AHB5 Protocol: IDLE and BUSY Transfers in Data Transfer Sequences The AMBA AHB5 protocol is a critical component in ARM-based SoC designs, governing the communication between masters and slaves through a shared bus. One of the key aspects of the AHB5 protocol is the management of wait states using IDLE and BUSY transfers. These transfers…
ARM APB5 PWAKEUP Signal and Clock Gating Synchronization Issues The PWAKEUP signal in the ARM APB5 protocol is a critical component for managing power states in a system where the completer (subordinate) clock can be gated independently of the requester (master) clock. The primary issue arises when the completer clock is gated, and the PWAKEUP…
PMU Register Removal and Cycle Count Measurement Limitations in FVP Corstone SSE-300 The Fast Models Fixed Virtual Platform (FVP) Corstone SSE-300 is a widely used simulation environment for ARM-based SoC designs. One of the critical challenges faced by developers and verification engineers is the accurate measurement of cycle counts for performance analysis. Historically, the Performance…
ARM CoreLink SIE-200 AHB5 Exclusive Access Monitor Overview The ARM CoreLink SIE-200 System IP is a highly configurable and scalable interconnect solution designed for embedded systems. One of its key features is the AHB5 exclusive access monitor, which plays a critical role in managing exclusive access operations in multi-master systems. Exclusive access is a mechanism…
HTRANS BUSY State Behavior in AHB 2.0 and AHB 5.0 The HTRANS signal in the ARM AMBA AHB protocol is a critical component of the bus transaction mechanism, responsible for indicating the type of transfer being requested by a master. The BUSY state of HTRANS is particularly important as it allows a master to insert…
AXI4 Master to AXI3 Slave Data Transfer Challenges with 64-bit to 32-bit Downsizing When integrating an AXI4 master with an AXI3 slave in a System-on-Chip (SoC) design, one of the most common challenges arises from the mismatch in data widths and burst-length configurations. In this scenario, the AXI4 master is configured to send 64-bit data…
GPIO IP Availability in GlobalFoundries 45RFSOI Node The GlobalFoundries 45RFSOI (45nm RF Silicon-On-Insulator) node is a specialized process technology optimized for radio frequency (RF) and mixed-signal applications. It is widely used in SoC designs for IoT, wireless communication, and automotive applications. One of the critical components in such designs is the General-Purpose Input/Output (GPIO) IP,…
Cortex-R52+ TCM Access Width Specifications and Ambiguities The Cortex-R52+ processor, a highly configurable real-time processor from ARM, is widely used in safety-critical and high-performance embedded systems. One of its key features is the Tightly Coupled Memory (TCM), which provides low-latency, deterministic access for time-critical code and data. The TCM is divided into multiple banks, typically…
AMBA4 AXI4 Protocol Specification Version E vs. AMBA5 AXI5 Protocol Specification Version K The AMBA4 AXI4 Protocol Specification, specifically version E, is a critical document for understanding the AXI4 protocol, which is widely used in ARM-based SoC designs. However, the introduction of AMBA5 and its AXI5 Protocol Specification version K has introduced additional clarifications and…
ARM Realm VM Interrupt Virtualization by Hypervisor The ARM Realm VM (Virtual Machine) architecture introduces a sophisticated mechanism for handling interrupts, which is crucial for ensuring secure and efficient virtualization. In the Realm VM context, interrupts are not directly handled by the guest operating system running within the Realm. Instead, all interrupts are intercepted and…