For deployment and provisioning of DWDM and TDM high-speed optical networks, the handheld MPI-800 multipath interference meter contains a built-in loss measurement test set. It can detect multipath interference, a physical phenomenon prevalent in ultra-long-haul networks containing Raman amplifiers, which increase the signal in both directions, causing unwanted ghost reflections that can lead to an excessive bit-error rate. The meter provides a solution for network operators, who "up until now, were forced to adopt a complex setup using radio-frequency spectrum analyzers that are not designed for field-testing applications," claims EXFO product management vice president Étienne Gagnon.EXFO Electro-Optical Engineering, Quebec City
The small-form-factor-pluggable (SFP) optical transceiver comes in eight ITU-..compliant CWDM wavelengths (1470–1610 nm), with color-coding by wavelength for easy identification. Using high-performance, uncooled distributed feedback lasers and optimum thermal design, the transceivers support 1.25-Gbit/sec Gigabit Ethernet, 2.5-Gbit/sec STM-16/OC-48, and 2.7-Gbit/sec STM-16/OC-48 with forward error correction, achieving transmission distances of 40 km with a PIN photodiode (PD) receiver and 80 km with an avalanche PD. They comply fully with the SFP multisource agreement, include built-in digital diagnostic functions, and operate from a single 3.3-Vdc supply.
ExceLight Communications, Durham, NC
"About a year ago," notes Tellium chairman and CEO Harry Carr, "we started working closely with many tier one carriers around the world concerning the challenges facing their networks...to meet current and future needs in optical switching." The result is the Aurora MTX series of multiservice transport switches, designed to address carrier needs beyond the core of long-haul networks by eliminating the need for separate broadband and wideband digital-crossconnect systems, add/drop multiplexers, and Ethernet switches, thus supplying unified transport and switching for both legacy TDM and new data services. The switches will support ring and mesh topologies and handle aggregation and transport from 1.5 Mbits/sec to 10 Gbits/sec, including support for Gigabit Ethernet services.
Tellium, Oceanport, NJ
Meeting Telcordia 1209 and 1221 standards for expanding high-capacity networks from the enterprise to the core, the SpectraMux compact coarse wavelength-division multiplexer/demultiplexer has channel spacing of 20 nm and wide bandpass characteristics for use with non-temperature-controlled lasers. It also ..provides high center wavelength accuracy and stability, low insertion loss, high directivity, an epoxy-free optical path, and low polarization-dependent loss. The mux/demux comes in four or eight channels and includes an expansion port for 16-channel systems.
Alliance Fiber Optic Products, Sunnyvale, CA
Integrating a variable optical attenuator (VOA) and equipped for mid-stage access in central-office applications, the SmartGAIN optical amplifier provides a variable gain from 15 to 30 dB without affecting output flatness. It suppresses optical power surge within 100 µsec even when 31 of 32 channels are dropped. With an output power up to 20 dBm, the amplifier allows a mid-span loss of 10 dB or more, regardless of the fiber loss or the insertion of dispersion compensation elements. It offers 40-dB dynamic range for optical power detection, allowing the network to have rapid changes in its configuration while keeping existing communications channels intact.
Dowslake Microsystems, Santa Clara, CA
Plugged directly into the WAN port of such devices as Layer 2 switches, the pluggable transponder for metro/access applications is part of an end-to-end optical-networking solution that can be managed all the way to the client port, providing a new optical demarcation point on the customer premises. "While GBICs can prove to be a viable alternative to external transponder-based solutions for enterprise applications, service providers wish to have end-to-end control of the transmission domain from within the optical layer management system," reasons CEO Isaac Olasoko.
Transmode Systems AB, Stockholm
Plug and play cassettes and MTP pre-terminated cables ease installation of fiber-optic links because connector terminations are not required in the field. The system is especially suited for zone cabling applications where network configurations may be required or installations where quick deployment of a fiber link is essential. The durable metal cassettes fit into fiber patch panels and enclosures that accept FSP series adapter panels. These compact housings contain factory-polished multifiber fanouts in SC, LC, ST, and MT-RJ connector styles for singlemode and 62.5- or 50-µm multimode fibers. The fanouts ..are terminated at the back of the cassette to a 12-fiber MTP receptacle. Factory-terminated, plenum-rated, 12-fiber MTP cables come in 10-, 25-, 50-, and 100-m standard lengths—other lengths can be special-ordered. The cables have a pulling grip attached at one end for easy pulls through conduit and innerduct.
Hubbell Premise Wiring, Stonington, CT