Microchip's PolarFire SoC FPGA
Icicle Development Kit Launched... Supported by Mi-V


As the number of processors adopting the open instruction set RISC-V increases, the demand for inexpensive and standardized development platforms that support RISC-V technology and ecosystem is increasing.

Microchip announced on the 17th the release of the Icicle development kit for its RISC-V-based PolarFire SoC FPGA.

Developers using RISC-V SoC FPGAs can develop a variety of products and services with the Icicle Development Kit, backed by the Mi-V RISC-V ecosystem. The Mi-V RISC-V ecosystem is a continuously expanding and comprehensive suite of tools and design resources, developed jointly by Microchip and its partners to support RISC-V designs.

The Icicle Kit features a PolarFire SoC FPGA consisting of a monitor core, four application cores, and a secure boot, and provides 2GB LPDDR4 (32 cores), 1Gb SPI flash, 8GB eMMC flash, and multiple SD card slots. The interfaces include △12.7Gbps SERDES (4), △PCIe Gen 2, △Gigabit Ethernet (2), △Micro USB 2.0, △UART (4), △CAN (2), △SPI (2), and △I²C (2).

The board features a Raspberry Pi-compatible 40-pin header and a mikroBUS socket, a JTAG connector, and multiplexed FlashPros. It also supports Microchip's power management and clock devices: an Ethernet PHY (VSC8662XIC), a USB controller (USB3340-EZK-TR), and a current sensor (PAC1934T-I/JQ).

In addition to the PolarFire SoC FPGA, the Icicle Kit can be developed with: ▲ SiFive's complex RISC-V processor and UltraSoC's embedded trace macro; ▲ development tools from Adacore, Green Hills Software, Mentor Graphics, and Wind River; and ▲ commercial RTOS solutions such as Nucleus and VxWorks.

Additionally, you can utilize middleware solutions from DornerWorks, Hex Five, Veridify Security, and WolfSSL, as well as SOM and design services from Antmicro, ARIES Embedded, Digital Core Technologies, Emdalo Technologies, Sundance DSP, and Trenz Electronic.

The Icicle Kit for PolarFire SoC FPGA (MPFS-ICICLE-KIT-ES) is priced at $489 each.