Oclaro Inc of San Jose, CA, USA (which provides components, modules and subsystems for optical communications) has now qualified and released to production both its 2km CWDM4 QSFP28 and 10km LR4 QSFP28 client-side transceivers designed for 100Gb/s inter-connections between switches within data centers in addition to conventional router and transport 100Gb/s client-side interfaces in core networks.
By delivering low power consumption and high transmission performance quality through Oclaro's internal 1310nm 28Gb/s laser diode and lens-integrated receiver technologies, the CWDM4 and LR4 QSFP28 transceivers will enable data centers to transition to longer-reach single-mode fiber (SMF) interconnections needed to support growing bandwidth demands, says the firm.
"Oclaro has a proven track record of delivering leading-edge 100Gb/s client transceivers to customers transitioning to higher-speed networks," says Yves LeMaitre, president, Optical Connectivity Business at Oclaro. "With our unique and proprietary 28Gb/s laser diode and lens-integrated receiver technologies, we can now offer two flavors of single-mode QSFP28 optimized for data-center topology and reach. Our goal is to provide data-center operators with a reliable supply of 100Gb/s transceiver solutions that support multiple standards while also ensuring low power consumption and high transmission quality in a cost-effective small form factor," he adds.
"The availability of QSFP28 optics will be instrumental in spurring major growth for 100GbE in the data-center market," comments Vladimir Kozlov, founder & CEO of LightCounting Market Research. "Our current forecast shows this market to be approximately $500m by the 2018 timeframe and Oclaro is well positioned as a trusted supplier ready to meet this growing demand."
The CWDM4/CLR4 QSFP28 transceiver is designed to address the requirements of cloud data-center operators that need to move to SMF at 100Gb/s because mesh inter-connection between Leaf and Spine switches require connectivity of up to 2km over duplex single-mode fiber. To facilitate that transition, the CWDM4/CLR4 QSFP28 provides a low-cost solution that features maximum 3.5W power consumption and high transmission quality through Oclaro's uncooled 1310nm 28Gb/s laser diode technology. Additional features of the CWDM4/CLR4 QSFP28 include:
utilizing cost-effective integrated transmitter and receiver designs leveraging Oclaro's manufacturing experience gained as a supplier of single-mode 100Gbit/s client-side transceivers; leveraging Oclaro's experience in 25Gb/s electrical signal design for PCB, gold box, and flex circuits; and supporting both the CWDM4 MSA and CLR4 alliance specifications to offer flexible solutions.
Oclaro says that the LR4 QSFP28 transceiver delivers high performance, ensures interoperability with existing CFP/CFP2 and CFP4 products, and supports OTU4 specifications by using in-house 28G laser diode technologies. Due to its narrower width and lower power consumption, the LR4 QSFP28 can support up to 18 100Gb/s ports (36 ports with dual stack implementation) while also providing superior optical performance and transmission quality. Additional features of the LR4 QSFP 28 include:
taking advantage of Oclaro's cooled 1310nm 28Gb/s laser diode and lens-integrated receiver technologies covering both IEEE LR4 and ITU-T OTU4 specifications ('dual rate' performance); leveraging Oclaro's proven track record in delivering volume 100Gbit/s LR4 transceivers; and ensuring interoperability with the existing installed base of CFP/CFP2/CFP4 LR4 products.
