Ignis Optics(tm) and ASIP Announce 40 km XFP Optical Transceiver Demo
OFC Exhibit Features 1310 nm Un-cooled EML in a 10 Gb/s XFP Transceiver
San Jose, CA and Somerset, NJ, March 19, 2003: Ignis Optics(tm), a leading supplier of pluggable optical transceivers for the optical networking industry, and ASIP, an emerging leader in the development of photonic integrated circuits, will combine their technologies in a 40 km demonstration of commercial transceiver technology that will enable a significantly less expensive generation of 10 Gb/s optical networking solutions. The demonstration will be shown at the Ignis Optics booth (#2056) of the Optical Fiber Communications (OFC) Conference, March 25-27 in Atlanta, GA.
The XFP is an ultra-small 10 Gb/s optical transceiver module that was standardized by the XFP Multi-Source Agreement (MSA) Group to help lower the costs of 10 Gb/s optical networking applications. ASIP's electro-absorption modulated laser (EML), the 10T101, is particularly well-suited to XFP packaging technology because it combines the low cost structure of directly modulated lasers (DMLs) with the enhanced optical performance needed to carry 10 Gb/s signals over metropolitan-area distances. In addition, ASIP's un-cooled EML design means that the resulting transceiver will have low electrical power consumption, similar to DMLs, and still fit within the ultra-small XFP form factor.
The OFC demonstration features an impressive eye mask margin of greater than 20% on the OC-192/STM-64 optical signal. This margin is significant to systems designers because it simplifies system design, enables engineered links of greater distances and leads to lower bit error rates. The eye mask margin is also significant as it enables high transceiver manufacturing yields, which helps to lower transceiver module costs.
"This EML offers us the opportunity to employ inexpensive drive and control circuits like those we use for DMLs in our XFP modules," said Mike O'Toole, Ignis Optics's Vice President of Engineering. "Combining low cost circuits with the ASIP EML's extremely good temperature characteristics in a simple, un-cooled package, provides a good route toward achieving long reaches for XFP transceivers without resorting to expensive external modulation or bulkier form factors. This laser technology works well with our high-volume IO-PKG(tm) packaging technology."
"Our Asymmetric TwinGuide(tm) (ATG) platform allows us to independently optimize all on-chip optical functions. Unlike a traditional EML, where the performance is dictated by the design of the modulator, ASIP's ATG-based EML combines both superior laser and modulator performance, all while operating across an 85°C temperature range," said Milind Gokhale, ASIP's Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer. "This exceptional performance, combined with our high-yield manufacturing processes, allows us to offer world-class EMLs at DML- competitive prices."
About Ignis Optics
Based in San Jose, Ignis Optics was founded by a team of experienced optical component developers. The firm designs innovative new packaging for fiber-optic transceivers that enables them to offer superior single mode performance while enabling significantly lower system costs. Ignis Optics investors include CenterPoint Ventures, InterWest Partners, Morgenthaler, and Storm Ventures.
About ASIP
ASIP, headquartered in Somerset, N.J., USA, is an emerging leader in the development of advanced, photonic integrated circuits, initially including high-speed laser sources and high-sensitivity photodetectors at both 10Gb/s and 40Gb/s. The company was founded in July 2000 based on several years of research and development at Princeton University. ASIP's core technology, licensed exclusively from Princeton, is Asymmetric TwinGuide" (ATG). ATG is a highly-scalable platform for monolithic photonic integration and delivers unprecedented levels of functional integration, low cost, and world-class optical performance.
<>Ignis Optics and IO-PKG are trademarks of Ignis Optics, Inc.
Asymmetric TwinGuide is a trademark of ASIP, Inc.