Definition: 8b10b

(8Bits10Bits) A transmission code created by IBM in the mid-1980s that adds two bits to every 8-bit byte of data. The extra bits ensure that the line is electrically balanced between 0s and 1s, which enables the receiving circuits to stay in sync at high speeds. Using two conversion tables, the low-order five bits of each byte are encoded as six bits, and the next three bits are encoded into four bits.