Juniper Networks is collaborating with Coherent and Marvell to present the first public demonstration of their 800ZR solution featuring Juniper Networks PTX10002-36QDD Packet Transport Router, Coherent Corporation’s 800ZR transceiver and the 800G Marvell® Orion coherent digital signal processor (DSP) at OFC 2024 (Booth 1323).
This demonstration speaks to the rapid evolution of services in the AI, cloud, and 5G era and underscores the necessity for scalable, power-efficient, and future-proof networking solutions. Emerging Generative AI services leverage AI/ML clusters created by interconnecting hundreds of compute, storage and switching devices within the data center using 800GbE client interfaces. These clusters are connected to internet resources, using 800ZR coherent solutions (router/transceiver systems).
The result is many interconnects within data centers and between data centers. The benefits for end-users of this 800G solution are extensive as it provides faster and more reliable connectivity, enabling seamless access to bandwidth-intensive applications and services. Whether it's streaming high-definition content, conducting video conferences, or accessing cloud-based resources, an 800G solution will usher in new benchmarks in network operations and user experiences.
A collective solution
Each vendor brings something to the table.
Marvell Orion is an 800G coherent digital signal processor (DSP) for small form factor pluggable modules, delivering up to 800 Gbps of bandwidth for optical connections up to 1,000km and 400Gbps of bandwidth at up to 2,000km. The company claims the solution reduces cost per bit and power per bit by 30 percent compared to previous generation pluggable modules while providing operators a path to substantially reduced capital and operational expenses.
Coherent’s 800G Digital Coherent Optics (DCO) transceiver uses its own integrated, coherent transmitter and receiver Optical Sub-Assembly (IC-TROSA), enabling transmit optical output power of 0dBm in the dense QSFP-DD form-factor. The high optical output power enables IP-over-DWDM in DCI and metro/regional networks with transmission distances up to 1000 km at 800G.
Juniper Networks 800G PTX10002-36QDD Packet Transport Router is a next-gen cloud-optimized routing platform built upon Juniper's Express 5 ASIC. It supports dense 100GbE, 400GbE and 800GbE for scalability across various WAN and data center use cases, particularly in anticipation of significant capacity expansion driven by the rapid deployment of AI/ML clusters. With its industry-leading 28.8 Tbps capacity, it excels in environments where space and power are limited.
Pluggable optics rising
Pluggable optics are on the rise.
Following the advent of 400ZR, Cignal AI expects to see 800G shipments approaching 500,000 annually by 2028.
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"As pluggable coherent optics become smaller and more capable, they will increasingly dominate the telecommunications industry,” said Scott Wilkinson, lead analyst for Cignal AI. “800ZR doubles the available speed of the wildly successful 400ZR, providing a low-cost, low-power solution which eliminates the need for large, custom optical equipment in data center interconnections.”
For related articles, visit the Optical Tech Topic Center.
For more information on optical components and suppliers, visit the Lightwave Buyer’s Guide.
To stay abreast of optical communications technology, subscribe to Lightwave’s Enabling Technologies Newsletter.
