Vello Systems tells 10-Gbps low-latency story/VI Systems, consortium develop 40-Gbps VCSEL components

DECEMBER 14, 2010 By Stephen Hardy — On the heels of unveiling its strategy to support cloud networking (see “Vello Systems announces Cloud Switching technology for flexible bandwidth provisioning”), Vello Systems has added low-latency capabilities to the mix. The company has unveiled the 10G CX50T service card, targeted at ultra-low latency, high-density metro applications. It also has begun to publicly discuss the support of low-latency connections over longer distances.

The new CX50T card is designed to bring sub-5 nsec latency performance to both the 16-slot CX16000 system or the 5-slot CX4000 system to support intra- and inter-metro low-latency networks, Jeff Baher, Vello’s vice president of marketing told Lightwave last week. That figure is meant to describe the latency through the transponders; Baher acknowledged that the fiber and other network elements within a particular link would add to the total latency figure on a route. (For more on the elements that contribute to latency in optical networks, see “Breaking barriers to low latency” from the June 2010 issue of Lightwave.) Nevertheless, Baher said the low latency of the five-port CX50T card should make the new capabilities extremely attractive to carriers looking to offer low-latency connections to support financial clients and others looking to use cloud-based services.

“Cloud computing and cloud-based services are placing significantly greater demands on network infrastructure, not only for capacity, but also for a higher level of responsiveness,” said Rick Talbot, senior analyst, optical infrastructure at Current Analysis. “Vello Systems’ new CX50T addresses the economic, space and low-latency requirements for 10G services that are likely to be the mainstay for connections within service providers’ and enterprises’ cloud infrastructures.”

Since latency may be an issue in connections longer than the CX50T can support on its own, Vello Systems also offers a pair of service cards, the CX40A and the CX40M, that support low-latency amplification and dispersion compensation. The capabilities include software-controlled error correction, EDFA and Raman amplification, and dispersion compensation based on fiber Bragg grating technology.

The CX50T, which can accommodate SONET/SDH, Ethernet, and Fibre Channel connections via 10-Gbps pluggable SFP+ and XFP optical transceiver modules, should be available very early in 2011, Behar said.

JANUARY 14, 2010 — Germany optical components developer VI Systems GmbH says it has successfully completed a project to develop serial 40-Gbps fiber-coupled small form-factor TO-can receiver and transmitter modules, including several related electro-optic components. VI Systems was part of a consortium funded by IBB, a major Berlin bank.

The research consortium also included a European GaAs epi-wafer foundry, a foundry for silicon-germanium-based BiCMOS integrated circuits, a high-volume manufacturing partner with expertise in flip-chip and wire bonding process steps, and the German technical universities of Berlin (TUB) and Dresden (TUD).

The consortium developed and prototyped ICs for current or electro-optically modulated lasers and limiting transimpedance amplifier ICs for the photodiodes. A high-frequency (40 GHz) transmitter and receiver packaging based on the proprietary integrated-packaging approach of VI Systems for flip-chip and wirebond sub-assemblies was completed as well.

The devices demonstrated error-free data bit transmission over multimode fiber at 40 Gbps, according to VI Systems. The power consumption of the receiver and transmitter modules is below 150 mW allowing integration into standard commercial SFP (small form-factor pluggable) transceivers. Additionally the small size (less than 6 mm x 6 mm) and the power consumption levels of the new prototype modules will enable their integration into QSFP (quad small form-factor pluggable) transceivers with SerDes ICs, all at an expected power consumption of 3 W per module, the company adds. The production of both singlemode and multimode fiber versions of the QSFP transceiver is possible.

The project and follow-on involvement of an industrial partner will enable scalable mass production at a low cost, VI Systems asserts. Active optical cable (AOC) applications and IEEE 802.3bg standard extensions towards low cost low power applications can be targeted for follow-on product exploitation, the company concludes.