AMD Fast Ethernet Chipset for Industrial Temperature Applications
Diverse applications need industrial temperature
An increasing number of applications require industrial temperature operation, including enclosures with restricted airflow and equipment exposed to extreme temperature conditions. For voice and data communication applications where devices are placed in environments with extreme temperature conditions, reliability is essential.
"Whether the systems containing our products are placed in outdoor enclosures in regions that experience harsh winters, or in direct sunlight in the desert, our devices keep functioning normally," said Michele McGregor, director of product marketing for AMD's Network Products Division.
The AMD NetPHY-1LP physical layer (PHY) and the PCnet-FAST+ controller devices provide design engineers reliable and cost-effective choices for reducing their systems' environmental limitations. The two devices can be used together or separately, depending on specific application requirements.
Only the NetPHY-1LP PHY is needed in applications that already have an Ethernet media access controller available, such as designs using custom ASICs. Only the PCnet-FAST+ controller is needed in applications that use the controller's MII or GPSI interface, such as backplane communication within a chassis-based system. Together, these devices offer a complete Fast Ethernet system capable of sustained operation under extreme temperature conditions.
AMD's family of Ethernet devices
AMD has offered industrial temperature Ethernet devices for a number of years; the company's current 10 Mbps industrial temperature Ethernet products include:
•Am79C940 MACE single-chip 16-bit 10 Mbps Ethernet controller,
•Am79C961A PCnet-ISA II single-chip ISA bus 10 Mbps Ethernet controller, and
•Am79C970A PCnet-PCI II single-chip PCI bus 10 Mbps Ethernet controller.
These devices are now joined by the Am79C972 PCnet-FAST+, a 32-bit PCI bus 10/100 Mbps Ethernet controller, and the Am79C874 NetPHY-1LP, a 10/100 Mbps TX/FX Ethernet PHY. Both devices offer the following key features:
•IEEE 802.3 compliant, with support for full Auto-Negotiation operation,
•3.3 V with 5 V tolerant I/O, and
•Advanced Power Management modes.
The PCnet-FAST+ controller implements an IEEE 802.3-compliant Ethernet Media Access Controller (MAC) with full Auto-Negotiation of 10 or 100 Mbps, half- or full-duplex operation, and a Media Independent Interface (MII) for connection to any standard 10/100 Mbps physical layer (PHY) device.
The PCnet-FAST+ controller integrates a high-performance 32-bit PCI bus master interface, large SRAM memory buffers and advanced power management including AMD's Magic Packet remote wake-up technology. The controller is offered with a range of network software drivers supporting operating systems that include Windows, NetWare, Linux, and VxWorks. It is also widely supported by third-party embedded software providers including WindRiver, ISI, QNX, Lynx, and Pacific Softworks.
The NetPHY-1LP device is capable of supporting 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, and 100BASE-FX operation. The MAC interface supports the MII, 5B Symbol, and 7-wire (GPSI) standards. The physical media dependent layer supports CAT-3 twisted-pair for 10 Mbps and CAT-5 twisted-pair for 10/100 Mbps operation, as well as PECL for 100BASE-FX fiber optic transceivers. Four PowerWise management modes are available to reduce power consumption below the normal one-third Watt.
Package and availability
The Am79C874 NetPHY-1LP device is available direct through AMD and authorized AMD distributors in an 80-pin TQFP package. The Am79C972 PCnet-FAST+ device is available direct through AMD and authorized AMD distributors in a 160-pin PQFP or 176-pin TQFP package. The Am79C874 NetPHY-1LP device is priced at $3.95 in 10K-unit quantities direct through AMD. The Am79C972 PCnet-FAST+ device is priced at $9.75 in 10K-unit quantities direct through AMD.
Edited by John Spofford