
occur. The nominal 3 dB cutoff frequency of the
filters is 16 MHz, and the nominal attenuation at
30 MHz (3rd harmonic) is -27 dB.
Transmitter
When configured for 10BASE-T operation, Man-
chester encoded data from the ENDEC is fed
into the transmitter’s pre-distortion circuit where
initial wave shaping and pre-equalization is per-
formed. The output of the pre-distortion circuit is
fed into the transmit filter where final wave
shaping occurs and unwanted noise is removed.
The signal then passes to the differential driver
where it is amplified and driven out of the
TXD+/TXD- pins.
In the absence of transmit packets, the transmit-
ter generates link pulses in accordance with
section 14.2.1.1 of the Ethernet standard. Trans-
mitted link pulses are positive pulses, one bit
time wide, typically generated at a rate of one
every 16 ms. The 16 ms timer starts whenever
the transmitter completes an End-of-Frame
(EOF) sequence. Thus, there is a link pulse 16
ms after an EOF unless there is another transmit-
ted packet. Figure 3.11 diagrams the operation of
the Link Pulse Generator.
If no link pulses are being received on the re-
ceiver, the 10BASE-T transmitter is internally
forced to an inactive state unless bit DisableLT
in register 19 (Test Control register) is set to one.
Receiver
The 10BASE-T receive section consists of the
receive filter, squelch circuit, polarity detection
and correction circuit, and link pulse detector.
Squelch Circuit:
The 10BASE-T squelch circuit
determines when valid data is present on the
RXD+/RXD- pair. Incoming signals passing
through the receive filter are tested by the
squelch circuit. Any signal with amplitude less
than the squelch threshold (either positive or
negative, depending on polarity) is rejected.
Extended Range:
The CS8920A supports an Ex-
tended Range feature that reduces the 10BASE-T
receive squelch threshold by approximately 6
dB. This allows the CS8920A to operate with
10BASE-T cables that are longer than 100 me-
ters (100 meters is the maximum length specified
by the Ethernet standard). The exact additional
distance depends on the quality of the cable and
the amount of electro-magnetic noise in the sur-
rounding environment. To activate this feature,
the host must set the LoRxSquelch bit (Register
13, LineCTL, Bit E).
Auto-Negotiation
The CS8920A supports Auto-Negotiation, the
mechanism that allows the two devices on either
end of a 10Base-T link segment to share infor-
mation and automatically configure both devices
for maximum performance. When configured for
Auto-Negotiation, the CS8920A will detect and
automatically operate full-duplex, if the device
on the other end of the link segment also sup-
ports full-duplex and Auto-Negotiation. The
CS8920A Auto-Negotiation capability is fully
compliant with the relevant portions of section
28 of the IEEE 802.3u standard.
Auto-Negotiation encapsulates information
within a burst of closely spaced link integrity
test pulses, referred to as a Fast Link Pulse
(FLP) Burst. The FLP Burst consists of a series
of link integrity pulses which form an alternating
clock / data sequence. Extraction of the data bits
from the FLP Burst yields a Link Code Word
which identifies the capability of the remote de-
vice. To remain interoperable with existing
10Base-T devices, the CS8920A also supports
the reception of 10Base-T compliant link integ-
rity test pulses, refered to as Normal Link Pulses
(NLP). Devices that respond to the CS8920A
with a Normal Link Pulse, cause the CS8920A
to operate as a 10Base-T half-duplex device.
CS8920A
DS238PP2
35