METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ANALOG VALIDATION OF HIGH SPEED BUSES USING ELECTROMAGNETIC COUPLERS

• US 20090085697A1
• Filed: 09/27/2007
• Published: 04/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Benham, John, Hinck, Todd, Tate, Larry, Critchlow, John
• Application Number:
  US11/862,332
• Publication Number:
  US 20090085697A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 333/24.R
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 19/2506 Arrangements for conditioning or analysing measured signals, e.g. for indicating peak values G01R19/003 takes precedence; Details concerning sampling, digitizing or waveform capturing displaying waveforms G01R13/00; analog sampling G01R19/0053

Abstract

In at least one embodiment an apparatus is provided that includes an electromagnetic coupler to provide sampled electromagnetic signals and an electronics component to receive the sampled electromagnetic signals from the electromagnetic coupler, to amplify and recover a derivative-like output signal, and to provide recovered sampled electromagnetic signals to an oscilloscope with a unity transfer function. Other embodiments may be described and claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

an electronics component to receive sampled electromagnetic signals from an electromagnetic coupler, to amplify and recover a derivative-like output signal, and to provide recovered sampled electromagnetic signals to an oscilloscope with a unity transfer function.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises an automatic gain controller to provide signals to the oscilloscope with a unity transfer function.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises a sufficient bandwidth to transport the signals.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises a calibration in-situ with a test pattern whereby the transfer function is trained and adjusted to a known pattern.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises a pre-distorter to pre-distort the signals and transmit the signals over a high performance coaxial cable to the oscilloscope.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises a memory module.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics component comprises a configuration of a digital signal processing capability of the oscilloscope.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the electronics component comprises a combination of discrete components external to the oscilloscope and a configuration of a digital signal processing capability of the oscilloscope.

9. An apparatus comprising:

means for sampling signals from a line under test;

means for amplifying and recovering an output signal; and

means for transmitting a EM signal to an oscilloscope

10. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising means for calibrating the means for amplifying, recovering and transmitting with a known pattern.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising means for validating the signals from the LUT.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the means for recovering comprises means for integrating the output signal.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the means for transmitting comprises means for automatically controlling signal gain.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the means for transmitting comprises means for pre-distorting the EM signal.

15. A system comprising:

an electromagnetic coupler to receive electromagnetic signals based on data on a link;

an electronics component to receive the electromagnetic signals from the electromagnetic coupler and to amplify and recover a derivative-like output signal, the electronics component including an automatic gain controller to provide signals to an analyzing device with a unity transfer function; and

the analyzing device to receive the recovered electromagnetic signals to allow data signals corresponding to the recovered electromagnetic signals to be validated.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronics component further comprises a calibration in-situ with a test pattern whereby the transfer function is trained and adjusted to a known pattern.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronics component further comprises a pre-distorter to pre-distort the signals.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronics component comprises a configuration of a digital signal processing capability of the analyzing device.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the electronics component comprises a combination of discrete components external to the analyzing device and a configuration of a digital signal processing capability of the analyzing device.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the analyzing device comprises a filter to remove jitter caused by the electronics component.