As the industry gears up for the introduction of 51.2 Tbit/s switches attention is focusing on the next generation of optics in data centers. The first 800G pluggable optical modules are being tested and solutions for 1.6T are in development. QSFP-DD and OSFP form factors were game changers for 400G client optics in the data center and both form factors have been further developed for 800G and 1.6T. OSFP-XD may also have a role to play supporting more lanes and significantly higher power dissipation. The increasing complexity of optical modules brings significant challenges that can be alleviated by increasing optical integration. Silicon photonics and developments for high-volume optical assembly are transforming the industry by enabling highly integrated optical modules and switch chipsets with co-packaged optics.
This session covers the development of next generation pluggable and co-packaged optics in the data center.
Topics include:
- The importance of 800G ports and optical breakouts
- The evolution from 400G to 800G client optics
- The development of 200G PAM4 serial and what it enables
- Co-packaged optics: the benefits and challenges