09-07-2012, 09:37 AM
Thunderbolt Technology
[attachment=27200]
INTRODUCTION
As every generation of information technology progresses, I/O technologies evolve to provide higher bandwidth for getting data into and out of computers. At its simplest, two discrete types of I/O have resulted – display (with formatted video and audio components), and data. Traditional approaches to this evolution have been to make an existing technology faster. Thunderbolt technology combines the next step in higher performance with the innovation of mapping two of the most fundamental I/O protocols at the heart of computing (PCI Express and DisplayPort), onto a single highly efficient metaprotocol, transmitting them over a single cable, and managing the traffic routing (supporting daisy chaining and hot-plugging devices) with intelligent hardware controllers. The choice of PCI Express was clear, providing for off-the-shelf controller use to attach to nearly any technology imaginable, and the choice of DisplayPort was equally clear for meeting the needs of the PC industry with capabilities like support for greater-than-highdefinition display resolutions, and support for up to 8 channels of high-definition audio.
1.1 WHAT EXACTLY IS THUNDERBOLT
Thunderbolt is a new connectivity interface technology developed by Intel, previously known as Light Peak. This is a high speed data interface based on the PCI Express and DisplayPort architectures, which also provides power through a single connection to peripheral devices such as hard drives, video capture devices, RAID arrays, etc. As a result of its direct connection to the PCI Express bus, its throughput is very fast. It is also capable of transmitting HD video using the DisplayPort protocol
Since Thunderbolt provides 10 watts of power per channel to peripherals, it lets you run many more devices than what has been possible on previous connectivity interfaces. Thunderbolt is reminiscent of Apple's Apple Display Connector (ADC), which could also drive an Apple display through the same cable. It would carry the video, audio and USB signals, although ADC required a special graphics card, while Thunderbolt uses the Mini DisplayPort.
The vision for Thunderbolt is to move media faster, simplify connections between devices, and foster new and exciting ways to build and use PCs. Combining high-speed data and HD video connections together onto a single cable is instrumental to achieving that vision. Thunderbolt technology delivers this via two communications methods, or protocols -- PCI Express for data transfer and DisplayPort for displays. PCI Express has the flexibility to connect to almost any type of device, and DisplayPort can drive greater than 1080p resolution displays and up to eight channels of audio simultaneously. Thunderbolt technology is compatible with existing DisplayPort displays and adapters. All Thunderbolt technology devices share a common connector, and let individuals simply daisy-chain their devices one after another, connected by electrical or optical cables.
The interface was originally designed to use flexible optical fiber cables, but a version using conventional copper wiring was also developed to furnish the desired 10 Gb/s bandwidth at lower cost. Intel's implementation of the port adapter folds Thunderbolt and DisplayPort data together, allowing both to be carried over the same cable at the same time. A single Thunderbolt port supports hubs as well as a daisy chain of up to seven Thunderbolt devices; up to two of these devices may be high-resolution displays using DisplayPort. Apple sells existing DisplayPort adapters for DVI, dual-link DVI, HDMI, and VGAoutput from the Thunderbolt port, showing broad compatibility.
KEY FEATURES & SPECFICATIONS
• Dual-channel offering a whopping 10Gbps per port (to put that into perspective you ….can ….push a full-length HD movie through the connection in less than 30 …seconds).
• The port is bi-directional, so it offers 10Gbps in both directions simultaneously.
• Dual-protocol support for PCI Express and DisplayPort.
• Fully compatible with existing DisplayPort devices.
• Daisy-chain up to six peripherals (compare this to Firewire which supports 63 devices, and ….USB which supports 127).
• Supplies 10W of power over bus to peripherals.
• Supports electrical (copper) or optical (fibre optic) cabling.
• Low latency.
• Supports HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)/HDCP (High-.bandwidth ,,,,,Digital ….Content Protection)
Type Dual-protocol I/O
Production history
Designer Intel
Designed 2009
Manufacturer Various
Produced February 2011–present
General specifications
Length 3 meters maximum (copper)
Width 8.3 mm
Height 5.4 mm
Hotpluggable Yes
Daisy chain Yes, up to 6 devices[
External Yes
Connector Mini DisplayPort
Electrical
Signal 10 W
Data
Data signal Yes
Bitrate
10 Gbit/s PCIe bi-directional
10 Gbit/s DisplayPort
100 Gbit/s (over next decade)
Protocol PCI Express, DisplayPort v1.1a
WORKING OF THUNDERBOLT TECHNOLOGY
3.1 WORKING
Intel's Thunderbolt controllers interconnect a PC and other devices, transmitting and receiving packetized traffic for both PCIe and DisplayPort protocols. Thunderbolt technology works on data streams in both directions, at the same time, so users get the benefit of full bandwidth in both directions, over a single cable. With the two independent channels, a full 10 Gbps of bandwidth can be provided for the first device, as well as additional downstream devices.
Thunderbolt consists of Intel’s thunderbolt controller chip and a connecting cord between two devices. Intel’s brand new Thunderbolt controller chip is capable of piping two data streams simultaneously , in both directions, over a cable at speeds of up to 10Gigabits per second. It is primarily using PCI Express x4 for data communication and DisplayPort technology for video output. According to Intel, the Thunderbolt controller chip is hardware-agnostic and doesn’t require an Intel processor or chipset to use. The controller acts like a router which switches rapidly between the two bi-directional channels of data. Thunderbolt supports wired cables up to 3 meters in length per daisy chain segment. Optical cables can be up to tens of meters in length. Fig 3.1 shows the flow of data & video signals.
