National Semiconductor Announces the Lowest Power Single-Chip CMOS Fast Ethernet Physical Layer and Transceiver Solution

September 29, 1997 -- National Semiconductor Corporation®, the market leader in Fast Ethernet silicon solutions, today announced an advanced single-chip physical layer and transceiver device to support both 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, and FX Ethernet protocols. The DP83843 PHYTER device utilizes a reusable cell methodology which facilitates higher levels of integration and customization. This flexible, single-chip solution leverages National's industry-proven expertise in mixed signal and physical layer technology and provides assured interoperability with National's installed base of over 20 million first-generation devices.

"PHYTER enables higher levels of LAN product integration and is a key element of National's broad technology portfolio to provide PC and remote access hub systems-on-a-chip," said Karen Parker, director of product marketing for National's LAN Division. "As the global leader in physical layer silicon, National is uniquely poised to pave the way for advances in modular PHY technology which the market demands," continued Parker.

Features and Functionality
The PHYTER device is well-suited to a broad range of Fast Ethernet applications, including network adapter cards, PC motherboards, repeaters and switches. The device features the lowest power consumption of any 5V 10/100 Ethernet single-chip solution -- 135mA (typical) to 150mA (maximum).

"Low power is important in motherboard, switch and repeater applications," said Bruce Watson, LAN marketing program manager at National Semiconductor. "Designs are often limited by power budgets and available space. As the lowest power device available on the market today, PHYTER also helps to increase system reliability and reduce system costs associated with fans and power supplies," said Watson.

The new scaleable CMOS transceiver architecture has a greater input sensitivity range and improved Bit Error Rate. This enables the PHYTER product to be more tolerant of out of spec cable and support extended cable distances. Additionally, auto-negotiation with Next Page support allows communications of proprietary capabilities from the node to the hub, enabling a truly customizable system solution. For example, Next Page can be used to enable proprietary network management capabilities. The PHYTER device also has increased drive capability on its Media Independent Interface (MII) which eliminates the need for external latches and drivers, thereby reducing board area and overall cost for repeater applications.

The PHYTER device includes an IEEE 802.3 ENDEC with built-in AUI/10BASE-T transceivers and filters, as well as a 25 MHz clock and integrated high performance 100 Mb/s clock recovery circuit, which eliminates the need for a 20 MHz clock source or support for an external 50 MHz oscillator.

This VLSI product is designed for easy implementation of 10/100 Mb/s Ethernet LANs. It interfaces directly to twisted pair media through an external transformer or to fiber media via industry standard electrical/optical fiber PMD transceivers. This device also interfaces directly to the MAC layer through the IEEE 802.3u standard MII and Serial Management Interface ensuring interoperability between products from different vendors.

Designed for integration, the PHYTER device utilizes National's reusable cell methodology and common test interfaces to access critical mixed-signal test points. According to Watson, "The common test interface allows National to test every module within the chip to ensure functionality and standard-compliance. Our customers are looking to get to market faster, and we're helping them achieve this by reducing the amount of time they have to spend on system-level testing and verification."

The PHYTER device's reusable cell methodology is a key component in National's system-on-a-chip strategy for PC hub and remote access markets. Future products based on PHYTER technology will enable customers to embed National's 10/100 physical layer solution with their intellectual property, creating customized silicon devices.

Price and Availability
The DP83843 PHYTER device is available now. It is offered in an 80-pin plastic quad flat pack (PQFP) package and priced at $13.00 in 1,000-unit quantities. For additional information, please visit National's World Wide Web site at http://www.national.com/PHYTER.

National Semiconductor Corporation, a Fortune 500 company, produces system on a chip silicon solutions for the information highway, based on its leadership in analog and mixed signal technologies. National is headquartered in Santa Clara, California, and focuses on the communications, personal systems and consumer markets. National has annual sales of approximately $2.5 billion and 12,700 employees worldwide. Additional company and product information is available on the World Wide Web at www.national.com.