ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore
Encyclopedia
The ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore is a 32-bit multicore processor providing up to 4 cache-coherent
Cortex-A9 cores, each implementing the ARM v7
instruction set
architecture.
ARM states that the TSMC 40G hard macro implementation typically operating at 2 GHz; a single core (excluding caches) occupies less than 1.5 mm2 when designed in a TSMC 65 nanometer (nm) generic process and can be clocked at speeds over 1 GHz, consuming less than 250 mW per core.
s (SoC's) are implementing the Cortex-A9 core, including:
Cache coherence
In computing, cache coherence refers to the consistency of data stored in local caches of a shared resource.When clients in a system maintain caches of a common memory resource, problems may arise with inconsistent data. This is particularly true of CPUs in a multiprocessing system...
Cortex-A9 cores, each implementing the ARM v7
ARM architecture
ARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...
instruction set
Instruction set
An instruction set, or instruction set architecture , is the part of the computer architecture related to programming, including the native data types, instructions, registers, addressing modes, memory architecture, interrupt and exception handling, and external I/O...
architecture.
Features
Key features of the Cortex-A9 core are:- Out-of-orderOut-of-order executionIn computer engineering, out-of-order execution is a paradigm used in most high-performance microprocessors to make use of instruction cycles that would otherwise be wasted by a certain type of costly delay...
speculative issueSpeculative executionSpeculative execution in computer systems is doing work, the result of which may not be needed. This performance optimization technique is used in pipelined processors and other systems.-Main idea:...
superscalarSuperscalarA superscalar CPU architecture implements a form of parallelism called instruction level parallelism within a single processor. It therefore allows faster CPU throughput than would otherwise be possible at a given clock rate...
execution pipelineInstruction pipelineAn instruction pipeline is a technique used in the design of computers and other digital electronic devices to increase their instruction throughput ....
giving 2.50 DMIPSDhrystoneDhrystone is a synthetic computing benchmark program developed in 1984 by Reinhold P. Weicker intended to be representative of system programming. The Dhrystone grew to become representative of general processor performance...
/MHz/core. - NEON SIMDSIMDSingle instruction, multiple data , is a class of parallel computers in Flynn's taxonomy. It describes computers with multiple processing elements that perform the same operation on multiple data simultaneously...
instruction set extension performing up to 16 operations per instruction (optional). - High performance VFPv3 Floating Point Unit doubling the performance of previous ARM FPUs (optional).
- Thumb-2 instruction set encoding reduces the size of programs with little impact on performance.
- TrustZone security extensions.
- JazelleJazelleJazelle DBX allows some ARM processors to execute Java bytecode in hardware as a third execution state alongside the existing ARM and Thumb modes. Jazelle functionality was specified in the ARMv5TEJ architecture and the first processor with Jazelle technology was the ARM926EJ-S...
DBX support for Java execution. - Jazelle RCT for JIT compilation.
- Program Trace Macrocell and CoreSight Design Kit for unobtrusive tracing of instruction execution.
- L2 cache controller (0-4 MB).
- Dual-core processing.
ARM states that the TSMC 40G hard macro implementation typically operating at 2 GHz; a single core (excluding caches) occupies less than 1.5 mm2 when designed in a TSMC 65 nanometer (nm) generic process and can be clocked at speeds over 1 GHz, consuming less than 250 mW per core.
Implementations
Several system-on-a-chipSystem-on-a-chip
A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate...
s (SoC's) are implementing the Cortex-A9 core, including:
- Apple A5Apple A5The Apple A5 is a package on package system-on-a-chip designed by Apple and manufactured by Samsung to replace the Apple A4. The chip commercially debuted with the release of Apple's iPad 2 tablet, and also powers the iPhone 4S...
- CalxedaCalxedaCalxeda is a start-up company that aims to provide ARM-based computers for the server market. Their selling point is a claimed reduction in energy consumption as well as better cost per throughput, compared to x86-based server manufacturers such as Intel...
- Freescale SemiconductorFreescale SemiconductorFreescale Semiconductor, Inc. is a producer and designer of embedded hardware, with 17 billion semiconductor chips in use around the world. The company focuses on the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets with its product portfolio including microprocessors, microcontrollers,...
i.MX6, - Nufront NuSmartTM 2816
- Nvidia Tegra 2 series (without NEON extensions)
- Nvidia Tegra (Kal-El) series
- Trident MicrosystemsTrident MicrosystemsTrident Microsystems is a supplier of display-processors for flat panel displays . At one time, Trident was also a supplier of PC graphics chipsets and sound controllers.- History :...
847x/8x/9x SoC family - Renesas ElectronicsRenesas Electronicsis a Japanese semiconductor manufacturer. It is based in Tokyo and has manufacturing, design and sales operations in around 20 countries. Renesas is one of the world's largest manufacturers of semiconductor systems for mobile phones and automotive applications. It is the world's largest...
EMMA Mobile/EV2 - Samsung Exynos 4210
- STMicroelectronicsSTMicroelectronicsSTMicroelectronics is an Italian-French electronics and semiconductor manufacturer headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.While STMicroelectronics corporate headquarters and the headquarters for EMEA region are based in Geneva, the holding company, STMicroelectronics N.V. is registered in Amsterdam,...
