Loopback relay now supports up to 80 Gbps data rates and DC–20 GHz bandwidth, offering faster switching, lower power, and sharper eye diagrams for testing today’s most advanced SerDes and SoCs.
Menlo Micro has announced a powerful new upgrade to its high-performance MM5622 loopback relay with the launch of the MM5622-01NBX. Designed with Ideal Switch technology, the enhanced relay now supports data rates up to 80Gbps, providing a broader application range and higher performance margin for testing today’s most demanding digital interfaces.
This fully integrated system-in-package (SiP) solution includes a driver, charge pump, and 12 high-speed switching channels—all in one compact form factor. It dramatically reduces board space and simplifies load board design for production loopback testing. It is engineered to support differential signal switching for high-speed SerDes buses, delivering improved RF return loss, insertion loss, phase matching, and channel balance. These upgrades enable sharper eye diagrams, which are essential for validating high-performance SoCs at both wafer sort and final test stages.
The key features are:
- Supports DC to 20 GHz, enabling high-speed signal routing.
- Handles up to 64 Gbps for MM5620 and 80 Gbps for MM5622, suitable for advanced SerDes interfaces.
- Dual DP3T (Double Pole, Triple Throw) design with integrated loopback functionality.
- Low insertion loss of -1.5 dB at 16 GHz for MM5620, ensuring minimal signal degradation.
- Ultra-fast switching time of less than 30 µs, significantly reducing test times.
- Over 3 billion switching cycles, offering exceptional durability and reliability.
- Consumes less than 10 mW, providing a 95% reduction in power usage compared to traditional electromagnetic relays (EMRs).
- Compact 8.2 x 8.2 mm LGA package, occupying 90% less PCB space than EMRs.
The loopback solutions integrate high-speed (HS), medium-speed (MS), and low-speed (LS) test paths for full compliance, pattern, and DC parametric testing—all within a single setup, eliminating dual insertions. Built-in AC coupling capacitors simplify PCB design and improve signal integrity. These solutions are ideal for automated test equipment (ATE), probe cards, high-speed measurement systems, semiconductor final package testing, differential switch matrices, and optical-electrical module evaluation.
The technology ensures faster, cleaner, and more reliable signal transmission, helping test engineers confidently evaluate even the most complex chips. According to Chris Giovanniello, Co-Founder and SVP of RF Products at Menlo Micro, “The MM5622-01NBX was developed directly from customer feedback to address real-world challenges in testing high-speed interfaces.”
Alongside the product release, Menlo Micro also introduced HSIO SignalFlow Studio, a new interactive design tool for engineers. This web-based software helps optimize connections between test systems and MM56xx relays, highlighting performance paths, connection options, and programming instructions. It’s designed to simplify test board development while minimizing design errors and maximizing system performance.
