IDT has introduced new devices in the portfolio of asynchronous dual-ports for high-end handsets. Acting as a bridge between processors, the devices allow handset designers to minimise device complexity through increased design flexibility. The IDT 70P2X5 dual-ports are designed to work with application processors and baseband processors that make use of an address-data mux (ADM) interface. The ADM interface has a lower input/output (I/O) count than other approaches, such as the standard asynchronous dual-port RAMs commonly found in high-end mobile handsets.
The dual-ports use 50 percent fewer processor I/O pins, freeing those pins to support other functions. Moreover, the IDT dual-ports also deploy eight dynamically programmable I/Os that the processor can use to control and/or monitor other devices. The power plane isolation allows handsets to achieve a true standby state and also provides the ability to power down entire processing subsystems. The low-power dual-ports also help reduce design complexity by eliminating the need for additional logic or Complex Programmable Logic Devices (CPLD). IDT is also announcing new devices in the 70P2X9 dual-port family. These next-generation products are pin and backwards compatible with previous IDT devices, offering increased functionality without the need for re-design. To help in design flexibility, the devices also include selectable ADM/non-ADM operation on both ports, support for variable core and I/O supply voltages, a 256K density option and power-plane isolation functionality.
Consumers of high-end handsets demand high-speed downloads, as well as top-quality playback, without draining the battery. IDT identified the interface between the baseband and application processors as a major performance bottleneck and battery drain. It was clear that a new interconnect architecture was needed to solve this problem, so IDT designed these dual-ports in close co-operation with leading high-end handset manufacturers and with the pre-eminent processor component provider in this application space.
