Differential clock buffers improve signal margins in terabit communications

By Carolyn Mathas, contributing writer

Diodes Incorporated has announced the PI6C59xxxxx series of differential clock buffers for Ethernet speeds up to 400 Gbits/s for use in high-performance applications such as data centers and 5G base stations.

With Terabit Ethernet demand on the rise, switches and routers must maintain signal integrity in increasingly challenging environments. The PI6C59xxxxx series yields improved signal margin and expands the drive capability of clock and data signals that are used in high-speed communications. Its use spans a wide number of speeds and technologies as well as input and output configuration combinations.

Diodes’ new differential clock buffers provide increased speeds required in applications such as data centers and 5G base stations.

The devices in the PI6C59xxxxx series increase the fanout of clock sources and improve clock and/or data distribution in communication applications with operations between 1.5 GHz and 6 GHz. This covers 25G, 40G, 56G, 100G, and 400 GbE and a variety of applications in which low jitter and fast rise/fall times are required. The ultra-low additive jitter provided is approximately 10 fs, delivering improved jitter margins and overall accuracy.

The small-footprint devices provide good thermal conductivity. This is increasingly important in data center and base station applications, in which increased power density, performance, bandwidth, and functionality are critical.

The series provides 13 variants, spanning the main signaling technologies used in high-speed networking, including current mode logic (CML), low-voltage differential signaling (LVDS), low-voltage positive emitter coupled logic (LVPECL) and stub series terminated logic (SSTL), in addition to LVCMOS. Configurations include two, four, 12, and 16 output for fanout buffers and data/clock buffers.

The PI6C59xxxxx series, housed in a TQFN package with 16 to 48 pins, is currently available and priced between $2.50 and $5.50 each in minimum quantities between 2,000 and 3,500.