Agere Systems Inc.

Lsi Corporation

Max Jay Olsen

Xingdong Dai

Geoffrey Zhang

Lane Allen Smith

Dwight David Daugherty

Gary Schiessler

Robert D Brink

James Walter Hofmann, Jr

Mohammad Shafiul Mobin

Vladimir Sindalovsky

Ronald Lamar Freyman

Weiwei Mao

Ivan Chan

Liming Fang

Dennis Farley

Yi Cai

Scott A Werner

A system for controllably generating jitter in a serial data stream includes a frequency generator and first and second mixers. The frequency generator is configured to output in-phase and quadrature local oscillator signals with a local oscillator frequency of at least about 5 MHz. The local oscillator frequency varies between a selectable minimum frequency and a selectable maximum frequency. The first mixer is configured to mix a fixed frequency clock signal with the in-phase local oscillator signal to output a first mixer output. The second mixer is configured to mix the fixed frequency clock signal with the quadrature local oscillator signal to output a second mixer output. An adder is configured to add the first and second mixer outputs to produce a frequency-modulated clock signal with a frequency that is about the sum of the fixed frequency and the local oscillator frequency and includes a periodic jitter.

SerDes jitter tolerance BIST in production loopback testing with enhanced spread spectrum clock generation circuit

Communication system optimization using a soft receiver masking technique is disclosed. For example, a method for testing a communication device comprises obtaining a software representation of a receiver portion of a given communication device. A data signal received from a transmitter through a given link channel is then processed, wherein the processing step is performed using the software representation of the receiver portion of the communication device. An output signal is caused to be generated by the software representation of the receiver portion. An eye mask test is then applied to the output signal. Based on a result of the eye mask test, one or more parameters of the transmitter may be adjusted.

System optimization using soft receiver masking technique

Techniques are disclosed for asynchronous calibration for eye diagram generation. For example, a method for calibrating a process for generating a data eye associated with a received signal comprises the following steps. Samples of the received signal are obtained for a first unit interval using a first data latch and a roaming latch. A delay offset is determined between the first data latch and the roaming latch by comparing at least one sample obtained using the first data latch and at least one sample obtained using the roaming latch, wherein the delay offset determined by the comparison is used to calibrate the process for generating the data eye associated with the received signal. A similar comparison may be done for a second data latch and used to calibrate the process. The method is able to find the accurate position of each data latch with respect to the roaming latch so as to improve the accuracy of data decoding in a digital receiver, i.e., provide receiver optimization.

Asynchronous calibration for eye diagram generation

Methods and apparatus are provided for joint adaptation of filter values in two communicating devices, such as a link partner and a link device. The disclosed joint adaptation process initially adapts the filter coefficient values in a first of the two communicating devices until a predefined stopping criteria is satisfied. Thereafter, the filter coefficient values in a second of the two communicating devices are adapted once the predefined stopping criteria for the first communicating device is satisfied. The filter coefficient values can comprise coefficient values of a multi-tap filter. The predefined stopping criteria may determine, for example, whether the first of the two communicating devices is overequalized. The filter coefficient values can be determined by including a contribution of only certain cursor tap values of the channel impulse response.

Methods and apparatus for joint adaptation of transmitter transversal filter in communication devices

A method and system for modeling and calibrating duty cycle distortion (DCD) of a Serializer and Deserializer (SerDes) device, including first generating a clock DCD signal. Once the clock DCD signal is generated, it is calibrating based upon results obtained from a filtering process of the clock DCD signal. Once the clock DCD signal is calibrated, a data DCD signal is generated and calibrated based upon results obtained from a filtering process of the data DCD signal.

Duty cycle distortion (DCD) jitter modeling, calibration and generation methods

In described embodiments, an adaptive equalizer employed by a receiver in a communication channel, such as Fibre Channel, employs pattern recognition. When a repeating pattern, such as an IDLE or ARBFF pattern, is employed by a standard to, for example, maintain a communication link, an equalizer of the receiver might adaptively set its equalizer parameters based on characteristics of the signal energy of the repeating pattern rather than adaptively set its equalizer parameters based on characteristics of the signal energy of generally random user data carried on the link. Pattern recognition by the receiver allows for maintaining adaptive equalizer parameters at settings preferred for data detection of the typical random data, improving data detection performance of the receiver when the channel transitions from a preset or synchronization repeating pattern to a user random data pattern.

