Texas Instruments (TI) has released what it touts as the industry's first pair of 10Gb/s serial link aggregator ICs. The TLK10081 1- to 8-channel and TLK10022 dual-channel ICs allow system designers to reduce the number of gigabit serial links required for communications, video, imaging and many other end equipment, stated the firm.

According to the company, the devices aggregate and de-aggregate point-to-point serial data streams for transmission over backplanes, copper cables and optical links. With TI aggregator ICs, designers can avoid the costly and time-consuming development of custom aggregator IP for high-performance FPGAs or ASICs. Both devices occupy a 70-percent smaller footprint than FPGAs and use only two power rails, compared to the five or six rails needed with FPGAs.

TI serial link aggregators directly connect serial links from data converters and processors without having to re-format the data for transmission in applications like wireless infrastructure, switches, routers, video surveillance, machine vision, high-speed imaging and optical transport systems. The TLK10081 can aggregate up to eight lanes of full-duplex, 1.25Gb/s data traffic onto a single 10Gb/s link for transmission over short-distance backplanes or copper cables up to 10m, or long-distance optical links. The TLK10081 and TLK10022, the company said, reduce system design complexity.

The interface IC offers multiple serial link aggregation configurations that deliver 10Gb/s maximum throughput to reduce system design complexity, implementation costs, board space and power consumption. The TLK10022 supports 4:1, 3:1 and 2:1 bidirectional serial link configurations, while the TLK10081 manages 8:1 bidirectional links. Also, each device supports many different data types without requiring special data encoding. The devices claim to enable programmable channel lane switching of serial links in different configurations without using external multiplexing. This innovative feature reduces system implementation time while achieving fault tolerance goals, noted the firm.

Additionally, the devices offer advanced decision feedback equalization (DFE) and feed forward equalization (FFE) that extends transmission distances over copper media and optical links. The TLK10081 and TLK10022 can be combined with other TI devices to create a signal chain solution: ADS42JB69 dual 16bit, 250MSPS ADC with JESD204B serial interface, SN65LVCP1414 14.2Gb/s 4-channel equalizer and SN65LVCP114 14.2Gb/s quad mux redriver. These aggregator devices join TI's growing portfolio of interface products that equalize, switch, re-time and aggregate high-speed serial links.

The TLK10081EVM and TLK10022EVM evaluation modules are available for a suggested retail price of $2,999. They are supplied with an EVM user guide and GUI software with user guide, enabling system designers to configure the device for their application. A video aggregator application note is also available, as well as IBIS-AMI and HSPICE simulation models to verify signal integrity. Support is available on the High Speed Interface Forum in the TI E2E Community, where engineers can search for solutions, get help, share knowledge and solve problems with fellow engineers and TI experts. The TLK10081 and TLK10022 are available today in 13 x 13mm, 144-ball plastic BGA packages for a suggested retail price of $25 in 1,000-unit quantities.

By: DocMemory
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