-channel timer PWM modules; a real-time clock (RTC); and up to 70 general-purpose I/Os (GPIO).

Early samples of the MC9S08QE128 and MCF51QE128 devices in 80LQFP and 64LQFP packages are planned for July 2007. Early samples of the MC9S08QE64 and MCF51 QE64 devices, offering 64K of embedded flash memory in 64LQFP packages, are also planned for July 2007. Manufacturing samples are planned for November 2007. The suggested resale price for the QE128 devices in 10,000-piece quantities starts at $3.59 for the 8-bit device and $3.80 for the 32-bit device in the 64LQFP package.

Freescale Semiconductor, Austin, TX. (800) 521-6274. [www.freescale.com].

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products for designers CODEC Brings High-Quality Sound and TV-Connectivity to Digital Cameras Wolfson Microelectronics has launched the WM8941, a high-performance, low-power CODEC with an integrated video buffer and speaker driver to enhance the performance of digital still and video cameras.

The WM8941 mono CODEC uses four programmable notch filters to provide high-quality audio recording, while the integrated video buffer provides the convenience of direct connectivity to a television.

Wolfson has integrated the new CODEC, video buffer and speaker driver inside an ultra-compact 4 x 4 mm package, allowing the WM8941 to be easily and cost-effectively incorporated inside the smallest of digital cameras.

Focusing on audio quality, the chip features a wind filter and four programmable notch filters in the ADC path, enabling the WM8941 to be tuned to suppress narrowband noise, including motor and mechanical noise. The end result of this filtering is higher quality recording. The current-mode video buffer gives a seamless transition from a video DAC output to TV input and provides programmable gain of 0 or 6 dB. A thirdorder low-pass filter also ensures video buffer quality, removing undesired images from the unfiltered video DAC output.

In addition, Wolfson has provided an on-chip speaker and headphone driver, further reducing the need for external components. The headphone driver supports 40 mW output power into 16 ohms. Three flexible analog inputs are provided: one auxiliary input and two for microphones—supporting differing configurations of single-ended and differential inputs.

The WM8941 provides a low-power solution for digital cameras and operates between 2.5V and 3.6V, and the digital supplies can operate as low as 1.71V to save power. Sections of the chip can also be powered down with software control.

The WM8941 is available for sampling now. Housed in a 4 x 4 x 0.75 mm 28-lead QFN package, it is priced at $1.79 in volumes of 10,000.

Dual-Channel, Hall-Effect Direction Detection Sensor Allegro Microsystems has introduced a new dual-channel Hall-effect sensor ideal for use in speed and direction sensing applications incorporating encoder ring magnet targets. Allegro’s A3423 provides output signals that indicate speed and direction of the target. The Hall elements are both photo lithographically aligned to better than 1 μm. Maintaining accurate mechanical location between the two active Hall elements eliminates the major manufacturing hurdle encountered in fine-pitch detection applications.

This device is highly sensitive and temperature stable making it ideal for use in harsh automotive and industrial environments. The Hall elements of the A3423 are spaced 1.63 mm apart, which provides for excellent speed and direction information for small-geometry targets. Extremely low-drift amplifiers guarantee symmetry between the switches to maintain signal quadrature. An on-chip regulator allows the use of this device over a wide operating voltage range of 3.8 to 24.0V. End-of-line trimming of the Hall element switchpoints provides for tight matching capability. The continuous-time method of offset cancellation delivers a fast start-up and signal recognition as well as very low noise on the output.

The A3423 is priced at $1.78 in quantities of 1,000 units and has a 14-week lead-time ARO. Allegro MicroSystems, Inc., Worcester, MA. (508) 853-5000. [www.allegromicro.com].

Wolfson Microelectronics, Inc., San Diego, CA. (858) 676-5090. [www.wolfsonmicro.com].

Enhancing the Display National Semiconductor has added two new devices—a high-speed serial host and a tiny display driver—to its Mobile Pixel Link (MPL) product line.

