An E-Marker (electronic marker) is a chip that is used in the latest USB connector iteration, USB Type-C, to communicate between power source and power sink devices. The chip is used to communicate with connected devices to ensure safe data and power delivery to and from the source and sink. The E-Marker provides the cable characteristics including the cable length, the maximum supported current and voltage, the type of USB signal, the vendor and product ID, any alternate mode support, and much more. An E-Marker is required on all USB Type-C cables that support 5 amps and/or exceed 60 watts of power carrying capability. USB Type-C cables that are expected to have data transfer rates above 480 Mbps, or High-speed USB 2.0, are also required to have an E-Marker chip embedded in the connectors of the cables. Applications that exceed 480 Mbps fall in the USB 3.1 realm, meaning any USB 3.1 cable is going to, with very minimal exceptions, be required, by the USB-IF community, to include an E-Marker in the Type-C cable.
What is an E-Marker and How Does It Work?
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