Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 Transmitter Compliance Automation Solution

Tektronix provides the most comprehensive solution to serve the needs of engineers designing Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 Integrated (SoC) and Discrete products. Tektronix TekExpress Thunderbolt application provides one-button testing for the Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 measurements as per the USB4 Electrical Compliance Test Specification (Appendix E). TekExpress Thunderbolt automates the measurements allowing engineers to perform the required tests efficiently and reliably right on their bench. The DPO/MSO70000SX/DX Series (BW ≥21 GHz) oscilloscopes are designed to meet the challenges of the next generation of serial data standards such as Thunderbolt. These oscilloscopes provide the industry's leading vertical noise performance with the highest number of Effective bits (ENOB) and flattest frequency response among oscilloscopes in their class.

Features and benefits

Applications

Thunderbolt 3 and Thunderbolt 4 Transmitter testing:

• Thunderbolt Silicon Testing: Host, Device, and Hub
• Thunderbolt Peripheral Testing: Host, Device, and Hub
• Manufacturing testing

DPOJET TBT3 plug-in debug solution

With its fast data rate and multi-lane topology, Thunderbolt presents a number of test and measurement challenges, including fixture effects and the need to isolate crosstalk. The coupling of energy from adjacent signaling lanes adds noise and jitter that can affect system interoperability. Effective debugging requires jitter analysis tools that can properly separate and classify the jitter components of a signal, including those stemming from crosstalk.

Before the measurements are computed the cable must be de-embedded. De-embed filters can be easily created using Serial Data Link Analysis software (SDLA) and then quickly entered into the DPOJET TBT3 measurement setup and saved for future use. In addition to jitter, DPOJET TBT3 also provides voltage, Spread Spectrum Clocking (SSC), and other AC parametric measurements.

TekExpress Thunderbolt automation solution

For compliance testing, TekExpress TBT automates the instrument setup as required by the Thunderbolt specification including an adequate time window for SSC analysis and Phase locked loop (PLL) settings for jitter/eye analysis. The port microcontroller enables automated device automation through test pattern initiation. TekExpress TBT allows the user to automate test modes while integrating the required scripts or step through the test modes with manual device control. A test status window indicates the current status of waveform acquisitions, signal analysis, and results documentation. The TekExpress TBT software can be run in Offline mode which allows the user to quickly recalculate test results using saved waveforms. A detailed test report provides color-coded pass/fail indications along with test margins. TekExpress TBT can be run in the user-defined mode to debug test failures with custom settings and test limits.