National’s low-power MPL family of products stream large quantities of data to the display while maximizing battery life. MPL serializes the data to reduce the wire count, which decreases the size of the connector and flexible printed circuit board (flex). MPL reduces electromagnetic interference (EMI), and its power consumption is roughly half that of competing products. In addition, MPL handles the voltage-level translation between the host and the display, eliminating the need for an external level shifter.

The newest member of National’s MPL family, the LM2512, is a high-speed serial host device that supports a video mode interface bridge between the processor and the display. Offered in a 49-bump UFBGA package, the LM2512 is highly programmable, with a unique built-in look-up table that allows for color correction, enabling the designer to optimize the viewing experience in displays offered from multiple manufacturers. The LM2512 also includes a dithering function, which allows 24-bit video to be displayed with high quality on 18-bit displays, preserving the lower power consumption associated with 6-bit RGB data converters.

National’s new FPD95120, a high-performance Low Temperature Polycrystalline Silicon (LTPS) display driver, is the narrowest glass-mounted device available for half-VGA format. Just 0.9 millimeters wide, the FPD95120 lets manufacturers maximize the active area of the display glass. The highly integrated driver provides an MPL deserializer, a high-efficiency inductive DC/DC switcher and random access memory (RAM) to enable standby, low-power display capabilities. It also features EEPROM that allows the same device to be used across multiple display manufacturers by storing module calibration data to match color and flicker parameters and the capability to program unique product identification.

Available now and offered as Chip-on-Glass (COG), the LM2512 is $2.40 and the FPD95120 is $3.40 in 1,000-unit quantities.

National Semiconductor Corporation, Santa Clara, CA. (408) 721-5000. [www.nsc.com].

42

PORTABLE DESIGN

Ultra-Slim Scrollwheel Input Devices for Portable Handheld Applications

eSilicon Corporation has announced availability of a new ARM processor-based peripheral subsystem architecture. The new subsystem reduces time-to-market for ARM-powered system-on-chip (SoC) solutions by providing developers with several industry-proven, “off-the-shelf” system technologies, enabling them to focus on their application-specific, valueadded functions.

The new subsystem, which can be used as is or customized for specific applications, is built around the ARM7TDMI and ARM926EJ processors that offer a robust, quick turnaround choice for many application areas like wireless technologies, mobile storage devices and set-top boxes. This new subsystem makes system design based on these processors even quicker by including several standard functions including memory controllers, serial ports, interrupt controllers, timers, realtime clock, PLL and low-speed ADC. The subsystem is designed in single- and multi-AHB (AMBA High-performance Bus) configurations, making it easy to accommodate specialty IP including PCI, USB, Ethernet, 802.11 and Bluetooth. This provides chip developers with the ability to modify the subsystem in-house, or work directly with eSilicon to optimize the subsystem for their application. eSilicon also offers an extensive verification environment that covers basic boot and CPU tests, as well as integration tests for all built-in, standard functions.

The eSilicon peripheral subsystem solution includes: ARM DSM models for simulation (Solaris or Linux, supporting Verilog-XL, NC-Verilog, VCS, ModelSim); timing models (.lib and SDF); Cadence LEF files for the ARM core; synthesizable RTL source code for the subsystem (excluding the core); Synopsys synthesis scripts; verification test bench; drivers and monitors.

Avago Technologies has added a new series of ultra-slim scrollwheel input devices that are easy to install and available in 12 standard configurations to meet the aesthetic design needs of designers developing portable handheld applications in low volumes.

Avago’s AMRX-1510 combines an illuminated scrollwheel input device with tactile left, right, up and down navigation switches and a center “select” button instead of many different rocker switches to enhance the user experience. In addition, with the availability of either a blue or white illumination ring, as well as a variety of material, color and finish options for the center select button and scrollwheel, designers can easily enhance the overall look and feel of their products to create more value to the end user. Moreover, the new design options available in the AMRX1510 minimize the additional cost of customization for lowvolume applications making this input solution more affordable.

