GigOptix announces first commercial samples of 40G electro-optical polymer modulators to major telecom OEMs
April 20, 2010
APRIL 20, 2010 -- GigOptix Inc. in Palo Alto , Calif. , has sampled its LX8400, a 40G DPSK Mach-Zehnder Modulator (MZM) to a Tier-1 telecom systems manufacturer in Asia . This marks the next step in GigOptix's plans to commercialize its 40 gigabit-per-second and 100 gigabit-per-second modulators with different modulation formats during 2010. This engagement signifies the first commercial sampling of thin film polymer on silicon modulators for a telecom application. GigOptix expects to leverage this engagement along with its recently announced partnership with Sanmina-SCI to bring electro-optical polymer modulators to the telecom market in 2010. "We are very excited to be engaged with a major Tier-1 telecom systems manufacturer," says Raluca Dinu, vice president and general manager of GigOptix Bothell. "Our modulators are nearly half the size of competing Lithium Niobate products, have equivalent or better optical and RF performance, and satisfy the required reliability standards of the industry. Since the modulator size generally determines the transponder size, our modulators can now enable much smaller 40G and 100G transponder form factors. This is a significant breakthrough within the telecom industry as telecom system manufacturers try to squeeze more ports onto their equipment chassis." In their most recent forecast for wide area network (WAN) optical components, Ovum projected that the total available market for external optical modulators will be $140 million in 2010 and more than double to $300 million in 2015. Of this amount more than 80 percent or $250 million is forecasted to be at 40Gb/s and above. Additionally, modulators will be required beyond the telecom 40 gigabits-per-second and above in defense, aerospace, and supercomputing applications whose market size could potentially be equally as significant. GigOptix: www.gigoptix.com
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