PMC advances OTN with 400 Gigabit processor

Optical modules for the line-side are moving beyond 100 Gigabits to 200 Gigabit and now 400 Gigabit transmission rates. Such designs are possible thanks to compact photonics designs and coherent DSP-ASICs implemented using advanced CMOS processes. 

An example switching application showing different configurations of the DIGi-G4 OTN processor on the line cards. Source: PMC

For engineers, the advent of higher-speed line-side interfaces sets them new challenges when designing the line cards for optical networking equipment. In particular, the framer silicon that interfaces to the coherent DSP-ASIC, on the far side of the optics, must cope with a doubling and quadrupling of traffic.  

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