Adaptive equalization employing pattern recognition

In described embodiments, an adaptive equalizer employed by a receiver in a communication channel, such as Fiber Channel, employs pattern recognition. When a repeating pattern, such as an IDLE or ARBFF pattern, is employed by a standard to, for example, maintain a communication link, an equalizer of the receiver might adaptively set its equalizer parameters based on characteristics of the signal energy of the repeating pattern rather than adaptively set its equalizer parameters based on characteristics of the signal energy of generally random user data carried on the link. Pattern recognition by the receiver allows for maintaining adaptive equalizer parameters at settings preferred for data detection of the typical random data, improving data detection performance of the receiver when the channel transitions from a preset or synchronization repeating pattern to a user random data pattern.

The present invention implements a method and apparatus for using components within a Serializer/DeSerializer (SerDes) to emulate the effects of a backplane in order to facilitate automated test equipment (ATE) testing of the SerDes. The SerDes includes a transmitter pre-emphasis circuit (TPXE) that pre-emphasizes a transmitted signal and a receiver equalization circuit (RXEQ) that equalizes a received signal. The TPXE includes coefficients that are dynamically programmable.

Backplane emulation technique for automated testing

The various embodiments of the invention provide an apparatus, system and method of asynchronous testing a serializer and deserializer data communication apparatus (SERDES) for determining frequency and phase locking to pseudo asynchronous input data having a continual phase offset. An exemplary apparatus includes a data sampler adapted to sample input serial data and to provide output data; a controlled tap delay with a selected tap having a phase offset from the input serial data, in which the selected tap is selectively coupleable to the data sampler to provide pseudo asynchronous input serial data; a first variable delay control adapted to delay a reference frequency provided to the controlled tap delay in response to the pseudo asynchronous input serial data; and a second delay control adapted to adjust the plurality of taps in response to the pseudo asynchronous input serial data. In additional embodiments, the pseudo asynchronous input serial data is provided from an interpolated phase from at least two selected taps.

Pseudo asynchronous serializer deserializer (SERDES) testing

A frequency-lock detector (FLD) adapted to register more than one target count per period of a target clock signal to generate a count value related to a frequency difference between the target clock signal and a reference clock signal. In various embodiments of the invention, this count registration is implemented by multiplying the target clock signal, discerning two or more phases of a signal, and/or organizing a count pipeline. In a representative embodiment, an FLD of the invention has a counter circuit and a control circuit. The counter circuit has (i) a frequency multiplier adapted to multiply the frequency of the target clock signal to generate a multiplied signal, (ii) two target counters adapted to register counts based on occurrences of two different phases of the accelerated signal to generate two auxiliary numbers, and (iii) a multiplexer adapted to select an appropriate one of the auxiliary numbers as the count value related to the frequency difference. The control circuit has a reference counter adapted to control, based on the reference clock signal, the count registration in the target counters and the value selection in the multiplexer.

Frequency-lock detector

Communications equipment can be tested using a test pattern encapsulated within a frame, and offsetting the test pattern in each successive frame. In equipment having a number of data latches receiving serial input, the introduction of the offset allows each latch, over time, to be exposed to the same pattern as the other latches. That is, the latches 'see' different portions of the pattern at a given time, but over time, each can be exposed to the full pattern. Otherwise, each latch would 'see' its own static pattern, different from the other latches, but the same over time with respect to itself. The offset can enhance diagnostic capabilities of the test pattern.

Offset test pattern apparatus and method

Communications equipment can be tested using a test pattern that is modified compared to, and more exploitive than, a standard test pattern. Test patterns can be employed that have lengthened or shortened consecutive identical digit (CID) portions, or that have lengthened or shortened pseudo random bit sequence (PRBS) portions. In some cases, PRBS polynomials are not re-seeded after each CID. Further, different order polynomials can be employed for different applications. Exemplary applications can include test equipment and built-in self-test capability for integrated circuits.

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Mertztown, PA, United States of America

Max Jay Olsen