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Reconfigurable Systems Emerge

Explore the transformative journey of microprocessors, from the emergence of reconfigurable systems to the evolution of custom hardware and instructions, optimizing performance and efficiency. Discover the shift in design emphasis and the impact on the industry landscape.

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Reconfigurable Systems Emerge

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  1. Reconfigurable Systems Emerge Nick Tredennick, Editor Gilder Technology Report bozo@computer.org Nick Tredennick

  2. Overview • Major trends affecting the microprocessor market • Value PC • Value transistor • Emerging economies • Microprocessors • Computer microprocessors • Embedded microprocessors • Configurable microprocessors • PLD microprocessors Nick Tredennick

  3. Moore’s Law Nick Tredennick

  4. Top View: Field-Effect Transistor Nick Tredennick

  5. The Microprocessor • 10 years of Moore’s-law progress led to the microprocessor • The second generic component • Raised engineers’ productivity • Problem-solving became programming • Grew to billions of units/year • Stalled progress in design methods for thirty years Nick Tredennick

  6. The Personal Computer • 10 years of microprocessor progress led to the PC • Dominated the industry for 20 years • Supply of performance grows with Moore’s law • Demand grows more slowly • Diverging growth in supply and demand leads to the value PC Nick Tredennick

  7. The PC Is Good Enough Nick Tredennick

  8. The Path To The Value Transistor Nick Tredennick

  9. Transistors Are Good Enough Nick Tredennick

  10. Foundries: Adoption Rate By Process Modeled after: TSMChttp://www.tsmc.com/english/technology/t0203.htm Nick Tredennick

  11. Semiconductors: Industry In Transition • Causes • The transistor is good enough • The PC is good enough • Effects • Shift from tethered to mobile systems • Changes design emphasis • From: cost-performance • To: cost-performance-per-watt • Non-volatile memory will emerge • Wafer stacking will emerge • MEMS will emerge Nick Tredennick

  12. Design Alternatives WhatValueWho • Microprocessors $40B Programmers • ASICs $30B Logic designers • FPGAs $3B Logic designers FPGAs and microprocessors are usurping a declining ASIC market. Microprocessors (and their derivatives) will win. Nick Tredennick

  13. Logic designers optimize hardware Microprocessors Memory Programmers optimize software Languages OS Compilers Applications The Users Manual is the (problematic) bridge Programmers And Logic Designers Programmers Logic designers Nick Tredennick

  14. Microprocessors • Microprocessor advantages • Flexibility • High-volume production • Usable by programmers • Microprocessor limitations • Too slow • Too much power Nick Tredennick

  15. Microprocessors Are Unsuitable Nick Tredennick

  16. Application-Specific Integrated Circuits • ASIC advantages • Best performance • Smallest chip • The benchmark for function efficiency • ASIC limitations • Inflexible • Expensive to design • High fixed costs require large production runs • Requires logic design Nick Tredennick

  17. Programmable Logic Devices • PLD advantages • Flexibility • High-volume production • PLD limitations • Chips too expensive • Too slow • Requires logic design Nick Tredennick

  18. ASICs and PLDs (FPGAs) • ASICs and PLDs are competing in a $30-billion market • This competition will not cross into the microprocessor market because designs require logic designers Nick Tredennick

  19. Supply and Demand: ASICs & PLDs Nick Tredennick

  20. For the ultimate in flexibility, programmers map the application onto a general-purpose microprocessor. For the ultimate in performance, logic designers map the application into a custom circuit. Microprocessor ASIC Microprocessors and ASICs Programmers Application Logic designers Nick Tredennick

  21. Programmers Logic designers Dynamically reconfigurable microprocessor Run-time reconfigurable microprocessor Ascenium Microprocessor Stretch Design-time configurable microprocessor ARC MIPS Tensilica ASIC FPGA Microprocessor Evolution Nick Tredennick

  22. Most of the application runs as execution of general-purpose instructions Profile the application Create custom hardware and instructions to accelerate critical application sections Design-time configurable microprocessor Design-Time Configurable Microprocessor Programmers Application Logic designers Nick Tredennick

  23. Design-Time Configurable Microprocessor • Profile the application • Create custom instructions for critical code sections • Build specialized execution units • Can be 10 to100 times faster than a general-purpose microprocessor on the target algorithm • Examples: ARC and Tensilica • Customized microprocessor limitations • Requires logic designers • Creates an application-specific, limited-function microprocessor • Accelerates only critical sections Nick Tredennick

