The MAX5957/MAX5958 triple-channel, and MAX5959/MAX5960 quad-channel controllers are designed to hot-swap PCI-Express cards.
The devices allow hot-swap control for all PCI-Express voltage rails (+12V, +3.3V, and +3.3V auxiliary supply rail) for three or four PCI-Express slots.
The choice of 3-/4-channel devices provides significantly more design flexibility than the traditional 2-channel-controller solutions.
With the new devices, fewer control channels are wasted and fewer components needed, so board space is saved and solution cost reduced.
The application for these products is high-availability systems including servers, storage, RAID and disk drives that must operate with high reliability 24/7.
SUNNYVALE, CA—October 18, 2007—Maxim Integrated Products (Pink Sheets: MXIM) introduces the MAX5957/MAX5958 (triple) and MAX5959/MAX5960 (quad), the industry's first fully integrated, 3-/4-channel hot-plug controllers for safe insertion and removal of PCI-Express® (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express, PCIe®) cards from live PCI-Express hot-plug slots. By integrating more channels than competitive PCI-Express controllers, the MAX5957–MAX5960 increase design flexibility, and save both board space and production cost. The target application for these controllers is high-availability systems that require 24/7 operation. Examples include servers, and storage and RAID systems.
Limitations of Traditional Dual PCI-Express Controllers
PCI-Express server systems have 1, 3, 5, 7, or more PCIe slots. Prior to the MAX5957–MAX5960, designers controlled the multiple slots with dual-channel controllers. If the application required a three-slot hot-swap controller, for example, two dual-channel controllers were used. One channel was wasted, but designers had no other choice. This design approach was neither efficient nor economical for multiple-slot systems, so customers wanted more flexibility with lower cost.
Flexibility from 3-/4-Channel Operation
The availability of 3-/4-channel control brings designers much-needed flexibility for designing multiple-slot PCIe systems. Designers can now populate a multislot PCIe system with these 3- or 4-channel controllers without wasting any channels, and thus saving both board space and cost.
The MAX5957–MAX5960 provide independent power control for all three PCIe voltage rails (+12V, +3.3V, and +3.3V auxiliary supply rail) for three or four PCIe slots. The MAX5957/MAX5959 and MAX5958/MAX5960 are configured for 375mA and 550mA maximum current limit, respectively, for the +3.3V auxiliary supply rail.
The devices integrate a 0.2Ω power MOSFET switch for each +3.3V auxiliary supply rail, and can be controlled with an external I/O expander through the SMBus™ interface. This flexible power-control scheme removes the need for external communications components and, again, reduces overall system cost.
Robust Solution for High-Availability/Storage Systems
These hot-swap controllers deliver the high level of system protection required for high-availability systems. Active inrush and overcurrent protection come with programmable overcurrent timeout. Thermal shutdown protection is also provided for each channel. Other features include: power-good status indicators with power-on reset; attention input switches with 4ms debounce; and status outputs for reporting overcurrent and thermal shutdown faults. The devices are offered with latch-off or autorestart fault management.
The MAX5957–MAX5960 operate in the -40°C to +85°C extended temperature range. The MAX5957/MAX5958 (triple) are available in a 56-pin TQFN package; the MAX5959/MAX5960 (quad) are packaged in an 80-pin TQFP. Prices start at $4.42 for the MAX5957/MAX5958 and $5.03 for the MAX5959/MAX5960 (1000-up FOB USA). For more information please visit: http://www.maxim-ic.com/MAX5957–MAX5960
