Circuit Protection Considerations for USB 3.0:The ubiquitous Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface is about
to undergo another evolution, keeping pace with the ever
increasing demand for connectivity bandwidth. USB 3.0, or
“SuperSpeed USB,” is expected to provide a major leap
forward in transfer speeds, power management and flexibility.
The USB 3.0 protocol was developed to provide higher data
transfer rates, and increase power delivery capabilities by
supporting higher current levels on each port. It includes new
power management features, as well as new cables and
connectors that are backward-compatible with USB 2.0
devices. The most significant change is that four additional
physical copper data lines have been added in parallel with
the existing USB 2.0 bus, as shown in Figure 1. These
additional copper data lines are used to transmit high-speed
data, but can also transmit ESD (electrostatic discharge) and
other harmful voltage transients.