What is SerDes (Serializer/Deserializer)?
Definition SerDes is a functional block that Serializes and Deserializes digital data used in high-speed chip-to-chip communication. Modern SoCs for high-performance computing (HPC), artificial intelligence (AI), automotive, mobile, and Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications implement SerDes that can support multiple data rates and standards like PCI Express (PCIe), MIPI, Ethernet, USB, USR/XSR. A SerDes implementation includes parallel-to-serial (serial-to-parallel) data conversion, impedance matching circuitry, and clock data recovery functionality. The primary role of SerDes is to minimize the number of I/O interconnects. SerDes applications SerDes is the most fundamental building block of a physical layer for chip-to-chip interconnect systems: SerDes + Physical Coding Sublayer (PCS) = PHY or Physical Layer The