What is a System on a Chip?

As 5G networks arrive in more and more markets, new advancements arise across industries enabling things like enhanced remote healthcare, immersive gaming, automated cars, and more. 5G also brings to life the Internet of Things, allowing for millions of non-computing devices to be online so businesses can be more productive and agile. Behind the scenes, the various components that make up a 5G network are working hard to enable these new use cases; things like CORE and radio access networks, antennas and the radios found at each cell site. Of these key elements also lives a small but mighty piece of technology: the System-on-a-Chip. A system-on-a-chip, or SoC, integrates all the components of a computer onto a single chip including CPU, memory, input and output ports and secondary storage. A system-on-a-chip typically integrates specialized logic to optimize handling of a particular type of traffic. An optimized SoC ensures the best possible performance while minimizing power consumption and system size. 5G technology does not come without some challenges, and innovations like SoCs help mitigate these. SoCs are a solution to deliver new 5G capabilities with the best connectivity while minimizing the size and cost of the equipment on a tower. Marvell and Samsung, for example, have developed a new SoC that addresses the complexities of higher spectrum frequencies, massive MIMO antenna arrays and super low latencies with a unique combination of programmability and performance. Learn more about what a system-on-a-chip is, its benefits and how Samsung and Marvell are collaborating on this exciting technology as we move further into the world of 5G.