Topographies and Termination

UltraScale Architecture PCB Design User Guide (UG583)

Document ID
UG583
Release Date
2023-11-14
Revision
1.27 English

Topography generally refers to the arrangement of drivers, receivers, interconnect and terminations in an interface. The techniques used in unidirectional topographies are different from those used in bidirectional topographies, so these are treated separately.

The SelectIO standards can be used in countless topographies depending on the requirements of the system. SelectIO drivers and receivers adhering to a standard (SSTL, LVCMOS, etc.) either can be used according to the letter of the standard (published by a standards body such as EIA/TIA or JEDEC) or they can be mixed and matched with drivers or receivers from another standard or hybrid I/O. An I/O standard specification might define something as limited as the VIL and VIH of the receiver, or it might define every aspect of the interface, including driver impedance and slew rate, PCB trace length and topography, value and position of passive termination, the maximum input capacitance of a receiving device, and even the maximum number of receivers.

It is up to the designer to apply the standard in question to the system in which it is working. There are many decisions to make with respect to topographies and termination, which determine the signal integrity of the interface. It is of utmost importance that the signal integrity of each interface be verified through both simulation and measurement.

Termination generally refers to impedance-matching or impedance-compensating devices that are used to maintain signal integrity in an interface. While many types of elements can be used as terminators (such as, resistors, capacitors, diodes), this discussion is limited to resistive termination. In general, capacitor and diode termination techniques are more complicated.