SoC Based SmartPhone Processors

An Introduction to System on Chip based Smartphone Processors , working , and their Architecture.SoC Based SmartPhone ProcessorsAnkush KumarElectronics And Communication

ContentsIntroduction to SocSoC vs. CPUSoC Based Android ProcessorsArchitecture of ProcessorsSoC vs. CPUThe World Of ARMGPUUnderstanding Clock Speed , And CoresMulti Threading and HyperThreadingReferences

What is a SoC?Asystem on a chiporsystem on chip(SoCorSOC) is anintegrated circuit(IC) that integrates all components of acomputeror otherelectronicsystem into a single chip. It may containdigital,analog,mixed-signal, and oftenradio-frequencyfunctionsall on a single chipsubstrate. -From Wikipedia

Structure of SoCAmicrocontroller,microprocessorordigital signal processor(DSP) core multiprocessor SoCs (MPSoC) having more than one processor coreMemoryblocks including a selection ofROM,RAM,EEPROMandflash memoryTiming sources includingoscillatorsandphase-locked loopsPeripherals includingcounter-timers, real-timetimersandpower-on resetgeneratorsExternalinterfaces, including industry standards such asUSB ,Ethernet,USART,SPIAnaloginterfaces includingADCsandDACsVoltage regulatorsandpower managementcircuits

Eeprom - a read-only memory whose contents can be erased and reprogrammed using a pulsed voltage. USART - (Universal Synchronous/Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter)SPI - In a computer, aserial peripheral interface(SPI) is an interface that enables the serial (one bit at a time) exchange of data between two devices, one called a master and the other called a slave . An SPI operates in full duplex mode. This means that data can be transferred in both directions at the same time.4

Conventional PC motherboard (left) vs. the main iPad 3 circuit board (right) SoC CPU

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SoC CPUAdvantage of an SoC is its size: An SoC is only a little bit larger than a CPU, and yet it contains a lot more functionality. If you use a CPU, its very hard to make a computer thats smaller than 10cm (4 inches) squared, purely because of the number of individual chips that you need to squeeze in. Using SoCs, we can put complete computers in smartphones and tablets, and still have plenty of space for batteries.Due to its very high level of integration and much shorter wiring, an SoC also uses considerably less power again, this is a big bonus when it comes to mobile computing. Cutting down on the number of physical chips means that its much cheaper to build a computer using an SoC.

The only real disadvantage of an SoC is a complete lack of flexibility. With your PC, you can put in a new CPU, GPU, or RAM at any time you cannot do the same for your smartphone.Ultimately, SoCs are the next step after CPUs. Eventually, SoCs will almost completely consume CPUs. We are already seeing this with AMDs Llano and Intels Ivy Bridge CPUs, which integrate a memory controller, PCI Express, and a graphics processor onto the same chip.

SoC CPU

Why do we use Soc In Smartphone Processors?Smart phones are smaller computers, they require almost the same components we see in laptops in order to offer us Apps, music and video playing, 3D gaming support,advanced wireless features, etcSmartphones do not offer the same amount of internal space as laptops for the various components needed such as the logic board, the processor, the RAM, the graphics card, etcThanks to the wonders of miniaturization, SoC manufacturers, like Qualcomm, Nvidia or Texas Instruments, can place some of those components on a single chip, the System on a Chip

Whats Inside A SmartPhone ProcessorCPU Single- or multiple-core, this is what makes everything possible on your Smartphone. Most of them Based on ARM technology.Memory SoCs come with various memory architectures on boardGPU Responsible for handling those complex 3D games on the Smartphone or tablets.Northbridge this is a component that handles communications between the CPU and other components of the SoC including the southbridgeSouthbridge a second chipset usually found on computers that handles various I/O functions. In some cases the southbridge can be found on the SoCCellular radios some SoCs also come with certain modems on board that are needed by mobile operators.Other radios Responsible for other types of connectivity, including Wi-Fi, GPS/GLONASS or Bluetooth.Other circuitry

GlOANASS - Global Navigation Satellite System.GLONASSis Russia's version of GPS (Global Positioning System)9

Whats Inside A SmartPhone Processor

Snapdragon 800

Understanding the world of ARMARM Holdings plcis the British-based company that, since 1983, has developed the ARM microprocessor instruction architecture which is used inside their ARM processor cores.ARMhas dominatedthe mobile space for many years, largely thanks to the lower power consumption of its processors (andimproved battery life) when compared to the opposition. Intel has been attempting to make inroads into the markets in recent years with the x86 that is popular on the desktop, but with limited success.CPUs are based on ARM architecture.This is created byARM Holdingsand includes an instruction set that controls how the CPU works. Thisis licensed to the various SoC manufacturers who incorporate it into their products.

