- Si531xx and Si53019 PCIe Gen3 fanout buffer product families,

minimize power and external components for server and storage motherboard designs -

December 4, 2014 – Silicon Labs, a specialist in high-performance timing solutions for Internet infrastructure, announced the launch of a new PCI Express (PCIe) Gen1/2/3 fanout buffer product family designed for data center applications including servers, storage, and switches. The new Si5310x/11x/019 PCIe buffer product family is designed for x86 motherboards and server systems that currently lead the market, expanding Silicon Labs' PCIe timing portfolio as the industry's most power-efficient fanout buffer product. The new PCIe buffer products offer a wide range of output count options and guarantee coverage of 98% of x86-based server/storage motherboard designs.

For several years, data center equipment manufacturers have faced limitations in the availability of suppliers offering PCIe Gen3 buffers approved by leading x86 CPU and chipset vendors. Conventional PCIe buffers are based on power-hungry constant-current output technology. This technology increases the bill of materials (BOM) by requiring one reference resistor in addition to four external termination resistors per output. As power consumption and cooling costs have become critical considerations in data center design, developers are seeking components that can comply with stringent x86 board specifications while delivering superior energy efficiency. Silicon Labs' Si5310x/11x/019 product family is validated by leading x86 CPU and chipset vendors and supported by excellent technical support organizations, providing equipment manufacturers with low-power, standards-compliant PCIe buffer products.

Over 90% of existing motherboard designs use PCIe buffers based on constant-current output technology. To meet existing market requirements, Silicon Labs' new Si53019 PCIe constant-current buffer provides a fully validated drop-in compatible solution with 30% lower power consumption compared to conventional solutions.

To minimize power further, Silicon Labs' Si5310x and Si5311x employ an innovative push-pull output architecture that realizes the industry's lowest power PCIe buffer product family. These devices consume 60% less power than conventional constant-current buffers while reducing the number of external resistors required per output, significantly decreasing external component count and simplifying PCB (printed circuit board) design. For example, by using Silicon Labs' 19-output Si53119 push-pull buffer instead of a conventional constant-current device, developers can save nearly one watt of power and eliminate 39 external components.

Silicon Labs' Si5310x and Si5311x push-pull output devices are also the optimal PCIe timing solution for system designs using new ARM®-based SoCs targeting the hyperscale server and storage market. Similar to x86-based designs, ARM-based SoC platforms for the server and storage market use PCIe as the primary system data bus and interconnect. Since system-level power efficiency is a key value proposition of hyperscale architecture, the new Si5310x and Si5311x push-pull output devices are ideally suited for all server and storage platform designs regardless of CPU architecture.

Beyond power consumption concerns, data center equipment manufacturers also face the challenge of operating board-to-board clocks over cables up to 60 inches in length while maintaining signal integrity. The rise and fall times of PCIe clocks degrade and delay over such long distances, resulting in reduced jitter performance and increased system packet loss errors. Silicon Labs' PCIe Gen3 buffers are designed to maintain PCIe standard-compliant rise and fall time specifications to drive long clock signal traces while preventing excessive jitter and packet loss.

Silicon Labs' new PCIe buffer product family includes not only 6, 8, 12, 15, and 19-output devices but also combinations of constant-current and push-pull buffers, enabling developers to design the optimal solution for each application. Silicon Labs' devices are pin and functionally compatible replacements for conventional PCIe buffers, providing developers with the best alternative offering enhanced power efficiency, signal integrity, and jitter performance.

James Wilson, Marketing Director of Silicon Labs' Timing Products division, stated, "Mobile Internet traffic and cloud computing are driving demand for high-speed, high-performance data center equipment requiring precision timing solutions that support both the PCIe standard and leading x86 specifications. Silicon Labs has expanded its PCIe timing portfolio with fully x86-validated PCIe Gen3 fanout buffers that reduce power, cost, and complexity in data centers. Our new PCIe products complement Silicon Labs' arbitrary frequency clock generator products by providing a single-chip clock tree solution for server, switch, or storage designs."

Silicon Labs offers a broad timing portfolio including frequency-flexible clock generators, jitter attenuators, clock buffers, PCIe clocks, and oscillators to meet a wide range of Internet infrastructure applications. Through these high-performance timing solutions, developers can work with a single-vendor one-stop-shop partner capable of meeting comprehensive timing requirements in data center, core network, wireless infrastructure, broadband access, and test and measurement design segments.

Product Pricing and Purchasing Information

Si531xx and Si53019 PCIe fanout buffer products are currently available in sample and production quantities. Si531xx push-pull output buffer pricing begins at $1.70 for quantities of 10,000 units, and Si53019 constant-current output buffer pricing is set at $2.85 for quantities of 10,000 units (all USD basis). To accelerate development of server and storage applications based on push-pull output clock buffers, Silicon Labs offers Si53108-EK, Si53112-EK, and Si53119-EK evaluation boards, each priced at $125 (USD MSRP). For detailed information on Silicon Labs' PCIe Gen3 fanout buffers as well as information on sample and development tool purchases, refer to www.silabs.com/PCI-express-clocks.