Freescale speeds 45-nm processors to market for next-gen wireless equipment
reescale Semiconductor has sent out three 45-nm based devices for OEM sampling ahead of expected delivery dates so that volume delivery of these next-generation devices for wireless communications can reach the market early.
By Gail Flower, Contributing Editor -- EDN, April 3, 2009
At the Embedded Systems Conference in San Jose, this week, Freescale Semiconductor announced that it has begun sampling communications products based on 45-nm process technology to more than a dozen OEM customers for use in the development of next-generation 3G and 4G wireless infrastructure equipment.
The PowerQUICC MPC8569E processor, the dual-core QprlQP2020 device, and the six-core MSC8156 Star Core DSP devices were sent out for sampling recently. Customer validation activities have continued or are ahead of schedule and volume production is expected to begin by the end of 2009, according to the company.
The PowerQUICC MPC8569E communications processor is a high-performance, low-power device based on 45-nm SOI (silicon-on-insulator) technology. It supports a wide range of wireless protocols while delivering up to 1.3 GHz of performance.
The QorlQ P2020 communications processor is designed to deliver multicore processing at single-core pricing, Freescale said. It features two 3500-based cores ranging from 800 MHz to 1.2 GHz.
The MPC8569E PowerQUICC III processor has an integrated design in a single chip and is said to deliver up to 1.3 GHz performance within a sub-10 W power envelope.
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“In the current economic environment, it is encouraging to see tremendous worldwide demand for enabling technology that facilitates deployment of broadband infrastructure equipment for advanced 3G and 4G networks,” said Lisa Su, senior VP and general manager of Freescale's networking and multimedia group, in a statement. “By accelerating delivery of our high-performance 45-nm products to customers, Freescale is playing a key role in delivering the performance and cost reductions required to bring next-generation networks to life.”
Freescale’s early introduction of these three 45-nm devices offer increased integration, performance, energy, and low-power operation, which is expected to result in the reduction of base station and equipment costs and service provider operating expenses.
The devices can help reduce bill-of-material costs for processor and DSP content in a 3-sector, 10MHz LTE base station by as much as 60% while reducing power consumption by more than 50% compared to the previous generation, Freescale said.
“This strong product execution bodes well for Freescale at 45-nm geometries, where the company is one or two process generations ahead of competing products,” said Linley Gwennap, principal analyst at The Linley Group, in the Freescale statement
