Infinera XTM II upgrades target evolving metro edge networks
Infinera (NASDAQ:INFN) has launched an upgrade of the XTM series platforms it acquired with optical transport systems vendor Transmode (see "Infinera embraces Transmode, new products in metro portfolio"). The XTM II family possesses several new capabilities, including a set of 16QAM-based 200-Gbps enabled line cards as well as the addition of the company's Instant Bandwidth capabilities. Infinera expects the enhanced feature set will position the XTM II for a variety of metro edge network applications, including Remote PHY, 5G transport, and data center interconnect (DCI).
The new line cards form the heart of the upgrade. They include:
- A 400G Flexponder that network operators can configure as adual 200G muxponder, a dual 100G multiservice transponder, or as a hybrid. It offers hardware-based encryption.
- A two-slot 200G Layer 1 muxponder that supports a broad range of client signals, including 10G/40G/100G Ethernet and Optical Transport Network (OTN) as well as 8/16/32G Fibre Channel. The device can also be paired to create an OTN add/drop multiplexer (ADM). It also offers hardware-based encryption.
- The EMXP440 Packet-Optical Transport Switch that, as its name implies, offers Layer 2 packet-optical switching with dual 100/200G ports and 12 or 24 ports of 10 Gbps. The switch supports Carrier Ethernet and MPLS-TP packet transport with sub-50-ms protection. It also will support Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) CE 2.0 service creation and quality of service-aware traffic aggregation. The EMXP440 can be used with the previous EMXP/IIe range and PT-Fabric.
In each instance, the line side ports are based on CFP2 optical modules. The 400G Flexponder will be available in the third quarter of this year, with the other two line cards following in the fourth quarter. Infinera believes the line provides the lowest power consumption per 100 Gbps, with watts per 100G in the 20s; the nearest competitor requires 74% more power, the company asserts.
Infinera will offer three chassis versions of the XTM II:
- a 1RU version with 400-Gbps capacity
- a 3RU version with 1.6-Tbps capacity
- an 11RU version with 4.6-Tbps capacity.
The XTM II family also will come initially with a 1x4 flex-grid ROADM capability, with a 1x9 flex-grid ROADM capability planned for the fourth quarter of this year. The chassis also can be managed via Infinera's XCEED Multilayer SDN Control platform.
The XTM II adds support of Infinera's Instant Bandwdith capabilities, which enables provisioning of bandwidth pools. However, the portfolio can support Instant Bandwidth without the addition of the company's well-known photonic integrated circuits (PICs), according to Infinera Director, Solutions and Technology Geoff Bennett. The company decided against using the PICs for the XTM II to enable interoperability with fielded XTM systems, he explained. Bennett noted the possibility of an evolution from Instant Bandwidth to the new Instant Network capabilities in the future.
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher
Stephen Hardy has covered fiber optics for more than 15 years, and communications and technology for more than 30 years. He is responsible for establishing and executing Lightwave's editorial strategy across its digital magazine, website, newsletters, research and other information products. He has won multiple awards for his writing.
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