PCIe 2.1 Controller with AXI

Overview

The PCIe 2.1 Controller (formerly XpressRICH) is designed to achieve maximum PCI Express (PCIe) 2.1 performance with great design flexibility and ease of integration. It is backward compatible with the PCIe 1.1 specification. A PCIe 2.1 Controller with AXI (formerly XpressRICH-AXI) is also available. The controller delivers high-bandwidth and low-latency connectivity for demanding applications in data center, edge and graphics.

How the PCIe 2.1 Controller Works

The PCIe 2.1 Controller is configurable and scalable IP designed for ASIC and FPGA implementation. It supports the PCIe 2.1/1.1 specifications, as well as the PHY Interface for PCI Express (PIPE) specification. The IP can be configured to support endpoint, root port, switch port, and dual-mode topologies, allowing for a variety of use models.

The provided Graphical User Interface (GUI) Wizard allows designers to tailor the IP to their exact requirements, by enabling, disabling, and adjusting a vast array of parameters, including data path size, PIPE interface width, low power support, SR-IOV, ECC, AER, etc. for optimal throughput, latency, size and power. The PCIe 2.1 Controller is verified using multiple PCIe VIPs and test suites, and is silicon proven in hundreds of designs in production.

Key Features

PCI Express layer
- Compliant with the PCI Express 2.1/1.1, and PIPE (16- and 32-bit) specifications
- Compliant with PCI-SIG Single-Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) Specification
- Supports Endpoint, Root-Port, Dual-mode configurations
- Supports x16, x8, x4, x2, x1 at 5 GT/s and 2.5 GT/s speeds
- Supports AER, ECRC, ECC, MSI, MSI-X, Multi-function, P2P, crosslink, and other optional features
- Supports many ECNs including LTR, L1 PM substates, etc.
AMBA AXI layer
- Compliant with the AMBA® AXI™ Protocol Specification (AXI3, AXI4 and AXI4-Lite) and AMBA® 4 AXI4-Stream Protocol Specification
- Supports multiple, user-selectable AXI interfaces including AXI Master, AXI Slave, AXI Stream
- Each AXI interface data width independently configurable in 512-, 256-, 128-, and 64-bit
- Each AXI interface can operate in a separate clock domain
Data engines
- Built-in Legacy DMA engine
  - Up to 8 DMA channels, Scatter-Gather, descriptor prefetch
  - Completion reordering, interrupt and descriptor reporting
- Optional Address Translation tables for direct PCIe to AXI and AXI to PCIe communication

Benefits

Configurable pipelining enables full speed operation on Intel and Xilinx FPGA, full support for production FPGA designs up to Gen2 x8 with same RTL code
Stringent implementation of PCIe to AXI Ordering Rules and AXI to PCIe Ordering Rules guarantees AXI deadlock prevention
Carefully engineered AXI bridge & AXI interconnect allows full performance on AXI interfaces
Availability of multiple AXI Master interfaces, a key benefit for high end SSD to maximize throughput
Advanced Reliability, Availability, Serviceability (RAS) features include LTSSM timers override, ACK/NAK/Replay/UpdateFC timers override, unscrambled PIPE interface access, error injection on Rx and Tx paths, recovery detailed status and much more, allowing for safe and reliable deployment of IP in mission-critical SoCs
Optional QuickBoot mode allows for up to 4x faster link training, cutting system-level simulation time by 20%

Block Diagram

Applications

HPC,
Cloud Computing,
AI,
Machine Learning,
Enterprise,
Networking,
Automotive,
AR/VR,
Test and Measurement

Deliverables

IP files
- Verilog RTL source code
- Libraries for functional simulation
- Configuration assistant GUI
Documentation
PCI Express Bus Functional Model
- Encrypted Simulation libraries
Software
- PCI Express Windows x64 and Linux x64 device drivers
- PCIe C API
Reference Designs
- Synthesizable Verilog RTL source code
- Simulation environment and test scripts
- Synthesis project & DC constraint files (ASIC)
- Synthesis project & constraint files for supported FPGA hardware platforms (FPGA)

Technical Specifications

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