- News
14 March 2018
MACOM and ColorChip announce 100G single-lambda QSFP28 module for cloud data-center applications
© Semiconductor Today Magazine / Juno PublishiPicture: Disco’s DAL7440 KABRA laser saw.
In booth #2613 at the Optical Networking and Communication Conference & Exhibition (OFC 2018) in San Diego (13-15 March), MACOM Technology Solutions Inc of Lowell, MA, USA (which makes semiconductors, components and subassemblies for RF, microwave, millimeter-wave and lightwave applications), together with optical transceiver firm ColorChip Ltd of Yokne’am, Israel, has announced a full bi-directional 100G serial QSFP28 module leveraging the patented MACOM PRISM PAM-4 PHY.
Sampling now, the PRISM is a highly integrated 4-level pulse amplitude modulation (PAM-4) PHY (physical layer) device that converts 100 Gigabit Ethernet traffic from four lanes running at 25Gb/s to a single 100Gb/s lane. Requiring only a single set of optical components in a 100GE module can achieve the requisite cost points for next-generation 100G links, MACOM says. By integrating features such as IEEE 100GBASE-DR-compliant forward error correction (FEC) and a linear modulator driver, the PRISM device is expected to ease the burden on module designers and allow for seamless integration with existing 100G switch ports.
As 100G technology reaches maturity in 2018, optical suppliers are intensifying their efforts to reduce module costs and increase system density, says MACOM. Single-lambda PAM-4 modulation is critical to these efforts, enabling the delivery of 100G throughput over a single fiber. This can reduce the number of lasers from four to one in an optical transceiver module, and the associated cost and density benefits can be significant. For data-center operators, single-lambda PAM-4 is widely expected to become the de-facto standard for 100G connectivity, with deployment commencing later this year.
ColorChip is demonstrating its 100G single-lambda QSFP28 solution in booth #2529 at OFC.
“Working with an industry pioneer like ColorChip, we have been able to show the performance and cost benefits of our PRISM Chip at 100G serial line rate,” says MACOM’s director of marketing Chris Collins. “This demonstration validates the R&D investment that MACOM has made in 53Gbaud PAM-4 and poises us to enable seamless integration with optical components for the next generation of cloud data-center deployment,” he adds.
“ColorChip brings high-speed data transmission to the world’s top mega-data centers,” says ColorChip’s VP of R&D Eli Arad. “We are the pioneering global leader of hyperscale single-mode solutions, leveraging our patented SystemOnGlass platform to deliver robust yet compact optical transceivers that support immense rates of data-intensive traffic,” he adds. “MACOM was an early adopter of the single-lambda approach. Working with MACOM’s PRISM chipset, we are very proud to achieve this breakthrough performance in 100G single-lambda QSFP28. By developing a cost effective solution, while maintaining industry-leading performance, ColorChip believes we will enable the next generation of optics for 100G, 400G and beyond.”
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