100-Gb/s 27-1 and 54-Gb/s 211-1 PRBS generators in SiGe bipolar technology

This paper presents two monolithic pseudorandom bit sequence (PRBS) generators. One circuit uses a seven-stage shift register operating with a half-rate clock and provides output signals up to 100 Gb/s. The second circuit contains an eleven-stage shift register operating with a full-rate clock up to 54 Gb/s. Both PRBS generators provide a wide range of data rates down to below 1 Gb/s simply by changing the frequency of the external clock signal without the need of any further adjustments. The integrated circuits provide a trigger output which can be switched between eye and pattern display. Furthermore, they contain additional circuitry to guarantee automatic start after power-on. The circuits are manufactured in a 200-GHz f_T SiGe bipolar technology. They each have a chip size of 900×700 μm² and consume 1.5 and 1.9 W, respectively.