ECOC 2015: Industry leaders demonstrate 400G Ecosystem

Anritsu EMEA, Coherent Solutions, Oclaro, and Teledyne LeCroy today the development platform is available now and features what is believed to be the highest baud-rate single-channel optical communications test and measurement system achievable today using commercial instrumentation.

Research and development groups across the globe are striving to achieve higher and higher optical data transmission rates. High bandwidth signal generation and analysis tools are essential to development of the new technologies, components, and higher-order modulation formats being investigated to support the insatiable global demand for bandwidth.

This demonstration is intended to showcase how high baud-rate optical signals can be reliably generated, optimized, and analysed through the careful integration of leading-edge equipment from the right suppliers.

56GBaud electrical signals are generated by Anritsu’s MP1800 Signal Quality Analyser used in combination with their MP1861A MUX. The 40GHz IQTransmitter from Coherent Solutions translates this into an emulated dual-polarisation optical signal, enabled by the integration of Oclaro’s 400G single carrier LiNbO₃ modulator.

The performance of the optical transmission system is then analysed by the Teledyne LeCroy LabMaster 10-65Zi-A OMA system incorporating the new IQS70 70GHz Coherent Optical Receiver and OpticalLinQ software.

Anritsu’s MP1800A Signal Quality Analyser is Bit Error Rate Tester (BERT) offering a comprehensive suite of testing capabilities to support complete Signal & Transmission Integrity Analysis. The analyser’s key features include superior signal waveform quality, extremely low intrinsic jitter and fast transition times, multichannel generation and analysis, integrated full Jitter Tolerance stress generation, 4Taps Pre-Emphasis, PAM4 and PAM8 Converters.

Anritsu has also announced another evolution for this platform to cover signal generation, analysis and jitter tolerance testing up to 64.2Gbps, as a worldwide unique solution for R&D on signal transmission up to 1Tbps.

The new IQTransmitter offers 40GHz of RF bandwidth and also incorporates new modulator Automatic Bias Control (ABC) circuitry which provides fully pattern-independent bias control. This is a critical capability for the investigation of higher order modulation formats such as 16-QAM. The 40GHz IQTransmitter from Coherent Solutions provides research, development, and production environments with a stable, coherently modulated optical signal for component and system characterization.

“We are very pleased to be able to show-case our new release of the IQTX-40 in this system which sets a new standard for high baud-rate optical signal generation and analysis instrumentation”, states Andy Stevens, CEO of Coherent Solutions.

The Oclaro 400G LiNbO₃ external modulator is the industry’s first device being sampled that has been explicitly designed to enable 400G and beyond speeds on a single wavelength or carrier. “By eliminating the need to use two wavelengths with the 16-QAM modulation format, Oclaro’s new modulator will enable customers to accelerate the design and test of next generation, high speed 400Gb/s networks,” said Adam Carter, Chief Commercial Officer at Oclaro. “We are pleased to see our modulator being used in this industry-first development platform as this represents a major milestone in the design, test and delivery of higher-speed networks that carriers are demanding.”

Teledyne LeCroy’s Optical Modulation Analysis solution provides the industry’s best performance by combining the highest bandwidth with the most flexible analysis. The 70GHz bandwidth IQS70 Coherent Optical Receiver integrates seamlessly with the world-leading LabMaster 10Zi-A oscilloscope and OpticalLinQ software, delivering the most complete optical modulation analysis package.

“Consistent bandwidth leadership means Teledyne LeCroy oscilloscopes have become crucial tools for those pushing the boundaries of optical communications technology,” said Patrick Connally, Product Manager for high-performance oscilloscopes at Teledyne LeCroy. “Our complete optical modulation analysis solution, including our new IQS receivers, enable us to continue that trend in this leading-edge development platform.”

The platform will be available for viewing at the Teledyne LeCroy Stand 548