Importance

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Abstract

An information handling system includes a plurality of transmission lines coupled together at one end and having a characteristic impedance, a driver circuit coupled to one of the transmission lines, and at least one receiver circuit coupled to the transmission lines. At least one driver circuit includes pull-up and pull-down circuits each having output resistances. The parallel combination of the pull-up and pull-down resistances matches the characteristic impedance of the transmission line. When the driver is used to terminate the transmission line, the pull-up and pull down circuits are enabled at approximately the same time, thus terminating the line. On-chip terminators may alternatively be used for termination, the terminators either including pull-up and pull-down circuits substantially similar to those described for the drivers, or may include a single resistance tied to a voltage other than an upper or lower rail. A method for managing the information handling system described above includes terminating each node by causing either an on-chip terminator or a driver to go into a terminating mode, thus causing the termination of the line using an output resistance that matches the characteristic impedance of the transmission line.

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First Claim