High-Speed Board Layout Challenges in FPGA/SDI Sub-Systems

Television and cinema have entered the digital age. Video pictures are used to transport at standard definition rate (270 Mb/s), upgraded to high definition rate (1.485 Gb/s), and are now migrating to 3 Gb/s. The migration to higher speeds enables higher resolution images for entertainment, but it also presents challenges to hardware engineers and physical layout designers. Many video systems are implemented with feature-rich FPGA and multi-rate SDI integrated circuits that support high performance professional video transport over long distances. FPGAs demand high density routing with fine trace width while high-speed analog SDI routing demands impedance matching and signal fidelity. This paper outlines the layout challenges facing hardware engineers and provides recommendations for dealing with these challenges.