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| Designer | ARC International PLC |
|---|---|
| Bits | 32-bit,64-bit |
| Introduced | 1996; 30 years ago (1996) |
| Version | ARCv3 |
| Design | RISC |
| Type | Load–store |
| Encoding | Variable (16- and 32-bit) |
| Branching | Compare and branch |
| Endianness | Bi |
| Extensions | APEX user-defined instructions |
| Registers | |
| 16 or 32 including SP user can increase to 60 | |
Argonaut RISC Core (ARC) is a family of 32-bit and 64-bitreduced instruction set computer (RISC)central processing units (CPUs) originally designed byARC International.
ARC processors are configurable and extensible for a wide range of uses insystem on a chip (SoC) devices, including storage, digital home, mobile, automotive, andInternet of things (IoT) applications. They have been licensed by more than 200 organizations and are shipped in more than 1.5 billion products per year.[1]
ARC processors employ the 16-/32-bit ARCompactcompressed instruction setinstruction set architecture (ISA) that provides good performance and code density for embedded and host SoC applications.
The ARC concept was developed initially withinArgonaut Games through a series of 3D pipeline development projects starting with theSuper FX chip for theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System.
In 1995, Argonaut was split into Argonaut Technologies Limited (ATL), which had a variety of technology projects, and Argonaut Software Limited (ASL).
At the start of 1996, the General Manager of Argonaut, John Edelson, started reducing ATL projects such asBRender andmotion capture and investing in the development of the ARC concept. In September 1996 Rick Clucas decided that the value of the ARC processor was in other people using it rather than Argonaut doing projects using it and asked Bob Terwilliger to join as CEO; Rick Clucas then took on the role of CTO.
In 1997, following investment byApax Partners, ATL became ARC International and fully independent from Argonaut Games. Before theirinitial public offering on theLondon Stock Exchange, underwritten byGoldman Sachs and five other investment banks, three related technology companies were acquired: MetaWare inSanta Cruz, California (development and modeling software),[2] VAutomation inNashua, New Hampshire (peripheral semiconductor IP), and Precise Software inNepean, Ontario (RTOS).
In 2009, ARC International was acquired byVirage Logic.[3] In 2010, Virage was acquired by Synopsys, and ARC processors became part of theSynopsys DesignWare series.[4]
In April 2020 Synopsys released the ARCv3 ISA with 64-bit support.[5]
In November 2023, Synopsys released theRISC-V compatibleARC-V processor IP as an extension of its ARC product line.[6]
In January 2026, Synopsys announced that it was selling its processor IP business, including its ARC product line, to GlobalFoundries.[7]
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Designers can differentiate their products by using patented configuration technology to tailor each ARC processor instance to meet specific performance, power and area requirements.
Configuration of the ARC processors occurs at design time, using the ARChitect processor configurator.[8] The core was designed to be extensible, allowing designers to add their own custom instructions that can significantly increase performance or reduce power consumption.
Unlike mostembedded microprocessors, extra instructions,registers, and functions can be added in a modular fashion. Customers analyse the task, break down the operations, and then choose the appropriate extensions, or develop their own, to create their own custom microprocessor. They might optimise for speed,energy efficiency, or code density. Extensions can include, for example, amemory management unit (MMU), a fastmultiplier–accumulator, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) host, aViterbi path decoder, or a user's proprietary RTL functions.
The processors aresynthesizable and can be implemented in any foundry or process, and are supported by a complete suite of development tools.[9]