The industry's first USB Type-C IP solutions

The new Type-C specification simplifies mechanical USB connectors with reversible cables, rotational symmetry, up to 10Gb/s data rate, bi-directional power delivery, audio multiplexing and alternate modes such as DisplayPort and MHL. The Synopsys DesignWare USB-C PHYs integrate Type-C functionality, reducing BOM costs by eliminating discrete multiplexers and crossbar switch components, which were previously required to support the small, reversible Type-C connector.

Supporting the USB Type-C connector requires two SuperSpeed or Enhanced SuperSpeed datapaths, so designers could either implement two non-Type-C USB PHYs in a dual PHY solution or choose a single PHY that is optimised for Type-C. The DesignWare USB-C PHYs supporting USB 3.1, 3.0 and 2.0 offer an optimized solution with small area and use up to 40% fewer pins than a dual PHY solution for Type-C. In addition, the DesignWare USB-C PHYs are based on the established DesignWare USB PHY architectures that are shipping in volume in 28nm and 14/16nm FinFET silicon, enabling designers to reduce SoC design risk when implementing the IP in advanced process technologies. The DesignWare USB-C PHYs are optimised for low power, meeting the stringent requirements of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, high-volume consumer applications such as digital TVs, storage and networking applications.

The DesignWare USB-C 3.1 PHY offers 10Gb/s and 5Gb/s data transfer rates and consumes less than 55mW power at 10Gb/s speeds. The DesignWare USB-C 3.0 PHY supports all USB 3.0 and 2.0 speed modes in a single easy-to-integrate GDSII design.

The DesignWare USB-C PHYs are part of Synopsys' complete USB solution, which also includes controllers, verification IP, IP prototyping kits and IP software development kits. Together, they reduce IP integration risk and speed time-to-market for consumer and mobile SoCs. The DesignWare USB 3.1 controller IP, based on the DesignWare USB 3.0 controller IP architecture which has shipped in more than 100m SoCs, supports 10Gb/s data transfer rates, power saving capabilities and backward compatibility with existing USB 3.0 software stacks and device drivers. The DesignWare USB 3.1/3.0 IP prototyping kits and IP software development kits provide the essential hardware and software elements needed to reduce IP prototyping and integration effort, enabling designers to start implementing USB IP in an SoC in minutes. Synopsys USB verification IP is based on a 100% SystemVerilog, UVM-based architecture with test suites delivered as source code to enable quick development of a verification environment to verify the proper integration and connection of the USB interface within the SoC.

“Teledyne-LeCroy and Synopsys have worked together for more than 15 years to perform early interoperability testing of new USB generations between our respective solutions," said Mike Micheletti, Product Marketing Manager, Teledyne-LeCroy. "Interoperability testing is critical to developing the USB 3.1 ecosystem, and the successful interoperability testing between DesignWare USB-C 3.1 and USB-C 3.0 IP and Teledyne-LeCroy's Voyager M310C gives designers confidence that the IP will work as expected and reduce their design risk."

"Products such as Synopsys' DesignWare IP that support the combination of the USB 3.1 and Type-C specifications offer high throughput with new, user-friendly capabilities for the demanding mobile and consumer markets," said Terry Moore, CEO, MCCI. "As interest in these specifications gains momentum, Synopsys IP and MCCI software are enabling the ecosystem to quickly adopt the new standards. Seamless software execution is easiest on best-in-class hardware implementations. Synopsys' high-quality DesignWare IP gives us a proven platform and enables our customers to delight their end users."

"As the demand for Type-C connectivity and 10Gb/s data transfers increases, system architects must quickly introduce products that provide these features," said John Koeter, Vice President of Marketing, IP and Prototyping, Synopsys. "As the leading provider of USB IP for more than a decade, Synopsys understands what is needed to help designers adopt the latest standards, such as USB Type-C, and provides IP products early so companies can be competitive in their fast-moving markets."

The DesignWare USB-C 3.1 PHY, DesignWare USB-C 3.0 PHY and DesignWare USB 3.1 PHY are available now. The complete DesignWare USB IP solutions, including host and device controllers, verification IP, IP prototyping kits and IP Virtualizer development kits are available now.