FREMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Optical Internetworking Forum (OIF) members provided feedback to start another Common Electrical Interface (CEI) 56G project to complement the existing 400G roadmap that was started last year. The project defines 56 Gb/s generation electrical interfaces for full-sized backplane channels for long reach of up to one meter with two connectors.
“Given the lead times, development of standards for the next generation backplane electrical links needs to start now,” said David Stauffer, of Kandou Bus and the OIF Physical and Link Layer working group chair and board member. “Feedback from our membership indicates that the industry needs the OIF to start the long reach project now so that a complete roadmap can be supported.”
The CEI-56G-LR specification will increase the data rate by a factor of two over the data rate of CEI-28G-LR. It will provide for one or more electrical specifications for lane operation at data rates of 40 to 56 Gb/s. The reach range will be 0 to 1000mm using advanced printed circuit board materials plus two connectors.
The OIF is currently working on a full roadmap for 400G applications. The roadmap is addressing medium reach (MR) interfaces for chip-to-chip and midrange backplane, very short reach (VSR) for chip-to-module, extra short reach (XSR) for chip to nearby optics engine and ultra short reach (USR) for 2.5D/3D applications. LR is needed to complete this roadmap for chip-to-chip backplane applications with approximately 35 dBs of loss at 14 GHz.
OIF Days in Germany
Recently, the OIF held OIF Days in Germany at the offices of both Coriant and Alcatel-Lucent. These events are interactive and educational workshops featuring OIF and vendor subject matter experts discussing current and future needs for electrical/optical technologies, an OIF overview of projects underway and a discussion of industry direction and the potential for new OIF projects. These member-exclusive events give the OIF an opportunity to directly reach out to understand system vendor challenges and strategies. For example, the need for a standard LR interface was discussed and clarified in an OIF Day event.
About the OIF
Launched in 1998, the OIF is the first industry group to unite representatives from data and optical networking disciplines, including many of the world's leading carriers, component manufacturers and system vendors. The OIF promotes the development and deployment of interoperable networking solutions and services through the creation of Implementation Agreements (IAs) for optical, interconnect, network processing, component and networking systems technologies. The OIF actively supports and extends the work of standards bodies and industry forums with the goal of promoting worldwide compatibility of optical internetworking products. Information on the OIF can be found at http://www.oiforum.com.
