Advanced Signal Integrity for High-Speed Digital Designs

PREFACE

Technology has progressed to a point where digital design has entered a new realm that requires design techniques and concepts that baffle even some of the most seasoned digital system designers. The fact is that state-of-the-art digital systems such as personal computers cannot be designed without a thorough understanding of advanced signal integrity. As computer technology evolves, high-speed interconnect phenomena that designers historically have ignored begin to dominate performance, and unforeseen problems arise that dramatically increase the complexity of design. Consequently, every new generation of computer design requires an understanding of new signal integrity issues that were previously not critical and new design techniques that were previously not necessary. In modern and future systems, an incomplete understanding of high-speed interconnect phenomena will literally result in the progress of digital computing coming to a standstill.

In this book we leverage theory and techniques from fields such as applied physics, communications, and microwave engineering and apply them to the field of high-speed digital design, creating an optimal combination between theory and practical applications. Although some basic material is covered, we assume that readers are well acquainted with basic electromagnetic theory, vector calculus, differential equations, statistics, and transmission-line analysis. In this book we build on the traditional knowledge base and discuss advanced ...