ANSI and VITA Ratify QMC Small-Form-Factor Mezzanine Standard

The new standard codifies the VITA 93 QMC modules, which are significantly smaller than PMC and XMC and will primarily serve in commercial, industrial, space, or military-grade rugged environments.
Oct. 23, 2025
2 min read

What you'll learn:

  • Defines a smaller mezzanine-card form factor supporting high-speed serial data links and user-defined I/O interfaces.
  • Compatible with various carrier-card formats including VPX, CompactPCI, VME, and PCIe expansion cards.
  • Supports multiple modules on carrier cards, enabling flexible and scalable system designs.
  • Includes ancillary standards (VITA 93.1 and 93.2) for front-panel I/O breakout cards, enhancing connectivity options.

The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and VITA have completed ratification of the ANSI/VITA 93.0-2025 (QMC) standard for small-form-factor mezzanine cards. The VITA 93 standard, referred to as QMC, defines a mezzanine-card form factor that’s significantly smaller than the XMC form factor.

QMC was developed specifically to support various carrier-card formats for use in a wide range of deployed environments, supporting both air- and conduction-cooled designs in commercial, industrial, space, or military-grade rugged environments.

Multiple modules can be installed on various carrier-card form factors, including 3U/6U Eurocards (such as VPX, CompactPCI, and VME), VNX+, PCIe expansion cards, and others. QMC supports high-speed serial data links through its host carrier interface, along with its user-defined I/O interface.

QMC addresses the need in the market for a small-form-factor I/O mezzanine. Its function is much the same as the earlier IP Module (VITA 4.0), PMC (IEEE 1386), and XMC (VITA 42.0) mezzanine-card standards: It provides connectors and interfaces for both the carrier-side connector as well as the I/O-side connector, but in a much smaller form factor.

The emergence of the VNX+ standard (VITA 90.0) drove the initial need for a smaller-form-factor mezzanine with backplane I/O capability. However, it was soon realized that this new form factor would have significant utility across many form factors and deployed environments.

The VITA 93 working group continues to focus on ancillary standards for QMC, VITA 93.1, and VITA 93.2, which define the mechanical details of two mezzanine cards with front-panel I/O. These I/O cards are intended to be used on carrier cards or rear-transition modules to break out the QMC I/O signals to industry-standard connectors that fit through the carrier card’s faceplate or rear-transition-module panels.

The ANSI/VITA 93.0-2025 standard is available for non-member purchase or free member download at the VITA Online Store.

About the Author

David Maliniak

Executive Editor, Microwaves & RF

I am Executive Editor of Microwaves & RF, an all-digital publication that broadly covers all aspects of wireless communications. More particularly, we're keeping a close eye on technologies in the consumer-oriented 5G, 6G, IoT, M2M, and V2X markets, in which much of the wireless market's growth will occur in this decade and beyond. I work with a great team of editors to provide engineers, developers, and technical managers with interesting and useful articles and videos on a regular basis. Check out our free newsletters to see the latest content.

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About me:

In his long career in the B2B electronics-industry media, David Maliniak has held editorial roles as both generalist and specialist. As Components Editor and, later, as Editor in Chief of EE Product News, David gained breadth of experience in covering the industry at large. In serving as EDA/Test and Measurement Technology Editor at Electronic Design, he developed deep insight into those complex areas of technology. Most recently, David worked in technical marketing communications at Teledyne LeCroy, leaving to rejoin the EOEM B2B publishing world in January 2020. David earned a B.A. in journalism at New York University.

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