Circuits for Initializing Simplex Communication Channels

High-speed serial communication protocols are widely used in modern communication systems. High-speed serial protocols enable bandwidth scalability and system cost reduction. Full duplex serial communication involves a bi-directional data transfer from the link partners. A simplex communication channel enables one-way data transmission from one link partner to the other. Simplex channels are used in systems where uni-directional data transfer is required, for example a display device. Simplex channels further reduce the overall system cost. Initializing the simplex communication channel is challenging because of the lack of a back channel to communicate the link status from the receiver to the transmitter. Most of the protocols include a simplex sideband channel to communicate the link status. A sideband channel adds to the overall system cost. In this paper, the authors have discussed about a novel initialization methodology to initialize the high-speed simplex communication link to achieve 2x saving in logic area and 1.5x increase in latency.