The Avago AMRX-1510 scrollwheel device is built around Avago’s reflective optical technology. The horizontal scrollwheel provides a two-channel quadrature output, with resolution of 45 cycles per revolution (CPR).

It operates from a single 2.4V to 3.3V supply, and is available in both single-ended 1.8V CMOS and 3.3V TTL logic-compatible output options. It is easy to assemble, featuring plug-and-play connectivity through a flexible printed-circuit board, and requiring no signal adjustment. To maximize battery life, the device features a power-down mode in which it draws only 4 µA. The Avago AMRX-1510 is RoHS-compliant and lead-free.

AMRX-1510 pricing ranges from $3 to $4 each, depending on purchase quantity and the extent of customizations. Samples and production quantities are available now.

Avago Technologies, San Jose, CA. (408) 435-7400. [www.avagotech.com].

eSilicon Corporation, Sunnyvale, CA. (408) 616-4600. [www.esilicon.com].

First SERDES FPGA Priced Below $10 In conjunction with the production release of the first devices in its LatticeECP2M FPGA family, Lattice Semiconductor has reduced the price for its 20K Look-Up-Table (LUT) LatticeECP2M-20 to as low as $9.95. Lattice is able to offer more aggressive prices and performance enhancements for the LatticeECP2M FPGAs as the first two family members (20K and 35K LUTs) are moved into production. The remaining three family members (50K, 70K and 100K LUTs) will be released to volume production over the next 60 days.

Lattice also announced that the LatticeECP2M family’s performance has been boosted by up to 30% across a broad range of common logic macrofunctions such as decoders, multiplexers, counters and adders. For example, 32-bit decoders are 30% faster, 64-bit adders are 22% faster and 16-bit counters are 7% faster. These faster timing specifications and algorithms are incorporated into ispLEVER Version 7.0. The latest performance enhancements are the result of the completion of performance characterization of the first devices, as well as the more efficient logic map, place and route functions demonstrated by the ispLEVER design tools.

Representative prices for production volumes (100K pieces or more) purchased directly from Lattice by its customers for delivery in 2008 start at $9.95 for the 20K LUT LatticeECP2M-20E-5FN256C in the 256 ball fine pitch Ball Grid Array (fpBGA) package and $46.95 for the 70K LUT LatticeECP2M-70E-5FN900C in the 900 fpBGA package.

Lattice Semiconductor, Hillsboro, OR. (503) 268-8000. [www.latticesemi.com].

JULY 2007

43

products for designers

Peripheral Subsystem Offers Design Flexibility for ARM Processor-Based Chips

products for designers

CSR Adds Audio and Speech Enhancements to InCar Bluetooth

SmartDesign Functionality Eases System-Level Design

CSR has added a range of speech and audio enhancement technologies to CSR’s BlueCore5-Multimedia silicon to improve the quality of in-car Bluetooth applications. CSR has selected nFore’s software to bring noise and echo cancellation and music enhancements to in-car Bluetooth solutions. nFore’s technology comes via CSR’s eXtension Partner Program, an open DSP developers’ program, which brings a host of third-party software enhancements to the BlueCore5-Multimedia platform.

The offering combines CSR’s history of designing Bluetooth technology for the automotive market (Audi, BMW, Nissan, Saab) with nFore’s air acoustic technology, demonstrated through customers including Mitsubishi, Peugeot and Volkswagen. nFore offers adaptive AEC (Acoustic Echo Cancellation) to remove echo quickly at the start of a call, as well as a full-duplex solution to avoid voice clipping during the call. In addition, nFore’s two omni-directional microphone solution and active noise cancellation technology further reduce unwanted noise by more than 90%, providing the user with cleaner music or speech. nFore brings a number of audio enhancements for improved stereo sound including virtual reality sound and virtual stereo sound. Also included is PowBass, a bass-boost solution for headphones that utilizes unique auditory characteristics to reproduce low frequencies.

