Dialog Semiconductor Licenses RAM Technology to GLOBALFOUNDRIES

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Dialog Semiconductor, a leading provider of battery and power management, Wi-Fi^® and Bluetooth^® low energy (BLE) and Industrial edge computing solutions and GLOBALFOUNDRIES® (GF®), the world’s leading specialty foundry, announced that they have entered into an agreement in which Dialog licenses  its Conductive Bridging RAM (CBRAM) technology to GLOBALFOUNDRIES. The resistive ram (ReRAM)-based technology was pioneered by Adesto Technologies which was recently acquired by Dialog Semiconductor in 2020. GLOBALFOUNDRIES will first offer Dialog’s CBRAM as an embedded, non-volatile memory (NVM) option on its 22FDX® platform, with the plan to extend to other platforms.

Dialog’s proprietary and production proven CBRAM technology is a low power NVM solution designed to enable a range of applications from IoT and 5G connectivity to artificial intelligence (AI). Low power consumption, high read/write speeds, reduced manufacturing costs and tolerance for harsh environments make CBRAM particularly suitable for consumer, medical, and select industrial and automotive applications. Furthermore, CBRAM technology enables cost-effective embedded NVM for advanced technology nodes required for products in these markets.

“CBRAM is one of Adesto’s marquee memory technologies and a game-changing addition to Dialog’s portfolio. This new licensing partnership with GLOBALFOUNDRIES speaks to just how quickly Dialog and Adesto have hit the ground running together,” said Mark Tyndall, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and General Manager of the Industrial Mixed Signal Business Group at Dialog Semiconductor. “Looking ahead, I am very positive about our strong relationship with GLOBALFOUNDRIES.  This agreement not only enables a state-of-the-art technology for the industry, but it also creates the opportunity for Dialog to adopt leading-edge CBRAM technology for its next generation of System on Chips (SoCs),” added Tyndall.

“Our partnership with Dialog demonstrates GF’s commitment to intensify investment in areas where we can further differentiate and add value for our customers,” said Mike Hogan, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Automotive, Industrial and Multi-market at GF. “Dialog’s ReRAM technology is a great addition to our family of leading-edge eNVM solutions. This memory solution, coupled with our FDX platform, will enable our customers to push the envelope and deliver a new generation of secure IoT and edge-AI applications.”

Overcoming the integration and reliability challenges often associated with ReRAM, Dialog’s CBRAM technology offers a reliable low-cost embedded memory while maintaining ReRAMs low voltage operation. This translates to lower energy write and read access as compared to standard embedded Flash offerings.

CBRAM will be available in production for use by GF customers as an embedded NVM option on its 22FDX platform in 2022. Through IP customization, customers may modify the CBRAM cell to optimize their SoC designs, enhance security, or even adapt the cell for new applications. Additionally, CBRAM being a “back-end-of-line” technology enables relatively easy integration into other technology nodes.