Ethernet Switch Chip Sports High-Speed Interface

The MB87Q3070 single-chip 10 Gb/s Ethernet switch incorporates the recently developed IEEE 10GBASE-CX-4 high-speed electrical interface. The switch’s CX-4 macro allows the use of copper cabling in place of more expensive optical interfaces in the interconnects between the switch chassis, and enables data transfers at distances over 1m in the backplane. The switch has high-speed buffer memories, a SERDES interface, a 10 Gb/s IEEE 802.3ae compliant Ethernet MAC, and high-speed interface macros. It runs on a core clock speed of 312.5 MHz and delivers aggregate bandwidth of 240 Gb/s. An additional high-speed interface macro, the eXAUI (extended XAUI), is also integrated into the chip, which extends the reach up to 25m on copper cable. This is achieved by aggressive equalization circuits in both the transmitter and receiver. The switch is housed in a 728-pin flip-chip BGA, which occupies an area of 256 mm². Pricing starts at $825 each/10,000. FUJITSU MICROELECTRONICS AMERICA INC., Sunnyvale, CA. (408) 737-5600.