SPEAr1310 - ST Ericsson Nova A9500
- ST Ericsson NovaThor U8500
- ST Ericsson NovaThor U9500
- Texas Instruments OMAP4 processors
- XilinxXilinxXilinx, Inc. is a supplier of programmable logic devices. It is known for inventing the field programmable gate array and as the first semiconductor company with a fabless manufacturing model....
Extensible Processing Platform - ZiiLABSZiiLABSZiiLABS is a global technology company, whose ZMS media-rich application processors, reference platforms and enabling software are designed to enable OEMs and ODMs to create products that target a range of low-power consumer electronics and embedded markets, including Android based tablets.-...
ZMS-20
Overview of ARM Cortex-A9 SoCs
| Developed by | Name | NEON SIMD | Vector Floating Point Unit | GPU Graphics processing unit A graphics processing unit or GPU is a specialized circuit designed to rapidly manipulate and alter memory in such a way so as to accelerate the building of images in a frame buffer intended for output to a display... |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Inc. | A5 Apple A5 The Apple A5 is a package on package system-on-a-chip designed by Apple and manufactured by Samsung to replace the Apple A4. The chip commercially debuted with the release of Apple's iPad 2 tablet, and also powers the iPhone 4S... |
PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX543MP2 |
||
| Freescale Semiconductor Freescale Semiconductor Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. is a producer and designer of embedded hardware, with 17 billion semiconductor chips in use around the world. The company focuses on the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets with its product portfolio including microprocessors, microcontrollers,... |
i.MX6 | Vivante Corporation Vivante Corporation Vivante Corporation is an Graphics processing unit technology designer, licensing its Mobile Visual Reality to semiconductor solution providers that serve embedded computing markets for mobile gaming, high-definition home entertainment, image processing, and automotive display and entertainment... GPU IP Cores |
||
| Nufront | NuSmartTM 2816/NS2816 | ARM Mali-400 | ||
| Nvidia NVIDIA Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles... |
Tegra 2 series | GeForce ULP | ||
| Nvidia NVIDIA Nvidia is an American global technology company based in Santa Clara, California. Nvidia is best known for its graphics processors . Nvidia and chief rival AMD Graphics Techonologies have dominated the high performance GPU market, pushing other manufacturers to smaller, niche roles... |
Tegra (Kal-El) series | GeForce ULP | ||
| Renesas Electronics Renesas Electronics is a Japanese semiconductor manufacturer. It is based in Tokyo and has manufacturing, design and sales operations in around 20 countries. Renesas is one of the world's largest manufacturers of semiconductor systems for mobile phones and automotive applications. It is the world's largest... |
EMMA Mobile/EV2 | PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX530 |
||
| Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems is a supplier of display-processors for flat panel displays . At one time, Trident was also a supplier of PC graphics chipsets and sound controllers.- History :... |
PNX8473 | PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX |
||
| Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems is a supplier of display-processors for flat panel displays . At one time, Trident was also a supplier of PC graphics chipsets and sound controllers.- History :... |
PNX8483 | PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX |
||
| Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems Trident Microsystems is a supplier of display-processors for flat panel displays . At one time, Trident was also a supplier of PC graphics chipsets and sound controllers.- History :... |
PNX8491 | PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX |
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| Samsung Samsung The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea... |
Exynos 4210 | ARM Mali-400 MP | ||
| STMicroelectronics STMicroelectronics STMicroelectronics is an Italian-French electronics and semiconductor manufacturer headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.While STMicroelectronics corporate headquarters and the headquarters for EMEA region are based in Geneva, the holding company, STMicroelectronics N.V. is registered in Amsterdam,... |
SPEAr1340 | ARM Mali-200 | ||
| ST Ericsson | Nova A9500 | ARM Mali-400 | ||
| ST Ericsson | NovaThor U8500 | ARM Mali-400 | ||
| ST Ericsson | NovaThor U9500 | ARM Mali-400 | ||
| Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology... |
OMAP4 series | PowerVR PowerVR PowerVR is a division of Imagination Technologies that develops hardware and software for 2D and 3D rendering, and for video encoding, decoding, associated image processing and Direct X, OpenGL ES, OpenVG, and OpenCL acceleration.... SGX540 |
||
| Xilinx Xilinx Xilinx, Inc. is a supplier of programmable logic devices. It is known for inventing the field programmable gate array and as the first semiconductor company with a fabless manufacturing model.... |
WP369 Extensible Processing Platform | |||
| ZiiLABS ZiiLABS ZiiLABS is a global technology company, whose ZMS media-rich application processors, reference platforms and enabling software are designed to enable OEMs and ODMs to create products that target a range of low-power consumer electronics and embedded markets, including Android based tablets.-... |
ZMS-20 | ZiiLABS flexible Stemcell media processing |
ARM Cortex-A9 software development platforms
