AppliedMicro unveils CMOS transmitter ICs for 100G networks

Applied Micro Circuits Corp. (NASDAQ: AMCC), has unveiled what it claims is the world’s fastest CMOS transmitter ICs for DWDM line-side applications. With line rates up to 31.8 Gbps per channel, AppliedMicro says its S28032 DQPSK Mux chips pave the way for wide-scale deployment in 100G DWDM Optical Transport Network (OTN) applications as operators increasingly seek higher bandwidth solutions and greater network density.

CMOS ICs provide a scalable high-volume, low-power approach for ramping 100G deployments. AppliedMicro’s S28032 provides a flexible interface to connect either FPGAs or ASICs running hard- or soft-decision Forward-Error Correction (FEC) on a 10 or 20-lane SFI-S bus to optical drivers for DP-QPSK and other DWDM optical systems. The S28032 supports line rates from 27 Gbps through 31.8 Gbps for applications with 7%, 15%, or 20% FEC overhead.

This flexibility should open the door to use of the device by both system houses looking to improve their in-house designs and transponder vendors working with DSP technology from NEL, says Tim Warland, product marketing manager, connectivity solutions, at AppliedMicro. In fact, the company has two lead customers for the S28032, one from each camp, he says.

Warland say these early access partners have already demonstrated error-free transmission in their labs in preparation for field trials. Carriers and network operators will see next generation DWDM systems featuring the S28032 early in 2013.

“Our previously announced Gearbox product set the bar for performance in 100GBASE-LR4 applications, supporting ODB (optical duo-binary) pre-coding for metro networks,” said George Jones, vice president of connectivity solutions at AppliedMicro, via a press release. “Our new S28032 extends AppliedMicro’s leadership position in 100G CMOS PHY products to the DWDM network for metro, regional and long-haul 100Gbps applications.”

Evaluation boards and AppliedMicro’s S28032 are sampling now. Production quantities are expected in the second half of this year.

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