Actel Corporation has enhanced its Libero Integrated Design Environment (IDE) to further ease the system-level design process when using its field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). A key functionality within Libero IDE v8.0, SmartDesign lets users visually create and then automatically abstract block-based system designs into synthesis-ready VHDL or Verilog components. The graphical block-based design entry supports prefabricated blocks from Actel’s extensive DirectCore and SmartGen IP libraries.

It also supports custom blocks created in HDL or Synplify DSP and processor subsystems created with Actel’s CoreConsole tool.

SmartDesign enables source file components, such as SmartGen- and

CSR, Richardson, TX. (214) 540-4300. [www.csr.com].

Non-Contacting Rotary Position Sensor Novotechnik has introduced the RSC 2800 series of non-contacting rotary sensors. Measurement angle is determined by detecting variation in the orientation of a magnetic field due to a magnet attached to the shaft. Custom circuitry performs field orientation detection and filtering while providing an analog output that is proportional to angular position.

The series provides independent linearity of <±0.5%. Electrical measurement angle ranges from 30 to 360 degrees.

RSC sensors provide a lifespan of more than 50 million movements, and feature repeatability of <0.03% of output signal range. The RSC 2800 series performance is unaffected by static or dynamic shaft loads of up to 20N in both radial and axial directions. RSC 2800 sensors are designed to operate in extreme environments and provide protection to the IP 65 standard. The RSC operates in an environment of -40° to 85°C. Housing diameter is 28 mm (0.66 in), and the elongated slots on the housing allow easy mounting.

Novotechnik U.S., Southborough, MA. (508) 485-2244. [www.novotechnik.com].

44

PORTABLE DESIGN

CoreConsole-configured IP and processor cores, HDL modules, Actel cell macros and Libero-created blocks, to be visually brought together onto a white-board “canvas” in a block-diagram view. A “catalog” provides an extensive list of IP, macros, HDL templates and bus interfaces that can be selected and dragged and dropped onto the canvas. Thus, SmartDesign facilitates real design reuse and paves the way for future block capture designs using system Verilog, DSP, mixed hardware/software blocks and more.

While capturing a design using SmartDesign, a “SmartGuide” function suggests compatible bus interfaces and IP cores that may be appropriate for the design. This same function, serving as a design rule checker, ensures the connections are correct by construction. Upon completion, a synthesis-ready HDL source file is created.

The Actel Libero IDE 8.0 Platinum edition is available on Windows and Linux platforms for $2,495. A limited feature Gold edition is available on Windows for free. All editions are one-year renewable licenses.

Actel Corporation, Mountain View, CA. (650) 318-4200. [www.actel.com].

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products for designers

Spartan-3A DSP Devices in Production Xilinx, Inc. has announced the availability of production-qualified Spartan-3A DSP devices. Shipping in production a month ahead of schedule, the Spartan-3A DSP platform offers 20 GMACs for under $30 for a wide range of low-cost, data-intensive applications including wireless, video surveillance, personal medical and consumer applications. The Spartan-3A DSP platform is part of the Xilinx XtremeDSP solutions that provide developers with a complete portfolio of programmable logic devices, IP, development tools and third-party DSP ecosystem.

The Spartan-3A DSP platform gives developers the opportunity to leverage the flexibility and inherent parallel processing capabilities of FPGAs in low-cost and mobile applications. The platform is based on Xilinx’s Spartan-3 generation FPGAs, with the added power management and connectivity features of the Spartan-3A platform. At the heart of the Spartan-3A DSP architecture is the XtremeDSP DSP48A slice that enables designers to implement many independent arithmetic functions.

The 3SD1800A device is priced at $29.85 and the 3SD3400A device is priced at $44.95. Pricing is for 25,000 units in volume production, end 2008.