  24. Most of the application runs as execution of general-purpose instructions Profile the application Run-time reconfigurable microprocessor Create custom instructions in an FPGA fabric to accelerate critical application sections Run-Time Reconfigurable Microprocessor Application Programmers Logic designers Nick Tredennick

  25. Run-Time Reconfigurable Microprocessor • Build a general-purpose microprocessor with integrated FPGA fabric • Profile the application • Create custom instructions for critical code sections • Build custom execution units in FPGA fabric • Can be 10 to 100 times faster than a general-purpose microprocessor on the target application • Example: Stretch • Run-time reconfigurable microprocessor limitations • Accelerates only statically identifiable critical sections • Limited to problems for which profiling works • Profiling is difficult Nick Tredennick

  26. Dynamically reconfigurable microprocessor Create custom instructions in a custom fabric to accelerate the entire application Dynamically Reconfigurable Microprocessor Application Programmers Logic designers Nick Tredennick

  27. Dynamically Reconfigurable Microprocessor • Each cycle creates a new microprocessor implementation • Each cycle creates a custom circuit (Ascenium instruction) representing hundreds to thousands of conventional instructions • Programmed using ANSI-standard programming languages (e.g., C/C++) • Tens to 100s of times faster than a general-purpose microprocessor • Dynamically reconfigurable microprocessor limitations • There are none on the market today • Until Ascenium, no one has figured out how to “program” a dynamically reconfigurable circuit • VCs don’t understand it Nick Tredennick

  28. Microprocessors • x86 AMD, Intel, Transmeta, Via • ARC ARC • ARM ARM • MicroBlaze Xilinx • MIPS MIPS • Nios Altera • PowerPC IBM, Freescale • SPARC Sun • Tensilica Stretch, Tensilica • Old stuff Everyone Nick Tredennick

  29. Microprocessor Applications • Supercomputers • Workstations and servers • PCs • Embedded systems • Automobiles • Cameras • Cell phones • Game players • MP3 players • Set-top boxes Nick Tredennick

  30. Computer Markets Nick Tredennick

  31. Microprocessor Markets Nick Tredennick

  32. Computer Microprocessors • x86 • AMD • Intel • Transmeta • Via • Proprietary • IBM • Freescale • Sun Nick Tredennick

  33. Embedded Microprocessors • x86 AMD, Transmeta, Via • ARM ARM • PowerPC IBM, Freescale • Old stuff Everyone • Triscend (Xilinx) Nick Tredennick

  34. Configurable Microprocessors • ARC ARC • Ascenium Ascenium • MIPS MIPS • Nios Altera • Tensilica Stretch, Tensilica Nick Tredennick

  35. PLD Microprocessors • Altera • Nios (soft) • Xilinx • MicroBlaze (soft) • PicoBlaze (soft) • PowerPC (hard) Nick Tredennick

  36. Microprocessor-like • DSPs • Network processors • Specialty processors Nick Tredennick

  37. ASICs & Microprocessors Nick Tredennick

  38. ASICs & Microprocessors Nick Tredennick

  39. ASICs & Microprocessors Nick Tredennick

  40. Semiconductor Trends • Value PCs outsell leading-edge PCs • Mobile applications emerge • Design emphasis shifts from cost performance to cost-performance-per-watt • Value transistors outsell leading-edge transistors • Transistor performance overshoots many applications • Increasing demand in emerging economies • Foundry strength grows Nick Tredennick

  41. Consequences • Rise of mobile applications • New non-volatile memories • Rise of foundries • Rise of soft (IP) cores • Horizontal fragmentation of integrated device manufacturers • Rise of non-volatile FPGAs • Rise of reconfigurable systems • Growing market for embedded microprocessors • Tethered: traditional role • Mobile: supervisory role Nick Tredennick

  42. Industries in Transition • Automotive Analog ► Digital Mechanical ► Electrical Isolated ► Connected • Telecom Analog ► Digital Copper ► Optical, Wireless • Biomedical Analog ► Digital Wet labs ► Bioinformatics • Film/video Analog ► Digital Isolated ► Connected • Consumer Analog ► Digital Isolated ► Connected Tethered ► Untethered • Computers Desktop ► Embedded Nick Tredennick

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