Optical Internetworking Forum to Address 100G Long-haul DWDM

The Optical Internetworking Forum's Physical and Link Layer Working Group (PLL WG) designated a new work project to address 100G long-haul DWDM. The project will result in a DWDM transmission implementation agreement (IA) focused on a specific modulation format and receiver approach. It will seek to reach agreement on a Forward Error Correction (FEC) algorithm suitable for the long-haul 100G application. This implementation agreement will complement and build upon the work already underway defining 100 G Ethernet in the IEEE, and the new 100 G level of the Optical Transport Hierarchy (OTH) in the ITU-T.


The OIF said its goal is to foster the development of an ecosystem where service providers, data and optical networking equipment vendors, optical module and subsystem vendors, and underlying component providers will work together to accelerate the availability of high performance, cost-effective long distance transmission solutions for 100G.


"With network element vendors already in development for 100G, we will select an implementation approach supported by a critical mass within the industry," said David Stauffer, of IBM and the OIF's PLL WG chair. "We see an immediate need to focus on a solution for long-distance DWDM."


Additionally, while at the Forum's quarterly meeting this month, members of the PLL WG adopted baseline requirements for an electrical specification for 25 Gbps backplane (long reach) interfaces. This follows the prior adoption by the WG of baseline requirements for an electrical specification for 28 Gbps chip-to-chip and chip-to-module (short reach) interfaces. These electrical specifications will be added as additional clauses in the next generation of the Common Electrical I/O (CEI) implementation agreement.http://www.oiforum.com