Opportunities in system power management for high performance mixed signal platforms

In an era in which foundry technologies are a commodity, product differentiation comes by design. As fabless becomes mainstream, a paradigm shift demands innovation and collaboration among industrial and research thinking to further lower the cost of ICs, as well as to address upcoming power-performance challenges. High performance mixed signal (HPMS) platforms require stringent overall system and subsystem performance. The ability to design ultra-low power systems is used in a wide range of platforms including consumer, mobile, identification, healthcare products and microcontrollers. This presentation explores low power design techniques, challenges and opportunities faced in an industrial research environment. The overview addresses design tradeoffs, design implications, and measurement results during their deployment in HPMS platforms.