PCI Express
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- Register and Attend the High-Performance Seminar near you.
- Buy the Development Kit for PCI Express: Virtex-5 FPGA edition, Spartan-3 FPGA edition.
- Download the Protocol Pack for PCI Express.
While PCI™ and PCI-X™ use parallel buses, PCI Express® version is a general-purpose serial I/O interconnect that can be leveraged for communications, embedded, storage, server, mobile, and desktop applications. It can also be used as a peripheral device interconnect, a chip-to-chip interface, and a bridge to other standards such as 1394b, USB2.0, InfiniBand™ and Ethernet.
Why use the Xilinx solution for PCIe?
Implemented in 65-nm technology, the Virtex®-5 FPGA end-point block for PCI Express 1.1 is low-risk and standards-compliant. The corresponding development kit incorporates proven IP and protocol-specific characterization reports.
| Xilinx Solutions for PCI Express: Benefits by Market | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market | Applications | Engineer Benefit | FPGA Family | |
| Wired networking and telecom and wireless | Control plane, fabric interface, traffic management | Low-latency 8-lane; designed for backplane applications |
Virtex-6 | |
| Servers and storage | NIC, HBA, RAID | Low power GTPs for power sensitive data center applications | Virtex-6 | |
| Test and measurement | Logic analyzers, protocol analyzers, oscilloscopes | Flexible and lane-scalable solutions for high-speed data transfer | Virtex-6 Spartan®-6 |
Use model |
| Industrial, scientific and medical | Industrial automation equipment, medical imaging, wafer inspection | Flexible and scalable solutions; |
Virtex-6 Spartan-6 |
|
| Audio, visual, broadcast | Video processing card | Integrated hard end-point block for PCIe enables FPGA usage for DSP-intensive applications | Virtex-6 Spartan-6 |
Use model |
| Consumer | Docking station, workstation, gaming PC | Cost effective and out-of-box solution for Intel/Freescale processor-based design | Spartan-6 | |
| Aerospace/defense | Guidance systems, control systems, simulators | Industrial temperature range | Spartan-6 | Use model |
| Xilinx Solutions for PCI Express: By FPGA | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FPGA Device | Lanes | IP | Technical Documents | Characterization Report | Kits |
| Virtex-6 LXT/SXT/CXT | 1, 2, 4, 8 |
Integrated Block | Documentation | General | Buy now |
| Virtex-5 FXT | 1, 2, 4, 8 | Soft IP from Alliance program members (GDA, Northwest Logic, PLDA) | PLDA Documentation |
General | NA |
| Virtex-5 LXT/SXT/FXT | 1, 2, 4, 8 | Integrated Block |
Documentation | PCIe technology-specific | Buy now |
| Virtex-4 FX | 1, 4, 8 | Soft IP | Documentation | General | Buy now |
| Virtex-II Pro | 1, 4 | Soft IP | Documentation | General | Buy now |
| Spartan-6 | 1 Gen 1 | Integrated Block | Documentation | General | Buy now |
| Spartan-3 | 1 | PIPE for PCIe | Documentation | N/A | Buy now |
Xilinx PCI Express version 2.0 Support - Virtex-5 FXT is the first FPGA to support 5Gbps x8 PCI Gen2 appplications
The Virtex-5 FXT FPGA platform has passed the latest PCI Express Endpoint Version 2.0 based specification testing in the compliance workshop #62, the first workshop for Version 2.0 testing, and is now listed on the PCI-SIG® Integrator’s list when the workshop #62 & 63 results are published. Virtex-5 FXT devices are the first FPGAs to support 5Gbps x8 PCI Gen 2 applications. In addition to the highly optimized Virtex-5 FXT programmable platform, Xilinx enables system designers interested in implementing PCIe Version 2.0 systems to accelerate development of products by providing a broad range of design resources, including intellectual property (IP), development platforms, characterization report, and reference designs.
Xilinx teamed up with key alliance members to provide a comprehensive suite of design resources, including IP cores for
PCI Express v2.0 multilane support, hardware development platforms, and reference designs. These complementary offerings are summarized in the table below:
| Virtex-5 Solutions for PCI Express: Version 2.0 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xilinx Alliance Member | GDA | Northwest Logic | PLDA | HiTech Global |
| PCIe Gen2.0 Core | GPEX-GEN2-x1 | XpressLite2-x1, x4 | Gen 1 / Gen 2 | |
| Passed PCI-SIG Compliance Testing | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Reference Designs | NA | Yes | NA | Yes |
| Hardware Development Platform | No | No Use HiTech Global platform |
||
All solutions are PCIe v1.0a compliant. Virtex-5 FXT, SXT and LXT FPGA solutions have also passed v1.1 testing. In addition, Virtex-5 FXT solutions have just passed v2.0 testing.
Choose the Correct Solution for Your Application
Multi-lane (High-Performance)
The 40-nm Virtex-6 LXT/SXT FPGA series is ideal for multilane PCI Express applications with up to 8 lanes. It includes:
- Configurable built-in endpoint and root port block for PCI Express
- Integrated 6.5Gbps transceivers
- Low power RocketIO™ transceivers
- Ample block RAMs
You can design a complete PCIe v2.0 endpoint or root port solution with our simple CORE Generator™ flow.
The Virtex-6 LogiCORE™ IP Block Plus Wrapper for PCI Express version 2.0 provides:
- Hard IP block
- RocketIO transceivers
- Block RAMs for buffering
- Miscellaneous reset and clock logic
The Virtex-6 FPGA solution offers the highest performance, lowest power, and smallest footprint.
- Learn more about the Virtex-6 FPGAs
- Buy the Virtex-6 Kit for PCIe
The Virtex-5 FPGA solution offers the highest performance, lowest power, and smallest footprint.
- Learn more about the built-in block for PCI Express in Virtex-5 FPGA's
- Buy the Virtex-5 Kit for PCIe version 1.1
Contact Xilinx Alliance members for Virtex-5 PCIe Gen2 design resource.
The Virtex-4 FX FPGA and Virtex-II Pro FPGAs offer powerful integrated Multi-Gigabit Transceivers (MGTs) up to 6.5Gbps and soft IP to enable a solution for PCI Express:
- Learn about the Virtex-4 FX RocketIO MGT
- Take our course on RocketIO MGTs
- Buy the soft IP core for PCI Express
Single Lane (Low Cost)
The Spartan-6 FPGA family is ideal for single lane solutions for PCI Express. Xilinx with an integrated single-lane PCI Express core and Integrated PHY (transceiver) offers the lowest-cost 1-lane integrated programmable solution for PCI Express using a configurable Xilinx Integrated Endpoint LogiCORE IP for PCI Express.
- Learn more about the Spartan-6 FPGA's
- Buy the Spartan-6 Kit for PCIe
The Spartan-3 FPGA solution offers a low power, low cost and small footprint single lane solution
- Evaluate the Xilinx PIPE IP Core for PCI Express
- Buy the Xilinx PIPE IP Core for PCI Express