A Novel Decision Feedback Equalization Structure for Nonlinear High-Speed Links

As the degree of nonlinearity in high-speed links becomes more and more serious, traditional decision feedback equalization (DFE) which is based on linear time-invariant assumption can no longer eliminate the inter-symbol interference effectively. In this paper, the shortcomings of traditional DFE structure for nonlinear high-speed links are first analyzed. Then, the multi-bit response (MBR) method is proposed to accurately construct the bit stream responses of the nonlinear high-speed links. Lastly, a novel DFE structure based on the MBR method is presented to improve the signal quality of the nonlinear high-speed links. The accuracy of the proposed method is verified by the simulation based on a nonlinear high-speed link model. Compared with traditional DFE, the proposed DFE structure can significantly improve the signal quality of the nonlinear high-speed links. As the degree of nonlinearity increases, the advantage of the proposed DFE becomes more prominent.