PCIe is a fast computer communication bus used for many applications. NVMe SSDs run on PCIe as does the new CXL memory interconnect. PCIe 4 is becoming common in client and enterprise applications but PCIe 5.0 is in the early stages of product introduction. In January 2022 the PCI SIG released PCIe 6.0 which can run twice as fast as PCIe 5.0 and should be in common usage after 2025. The figure below shows the various PCIe specifications and the bandwidth as a function of the number of lanes used.
Microchip announced its Flashtec controller family, NVMe 4016 SSD controller that supports PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSDs. The company ways that this controller can deliver greater than 14GB/s throughput and over 3M IOPS. The product includes a Credit Engine that helps manage Quality of Service (QoS), required for data center applications. The figure below shows the block diagram of the 4016 SSD controller as well as various features and options.
The 16 programmable NAND flash channels on this chip are capable of up to 2.4 GT/s (billioin transitions per second) to fully utilize the PCIe Gen 5 X4 bandwidth. The NVMe 2.0 compliant controller supports advanced storage and performance options such as Zoned Name Spaces (ZNS) and cloud Open Compute Platform (OCP). Programmability allows customers to meet their evolving NVMe specifications. The product also enables PCIe link encryption support.
With dual signature authentication and Trusted Platform support, the NVMe 4016 controller meets critical storage and enterprise application security needs. The NVMe 4016’s advanced virtualization capabilities enable the large-scale deployment of Virtual Machines (VMs) as well as Physical Functions (PF) per port for efficient utilization of the PCIe resources in ever-growing data center and cloud computing infrastructures.
ECC features armed with stronger bit error correction capabilities continue to pave the way for utilization of denser NAND Flash technologies like Qual-Level-Cell (QLC) Flash into the mainstream and storage space. The Flashtec controller’s includes a new, programmable Machine Learning (ML) engine in the NVMe 4016 controller, capable of a variety of pattern recognition and classification functions that are employed in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and ML applications.
The software development kit includes Microchip’s reference firmware with optional hardened firmware modules, simulation tools, debug tools including Microchip’s Chiplink diagnostic tools, evaluation boards and reference designs, global support and a full suite of collateral. The product is expected to ramp into full production in the second half of 2023 to meet an expected PCIe Gen 5 ramp in 2024-2025.
Micron announced that it is sampling its 7450 NVMe, 176-layer NAND SSD for the data center. The company reported that latency is at or below 2 ms in for 99.9999% QoS in common, mixed, random workloads. The product is available in various capacities and a broad set of form factors (as shown below).
The product includes Micron’s own DRAM and an internally developed SoC controller. The 7450 SSD features multiple capacity options to fit various data center needs. Its wide capacity range — from 400GB to 15.36TB — includes the popular capacity of 8TB in a compact E1.S form factor. In addition, the industry’s broadest set of form factors for data center SSDs addresses the unique challenges of varous data center workloads.
- U.3, M.2 and E1.S form factor options meet evolving space, power and thermal needs.
- The industry’s only PCIe Gen4 U.3 SSD, in both 15mm and 7mm thicknesses, provides flexibility for platforms that require 2.5-inch NVMe drives.
- The PCIe Gen4 M.2 22x80mm SSD, designed primarily for server boot use, is a compact form factor supporting power loss protection.
The SSD included self-encrypting drive functionality and Microsoft eDrive options for data security. The product also supports Open Compute Project deployments that create a standardized approach to reduce integration complexity and improve time to market. The product will be available for customers to purchase through distribution in April 2022.
Microchip introduced its 4016 PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSD controller for products to meet a PCIe ramp in 2024-2025. Micron introduced its 7450 multi-form factor NVMe PCIe Gen 4, 176-layer SSD line for data center applications.