Xilinx, San Jose, CA. (408) 559-7778. [www.xilinx.com].

Tiny, 0.5A MOSFET Drivers Microchip Technology has introduced the MCP1401 and MCP1402 (MCP140X) single-output MOSFET drivers. The inverting MCP1401 and non-inverting MCP1402 MOSFET drivers are rated for a peak output current of 0.5A, over a wide operating voltage range of 4.5V to 18V. They have excellent latch-up immunity and are available in miniature, 2 mm x 3 mm DFN and 5-pin SOT-23 packages.

Because the MCP140X MOSFET drivers are available in such small packages, designers can position the gate driver close to the MOSFET’s physical gate connection, which minimizes gate bounce caused by the parasitic PCB layout. This also minimizes gate rise-and-fall times, propagation-delay times and shoot-through current, all of which help to increase system efficiency and reduce power dissipation.

The MCP1401 and MCP1402 MOSFET drivers are well suited for a variety of consumer electronic, industrial and medical applications that use power supplies. Examples include personal computers (PCs), laptops, portable measurement devices and centrifuges, among others.

The MCP1401 and MCP1402 MOSFET drivers are both available in a 2 mm x 3 mm DFN package, for $0.55 each in 10,000-unit quantities. Both devices are also available in a 5-pin SOT-23 package, for $0.50 each in 10,000-unit quantities. Samples are available today Microchip Technology Inc. Chandler, AZ. (480) 792-7200. [www.microchip.com].

Low-Power H.264 HD Codec ICs Mobilygen has announced the en-ViE platform, enabling the creation, playback and distribution of HD H.264 video for connected home, mobile and surveillance applications. The en-ViE platform includes three new codec SoCs (System on Chip), the MG2500, MG3500 and MG4500, offering customers the choice of dual-stream SD, multi-stream SD or full 1080i HD encoding. A single en-ViE SOC can provide up to 8 channels of H.264 D1 encoding with less than one watt of total power consumption. All en-ViE SoCs share a common hardware and software architecture enabling manufacturers to develop a wide range of video products based on a single software investment.

The SoCs integrate an ARM9 CPU dedicated to customers’ applications. A programmable Multi-Media Engine supports all leading audio formats including AAC, MP3, G.7xx and Dolby Digital. Network connectivity is provided via integrated Gigabit Ethernet and high-speed USB 2.0 OTG. AES encryption and digital signature hardware provide secure networking and storage. Most popular video storage devices are supported, including USB, SD, MMC, Compact-Flash, CE-ATA and IDE. The en-ViE evaluation system will be available in August 2007 with SoC production volumes scheduled for the 4th quarter of 2007. The MG3500 HD Codec is priced at $30 in high volume.

Mobilygen Corporation, Santa Clara, CA. (408) 869-4000. [www.mobilygen.com].

46

PORTABLE DESIGN

Precision 16V Operational Amplifiers Analog Devices has introduced two new high-precision, low-noise op amps targeted at portable and battery-operated applications.

The AD8663 is a 16V precision, low-noise, rail-to-rail op amp that addresses the performance, power and cost requirements of portable and battery-operated applications, such as patient monitors, defibrillators, remote industrial controls and optical sensors. These types of higher-voltage portable devices are increasingly adopting lithium-ion, lithium-polymer and other batteries operating at 3V to 16V ranges.

This shift in battery technologies is creating a growing demand for signal conditioning components capable of supporting high voltages, while also providing excellent power efficiency, thermal management and precision.

The AD8638 is a 16V zero-drift precision op amp designed for industrial instrumentation, automotive and sensor applications that must accommodate wide variations in temperature, power supply, load and input signal without introducing signal conditioning errors. The new op amp extends the operating voltage and temperature range for both single- and dual-supply applications and is the first to combine the size, power and performance advantages of the iCMOS industrial manufacturing process with Analog Devices’ patented auto-zero and low-drift technologies. The result is a device with 140 dB CMRR and 140 dB PSRR, making it up to 10 dB more accurate than competitive zero-drift op amps.

