Agilent/Keysight M8020A

The Keysight M8020A J-BERT is a bit error ratio tester engineered for receiver characterization of single and multi-lane serial I/O devices. Operating from 8.5 Gb/s to 32 Gb/s, it delivers integrated jitter injection, equalization, and link training capabilities across 1 to 4 BERT channels. The system supports PCI Express, USB, SATA, SAS, and Ethernet standards with automated calibration and repeatable measurements for physical layer validation.

Technical Specifications

• 8.5 Gb/s baseline; 16 Gb/s via M8041A modules


• 32 Gb/s via M8062A front-end or M8061A multiplexer with N4877A CDR/de-multiplexer Channel Configuration


• 1 to 4 BERT channels in 5-slot AXIe chassis


• Module options: M8041A, M8051A, M8062A Jitter Injection


• Random Jitter (RJ), Periodic Jitter (PJ1, PJ2)


• Sinusoidal Jitter (SJ), Butterworth Jitter (BUJ), Clock/2 Jitter


• Spread Spectrum Clocking (SSC) - triangular, arbitrary, and residual


• Sinusoidal level interference (common and differential modes)


• 2-tone PJ and sRJ Signal Conditioning


• Up to 8-tap de-emphasis with positive/negative settings


• Continuous Time Linear Equalizer (CTLE) with preset options


• Built-in clock recovery with adjustable loop bandwidth


• Integrated and adjustable Inter-Symbol Interference (ISI) for loss emulation

Key Features Link Training & Standards Support

• Interactive training for PCI Express (8 GT/s, 16 GT/s), USB 3.0/3.1, SATA/SAS, SAS-3


• 10GBASE-KR, 25GBASE-KR, 100GBASE-KR4 with TxEQ training


• Recovery state machine for device loopback configuration Calibration & Measurement


• Automated in-situ calibration of signal conditions


• Repeatable BER measurements with integrated clock recovery Interference Testing


• Common and differential-mode level interference injection


• Sinusoidal interference capability across both modes

Typical Applications Receiver compliance validation for high-speed serial links, jitter tolerance characterization, equalization optimization, and link training verification across multiple industry standards.

Compatibility & Integration Key component of the Keysight M8000 Series physical layer test ecosystem. De-emphasis negotiation via M8051A-0G4 or M8041A-0G4 options.