Efinix Adds 64-Bit RISC-V SoC with Linux and DDR Support

Efinix Inc. has introduced the Sapphire RV64 SoC, a 64-bit RISC-V processor core designed to extend the company's embedded processing capabilities beyond its existing 32-bit Sapphire RV32 architecture. The new SoC targets FPGA-based applications that need greater processing performance, larger addressable memory, expanded I/O, and Linux support, while retaining the configurability and low-power characteristics of an FPGA implementation.

Sapphire RV64 implements the RISC-V64IM instruction set with a seven-stage pipeline and optional A, F, D, C, Zba, Zbb, Zbs, and Zicbom extensions. The processor supports between 4 and 512 KB of on-chip RAM and incorporates a multi-way L1 instruction and data cache. Optional features include an L2 cache, branch predictor, and hardware and software pre-fetchers to improve memory access and processor performance for demanding workloads.

For applications requiring a full operating system, the SoC can integrate an optional SV39 memory management unit to support Linux. Its external memory controller supports DDR3, HyperRAM, and LPDDR4x memory technologies at data rates of up to 3,200 Mbits/s. This provides additional memory bandwidth and capacity for applications such as edge AI, where processor performance and efficient external memory access are important.

The processor also includes extensive debugging capabilities and native FPGA co-debug support, enabling hardware and software development and analysis within the same design environment. Like the existing Sapphire RV32 architecture, Sapphire RV64 supports custom instructions that implement FPGA-based hardware acceleration while maintaining a software-defined development model. This approach lets developers move application-specific compute functions into programmable logic without a separate accelerator architecture.

Sapphire RV64 is available for Efinix Titanium and Topaz FPGAs, as well as Trion devices from the T20 and larger. It joins the company's 32-bit Sapphire cores, providing designers with processor options ranging from sub-4K-LE microcontroller implementations to 64-bit systems with multi-gigabyte memory configurations and higher-performance compute capabilities.

Configuration of Sapphire SoC cores is handled through the Efinity IP Manager and Efinity Integrated Development Environment, providing an RTL-to-bitstream flow. The Eclipse-based Efinity RISC-V Embedded Software IDE supports software development, debugging, and board-support-package integration.

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