Efinix brings a configurable 64 bit RISC-V SoC to its FPGA families

Efinix has formally launched Sapphire RV64, a configurable 64 bit RISC-V soft SoC for embedded designs built on its FPGAs. It extends the company’s existing 32 bit Sapphire range with larger memory options, caching and an optional memory management unit for Linux based systems.

A soft processor is implemented in programmable FPGA resources rather than fixed processor hardware. That allows a developer to select the processing and peripheral configuration alongside the logic used for application specific tasks. It also makes resource use and achievable clock speed central to the choice.

Sapphire RV64 uses a seven stage pipeline and offers 4 KB to 512 KB of on chip RAM. Designers can select cache options, a branch predictor and prefetch features, while an optional SV39 memory management unit supports Linux. The memory controller supports DDR3, HyperRAM and LPDDR4x, according to Efinix.

“Sapphire RV64 was designed so customers already using our 32-bit Sapphire SoCs can scale up without re-architecting their systems,” said Tony Ngai, the company’s co-president and chief technology officer.

That continuity may appeal to teams whose existing control software has grown beyond the memory and processing limits of a smaller core. The move to 64 bit also creates room for a more capable software environment while keeping the processor close to custom logic and acceleration in the FPGA fabric.

Efinix says the SoC is available across Titanium and Topaz FPGAs and Trion devices from T20 upwards. It is configured through Efinity IP Manager, with the company’s development tools covering the FPGA design and embedded software workflow.

Efinix has not published a single performance or power figure covering every configuration. Core count, cache, external memory and the selected FPGA will affect the result, as will the FPGA resources left for the rest of the design.