[attachment=27200]
INTRODUCTION
As every generation of information technology progresses, I/O technologies evolve to provide higher bandwidth for getting data into and out of computers. At its simplest, two discrete types of I/O have resulted – display (with formatted video and audio components), and data. Traditional approaches to this evolution have been to make an existing technology faster. Thunderbolt technology combines the next step in higher performance with the innovation of mapping two of the most fundamental I/O protocols at the heart of computing (PCI Express and DisplayPort), onto a single highly efficient metaprotocol, transmitting them over a single cable, and managing the traffic routing (supporting daisy chaining and hot-plugging devices) with intelligent hardware controllers. The choice of PCI Express was clear, providing for off-the-shelf controller use to attach to nearly any technology imaginable, and the choice of DisplayPort was equally clear for meeting the needs of the PC industry with capabilities like support for greater-than-highdefinition display resolutions, and support for up to 8 channels of high-definition audio.
1.1 WHAT EXACTLY IS THUNDERBOLT
Thunderbolt is a new connectivity interface technology developed by Intel, previously known as Light Peak. This is a high speed data interface based on the PCI Express and DisplayPort architectures, which also provides power through a single connection to peripheral devices such as hard drives, video capture devices, RAID arrays, etc. As a result of its direct connection to the PCI Express bus, its throughput is very fast. It is also capable of transmitting HD video using the DisplayPort protocol
Since Thunderbolt provides 10 watts of power per channel to peripherals, it lets you run many more devices than what has been possible on previous connectivity interfaces. Thunderbolt is reminiscent of Apple's Apple Display Connector (ADC), which could also drive an Apple display through the same cable. It would carry the video, audio and USB signals, although ADC required a special graphics card, while Thunderbolt uses the Mini DisplayPort.
The vision for Thunderbolt is to move media faster, simplify connections between devices, and foster new and exciting ways to build and use PCs. Combining high-speed data and HD video connections together onto a single cable is instrumental to achieving that vision. Thunderbolt technology delivers this via two communications methods, or protocols -- PCI Express for data transfer and DisplayPort for displays. PCI Express has the flexibility to connect to almost any type of device, and DisplayPort can drive greater than 1080p resolution displays and up to eight channels of audio simultaneously. Thunderbolt technology is compatible with existing DisplayPort displays and adapters. All Thunderbolt technology devices share a common connector, and let individuals simply daisy-chain their devices one after another, connected by electrical or optical cables.
The interface was originally designed to use flexible optical fiber cables, but a version using conventional copper wiring was also developed to furnish the desired 10 Gb/s bandwidth at lower cost. Intel's implementation of the port adapter folds Thunderbolt and DisplayPort data together, allowing both to be carried over the same cable at the same time. A single Thunderbolt port supports hubs as well as a daisy chain of up to seven Thunderbolt devices; up to two of these devices may be high-resolution displays using DisplayPort. Apple sells existing DisplayPort adapters for DVI, dual-link DVI, HDMI, and VGAoutput from the Thunderbolt port, showing broad compatibility.
KEY FEATURES & SPECFICATIONS
• Dual-channel offering a whopping 10Gbps per port (to put that into perspective you ….can ….push a full-length HD movie through the connection in less than 30 …seconds).
• The port is bi-directional, so it offers 10Gbps in both directions simultaneously.
• Dual-protocol support for PCI Express and DisplayPort.
• Fully compatible with existing DisplayPort devices.
• Daisy-chain up to six peripherals (compare this to Firewire which supports 63 devices, and ….USB which supports 127).
• Supplies 10W of power over bus to peripherals.
• Supports electrical (copper) or optical (fibre optic) cabling.
• Low latency.
• Supports HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)/HDCP (High-.bandwidth ,,,,,Digital ….Content Protection)
Type Dual-protocol I/O
Production history
Designer Intel
Designed 2009
Manufacturer Various
Produced February 2011–present
General specifications
Length 3 meters maximum (copper)
Width 8.3 mm
Height 5.4 mm
Hotpluggable Yes
Daisy chain Yes, up to 6 devices[
External Yes
Connector Mini DisplayPort
Electrical
Signal 10 W
Data
Data signal Yes
Bitrate
10 Gbit/s PCIe bi-directional
10 Gbit/s DisplayPort
100 Gbit/s (over next decade)
Protocol PCI Express, DisplayPort v1.1a
WORKING OF THUNDERBOLT TECHNOLOGY
3.1 WORKING
Intel's Thunderbolt controllers interconnect a PC and other devices, transmitting and receiving packetized traffic for both PCIe and DisplayPort protocols. Thunderbolt technology works on data streams in both directions, at the same time, so users get the benefit of full bandwidth in both directions, over a single cable. With the two independent channels, a full 10 Gbps of bandwidth can be provided for the first device, as well as additional downstream devices.
Thunderbolt consists of Intel’s thunderbolt controller chip and a connecting cord between two devices. Intel’s brand new Thunderbolt controller chip is capable of piping two data streams simultaneously , in both directions, over a cable at speeds of up to 10Gigabits per second. It is primarily using PCI Express x4 for data communication and DisplayPort technology for video output. According to Intel, the Thunderbolt controller chip is hardware-agnostic and doesn’t require an Intel processor or chipset to use. The controller acts like a router which switches rapidly between the two bi-directional channels of data. Thunderbolt supports wired cables up to 3 meters in length per daisy chain segment. Optical cables can be up to tens of meters in length. Fig 3.1 shows the flow of data & video signals.