A new portfolio of 48 Gigabit Ethernet chips featuring advanced capabilities, certified compliance, comprehensive software support and copy-ready evaluation tools is now available from Microchip Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MCHP), a leading provider of microcontroller, mixed-signal, analog and Flash-IP solutions. The new suite of products, known together as GigEpack, aims to reduce complexity and remove barriers in deploying high-speed networks, opening up new uses and applications. The GigEpack includes the industry’s first single-chip Gigabit Ethernet switches with integrated HSR/DLR redundancy for ultra-high reliability in critical manufacturing applications. Also included is the industry’s first automotive-grade USB 3.1 Gen 1 to Gigabit Ethernet bridge which supports Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and infotainment systems on a variety of physical network layers.
The comprehensive portfolio of products, designed for industrial, automotive and consumer applications, includes three key elements that ensure ease of use and fast time to market. First, all products are UNH-IOL (University of New Hampshire InterOperability Laboratory) certified. Second, all products come with free software drivers that are certified or third-party approved for use with all major operating systems running on smartly engineered, copy-ready evaluation boards. Finally, the GigEpack suite is backed by Microchip’s free LANCheck® online design service that reviews customer designs, ensuring that best design practices are used.
“With the introduction of the GigEpack, Microchip is offering a comprehensive platform of high-reliability Gigabit Ethernet products,” says Mitch Obolsky, vice president of Microchip’s USB and Networking division. “Our goal is to make these products readily available and easy to design. Our products, drivers, boards and documentation are freely available to every customer directly through our product Web pages.”
The GigEpack suite of products includes three product families. The new KSZ9477/9567/9897 switch family includes features that allow users to create ultra-reliable networks with HSR/DLR redundancy and transport audio and video with Audio/Video Bridging (AVB). The KSZ9567 switch, for example, has seven ports, an SGMII interface and also features EtherSynch® technology, providing support for real-time Ethernet, IEEE 1588 v2 precision time protocol (PTP), AVB, and Time Sensitive Networking (TSN). The new LAN7800/LAN7850/LAN7801 bridge family enables customers to add Gigabit Ethernet to embedded processors via USB 3.1 Gen 1, USB 2.0 or High Speed Inter-Chip (HSIC) bridging to a variety of physical layers such as 1000Base-T, or 100Base-T1 and HDBaseT via RGMII. These products join Microchip’s existing KSZ9031 family of Gigabit PHYs featuring automotive-grade robustness and low power consumption.
For more information about Microchip’s GigEpack Gigabit Ethernet products, visit: www.microchip.com/GigEpack
Pricing and Availability
All products in the suite are available now for sampling or to purchase for volume production. The KSZ9477/9567/9897 switch products are available in TQFP packages starting at $6.07 USD per 10k units. The LAN7800/7850/7801 products are available in QFN packages starting at $3.65 USD per 10k units. The KSZ9031 PHY products are available in QFN packages starting at $1.77 USD per 10k units.
For additional information, contact any Microchip sales representative or authorized worldwide distributor, or visit Microchip’s website. To purchase products mentioned in this press release, go the new, easier to navigate and mobile-optimized microchipDIRECT or contact one of Microchip’s authorized distribution partners.
