Agilent intros single module for multi-rate 10-Gbit/sec electrical and optical clock recovery

2 September 2003 Palo Alto, CA Lightwave -- Agilent Technologies Inc. has introduced what it claims is the industry's first single-module clock recovery test product for all 10-Gbit/sec rates from 9.953 Gbits/sec to 11.32 Gbits/sec. The Agilent 83495A provides both electrical and optical clock recovery, which allows R&D designers and manufacturing test engineers to use a single product for designing and testing multi-protocol transceivers and components for emerging standards such as 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10-GbE), 10x Fibre Channel (10xFC) with FEC, as well as existing standards for SONET/SDH and Optical Transport Network.

"This is the first time customers have been able to get 10-Gbit/sec electrical clock recovery for all the rates they need," asserts Siegfried Gross, vice-president and general manager of Agilent's Digital Verification Solutions Division. "For engineers working on XFP transceivers, this single module will allow them to test both the electrical and the optical side of their device."

The 83495A is the newest member of the widely used 86100 Infiniium Digital Communications Analyzer (DCA) product family. The module fits into a single slot, which enables both a compact and flexible solution. Current customers can upgrade their existing equipment to test the newest emerging technologies while reusing existing modules and mainframes. Multi-protocol compliance testing can now be done with ease by pairing the multi-rate Agilent 86105B sampling module with the 83495A clock recovery module, say company representatives. The 86105B sampling module combines ultra accurate pulse fidelity with very high sensitivity and, when paired with the 83495A, results in industry-leading performance and flexibility, contends Agilent.

The new clock recovery module has adjustable loop bandwidth settings, including a wide bandwidth setting of 4 MHz or less that meets the requirements of 10 GbE and 10xFC. The Agilent 83495A provides optical clock recovery for both multimode and singlemode applications and covers wavelengths between 750 - 860 nm and 1000 - 1600 nm.