If you think ARM’s dominance in the low-power computing field was not enough, here is more to add to it.They have partnered with semiconductor giant Globalfoundries.

Yesterday they announced that GlobalFoundries (who also make chips for AMD, among other vendors) will be producing a range of system-on-chip (SoC) devices based around their ARM Cortex A9 processor. What makes this announcement more impressive is that the new products will be built on the 28nm process as opposed to the 40nm being used by most competitors. The new 28nm gate-first high-K metal gate (HKMG) design allows for twice the gate density.

The shrinking of the production node has led to significant changes in performance and power consumption. ARM claims a 40 percent increase in performance, 30 percent decrease in power consumption and a frankly astounding 100 percent increase in standby time. Importantly, all these changes come within the same old thermal envelope, which means that customers designing products around current ARM processors can switch to the SoCs without necessitating time-consuming and costly redesigns.

Two versions of the new chip have been designated – a super low power edition for mobile devices where battery life is paramount, and a high-performance version for embedded devices that demand more punch.

Mass production of these chips would begin in the second half of this year at Globalfoundries’ ‘Fab 1′ 28nm production line in Dresden, Germany.