The AD8663 precision op amp, and a dual-channel version, the AD8667, are sampling now and will be available in full production quantities in July 2007. The AD8663 is available in an 8-lead LFCSP (3 mm x 3 mm, lead-frame chip-scale package) for $0.64 per unit or an 8-pin SOIC (small-outline integrated circuit) package for $0.60 per unit, both in 1,000-piece quantities. The AD8667 is available in an 8-pin MSOP (mini small-outline package) for $0.80 per unit or an 8-pin SOIC for $0.78 per unit, both in 1,000-piece quantities.

The AD8638 zero-drift op amp is sampling now and will be available in full production quantities in September 2007. The AD8638 ships in a SOT-23 package and is priced at $1.20 per unit in 1,000-piece quantities.

Analog Devices, Norwood, MA. (781) 3294700. [www.analog.com].

Cirrus Logic’s CS556x/7x/8x family of 16- and 24-bit analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) combines the higher-bandwidth, low-distortion performance of a SAR converter with high-resolution, low-noise performance that is the hallmark of Delta-Sigma ADCs. The CS556x family overcomes many of the critical performance issues associated with SAR and Delta-Sigma converters. SAR converters are typically very sensitive to noise, whether the source of noise is in the converter itself or in the system that the SAR converter operates. Virtually any noise present can—and often will—propagate directly to the output of the converter. The CS556x provides a much higher level of noise suppression than SAR converters, resulting in higher accuracy conversions and reduced post-conversion processing while adding to the robustness of the system.

Compact Flash Host Controller Supports CF+ Spec QuickLogic Corporation has released a full Compact Flash host controller to provide designers of portable devices with simple access to this common memory technology.

Compact Flash is a high pincount interface, and as a result, many of the latest application processors no longer support it in order to reduce cost. QuickLogic’s Compact Flash host controller acts as a companion device to the application processor, enabling connectivity to a host of Compact Flash devices on the market. It preserves the investment made in Compact Flash peripherals by consumers while allowing them to take advantages of the more powerful emerging application processors.

QuickLogic’s Compact Flash host controller solution supports the CF+ specification including memory, data storage, I/O and True IDE mode. It can be configured to work with Compact Flash memory cards, micro hard disk drives and a broad range of I/O peripherals. The processor interface implemented in the programmable fabric allows seamless connection to a variety of applications processors, enabling developers to quickly add Compact Flash to their mobile designs.

QuickLogic’s Compact Flash host controller solution is available now for under $2 in high volume.

QuickLogic Corporation, Sunnyvale, CA. (408) 990-4000. [www.quicklogic.com].

The CS556x achieves differential non-linearity (DNL) error as low as ±0.04 LSB typical (CS5571), compared to ±1 LSB typical within SAR converters. In addition, the single-clock latency digital filter allows conversion-rate switching of the input with no loss in throughput.

With near-flat digital FIR filter characteristics, the CS556x product line achieves unrestricted, wide-bandwidth signal throughput usually seen only in higher-speed SAR converters—at resolutions up to 24 bits. With this flat filter, output data is a 1:1 representation of the input signal across the entire frequency range, up to the sampling rate of the converter.

The CS5560 offers 24-bit resolution, a conversion rate of 50 kSPS and is priced at $8.95 in 1,000 quantities. The CS5571 offers 16-bit resolution, a conversion rate of 100 kSPS and is priced at $10.29 in quantities of 1,000. The CS5581 offer 16-bit resolution, a conversion rate of 200 kSPS, and is priced at $8.45 in quantities of 1,000. The CS5561/70/80 will be available the September quarter. The ICs, which are currently in volume production, are available in a 24-lead SSOP package.

Cirrus Logic, Austin, TX. (512) 851-4000. [www.cirruslogic.com].

