Term · General Industry
Preliminary datasheet
An early datasheet issued before characterisation is complete, with provisional numbers that may change. Marked preliminary or advance information so customers know not to build final designs against the limits.
- Also known as
- Advance information, Product preview
- Type
- Term
- Domain
- General Industry, Datasheet conventions
Notes
Preliminary numbers are usually simulation-based and tend to tighten, not loosen, once real silicon distributions are known.
Overview
A preliminary datasheet is an early edition of a chip's datasheet, issued while the part is still in development or qualification, whose specifications may change before the product is released to production. It lets customers start evaluating the part and designing boards while the supplier finishes characterisation. Suppliers label it clearly, with words such as preliminary, advance information or objective data, so that nobody mistakes its limits for final, guaranteed values.
How it works
Suppliers tie datasheet status to the product's maturity. NXP datasheets carry a status table in which an objective data sheet holds data from the objective specification during development, a preliminary data sheet holds data from the preliminary specification during qualification, and a product data sheet holds the product specification in production. Each one tells readers to consult the most recently issued document before starting or completing a design.
Allegro's guide to datasheet classes, written by a former chair of the JEDEC committee on semiconductor terms, describes a similar ladder. A product preview gives only target values that may change in almost any way. Advance information follows the first prototypes, and its limits may be to be determined, wide open or typical only. Preliminary information has most limits defined, often tighter than before, and usually describes a part that is safe to design in. The definitive datasheet finally sets the long-term, warranted production limits. TI's matching product status for unreleased parts is Preview: not yet in production, though prototype parts may be available.
The value of a preliminary datasheet is time, since customers can lay out boards and write software while characterisation finishes. The risk is that a limit moves or a detail changes before release. Preproduction datasheets are usually dated and marked subject to change without notice, so designers check for the latest revision before freezing a design.
Examples
- An NXP datasheet marked preliminary while the product is in qualification, later reissued as a product data sheet.
- A TI part with Preview status, available as prototypes before its release to production.
- A board designer using typical values from a preliminary datasheet for early layout, then rechecking every limit when the production datasheet is issued.
- A preliminary datasheet that lists a maximum supply current as to be determined until characterisation across temperature is complete.
Related terms
Part of the General Industry glossary, with every term in the topic and the lifecycles, tools and standards that use them.
Where it appears on the Hub
Used on 16 pages of the Hub. In each group, the pages that mention it most come first.
Lifecycle stages and gates
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