With the Mars ZX2, Enclustra is announcing their first embedded processing module in the SO-DIMM form factor today. This new member of the successful Mars FPGA module family is a true all-rounder. The Xilinx Zynq-7000 EPP represents a novel device type known under the term "extensible processing platform". It combines the traditionally separated processor- and FPGA-worlds inside a single chip. With the Mars ZX2, the embedded system designer has an ARM dual-core Cortex-A9 processor system featuring multiple integrated periphery and communication interfaces (Gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0 OTG, CAN, UART, SPI, I2C, SDIO, ADC), as well as a closely coupled 28nm Artix-7 FPGA fabric for timing-critical or computationally intensive tasks at his disposal. A quad SPI flash, DDR2 SDRAM and the PHYs required for Gigabit Ethernet and USB 2.0 OTG are integrated on the module as well.
The combination of a powerful processor system, well-known standard interfaces and versatile FPGA logic within a single module featuring the SO-DIMM form factor (68 x 30 mm) enables the easy design of space-saving embedded systems with so far unmatched performance and flexibility. An application-specific base board can usually be implemented with only four layers and a minimum of additional components. As a result, the development and production costs can be minimized. A starter kit allows the immediate start of development "hands-on".
