100G Transceivers: CFP/CFP2/CFP4 and QSFP28

With bandwidth demands keep growing, network service providers are looking at 40G or 100G to accommodate the constant traffic surge. For 40G QSFP+ transceivers, they are interfaced with MTP/MPO or LC connectors, which has been introduced in a previous post: 40G Transceivers With MTP/MPO Interface vs. 40G Transceivers With LC Interface. So this article will introduce 100G transceivers (CFP/CFP2/CFP4/QSFP28) which have different interface types.

100G Transceivers Standards

The 100G optical transceiver market is fragmented by many different implementations. Besides the IEEE standards, there are also 100G transceivers defined by MSA. The following table lists part of the 100G standards.

 

From the table above, we can see that there are three different interface types for 100G transceivers—24-fiber MPO, 12-fiber MPO and LC duplex. The 100G transceiver with 24-fiber MPO interface uses 20 fibers to transmit data, with 10 lanes at 10 Gbps per lane (10 transmit and 10 receive). The 100G transceivers with 12-fiber MPO interface use 8 fibers to transmit, with 4 lanes at 25 Gbps per lane (4 transmit and 4 receive). This interface standard has been introduced alongside the 100G QSFP28 transceivers to make 40G to 100G upgrade as seamless as possible. And the 100G transceivers with LC interface work over single-mode fiber cables for long-distance transmission.

100G Transceivers Types

After knowing about the 100G transceivers standards, let’s move to the 100G transceivers types. There are 100G CFP/CFP2/CFP4 and QSFP28 transceivers. CFP was designed after SFP, but is significantly larger to support 100 Gbps. The electrical connection of a CFP uses 10 x 10Gbps lanes in each direction (RX, TX). The optical connection can support both 10 x 10Gbps and 4 x 25Gbps variants. With improvement in higher performance and higher density, CFP2 and CFP4 appeared. While electrical similar, they specify a form factor of 1/2 and 1/4 respectively in size of CFP. CFP, CFP2 and CFP4 modules are not interchangeable, but would be inter-operable at the optical interface with appropriate connectors.

 

The 100G QSFP28 transceivers offer 4 independent transmit and receive channels, each capable of 25Gbps operation for an aggregate data rate of 100 Gbps. Among the various 100G transceivers, most of switch vendors choose the QSFP28 transceivers, because they make deploying 100G networks as easy as 10G networks, increasing density, decreasing power consumption and decreasing your price per bit. It’s also notable that the QSFP28 has the same physical size as the QSFP+ commonly used for 40G traffic. This means that switch vendors can increase the traffic throughput by a factor 2.5 without the need to redesign the front panel of their switches.

 

Conclusion

100G transceivers are boosting greatly for ever. Buying 100G transceivers is imminent. Choose a reliable supplier and buy the quality 100G transceivers right now. FS.COM has completed the inventory for 100G transceivers and you can enjoy the same-day shipping. We highly recommend the 100GBASE-PSM4 QSFP28 transceiver and 100GBASE-CWDM4 QSFP28 transceiver, which are affordable and can meet most of your network demands. For more details about our 100G transceivers, please visit www.fs.com.

Originally published: www.fiberopticshare.com/100g-transceivers-cfpcfp2cfp4-qsfp28.html

Hot 100G Fiber Optic Transceivers for Data Center

With the increasing demands for higher speeds, and greater scalability, many service provider networking environments and enterprise data centers are undergoing an infrastructure transformation to get higher levels of performance and reliability. As speed and performance needs increase, optical transceivers have become an integral part of overall system design. And then 40G and 100G fiber optic transceiver have become preferable choices for more and more data centers as 1G and 10G cannot meet the needs of the bandwidth-hungry applications. Adopting 100G transceivers not only accelerates data flow throughout your data center or enterprise, but also provides CAPEX (capital expenditures), OPEX (operating expenditures) and time savings. This article focuses on the hot 100G transceiver modules for data centers.

100G CFP/CFP2/CFP4

When the IEEE finished the first 100G standard for Ethernet networks, the transceiver industry launched an alphabet soup of form factors. The CFP emerged first, "C" for 100, and FP for "Form factor, Pluggable". The CFP transceiver is specified by MSA between competing manufacturers. The CFP was designed after SFP interface, but is significantly larger to support 100 Gbit/s. While the electrical connection of a CFP uses 10 x 10 Gbit/s lanes in each direction (RX, TX), the optical connection can support both 10 x 10 Gbit/s and 4 x 25 Gbit/s variants of 100 Gbit/s interconnects.

With improvements in technology allowing higher performance and higher density, the development of the CFP2 and CFP4 specifications appeared. While electrical similar, the CFP2 and CFP4 specify a form-factor of 1/2 and 1/4 respectively in size of the CFP. The three modules are not interchangeable, but would be inter-operable at the optical interface with appropriate connectors.

