Opnext 40G DQPSK optical module moves into mass production

SEPTEMBER 21, 2010 -- Opnext Inc.’s 40Gbps differential quadrature phase-shift keying (DQPSK) module has moved to full production and is now shipping in volume. The demand for 40G interfaces continues to grow due to the continued increases in IP and video networks driving the upgrades of regional, long-haul, and submarine networks, says a company spokesperson.

In its most recent report regarding 40G components, Ovum forecasted that the 40G DWDM market for DQPSK modules would grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16 percent from $175 million in 2010 to more than $360 million in 2015.

According to Ovum, 40G DQPSK is one of the fastest growing segments in optical communications. It is being deployed within metropolitan networks to economically address the bandwidth bottlenecks caused by the exponential growth in enterprise and consumer traffic generated by the increased usage of smartphones and video.

By implementing a DQPSK system, optical signals are less affected by chromatic dispersion (CD), polarization mode dispersion (PMD), and optical bandwidth limitations after traveling through multiple ROADM nodes. A system designer using an Opnext DQPSK system can install the module in a network path that is experiencing signal impairments/degradation.

“A large percentage of carrier fiber plants require increased dispersion tolerance that is provided by our DQPSK module in conjunction with tunable dispersion compensation (TDC),” says Tadayuki Kanno, president of Opnext’s modules business unit. “For this reason, the Opnext 40G DQPSK MSA module is being widely adopted and implemented by our system vendor customers in addition to our successful Opnext DPSK module.”