computer science

Vitesse Semiconductor

Vitesse Semiconductor is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Vitesse Semiconductor rather than just read about it. In short: Vitesse Semiconductor was a fabless American semiconductor company based in Camarillo, California, which developed high-performance Ethernet integrated circuits solutions for Carrier, Enterprise networks. On March 18, 2015, Microsemi Corporation and Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation jointly announced that Microsemi would acquire Vitesse.

Key takeaways

Vitesse Semiconductor belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Vitesse Semiconductor to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Vitesse Semiconductor from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Vitesse Semiconductor was a fabless American semiconductor company based in Camarillo, California, which developed high-performance Ethernet integrated circuits solutions for Carrier, Enterprise networks. On March 18, 2015, Microsemi Corporation and Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation jointly announced that Microsemi would acquire Vitesse. The acquisition closed on April 28, 2015. Microchip Technology acquired Microsemi on May 29, 2018.

Corporate history Vitesse was founded by Dr. Alfred S. Joseph, 1984, as Vitesse Electronics Corporation. Its founders came out of Rockwell International and were funded $30 million from the Norton corporation. Dr. Joseph later raised venture capital from Sequoia Capital and New Enterprise Associates. Vitesse later changed its name to Vitesse Semiconductor in 1987. It became a public company, with its 1991 initial public offering. In 1999, Vitesse acquired XaQti and in 2000, acquired Sitera and Orologic.

Products

Vitesse was one of the early developers of gallium arsenide (GaAs) based integrated circuits. It now offers a line of Ethernet switching products consisting of Carrier Ethernet switch engines for customer-premises equipment, access network equipment, wireless base stations, mobile access equipment, fiber and microwave wireless backhaul equipment, and metro networking equipment; and Ethernet switches that enable desktop, workgroup, and LAN infrastructure. The company also provides Ethernet media access controllers that offer addressing and channel control mechanisms and are used in enterprise class modular Ethernet switch platforms, as well as in Ethernet-over-SONET/SDH and Ethernet-over-OTN systems used in access, metro, and long-haul carrier networking systems; Ethernet transceivers, including single, quad, and octal devices that allow the transmission of 10/100/1000 BASE-T data over category 5 copper cable and fiber optic cabling for use in personal computers, home electronics, and LAN applications; and Ethernet transceivers with packet timing and synchronization capabilities. In addition, it provides a line of connectivity products, which comprise mixed-signal physical media devices, physical layer devices, crosspoint switches, and signal integrity devices that are used for the connection of systems via optical fiber, copper cable, or backplanes. Further, Vitesse offers a range of transport processing products, such as framers, mappers, and switches, which support data rates up to 10 Gbit/s for SONET/SDH, EoS, and OTN applications. It markets and sells its products directly to OEMs and original design manufacturers, as well as through third-party electronic component distributors and manufacturing service providers.

Mini-Supercomputer Vitesse developed a minisupercomputer intended for the scientific market and employing the company's GaAs chips. The company closed that division in 1987 with the first model as demonstration version. Reportedly management was unable to raise sufficient funds and thought bringing the product to market would take too long.

Securities fraud In 2007 the company paid US$10.2 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging securities fraud though options backdating, saying that the company failed to disclose and misrepresented some adverse facts. Subsequently, in 2010, two of its former executives, Lou Tomasetta and the former executive vice president Eugene Hovanec were charged with securities fraud related to the backdating. In December 2010, Vitesse finalized a settlement with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), over the SEC's investigations into the firm's historical stock options practices and accounting. Vitesse agreed to pay $3.0M to the SEC, which concluded the SEC's investigation of Vitesse.

Turnaround In June 2014, the Camarillo-based chip company diluted, announcing a $23.2M stock offering, a planned sale of 7.5 million shares at $3.35 each, to be used for working capital and general corporate purposes. In June 2013, Vitesse previously diluted, closing an $18.7 million offering at a price-per-share, $2.15, with gross proceeds approximately $40.2M. The company diluted the year before, netting $17.1M from an offering in December 2012. In the June 2014 dilution, Vitesse's largest shareholder, Raging Capital Management LLC, purchased an additional 1.6 million shares. This raised Raging Capital's total position to 14.3 million shares, or approximately 25% of Vitesse's outstanding shares.

References

External links Vitesse Semiconductor - Archive of website on March 15, 2015

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Vitesse Semiconductor

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Vitesse Semiconductor claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Vitesse Semiconductor before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Vitesse Semiconductor ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Vitesse Semiconductor

In research: Vitesse Semiconductor appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Vitesse Semiconductor in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Vitesse Semiconductor is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1984 establishments in California, 2015 disestablishments in California, Camarillo, California, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Vitesse Semiconductor outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Vitesse Semiconductor in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Vitesse Semiconductor means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Vitesse Semiconductor out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vitesse Semiconductor in simple terms?

Why does Vitesse Semiconductor matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Vitesse Semiconductor?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Vitesse Semiconductor.