What is an Instruction Set ?Aninstruction set, orinstruction set architecture(ISA), is the part of thecomputer architecturerelated toprogramming, including the nativedata types, instructions,registers,addressing modes,memory architecture,interruptandexception handling, and externalI/O. An ISA includes a specification of the set ofopcodes(machine language), and the native commands implemented by a particular processor.An instruction set is the interface between a computer's software and its hardware, and thereby enables the independent development of these two computing realms.

ARM operates quite differently from Intel . Intel designs and builds all of its own processors, ARM instead creates instruction sets any CPU following them will be able to run ARM-compatible code. It also creates reference designs for processors that fit their instruction sets, which allows companies to easily produce their own chipsets around ARMs core designs.Some companies, like Nvidia, Samsung, and Texas Instruments simply license and adopt the ARM CPU reference design, whereas others, like Qualcomm and Marvell, license only the instruction set and create their own processors to fit them.ARMs most recent instruction set is version 7, and the first ARMv7 reference design was Cortex A8, whose architecture is found in todays high-end Smartphone.

Why do we prefer Snapdragon ?Qualcomm dont actually use the reference ARM processor core designs. Instead they take cues from the ARM Cortex-A8 and make improvements that they package into their very own Scorpion and Krait CPUs. This obviously requires more research and development , but is apparently slightly better for media-related operations and power efficiency compared to the standard Cortex-A8.

A chip block diagram for the Snapdragon S4 SoCs using Krait CPUs

Understanding GPUThe GPU is used entirely for all 3D rendering in games and applications. The Cortex processing cores are simply not designed to handle these sorts of tasks and in all operating systems the GPU will take over from the CPU to handle the rendering more efficiently. The CPU will help out for certain calculations while rendering 3D models on screen (especially for games), but the main grunt will be done by the graphics chip.

This is what's inside a Mali-400 MP4

Cores and ClockSpeedIf computing is a car then the CPU is the engine. The higher the clock speed, the faster the car (system) will go. Clock speed is measured in GHz (gigahertz), a higher number means a faster clock speed . To run your apps, your CPU must continually completecalculations, if you have a higher clock speed, you can compute these calculations quicker and applications will run faster and smoother as a resultof this.A core is a single processing unit, multi core processors have multiple processing units. So a dual core 3.0GHz processor has 2 processing units each with a clock speed of 3.0GHz. A 6 core 3.0GHz processor has 6 processing units each with a clock speed of 3.0GHz.

MultiThreading vs. HyperthreadingMulti-threading is the ability of an application or operating system to utilize multiple cores for processing. When apps are written with multi-threading in mind they can benefit from the plethora of cores available in modern CPUs and see huge performance increases over using a single core processor.Hyper-threading is a proprietary Intel technology that allows a single core to split into avirtual and a logical core and share workload between thetwo. Hyper-threading is especially useful when apps are well optimised for multi-threading.

Intel as A Smartphone Processor

ASUS was The First Smartphone Brand In INDIA to use Intel processors and Hyper Threading Technology.Intel has just announced ducking out of the mobile processor market.Intel is working on ultra-high end Core m5 and m7 processors, which are designed for the high performance tablet and lower end notebook market. The company claims that its latest Core m processorsoffer 40 percent boosts to graphics and CPU performance and will be targeting at 2-in-1 convertible devices and notebooks.

ProcessorQualcommSnapdragon 810Samsung Exynos 7420Intel Atom Z3580Cores884CPU4x Cortex-A57 + 4x Cortex-A534x Cortex-A57 +4x Cortex-A534x Silvermont x86CPU clockA57 - 2.0GHzA53 - 1.5GHzA57 - 2.1GHzA53 - 1.5GHz2.33 GHzArchARMv8-A (32 / 64-bit)ARMv8-A (32 / 64-bit)Intel X86-64GPUAdreno 430 @ 630MHzARM Mali-T760 MP8 @ 772 MhzPowerVR G6430 @ 533MhzMemoryLPDDR4 1600MHz 64-bit1552MHz LPDDR4LPDDR3 1600 MHzProcess20nm14nm FinFET22nm

RefrencesWikipediaMakeuseof.comAndroidAuthority.comNeowin.netGsmarena.comTechautos.comExtremeTech.comKamyasuraj.blogspot.comGreenbot.com

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