Transmode unveils Hex transponder units supporting 96x10G

Transmode Systems AB has launched a family of high-density design Hex transponder units that each contain six independent transponder functions in a single slot. The new units support up to 192 ports/96 transponders in a single 11U-high chassis with power consumption of 5 W per 10G transponder function including optics. The new units are ideally suited to high-density and low-power applications such as data center networks, the company claims.

The new products extend Transmode’s recently introduced high-density 10G capabilities by a further 50% with the move from Quad cards to Hex cards (see “Transmode introduces pluggable 100G coherent optics”). The new family includes three plug-in units for the TM-Series of optical transport systems. The range of new units includes a Hex OTN Transponder, a Hex Transparent Transponder, and a Hex Intelligent WDM (iWDM) Transponder.

Sten Nordell, Transmode's chief technology officer, said, "We know from talking to our customers that the approach to deploying networks often comes down to how much space and power is actually available in a particular location. So further extending our existing high-density design and low power design capabilities is really important to our customers. This is an area where Transmode has always excelled and we are delighted to be pushing the boundary further at both 10G and 100G."

The new units support highly dense configurations with either 40 channels in a single TM-3000 chassis (11U) or 80 channels in two chassis, with what Transmode asserts is plenty of space for all necessary common components and spare room for future upgrades to 100G services. In some scenarios, such as data center interconnect where a smaller number of common components are required, it is possible to fit all 80 channels into a single chassis 13U configuration, the company asserts.

The Transparent Transponder supports any service from 614-Mbps CPRI to 16G Fibre Channel. Transmode says that, thanks to the use of the same ultra-low latency and superior sync design as its predecessors, the optical transponder is ideal for applications that require high-performance operation such as mobile fronthaul and low-latency data center interconnect, with latency of less than 4 ns.

The Optical Transport Network (OTN) and iWDM framed transponders support a wide range of 10G services such as 10G Ethernet, OTN, SDH/SONET, and Fibre Channel and.

The range of new units becomes available from Q2 of 2014.

For more information on optical transponders and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyers Guide.