Granite River Labs (GRL), a global leader in engineering services and test solutions for connectivity, today announced release of their PCI Express 3.0 and 4.0 Transmitter Compliance Test Solution, GRL-PCIE4-TXP1 (“GRL-PCIE4”). GRL-PCIE4 provides a complete automated solution to characterize the electrical performance of PCI Express (PCIe) transmitter designs to the latest 3.0 and 4.0 Card Electromechanical (CEM) specifications, and enables product developers to quickly run full compliance and validation test suites at the push of a button.
Originating as the cornerstone for I/O connectivity in personal computing, the PCIe architecture has become the interconnect of choice for the expansive server and storage market, and evolved into the backbone for the proliferating cloud ecosystem and served as the I/O attach point in mobile, IoT, networking and external I/O connectors. PCIe 4.0 supports 16GT/s data rates, flexible lane width configurations and speeds for high-performance, low-power applications.
PCIe transmitter compliance testing requires cycling through multiple data rates, preset levels, and lanes on the host or device under test. Traditional manually-driven methods are time-consuming and error prone, tying up valuable equipment and resources. GRL-PCIE4 increases test efficiency by automating power and signal quality test sequencing and offline processing of captured waveforms following PCI-SIG-approved Methods of Implementation (MOIs) with Keysight, Tektronix, or Teledyne LeCroy real-time oscilloscopes using existing PCI-SIG Compliance Base Boards (CBBs) and Compliance Load Boards (CLBs).
The GRL-PCIE4 solution combines the GRL PCIe hardware controller and automation software. The software runs on either the oscilloscope or an external PC, with up to 8X faster test throughput performance possible on a multi-core PC. GRL-PCIE4 quickly captures waveforms, freeing up the oscilloscope for other work, and is automatically programmed to capture only the waveforms for the test that the user wants to perform. GRL-PCIE4 can be configured to capture and test all waveforms in a PCIe 3.0 or 4.0 system (lane, data rate, preset), or individual waveforms, and performs all SigTest signal quality and de-emphasis compliance tests. The software’s multi-threading of SigTest further reduces test time.
“We are very excited to release our fully-automated PCI Express 3.0 and 4.0 transmitter compliance test solution and support the growing adoption of this versatile technology,” said Mike Engbretson, GRL Chief Technology Engineer. “GRL’s solution will make testing easier and more efficient for engineers as the PCI Express compliance program grows in complexity.”
Key features of GRL-PCIE4-TXP1 PCI Express 3.0 & 4.0 Transmitter Compliance Test Automation Solution:
- Runs on Keysight, Tektronix, or Teledyne LeCroy Windows 7+ scope or external PC
- Capture First, Process Later – Frees up Scope!
- Automatically sets up scope and captures required waveforms (2.5Gb/s, 5Gb/s, 8Gb/s, 16Gb/s)
- Automates CBB/CLB power and signal quality test sequence
- Provides toggles for waveform capture and power harness for automated power control
- Performs SigTest signal quality and de-emphasis testso
- Report in PDF and .csv format
- Further customize automation system testing with GRL-Kayaq software
- Supports all mechanical fixture variants
Availability: GRL-PCIE4-TXP1 can be ordered now, with discounts available for larger orders. Please contact us for enquiries.
Please email your media inquiry to mktg@graniteriverlabs.com