| Developed by | Name | SoC System-on-a-chip A system on a chip or system on chip is an integrated circuit that integrates all components of a computer or other electronic system into a single chip. It may contain digital, analog, mixed-signal, and often radio-frequency functions—all on a single chip substrate... |
RAM Random-access memory Random access memory is a form of computer data storage. Today, it takes the form of integrated circuits that allow stored data to be accessed in any order with a worst case performance of constant time. Strictly speaking, modern types of DRAM are therefore not random access, as data is read in... |
ROM Read-only memory Read-only memory is a class of storage medium used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be modified, or can be modified only slowly or with difficulty, so it is mainly used to distribute firmware .In its strictest sense, ROM refers only... |
SD Secure Digital Secure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital... |
SATA Serial ATA Serial ATA is a computer bus interface for connecting host bus adapters to mass storage devices such as hard disk drives and optical drives... |
USB Universal Serial Bus USB is an industry standard developed in the mid-1990s that defines the cables, connectors and protocols used in a bus for connection, communication and power supply between computers and electronic devices.... |
Ethernet Ethernet Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies.... |
Wi-Fi Wi-Fi Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20... |
Bluetooth Bluetooth Bluetooth is a proprietary open wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances from fixed and mobile devices, creating personal area networks with high levels of security... |
GPS Global Positioning System The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites... |
Accelerometer Accelerometer An accelerometer is a device that measures proper acceleration, also called the four-acceleration. This is not necessarily the same as the coordinate acceleration , but is rather the type of acceleration associated with the phenomenon of weight experienced by a test mass that resides in the frame... |
Magnetometer Magnetometer A magnetometer is a measuring instrument used to measure the strength or direction of a magnetic field either produced in the laboratory or existing in nature... |
Gyroscope Gyroscope A gyroscope is a device for measuring or maintaining orientation, based on the principles of angular momentum. In essence, a mechanical gyroscope is a spinning wheel or disk whose axle is free to take any orientation... |
Barometer Barometer A barometer is a scientific instrument used in meteorology to measure atmospheric pressure. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OrigenBoard | OrigenBoard | Samsung Exynos 4210 | 1 GiB DDR3 | - | 2 Port SD/MMC Card Slot | - | embedded | - | SWB-A31 | SWB-A31 | - | - | - | - | - |
| PandaBoard PandaBoard The PandaBoard is a low-power, low-cost single-board computer based on the Texas Instruments OMAP4430 processor. The board has been available to the public at the subsidized price of US$174 since 27 October 2010... |
PandaBoard PandaBoard The PandaBoard is a low-power, low-cost single-board computer based on the Texas Instruments OMAP4430 processor. The board has been available to the public at the subsidized price of US$174 since 27 October 2010... |
TI OMAP4430 | 1 GiB LP-DDR2 | - | Full size SD/MMC card | - | LAN9514-JZX | LAN9514-JZX | LS240-WI-01-A20 | LS240-WI-01-A20 | - | - | - | - | - |
| Calao systems Calao systems Calao Systems is a French company producing small Linux-based computers, roughly the size of a USB key.Devices use an Atmel or a Nomadik processor and usually offer about 128MB of RAM... |
Snowball | ST-Ericsson ST-Ericsson ST-Ericsson is a global wireless platform and semiconductor supplier to four of the top five mobile handset manufacturers. ST-Ericsson is a 50/50 joint venture of Ericsson and STMicroelectronics established on February 3, 2009... Nova A9500 |
1 GiB LP-DDR2 | 4 / 8GB e-MMC | microSD | - | FT232R | LAN9221 | AW-NH580 | AW-NH580 | AW-NH580 | LSM303DLH | LSM303DLH | L3G4200D | LPS001WP |
| Trim-Slice Trim-Slice The Trim-Slice is a small, fan-less nettop computer manufactured by the Israeli company CompuLab. Trim-Slice is the first commercially available desktop computer based on the NVIDIA Tegra 2. It was announced in January 2011 and began shipping in late April 2011.... |
Trim-Slice | Tegra 2 series | 1 GiB DDR2-667 | - | Full size SD slot (SDHC) + microSD slot (SDHC) | GL830 | embedded | RTL8111DL | RT3070 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
See also
- ARM HoldingsARM HoldingsARM Holdings plc is a British multinational semiconductor and software company headquartered in Cambridge. Its largest business is in processors, although it also designs, licenses and sells software development tools under the RealView and KEIL brands, systems and platforms, system-on-a-chip...
- ARM architectureARM architectureARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...
- ARM Cortex-A8ARM Cortex-A8The ARM Cortex-A8 is a processor core designed by ARM Holdings implementing the ARM v7 instruction set architecture. Compared to the ARM11 core, the Cortex-A8 is dual-issue superscalar, achieving roughly twice the instructions executed per clock cycle....
- ARM Cortex-A15 MPCoreARM Cortex-A15 MPCoreThe ARM Cortex-A15 MPCore is a multicore ARM architecture processor providing an out-of-order superscalar pipeline ARM v7 instruction set running at up to 2.5 GHz. ARM has confirmed that the Cortex A15 core is 40 percent faster than the Cortex-A9 core, all things equal...
- List of ARM microprocessor cores