100G QSFP28 Transceiver

The QSFP28 is the exact same footprint as the 40G QSFP+. The "Q" is for "Quad". Just as the 40G QSFP+ is implemented using four 10 Gbit/s lanes, the 100G QSFP28 is implemented with four 25 Gbit/s lanes. With an upgraded electrical interface to support signaling up to 28 Gbit/s signals, the 100G QSFP28 makes it as easy to deploy 100G networks as 10G networks. When compared to any of the other alternatives, the 100G QSFP28 increases density and decreases power and price per bit. So it is fast becoming the universal data center form factor for the following reasons.

The QSFP28 increases front-panel density by 250% over QSFP+. The form factor is the same and the maximum number of ports is the same, but the lane speeds are increased from 10 Gbit/s to 25 Gbit/s. The increase in panel density is even more dramatic when compared to some other 100 Gbit/s form factor: 450% versus the CFP2.

The QSFP28 transceivers can be based on either VCSELs (for shorter distances on multimode fiber) or silicon photonics (for longer distances on single-mode fiber). The advent of silicon photonics enables QSFP28 transceivers to support any data center reach up to 2 km or more. Silicon photonics provides a high degree of integration.

Fiberstore 100G Transceiver Solution

As a professional manufacturer and supplier in optical communication industry, Fiberstore provides a complete range of 100G fiber optic transceivers to meet the potential requirements. We have already prepared the stock of the CFP and CFP2 modules, which can be shipped immediately after ordering. For 100G QSFP28 transceivers, we have 100GBASE-SR4 QSFP28 and 100GBASE-LR4 QSFP28 transceivers. With our serious cost control, the prices of all our 100G fiber optic transceivers are much more affordable than the similar products in the market. Furthermore, with the mature coding technology, they can be compatible with many major brands. For more details, please visit www.fs.com or contact over sales@fs.com.

Article source: www.fiberopticshare.com/hot-100g-fiber-optic-transceivers-for-data-center.html

40G/100G Implementation Technology Overview

For every few months, new technologies and solutions for 40G and 100G implementations will be come out. Demand for 40G and 100G transport links is growing rapidly. This paper will explore the implementation challenges, 40G/100G transport technologies and technology requirements respectively.

Implementation Challenges

 

Time to market is the major implementation challenge for companies introducing any new technology. The first company, demonstrating and implementing 40G and 100G links, has gained significant press coverage, developed early customer engagements and won important contracts. Time to market has become more important and more challenging because the 40G/100G market moves to second and third generation implementations.

Performance still remains a key implementation challenge for 40G/100G systems. 40G/100G systems need to meet similar distance and error rates as 10G systems, which requires tighter tolerances, enhanced modulation techniques and advanced signal processing technologies.

With the changing system requirements, 40G and 100G implementations need to be flexible. The systems might be able to support DWDM, OTN and Ethernet, and customers expect the latest functionality on these expensive interfaces. Flexibility can be achieved through the use of interchangeable boards and configurable devices.

40G/100G Transport Technologies

• OTN (Optical Transport Network)

Packet-optical transport brings the benefits of Sonet/SDH, DWDM and packet-based networks together, delivering a scalable and resilient transport infrastructure. OTN is the underlying transport protocol supporting 2.5G (OTU1), 10G (OTU2), 40G (OTU3) and 100G (OTU4). Many carriers are shifting to OTN for their transport network.

The following picture shows a 40G packet-optical transport platform with a central OTN, Sonet/SDH and packet fabric switch. Optical line cards connect the system to the optical transport network. Transponders, muxponders and client cards connect the system to high-rate and low-rate OTN, Ethernet, Sonet/SDH and Fibre Channel networks. The system has 10G or 40G OTN line interfaces and many OTN, Ethernet, Fibre Channel or Sonet/SDH client interfaces. Micro optical transport platforms can be built using a single integrated packet-optical transport device.

• Ethernet

In June 2010, the standards for 40GE and 100GE were ratified. The specifications support 40GE and 100GE over single-mode fiber, multimode fiber, copper cable (up to 7m), and a system backplane. Ethernet can be sent over a fiber cable or transported over OTN.

The picture below shows a carrier Ethernet switch/router (CESR) with 10G/40G OTN line cards and 1G/10G Ethernet client interfaces. This system utilizes a mixture of OTN framer/mapper functions, Ethernet switch or network processor and multiple Ethernet MAC/PHY devices.

• Optical Modules

Optical modules are widely used in telecom transport systems. The QSFP+ pluggable module is widely used for 40G applications. CFP, CFP2, and CFP4 optical modules are widely used for 100G applications.

Technology Requirements

 

High-speed serial I/O is a critical requirement for devices used in 40G/100G implementations. And 40G/100G systems require high-performance processing and switching functions. Digital signal processing is required for 100G coherent receiver implementations. Most systems also require switching, packet processing and control plane processor. 40G/100G systems require high-performance packet processing. This can be implemented using a dedicated network processor ASSP or by using proprietary or third-party IP to develop a FGPA or ASIC-based solution.

Conclusion

 

40G/100G networking presents some particular challenges for system developers. As stated above, time to market, performance and flexibility are the key parameters for implementation challenges. OTN, Ethernet and optical modules (QSFP+ module for 40G, CFP for 100G) are the necessary 40G/100G transport technologies.

Article source: www.fiberopticshare.com/40g100g-implementation-technology-overview.html