Infineon demonstrates XPAK modules supporting 10 Gigabit Ethernet over 300 meters of multimode fiber

4 November 2003 Munich Lightwave - Infineon Technologies today announced that it has demonstrated the first 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) XPAK-compliant transceiver module operating over 300 meters of low-band­width multimode fiber. The XPAK optical transceiver uses a 1310-nm laser with electronic dispersion-compensation (EDC) technology to extend the distance over which 10-GbE data can be transmitted error-free.

The demonstration proves the feasibility of using single-laser transceivers for high-speed transmission over the installed low-bandwidth fiber infrastructure, which preserves capital investment while increasing capabilities. The use of EDC-enabled transceivers to upgrade networks without re­placing fiber will also help accelerate adoption of 10 GbE technology, with its greater bandwidth.

The EDC-equipped XPAK optical module has shown the ability to transmit 10-Gbit/sec data over up to 300 meters of virtually any grade of legacy multimode fiber. According to the IEEE 802.3 High Speed Study Group, more than 80% of the world's current enterprise fiber infrastructure is based on this type of low-bandwidth multimode.

The EDC technology compensates for dispersion and other impairments that cause inter-symbol interference and performance degradation. Without EDC, end-users need to either deploy high cost, high bandwidth multimode fiber to reach 300 meters at 10 Gbits/sec, or use a solution that requires multiplexing four separate lasers of differ­ent wavelengths, which results in greater complexity, higher power dissipation, in­creased costs and reduced reliability. The small-form-factor XPAK module with EDC gives users a compelling alternative to those approaches.

First samples of Infineon's XPAK modules with integrated EDC will be available in the first half of 2004.