Analyze and exercise PCIe 2.0 signals

Staff -- Test & Measurement World, 11/1/2006

The PC industry is poised to double the speed of the PCI Express (PCIe) bus to 5-Gbps PCIe 2.0. To make sure that PCIe 2.0 devices work, you can use the E2960B protocol analyzer and exerciser from Agilent Technologies.

This modular bench instrument, which is controlled by an external PC, can capture and analyze data on PCIe buses that consist of one lane to 16 lanes. Because engineers often need to correlate bus activities with individual bits, the E2960B can connect to an Agilent 16900 series logic analyzer. Thus, you can view the PCIe bus from the physical layer to the transaction layer. The gateway software lets you set up a common marker that, when you move it on one instrument, also moves the marker on the other. You can also view the logic analyzer’s display on the E2960B’s host computer monitor and you can cross-trigger the instruments.

The E2960B gives you several probing options. You can insert a board into a PCIe slot to gain access to live bus signals. A midbus probe gives you access to the bus without interfering with signals, and it contains a resistor mounted in the probe to minimize capacitance. Three versions of the midbus probe are available that support various board layouts.

Base price: $47,600. Agilent Technologies, www.agilent.com/find/pcie2.