1000Base-X PHY Implementations

1000Base Ethernet (Gigabit Ethernet), for all intents and purposes, is 100Base Ethernet (Fast Ethernet) on steroids. Like 10Base and 100Base Ethernet, at the data link layer (OSI-RM Layer 2), the 1000Base implementation utilizes the "standard" IEEE 802.3 MAC frame format, making it completely backwards-compatible with pre-existing Ethernet implementations. To achieve this "compatibility," however, certain adjustments need to be made to the 1000Base Ethernet CSMA/CD mechanism in order to support segment lengths that could be useful, in light of the greatly reduced slot-time.

In terms of the physical layer (OSI-RM Layer 1), architecturally, 100Base and 1000Base Ethernet are similar. With the most obvious being the ...

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