Altera Ships Highest-Density Member of the Cyclone III Family Altera Corporation has announced production shipment of the EP3C120, the largest member of its new low-cost 65 nm Cyclone III FPGA family. Consuming less than 200 mW standby power, the EP3C120 is ideal for a broad range of applications requiring both high integration and low power, such as wireless communications infrastructure, software defined radio, and video processing and imaging.

Leveraging Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC’s) 65 nm low-power (LP) process, Cyclone III FPGAs offer low power, a rich supply of logic (5K to 120K logic elements), memory (up to 4 Mbits) and digital signal processing (DSP) capabilities (up to 288 DSP multipliers).

The entire Cyclone III family is supported by Quartus II software version 7.1 in both subscription and the free Web editions. The advanced technology and productivity features in Quartus II software allow designers to exploit the full potential of the Cyclone III family to achieve 50 percent lower power consumption compared to the previous generation family, and three speed grades faster than the nearest low-cost FPGA competitor.

Altera Corporation, San Jose, CA. (408) 544-7000. [www.altera.com].

JULY 2007

47

products for designers

16- and 24-Bit ADCs Combine SAR, Delta-Sigma Qualities

design idea Microprocessor-Supervisor Circuit Includes Battery Backup, Manual Reset and Watchdog Disable

by Chris Cokayne, Maxim Integrated Products Inc., UK

The variety of available microprocessor-supervisor ICs ensures that you can usually find the features you need in a single device.

Some applications, however, require a combination of features not available in any stand-alone part.

A circuit that combines two readily available devices (Figure 1) can provide the additional features needed: a supply-voltage monitor, battery-backup supply, debounced manual-reset button, and a watchdog timer that can be disabled by tri-stating a microprocessor I/O pin. (This watchdog-disable capability is convenient when debugging a program, and when working with a program

(μP) system by reducing the number and complexity of components required for power-supply monitoring and battery-control functions such as μP reset, backup battery switchover and manual reset input. IC2 provides better system reliability and accuracy than does an equivalent circuit built with separate ICs and discrete components. It operates from supply voltages as low as 1.2V, and offers reset thresholds with factory-preset voltages in the range 2.32V to 4.63V. Its manual-reset input is driven by IC1. In addition to the reset-threshold versions, it comes in three reset-output versions: active-low push-pull, active-low open-drain and active-high open-drain.

figure 1 2.4V TO 5.5V

VCC

1K

0.1µF

VCC

VCC

RESET

MR

WDO

MAX6814

I/O

RESET μP GND

MAX6361

GND

3.6V Li+ BATTERY

+

BUS

WDI

OUT

BATT GND

VCC 0.1µF

SRAM GND

This two-IC circuit provides several useful functions in addition to the features commonly associated with a μP-supervisor IC.

whose long start-up time delays the I/O activity necessary to toggle a watchdog.)

IC1 is a low-power watchdog circuit in a tiny 5-pin SC70 package, whose purpose is to improve system reliability by monitoring the system for software code-execution errors. When the watchdog input detects a transitional edge, the internal timer clears, restarts and begins counting. If it exceeds the watchdog-timeout period (typically 1.6 seconds), the active-low, push-pull output provides a fault alert by asserting for the watchdog pulse period (140 ms minimum). You can disable the watchdog by connecting the WDI input to a three-stated buffer output, or by leaving it unconnected.

IC2 is a supervisory circuit that simplifies a microprocessor 48

PORTABLE DESIGN

A logic low on IC2’s MR input asserts the RESET output. RESET remains asserted while MR is low, and for a minimum of 150 ms after it returns high. An internal 20 kΩ pull-up resistor connects between MR and VCC, and a 1 kΩ resistor in series with the push-pull WDO output prevents shorts to ground via the pushbutton. The MR input can be driven with TTL/CMOS logic levels or with open-drain/collector outputs. Connecting a normally open momentary switch from MR to GND creates a manual-reset function, for which external debounce circuitry is not required. If MR is driven from a long cable, or if the device must operate in noisy environments, you can provide additional noise immunity by connecting a 0.1 μF capacitor from MR to GND. Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. Sunnyvale, CA. (408) 737-7600. [www.maxim-ic.com].

