Sun's new Java partners

Electronic News, March 9, 1998 by Gale Morrison

Sun Works With ASIC Vendors To Seed Java On Silicon

East Fishkill, N.Y., and Allentown, PA.--Sun's disclosure last week of a newly established ASIC relationship with IBM Microelectronics and of a manufacturing agreement with Lucent Technologies can be viewed as attempts by Sun to seed the ASIC community--via two of its largest competitors--with silicon that runs Java natively. Sun's announcement came in the same week that Sun Microelectronics president Chet Silvestri left the Sun Microsystems chip unit (see related story on p. 12).

IBM is licensing the Sun picoJava I processor core to offer all of its ASIC customers, while Sun has enlisted Lucent as an ASIC partner for design and fabrication of a new input/output (I/O) controller for its computers. Lucent Technologies picks up this Sun business from Symbios Logic, the IC company that Hyundai recently sold to the less broad supplier Adaptec.

Luis Arzubi, IBM Microelectronics VP for ASICs, microcontrollers, and foundry, said IBM will, with this microprocessor core, serve makers of consumer electronic products like cellular phones, TV set-top boxes and other information appliances that need to run Java applications as well. PicoJava I becomes part of IBM's ASIC library.

Both Mr. Arzubi and outgoing Sun Microelectronics president Chet Silvestri were pressed last week to discuss end products or actual silicon using the picoJava technology.

"I have personally seen samples of Java chips in end-products like the ones we're talking about today," Mr. Silvestri said. "But the world hasn't. We've seen them. They wiggle. They work. But I can't speak for the OEMs we're licensing," he said. He said the closely-watched TCI Communications cable set-top boxes would be a "perfect, ideal place for" picoJava, and he indicated that there are discussions now for a wireless handset contract.

IBM has produced no silicon with the core for customers, but Mr. Arzubi said "several customers" had inquired about a chip to run Java natively and these discussions continue.

Mr. Silvestri said that aside from this broader IBM agreement, Sun had licensed picoJava I to NEC, Fujitsu, LG Semicon and Rockwell with terms that were specific to those companies' needs, for example LG's planned screen phones.

"Our strategy at Sun Microelectronics has been to license this core," Mr. Silvestri said. "We don't have all of the design bandwidth or the IP to... get it on all these devices," the various and sundry "clients" that Sun envisions, from watches to dashboards.

Mr. Arzubi indicated he is in discussions with "several customers," many of whom had approached IBM looking for a core to run Java natively, and "I'm going to win."

Then From Allentown...

Then, from Allentown, Lucent Technologies' Microelectronics group said it has received a contract to supply Sun Microsystems with a custom input/output (I/O) controller chip for use in Sun's next-generation Java technology systems, workstations and servers. Symbios Logic had been Sun's supplier for this part, according to a Lucent spokeswoman. Lucent will fab the parts in Orlando.

The chip, which will be jointly designed by Sun and Lucent, will enable Universal Serial Bus (USB) and High-Speed Serial Bus (IEEE 1394) connections between the workstations and peripheral devices.

"Sun chose to work with Lucent because we share Lucent's commitment to developing open standards such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) and High-Speed Serial Bus (IEEE 1394)," said Jeff Elsmore, director of workgroup server hardware engineering for Sun. "Sun's strengths in high-performance ASIC design and system validation combined with Lucent's proven 0.35-micron CMOS process, mixed analog/digital integration capabilities and volume manufacturing capacity is a winning combination," Mr. Elsmore added.

The chip is currently being designed using Lucent's 0.35-micron CMOS process, and the companies plan to use Lucent's recently announced 0.25-micron modular process for future controller chips.