Partnership to target fast-growing 400G transceiver test market

Research is projecting shipments of 400G transceivers to increase significantly from 2020 to 2024 as network operators and data centres race to meet demand for bandwidth from 5G deployment and increasingly data-hungry users.

Andy Stevens, CEO of Coherent Solutions, said: “We’ve talked extensively to customers and looked at test and measurement solutions on the market, and it's clear that manufacturers are looking for simpler, integrated, and cost-effective test and measurement solutions for transceiver testing.

“By extending our electrical test capability with SmarTest’s technology and using our existing range of PXI optical test modules, our integrated PXI test systems for 400G transceivers will simplify integration, increase test throughput, and reduce the system footprint which will dramatically lower the cost of test for transceiver manufacturers.”

With the successful launch of the first PXI BERT for 100G transceiver test in early 2020, the companies are currently targeting a Q4 2020 launch for the world’s first PXI-based PAM4 BERTs, capable of running four or eight lanes at 25Gbaud with onboard forward error correction.

Federico Lipparini, co-founder of SmarTest, added: “This partnership gives us a real opportunity to focus on the current 400G and 800G PAM-4 development while we benefit from Coherent Solutions’ broad product portfolio and market reach. We are focused on delivering innovative NRZ and PAM-4 test solutions for optical transceiver testing which requires high channel density and pristine signal integrity. Designing on the PXI platform allows us to deliver the complete electrical and optical solution in a reliable, modular and cost-effective form factor.”