Telecoms embraces 400ZR optics for IP-over-DWDM

Verizon Media has trialled 400-gigabit coherent pluggable optics to improve the delivery of video content to subscribers.

Tomas Maj

Verizon Media added a 400ZR QSFP-DD module from Inphi to a switch already using 100-gigabit optics to upgrade its content delivery network.

Adding dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM) optics to a switch enables it to send IP traffic (IP-over-DWDM) directly without needing a separate DWDM data centre interconnect box and additional client-side optics to link the two platforms (see diagram).

“Verizon Media, showing leadership outside the hyperscalers, is moving to IP-over-DWDM,” says Tomas Maj, senior director, marketing, optical interconnect at Inphi. “It shows the maturity of the ecosystem and the confidence of more and more operators in IP-over-DWDM and 400ZR.”

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COBO targets year-end to complete specification

Part 3: 400-gigabit on-board optics

• COBO will support 400-gigabit and 800-gigabit interfaces 
• Three classes of module have been defined, the largest supporting at least 17.5W 

The Consortium for On-board Optics (COBO) is scheduled to complete its module specification this year.

A draft specification defining the mechanical aspects of the embedded optics - the dimensions, connector and electrical interface - is already being reviewed by the consortium’s members.

Brad Booth“The draft specification encompasses what we will do inside the data centre and what will work for the coherent market,” says Brad Booth, chair of COBO and principal network architect for Microsoft’s Azure Infrastructure.

COBO was established in 2015 to create an embedded optics multi-source agreement (MSA). On-board optics have long been available but until now these have been proprietary solutions. 

“Our goal [with COBO] was to get past that proprietary aspect,” says Booth. “That is its true value - it can be used for optical backplane or for optical interconnect and now designers will have a standard to build to.” 

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