Digital ICs/DSPs: High-Bandwidth, Low-Voltage Operation Key To Bus-Switch Family

Dec. 8, 2004

A novel series of eight NanoSwitch digital bus switches is destined for servers, RAID storage systems, Super VGA, memory-bank switching, and high-performance networking/telecom backplanes. The PI3CH family of low-voltage (2.5/3.3-V), high-bandwidth (500 MHz) bus switches simplifies the I/O migration from parallel to serial-differential signaling standards. Important performance features include very flat on resistance (5-Ω flat) across the full device bandwidth and low On/Off capacitance (5 to 10 pF), enabling the switches to minimize bus loading. The 5-V I/O tolerance and beyond rail-to-rail capability lets the switches bridge legacy 5-V I/O based platforms to new 2.5/3-V systems. Among the family devices are two-port versions with two, four, eight, or 10 channels and with 2:1 or 4:1 multiplexers/demultiplexers. Prices start at $0.50 each in lots of 1000.

Pericom Semiconductor Corp.
www.pericom.com;
(408) 435-0800

About the Author

Dave Bursky | Technologist

Dave Bursky, the founder of New Ideas in Communications, a publication website featuring the blog column Chipnastics – the Art and Science of Chip Design. He is also president of PRN Engineering, a technical writing and market consulting company. Prior to these organizations, he spent about a dozen years as a contributing editor to Chip Design magazine. Concurrent with Chip Design, he was also the technical editorial manager at Maxim Integrated Products, and prior to Maxim, Dave spent over 35 years working as an engineer for the U.S. Army Electronics Command and an editor with Electronic Design Magazine.