PCIe Gen 5: The Next-Gen of Data Transfer is Here

It seems like only yesterday that we were highlighting the benefits of PCIe Gen 4, but as is always the case with technology, the next generation is always just around the corner! So is the case with PCIe, as the 5^th generation now becomes the latest standard for the ubiquitous data transfer interface. Systel, as always, has not stood still, and in this blog we look at the new standard and how our team has been busy developing its latest systems to incorporate PCIe Gen 5 capabilities.

What is PCI Express?

PCIe – which stands for Peripheral Component Interconnect Express or PCI Express – is a common high-speed interface standard for most PCs and Macs, including our rugged systems, and is used to connect and transfer data to and from a range of components – including storage, memory, video encoders, graphics cards, network cards, and much more – to a system’s motherboard.

What you connect to a motherboard will ultimately depend on the computer’s intended purpose, but the connection will always likely be via a PCIe ‘slot’. This slot ensures a high-speed connection that will deliver reliable data throughput with minimum latency across components.

Motherboards will have a number of these slots for connecting various components, and the length of the slot can vary as this corresponds to the number of ‘lanes’ present.

What are PCIe slots and lanes?

Original PCI cards featured a parallel bus, which means data is sent across multiple wires at the same time. Meanwhile, PCIe introduced serial communication, where data is sent one bit at a time over a pair of wires, with multiple pairs referred to as ‘lanes’.

PCIe slots can differ in the number of ‘lanes’ they have and the more they have the more data can be transferred. Think of this as a data transfer highway where the more lanes you have then the more data ‘traffic’ can pass through and less potential for tailbacks, i.e. data bottlenecks.

It is possible to identify the number of lanes a PCIe connection has by the addition of an x and number, for instance, PCIe x1 is the smallest (and slowest) slot available, while a PCIe x16 is currently the largest and fastest.

The form factors for PCIe are as follows:

On most motherboards, the PCIe lanes will be labelled to show the number of lanes, although this can usually be confirmed visually. Smaller PCIe slots such as the x1 will be used for components such as Wi-Fi cards or USB cards, while larger x16 slots will be used for key components such as graphics cards owing to larger bandwidth requirements.

PCIe – 5^th generation

While the size of a PCIe slot will dictate the speed at which it can transfer data, the other key determinant for speed is the generation. As the PCIe generations have evolved, so too has the amount of data that can be transferred, which has resulted in increasingly powerful and fast computer systems.

It is possible to identify the specific generation of PCIe interface as most components will have a number before the lane quantity number, for example a PCIe 4.0 x 8 will be a fourth-generation device with 8 lanes, while a PCIe 3.0 x 16 will be a third generation with 16 lanes, and so on.

A summary of the PCIe generations and data transfer rates can be found below:

GigaTransfers per second (GT/s) represents the number of data transfers per second.

What does this mean for end users?

Data throughput continues to be a challenge, especially in modern military operations and defense applications where device-to-device communications is essential and the data generated from sensors, such as high-definition video, is significant.

Doubling the data transfer rates per second is a game-changer for users, especially as computer systems continue to ingest and generate significantly more data. This is especially the case in the defense and industrial sectors, where the demand for high-performance computing is high, and only increasing.

Faster bandwidth speeds enable greater use of collected data and make full use of the processing capability in a system.

Like previous generations, PCIe 5.0 retains its backwards compatibility, meaning that it can be installed and interfaced with 4.0 or older PCIe components. The only downside here is that users will not be able to leverage the faster bandwidth speeds that 5.0 affords when interfacing with legacy components, although they are effectively future-proofing their systems and allowing for easier upgrades further down the line.

Systel’s adoption of PCIe 5.0

Systel is committed to staying ahead of emerging computer technologies and our product roadmaps include integrating the newest PCIe 5.0 components into our rugged rackmount and embedded solutions.

The Systel team has already carried a significant program of in-house development and testing to begin integrating PCIe 5.0 components, which will result in new products coming in 2024 (watch this space!). This development, testing and validation ensures that customers get cutting-edge technology that is not only future-proofed but will provide a significant capability uplift for end users, especially in the defense space.

As part of its development efforts, Systel engineers have already identified and addressed technical challenges that come with upgrading to PCIe 5.0 – including ensuring signal integrity and adequate cooling – so customers can be rest assured that they have a robust and reliable system that meets the rigorous military standards that our customers have come to expect.

Systel’s approach to PCIe 5.0 and emerging technologies further demonstrates our technical leadership in the sector and ensures our customers get the best solutions for their most demanding needs.