BroadLight announces small, low-power GPON processor/Maxim introduces low-jitter, integrated 10 Gbps chipset

MAY 17, 2010 — Gateway and GPON semiconductor supplier BroadLight has unveiled the BL2341 GPON SFU/SFP Processor, a new member of its GPON processor family. The BL2341 is the industry’s smallest and lowest power GPON processor, BroadLight asserts.

The GPON processor comes in a 13×13 LFBGA package and consumes less then 1 W, BroadLight says. The BL2341 also leverages the company’s GPON software suite that enables small form factor designs.

“With the introduction of the BL2341 we are optimizing our product to support the emerging GPON market segment of small and miniature data only ONTs,” said Raanan Gewirtzman, CEO of BroadLight.

The BL2341 samples will be available “soon,” BroadLight says.

MAY 26, 2010 — Maxim Integrated Products introduces a 1.0625 Gbps to 11.3 Gbps transmit/receive system composed of the MAX3946 laser driver with impedance-mismatch tolerance and the MAX3945 dual-path limiting amplifier.

This 10GBASE-SR/LR SFP+ transmit/receive chipset enables < 1W SFP+ optical modules, while reducing overall module cost. The combined power consumption of the MAX3946 and MAX3945 is 355mW, leaving margin for the optical subsystem and control. Both ICs include a 3-wire digital control interface with integrated control DACs to reduce external component count. Outstanding jitter performance eases design tolerances and improves manufacturing yield in SFP+ optical transceivers. The chipset is optimized for Ethernet and Fibre Channel transmission systems at data rates up to 11.3 Gbps, says a representative.

The MAX3946 is a 3.3V, multirate laser diode driver optimized to drive a differential transmitter optical subassembly (TOSA) with a 25-ohm flex circuit up to 100-mA modulation current and up to 80mA bias current. The design of the output stage enables the use of unmatched TOSAs to reduce headroom limitations and lower module power consumption by 100 mW, with only 5-psp-p deterministic jitter.

The MAX3945 is a 3.3-V, multirate, high-sensitivity limiting amplifier that limits the signal generated by a transimpedance amplifier into a CML-level differential output signal. The dual-path limiting amplifier’s programmable filter optimizes sensitivity for different data rates and suppresses relaxation oscillations that could occur in legacy optical systems.