Pump Up Your ARM ® Powered Design!

October 2-4 2007 Santa Clara Convention Center

ARM Developers’ Conference and Design Pavilion

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Plus: through the combination of track sessions, presentations and company design centers you will be fully immersed in leading strategies and methodologies for building complex designs with the ARM architecture.

And Finally-- Conference Delegates who pre-register before September 10 receive the conference proceedings on a 4 GB iPod Nano to take home!

Register early and save!

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Co-Located with the Portable Design Conference & Exhibition

event calendar 08/21/07

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference Longmont, CO www.rtecc.com/longmont 08/23/07

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference

advertiser index

Colorado Springs, CO www.rtecc.com/coloradosprings

Amphenol Mobile Consumer Products/T&M Antennas www.ampphenol-tm.com

39

09/11/07

ARM Developers Conference www.arm.com

49

Atmel www.atmel.com

29

Cypress Semiconductor www.cypress.com

17

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference Ottawa, ON

www.rtecc.com/ottawa

09/13/07

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference Pointe-Claire, QC www.rtecc.com/montreal

EmbeddedCommunity.com www.embeddedcommunity.com

09/25/07

Intersil Corporation www.intersil.com

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference San Diego, CA www.rtecc.com/sandiego 09/27/07

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference Long Beach, CA www.rtecc.com/longbeach 10/02-04/07

ARM Developers’ Conference Santa Clara, CA www.rtcgroup.com/arm/2007 10/03-04/07

NEW Portable Design Conference & Exhibition Santa Clara, CA www.portabledesignconference.com

4 5,7

Linear Technology www.linear.com

9

Linx Technologies, Inc www.linxtechnologies.com

4

Mouser Electronic www.mouser.com

25

National Semiconductor www.national.com

52

Portable Design Conference www.portabledesign.com

41

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference www.rtecc.com

45

Rogers Corporation www.realporon.com

51

Texas Instruments www.ti.com

2

10/11/07

Real-Time & Embedded Computing Conference Tyson’s Corner, VA www.rtecc.com/tysons 10/29-30/07

Lithium Mobile Power 2007 San Diego, CA www.knowledgefoundation.com If you wish to have your industry event listed, contact Sally Bixby with The RTC Group at sallyb@rtcgroup.com

50

PORTABLE DESIGN

Xilinx, Inc. www.xilinx.com

35

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Low-Power DACs in Miniature Packages 8-/10-/12-Bit D/A Converters Provide Seamless Upgradeability Features • Pin- and function-compatible across resolutions • 2- and 4-channel family with smallest package outline in-class (3 mm x 3 mm LLP) • Rail-to-rail output swing • Power consumption at 3.6V 1 channel, 226 µA (max) 2 channel, 270 µA (max) 4 channel, 485 µA (max) • External reference (2- and 4-channel) • Accepts input clock rates up to 30 MHz over 2.7V to 5.5V • Operates over -40°C to 105°C

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12-bit

1

8 µsec

SOT-6, MSOP-8

DAC082S085

8-bit

2

3 µsec

MSOP-10, LLP-10

DAC102S085

10-bit

2

4.5 µsec

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DAC122S085

12-bit

2

6 µsec

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DAC084S085

8-bit

4

3 µsec

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10-bit

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12-bit

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MSOP-10, LLP-10

For FREE samples, evaluation boards, datasheets, and online design tools, visit us today at:

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© National Semiconductor Corporation, 2006. National Semiconductor, LLP, and

are registered trademarks of National Semiconductor Corporation. All rights reserved.