Xena offers 800 Gigabit Ethernet traffic generation and analysis system

June 24, 2021

The test module is based on the Versal Premium FPGA, with native 112-Gbps PAM4 SerDes integration, from Xilinx, Inc. The company expects to be first to market with such an instrument.

Stephen Hardy

Xena Networks says that beta units of “Freya,” a 112-Gbps SerDes-based 800 Gigabit Ethernet test generation and analysis module, will ship this month to early adopters. The test module is based on the Versal Premium FPGA, with native 112-Gbps PAM4 SerDes integration, from Xilinx, Inc. The company expects to be first to market with such an instrument.

“The current top speed of 400 Gbps was only launched a couple of years ago, but there is already massive interest in the Ethernet Consortium’s standard for the new 800-Gbps and 1.6-Tbps speeds now being worked on,” explains Jacob Nielsen, CEO of Xena Networks. “Our customers can use Freya to validate the conformance, performance, and integrity of any networking devices and semiconductors designed to run 800G Ethernet before they reach the market.”

“We congratulate the team at Xena for delivering its world-class 800GbE TGA solution to enable numerous critical testing methodologies and ensure overall device integrity,” said Manuel Uhm, director of Silicon Marketing, Xilinx. “With Xilinx’s leading Versal ACAP portfolio that blends the flexibility of an FPGA along with the power and performance benefits by using hardened logic for key infrastructure on the device, we are pleased to see its successful deployment within Xena’s Freya test modules.”

“Thanks to key architectural and technology choices we made with Freya, we’re looking forward to rapidly enabling the full functionality of the test modules during the second half of 2021,” added Nielsen. “We also anticipate additional positive benefits such as improved margin on the Signal Integrity, further enabling reliable operation on DAC cables, full Auto-Negotiation & Link Training protocol support up to 800 Gbps, and improved visibility into the signal integrity of the received data.”

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About the Author

Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave

Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.

Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.

He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.

You can connect with Stephen on LinkedIn as well as Twitter.